Another Go at Empire State Jumper

The Manhattan DA's office really wants to make sure people understand that jumping off the Empire State Building is not legal! Last year, a judge dismissed charges against "daredevil" Jeb Corliss who attempted to jump off the Empire State Building - with a parachute - in April 2006.

The Manhattan DA's office appeal notes "it took a number of security guards, police officers, two pairs of handcuffs, and the actual removal of a portion of the fence to keep defendant from performing this dangerous stunt." Corliss had sneaked his parachute and video camera in by wearing a fat suit and even managed to climb over a fence before security restrained him.

A lawyer for Corliss, an experienced BASE jumper, emphasized his client took many safety precautions and pointed out there wasn't even a law against jumping off city buildings. Apparently some of the argument stuck, as Judge Michael Albrecht found in his January 2007 ruling, "The circumstances surrounding this admittedly dangerous stunt suggest that rather than indifference to the risk of harm to others, [Corliss] took affirmative steps to ensure the safety of others." This prompted Mayor Bloomberg to say, "I don't know where the judge is coming from."

Corliss was not present at the hearing because, as his lawyer explained, "He's busy planning to be the first person in the world to fly like a squirrel through the air and land safely on the ground." Really - he is.