Curses, foiled again
When Jarrell Paul Arnold, 34, walked into a credit union in Anchorage, Alaska, and inquired about his account balance, the teller asked for his name, account number and photo identification. After complying, he showed the teller a note that read, “I have a gun. Give me all the money in your drawer.” The Anchorage Daily News reported the robber stuffed the cash in his jacket and took off, only to be promptly arrested.
Robbery suspect Thomas James, 24, died after he spray-painted his face to conceal his identity, according to sheriff’s deputies in Richland County, S.C.
Size matters
The Port of Seattle will have to pay about $1 million extra for its new cargo terminal because the trench dug to hold the electrical cable for cranes that lift containers from ships was too narrow for the cable. “Clearly, the contractor should’ve built the trench at 2.52 inches, and it’s 2.5,” Port Commission President Bill Bryant told the Seattle Times.
A bigger trench would’ve cost $500,000, so the Port decided to order a smaller 2-inch cable from Italy that cost $200,000. It’s also liable for a $1 million rent credit for the tenant whose use of the cable was delayed.
When guns are outlawed
Police in Elyria, Ohio, arrested Thomas B. Heffner, 49, and his 18-year-old son, Thomas W., for fighting with swords. “Heffner Jr. stated that he believes he was being treated unfairly and started to argue,” the police report said. Amy Heffner explained that when the argument intensified, her husband and son grabbed swords off the wall and continued to swing them at each other until the police arrived.
Keystone Kops
Six motorcycle cops crashed into each other while escorting the family of one of the country’s largest Harley-Davidson dealers to his funeral in Ormand Beach, Fla. A Florida Highway Patrol official told the Daytona Beach News-Journal the lead rider slowed down, but the riders near the back of the group didn’t, causing the chain-reaction crash.
Hunt & peckers
New York City signed a $982,269 contract with a New Jersey company to buy thousands of new manual and electric typewriters over the next three years and a $99,570 maintenance contract with a Manhattan firm to service existing typewriters. The New York Post reported most of the money was for the New York Police Department, which still uses typewriters to fill out property and evidence vouchers printed on carbon-paper forms.
The reliance on typewriters contributes to the slow pace of processing arrests, according to Edith Linn, a retired NYPD officer and professor of criminal justice at Manhattan’s Berkeley College. Of the roughly 500 NYPD officers Linn interviewed for her 2008 book Arrest Decisions, many cited the outdated equipment as a reason for their reluctance to make arrests for less serious crimes.
Compiled from the nation’s press by Roland Sweet. Authentication on demand.
