Tuesday, December 02, 2014
Town considers raising dog poo fine to match mistake on signs
The community of North Hempstead in Long Island, New York, says residents have to pick up after their dogs or pay the price – but exactly what that price is might be a little confusing.
Signs in North Hempstead say the maximum fine for failing to pick up after a dog is $250. But that is a mistake, according to town code. The actual fine is $25.
Community leaders have been considering raising the fine to what is actually posted. They want to do that instead of footing the bill for replacing hundreds of signs for a crime that is not easy to stop.
“It is hard to enforce, because you actually have to catch the dog in the act in order to give them a citation,” said North Hempstead town spokeswoman Carole Trottere. The issue is expected to be discussed at a public hearing on Dec. 9.
There's a news video here. (I think you get one 'free' viewing, after which it appears you have to log in.)
Signs in North Hempstead say the maximum fine for failing to pick up after a dog is $250. But that is a mistake, according to town code. The actual fine is $25.
Community leaders have been considering raising the fine to what is actually posted. They want to do that instead of footing the bill for replacing hundreds of signs for a crime that is not easy to stop.
“It is hard to enforce, because you actually have to catch the dog in the act in order to give them a citation,” said North Hempstead town spokeswoman Carole Trottere. The issue is expected to be discussed at a public hearing on Dec. 9.
There's a news video here. (I think you get one 'free' viewing, after which it appears you have to log in.)
Man spent 20 minutes breaking into business, stole a couple of sausages then fell asleep
Police in Austin, Texas, have arrested a man who they say broke into a business, stole a couple of sausages and fell asleep.
According to an arrest affidavit, 28-year old Ricardo Cardona tried for 20 minutes to kick down the door at Hudson Meats before finally succeeding.
“He comes over to the cooler and grabs a couple sausages. Goes back outside, then comes back inside,” said Ashley Booth, office manager at Hudson Meats. Surveillance cameras captured Cardona walk over to the meat cooler, quickly realize it wasn’t for him, then turn back.
Cardona walked into the office at about 5:30am, found a coat, kicked his feet up on a desk and fell asleep. When employees showed up for their shift at about 7am, they found the suspect and called police. According to the affidavit, Cardona woke up to the sight of officers and said “I don’t work here, sir.”
YouTube link.
He is charged with Criminal Trespass. Cardona told police he was out drinking with friends the night before and was likely cold before entering Hudson Meats. Police don’t think the suspect had any plans to steal from the business. He also didn't eat the sausages. This all happened during Hudson Meats’ busiest time, rifle season, when hunters bring their trophies to be processed for meals.
“He comes over to the cooler and grabs a couple sausages. Goes back outside, then comes back inside,” said Ashley Booth, office manager at Hudson Meats. Surveillance cameras captured Cardona walk over to the meat cooler, quickly realize it wasn’t for him, then turn back.
Cardona walked into the office at about 5:30am, found a coat, kicked his feet up on a desk and fell asleep. When employees showed up for their shift at about 7am, they found the suspect and called police. According to the affidavit, Cardona woke up to the sight of officers and said “I don’t work here, sir.”
YouTube link.
He is charged with Criminal Trespass. Cardona told police he was out drinking with friends the night before and was likely cold before entering Hudson Meats. Police don’t think the suspect had any plans to steal from the business. He also didn't eat the sausages. This all happened during Hudson Meats’ busiest time, rifle season, when hunters bring their trophies to be processed for meals.
Hot tub dispute over who was the highest paid escort led to arrest of three men
Deputies with Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office in South Carolina arrested a trio of men enjoying each other's company in a hot tub after two of them began fighting over which one of them was the highest paid escort.
Deputies said they were called to a home in Boiling Springs at approximately 1:30am on Sunday. Austin Adams, 18, and Michael Gordon, 33, had earlier visited a Spartanburg nightclub together, where they met Douglas Tench, 21. Tench told a deputy that he had “come down from Charlotte to go to a gay club in Spartanburg.”
While at the club, deputies said Adams and Gordon invited Tench back to the home where Gordon is dog-sitting for the home's owner. Deputies said both Adams and Tench reportedly worked as escorts. According to the incident report, Adams became violent while in the homeowner's hot tub and began kicking and hitting Tench after an argument over who made more money as an escort.
Tench then ran to a house across the street and called a friend who in turn called 911. Adams was arrested and charged with simple assault. Gordon and Tench were arrested on charges of providing alcohol to a minor. All three defendants “stated that they had been drinking,” according to the report, which consistently refers to the hot tub as a “hot tube.” They were transported to Spartanburg County Detention Center where they were booked on the misdemeanor counts.
