Man Cleared Of Murder By ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ Wins Damages
Man Cleared Of Murder By ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ Wins Damages
A man cleared of murder after he was spotted in the background of outtake footage of TV comedy Curb Your Enthusiasm has been awarded damages of $320,000.
Juan Catalan, 28, spent five months in jail charged with the murder of 16-year-old Martha Puebla until he used outtake footage - showing him at an L.A. Dodgers game in Los Angeles when the crime occurred - to prove his innocence. Catalan’s attorney Todd Melnik trawled through hours of footage of a televised game between the Dodgers and the Atlanta Braves that the defendant attended with his six-year-old daughter, before discovering the Larry David-starring comedy was being shot at the stadium on the same day.
Catalan could be seen clearly eating a hot dog in a scene that ended up on the cutting room floor. A time code on the footage proved Catalan’s whereabouts - 20 miles from the murder scene in San Fernando. Los Angeles City Council has agreed to pay $320,000 to Catalan.
