Re: Odd News... March 09
 

Man has electronic tag fitted to false leg

Bret Ravenhill, 29, was given the tag to ensure he obeyed a curfew after being convicted for the possession of cannabis.

He said a Group 4 security worker failed to notice that his left leg was made of metal and detachable.

Ravenhill, a forklift truck driver who lost the leg in a motorcycle crash six years ago, told The Sun: "Two friends were at my house when she came round and were killing themselves laughing.

"I thought she would realise straight away - but she never bothered to turn up my trouser leg or look underneath my sock. I just left things as they were for a joke."

Ravenhill was given probation by a judge but barred from going out at night for three months.

Despite security workers checking his tag every four weeks, none noticed it was attached to the metal leg.

He said: "I didn't break my curfew once - but I could have been out living it up every night. I'm no danger to the public - but what if they'd done the same thing to an armed robber?"

David Hanson, the justice minister, told the newspaper: "I am very concerned."

A spokesman for Group 4 added: "It would appear that in this instance the procedure has not been followed."
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Sounds like the procedure worked ok -- they monitored the leg, and he stayed near it. Mission accomplished. :evillaugh2:

Now THAT is recycling...
 

<h2>Councilman cleans up, but turns potty into planter</h2>SNELLVILLE, Ga. – Code enforcers at the urging of the mayor told Snellville City Councilman Robert Jenkins a month ago to clean up his property. And he did. Sort of. He was told to remove an old toilet and a broken-down car as well as trash.

He couldn't part with the toilet, which he said was in good shape. Instead he turned it into a planter, spreading rocks around the porcelain base and planting a tulip bulb, two bunches of daffodils and two iris plants.

Mayor Jerry Oberholtzer chuckled when he heard about it, saying he's glad Jenkins cleaned up his act.

Jenkins says his proud of his potted potty. He says it's his contribution to folk art, adding and that he loves to see things grow.
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Information from: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, http://www.ajc.com
==============================

Wonder if it will last through his first real party unscathed...

Re: Odd News... March 09
 

<h2>S.C. man charged after gun goes off in class</h2>ROCK HILL, S.C. – A South Carolina technical college student was arrested after authorities said a gun went off in his pocket during class. Reports released by police Thursday show the 19-year-old student originally said the gun fell from his pocket and went off during class at York Technical College on Wednesday.

But reports show the man later changed his story to say he was holding the gun and accidentally pulled the trigger. No one was injured.

Police found the .40-caliber Smith & Wesson handgun in the trunk of his mother's car. Officers said they don't think he wanted to hurt anyone.

The man was charged with carrying a weapon on school property, carrying a pistol unlawfully and discharging a firearm within city limits. He's been suspended from school.
====================

Ya gotta believe it was prefaced by a "hey, y'all, watch this..."... or its equivalent, "Hey, check this out..." :nono:

I'm hungry, dammit!
 

<h2>Octopus gets inside lunchbox at Boston aquarium</h2>BOSTON – What is 7 feet long, weighs 30 pounds, has eight arms and fits in a box slightly larger than a milk crate? Truman the octopus. Truman squeezed into a clear, acrylic box while trying to snag his lunch at the New England Aquarium in Boston.

Aquarium workers often place food inside locked boxes for the intelligent animals to crack open. It's what the aquarium calls an "enrichment activity," but it didn't go as planned Thursday.

In this case, crabs were locked in a smaller box inside the bigger box, which is 14 inches per side. The impatient Truman bypassed the locks and squeezed his body through a 2-inch hole in the exterior box.

He spent about 30 minutes inside before slithering out, delighting staff and guests who witnessed the spectacle.

He never did get the smaller box open.
==========================

Now *THAT* would have been cool to see...

There's a picture at this link... doesn't really show much, but you can see it.

Seven feet long, thirty pounds... squeezing through a two-inch whole? That's some pretty impressive compression...