Deputies said they were called to a home in Boiling Springs at approximately 1:30am on Sunday. Austin Adams, 18, and Michael Gordon, 33, had earlier visited a Spartanburg nightclub together, where they met Douglas Tench, 21. Tench told a deputy that he had “come down from Charlotte to go to a gay club in Spartanburg.”
While at the club, deputies said Adams and Gordon invited Tench back to the home where Gordon is dog-sitting for the home's owner. Deputies said both Adams and Tench reportedly worked as escorts. According to the incident report, Adams became violent while in the homeowner's hot tub and began kicking and hitting Tench after an argument over who made more money as an escort.
Tench then ran to a house across the street and called a friend who in turn called 911. Adams was arrested and charged with simple assault. Gordon and Tench were arrested on charges of providing alcohol to a minor. All three defendants “stated that they had been drinking,” according to the report, which consistently refers to the hot tub as a “hot tube.” They were transported to Spartanburg County Detention Center where they were booked on the misdemeanor counts.
Baby kiwi progressing well after undergoing surgery to fix its crooked beak
A baby kiwi in New Zealand has undergone two rounds of surgery to fix its crooked beak.
The 594-gram chick that is yet to be named was born in October with a misaligned bill.
It was a complicated birth, with the kiwi undergoing an assisted hatch after staff at Queenstown’s Kiwi Birdlife Park realised it wouldn’t be able to kick free of its shell because it had its foot caught over its head, similar to a breach birth for humans. Once born, it became apparent the chick’s misaligned beak would hinder feeding and inhibit its ability to survive and grow.
Massey University in Palmerston North suggested fixing the beak with a new technique being developed by veterinary surgeons at its Wildbase hospital. Wildbase director Brett Gartrell said the team performed corrective surgery on the tip of the little kiwi’s bill with great results.
He said it was difficult to bring back the bill into proper alignment as the tip of the lower bill had deviated sidewards like the end of a hockey stick and begun to curl upwards. The operations were particularly delicate as surgeons wanted to avoid damage to the sensitive blood and nerve supply that kiwis need to be able to sense food at the end of their bills. “We’re very happy with this little chick’s progress,” said Gartrell. The chick will be released into the wild once she reaches 1kg.
It was a complicated birth, with the kiwi undergoing an assisted hatch after staff at Queenstown’s Kiwi Birdlife Park realised it wouldn’t be able to kick free of its shell because it had its foot caught over its head, similar to a breach birth for humans. Once born, it became apparent the chick’s misaligned beak would hinder feeding and inhibit its ability to survive and grow.
Massey University in Palmerston North suggested fixing the beak with a new technique being developed by veterinary surgeons at its Wildbase hospital. Wildbase director Brett Gartrell said the team performed corrective surgery on the tip of the little kiwi’s bill with great results.
He said it was difficult to bring back the bill into proper alignment as the tip of the lower bill had deviated sidewards like the end of a hockey stick and begun to curl upwards. The operations were particularly delicate as surgeons wanted to avoid damage to the sensitive blood and nerve supply that kiwis need to be able to sense food at the end of their bills. “We’re very happy with this little chick’s progress,” said Gartrell. The chick will be released into the wild once she reaches 1kg.
Man charged after break-in at police station
A 38-year-old man from Bentley in Western Australia has been arrested after he allegedly broke into a police station on Sunday night.
Police say the man used a brick paver to smash a window at Kensington Police Station after jumping a side fence at about 6.45pm.
He was caught by police after crawling through the hole. The man was taken to Royal Perth Hospital after sustaining injuries during the alleged break-in.
He has been charged with criminal damage, trespass and breach of bail and is due to appear in the Perth Magistrates Court.
Police say the man used a brick paver to smash a window at Kensington Police Station after jumping a side fence at about 6.45pm.
He was caught by police after crawling through the hole. The man was taken to Royal Perth Hospital after sustaining injuries during the alleged break-in.
He has been charged with criminal damage, trespass and breach of bail and is due to appear in the Perth Magistrates Court.
Shoppers tried to help rat that visited beauty department of store
Shoppers at a Bedford store were surprised last Tuesday lunchtime when a rat scuttled into the beauty department.
Eyewitnesses say the rodent ran into the cosmetics and beauty area of the Debenhams store at around 1.30pm scaring a number of people before a member of staff cornered it in what is thought to be a storage cupboard.
One shopper said: "I was shocked when a rat scampered past me as I was going into Debenhams. A few of the sales staff ran away but some of the customers actually stood there and tried to help it.
