Edmond Aviv, 62, was ordered to carry a sign that read, “I AM A BULLY” for five hours on a street corner as punishment for harassing his neighbor and her disabled children.
The sign also said, “I pick on children that are disabled, and I am intolerant of those that are different from myself. My actions do not reflect an appreciation for the diverse South Euclid community that I live in.”
Judge Gayle Williams-Byers, the municipal court judge, also said that the letters on the sign must be readable from 25 feet from where Aviv is standing.
This punishment is the result of Aviv’s neighbor claiming that the man has been harassing her and her disabled children for several years. His neighbor Sandra Prugh, said that the feud had been going on for the past 15 years. The feud escalated when Aviv applied kerosene to a fan and directed it to Prugh’s property. Aviv said that he was annoyed at the smell coming out of Prugh’s vent whenever she did laundry.
Both of Prugh’s adopted children are suffering from epilepsy and cerebral palsy. She also has a son with her husband who is paralyzed and suffers from dementia.
Aviv was charged with disorderly conduct and pleaded no contest. He was sentenced last month.
He arrived at the curbside with his sign before 9 a.m. on Sunday. Throughout the day, pedestrians and motorists yelled at him and honked their horns. Some even took pictures of him holding the sign. “The judge destroyed me,” Aviv said.
Man ordered by judge to display sign declaring he’s a bully for five hours: http://t.co/uXP2JMQv2h | (AP Photo) pic.twitter.com/PVD5a2OcHT
— POLITICO (@politico) April 13, 2014
One other order from the judge was for Aviv to write a letter of apology to Prugh. He wrote: “I want to express my sincere apology for acting irrationally towards your house and the safety of your children.” He also said that he understands the consequences of his actions and that he was not thinking when he did them.
The judge also sentenced Aviv to 15 days in jail in addition to undergoing counseling and anger management classes.
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