Update: DOA
 

<h2>Iowa department for elderly to skip DOA label</h2>DES MOINES, Iowa (Reuters) – A plan to rename Iowa's department for the elderly will not result in its tag becoming the same as hospital code for "dead on arrival," the agency's chief said on Wednesday.

State lawmakers raised eyebrows when they voted earlier on Wednesday to change the name of the Department of Elder Affairs to the Department on Aging, or DOA.

Director John McCalley said he would use the shorthand DA instead.

"You can't have an acronym like this when you're referring to elderly people," said Representative Dave Heaton, 68, when the legislature approved the change.

Lawmakers want to make the department's name conform with those of federal agencies that deal with the elderly, said Representative Janet Petersen, 38.

She said the department's existing name is also a problem because some older Iowans dislike being referred to as "elders."

Iowa's governor must approve the change for it to become law.

(Reporting by Kay Henderson; Editing by xxx)
============================

Whew, that's a relief! No more confusion or concern... at least, not until the District Attorney (DA) and his office get wind of this...

Dedication to his work...
 

<h2>Man caught entering Spain with cocaine leg cast</h2>MADRID (Reuters) – A 66-year-old passenger who arrived at Barcelona airport in a wheelchair and with a leg cast made entirely of cocaine was arrested on Friday as he tried to get through customs.

The man, flying from Santiago, Chile, also had cocaine stashed in six cans of beer and two folding stools in his luggage, the Interior Ministry said. Police confiscated nearly 5 kilogrammes (11 pounds) of the drug in total.

Police believe the man, or his accomplices, may have broken the leg on purpose so as not to arouse the suspicions of customs officials. Spain is the primary entry point for cocaine into Europe and is the largest consumer of the drug in the European Union.

(Reporting by Sonya Dowsett; Editing by Phakamisa Ndzamela)
========================

Plaster of coca, anyone?

Certainly a gutsy move from the smuggler's perspective. Wonder what a drug-sniffing dog would have thought of all that?

*sigh*

I just realized that this probably means additional security checkpoint screening here in the US... :(

Re: Odd News... March 09
 

Yeah, I 'm sure they're gonna do that. ..soon as they come off their high! ;)

Wait, wait... don't tell me...
 

<h2>Speeder found in stolen car with stolen items, dog</h2>KENNER, La. – First of all, police said he was speeding. Second, the 18-year-old wasn't wearing a seat belt and was driving on a suspended license. But that was the least of his troubles. According to police, when the man was pulled over on Tuesday they found a marijuana cigarette. Then they found out the car he was driving was reported stolen. Then they found $27,000 worth of stolen goods in the car.

And when officers asked about the small dog on the front seat, the man could not tell them anything about it.

But a call to the veterinarian listed on the dog's tag led to its owner, who said the pet had been stolen during a home burglary.

Detectives were unsure if the suspect remained in jail Friday.
___
Information from: The Times-Picayune, http://www.nola.com
============================

Ya know, that's the way it is... one thing leads to another, and PRESTO! You've got a record a mile long...

Re: Odd News... March 09
 

SHUDDUP YA DUMB REDNECKS: Missouri state Sen. Kevin Engler is really fed up with people who litter, and sponsored a bill calling for the death penalty for littering. "I think killing one or two of them would be a fine first start and then the rest would fall in line," he said after introducing his proposed law on the Senate floor. In his address, he said "dumb rednecks" are "teaching [their children] to be white trash" by throwing refuse out car windows, and he was "sick of every week having to pick up litter" for them. Engler then announced he was "doing this tongue in cheek" and withdrew the bill to "make it a little tougher." When criticized for calling people "rednecks" and "white trash," Engler said "The only people I called names are the ones doing it. If they are offended, good." (Park Hills Daily Journal)

Re: Odd News... March 09
 

http://www.blogcdn.com/www.urlesque....2/hippotc5.jpg

C'mon!! Calling it a "freak accident" was really adding insult to injury, don't ya think?