YouTube link.
"The security guard told myself and another customer to stop filming. The rat then went into one of the store rooms and a sales girl closed the door behind it." It is not known what happened to the rat or where it came from. Debenhams have not commented on the situation.
Eyewitnesses say the rodent ran into the cosmetics and beauty area of the Debenhams store at around 1.30pm scaring a number of people before a member of staff cornered it in what is thought to be a storage cupboard.
One shopper said: "I was shocked when a rat scampered past me as I was going into Debenhams. A few of the sales staff ran away but some of the customers actually stood there and tried to help it.
YouTube link.
"The security guard told myself and another customer to stop filming. The rat then went into one of the store rooms and a sales girl closed the door behind it." It is not known what happened to the rat or where it came from. Debenhams have not commented on the situation.
Police hunt condiment car attackers
Flour, brown sauce, mayonnaise and jars of pickled onions have been thrown at cars in more than 50 cases across Oxford.
Vandals have been smashing windscreens and denting cars with the condiments in East Oxford, Cowley and Headington since October.
Drivers have been counting the cost of the vandalism, which police said has been carried out at random.
Paul Rogers from Headington Quarry had a 1.25kg bag of flour dent his car.
He said: “I heard a thud in the evening but thought nothing of it.
“When I walked around the back of the car in the morning I saw the bag of flour and a massive dent in my boot. I was lucky because the flour didn’t break the rear windscreen. But it’s cost nearly £1,200 to replace the boot and get a hire car for three days.” The 62-year-old added: “I’m a service engineer so my car is my office. I do over 1,000 miles a week and have all my tools in the back. Without my car I wouldn’t be able to do my job.” Councillor Roz Smith, wife of Mr Rogers, said that she was shocked by the incident. “It’s no laughing matter. It is just completely mindless, these people aren’t stealing anything, they’re just causing mindless damage.
“The neighbourhood police have been patrolling the area, but communities also need to be vigilant.” Helen Dancer of Headington Quarry, also had her vehicle targeted by vandals. She said: “We were brown-sauced. They threw a brown sauce bottle at the back of our car. It’s really upsetting because we’ve had to pay £300 excess and we’ve lost our no claims bonus on our car insurance. We have started parking our cars back-to-back in case they come back. I just hope they’ve finished with our street and moved on somewhere else.” Detective Sergeant Mark Hill, of Oxford CID, said: “We are investigating these crimes as a series.
“I am not going to disclose details of our investigation, but we are working with the neighbourhood team and looking at forensics. There isn’t a main area that has been targeted. It is sporadic around Oxford, but more events have occurred in Headington. Officers are looking at the possibility that the offenders were driving in a car during the attacks. In both the Headington Quarry cases Asda own-brand products were used, but Oxford CID said that vandals had used a wide range of branded products. DS Hill added: “Some may think the crimes are petty, but we are looking for witnesses and we need people who have seen anything to come forward.”
“When I walked around the back of the car in the morning I saw the bag of flour and a massive dent in my boot. I was lucky because the flour didn’t break the rear windscreen. But it’s cost nearly £1,200 to replace the boot and get a hire car for three days.” The 62-year-old added: “I’m a service engineer so my car is my office. I do over 1,000 miles a week and have all my tools in the back. Without my car I wouldn’t be able to do my job.” Councillor Roz Smith, wife of Mr Rogers, said that she was shocked by the incident. “It’s no laughing matter. It is just completely mindless, these people aren’t stealing anything, they’re just causing mindless damage.
“The neighbourhood police have been patrolling the area, but communities also need to be vigilant.” Helen Dancer of Headington Quarry, also had her vehicle targeted by vandals. She said: “We were brown-sauced. They threw a brown sauce bottle at the back of our car. It’s really upsetting because we’ve had to pay £300 excess and we’ve lost our no claims bonus on our car insurance. We have started parking our cars back-to-back in case they come back. I just hope they’ve finished with our street and moved on somewhere else.” Detective Sergeant Mark Hill, of Oxford CID, said: “We are investigating these crimes as a series.
“I am not going to disclose details of our investigation, but we are working with the neighbourhood team and looking at forensics. There isn’t a main area that has been targeted. It is sporadic around Oxford, but more events have occurred in Headington. Officers are looking at the possibility that the offenders were driving in a car during the attacks. In both the Headington Quarry cases Asda own-brand products were used, but Oxford CID said that vandals had used a wide range of branded products. DS Hill added: “Some may think the crimes are petty, but we are looking for witnesses and we need people who have seen anything to come forward.”
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