Yahoo! News - Cow Earns Montana Rancher a Free Drink: "Wed Aug 25, 8:05 AM ET
BOZEMAN, Mont. - Rancher Skip Hougland figured it was an offer he couldn't refuse: Bring in a cow, get a free frozen blended coffee beverage.
So he took Bonnie Prince Charles Edward Stuart, a Scottish Highland steer who generally goes by 'Charlie,' to a local Dairy Queen on Tuesday and got a free 'Moolatte' as part of a corporate promotion.
Hougland brought Charlie to town from his Willow Creek ranch after reading that people who brought a living cow to any participating business would be rewarded with a free coffee-flavored Dairy Queen version of a latte.
Charlie, who is 10, was the only animal that made an appearance at any of the area outlets of the Minneapolis-based chain.
Store manager Minde Erickson said she was surprised Hougland showed up with Charlie. 'It seems like a lot of work,' she said.
After numerous children finished marveling at Charlie, who has short legs, shaggy red hair and long horns, Hougland put the steer back in the trailer and collected his reward. "
09:51 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Student in Hot Water Over Ex-Lax Brownies: "Wed Aug 25,10:27 PM ET
FAIRMONT, Minn. - Pranksters take note: baking Ex-Lax into a tray of brownies and leaving them in the teacher's lounge could put a gross misdemeanor on your record.
That's what happened to Katie Jablinske, a former Fairmont high school student. Jablinske was originally charged with a felony, but she pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in exchange for the lesser charge.
A judge released Jablinske without jail time under the condition she stay out of trouble for one year.
Jablinske's lawyer, Michael O'Rourke, said he and members of the public 'were surprised that something like this could be charged as a felony.'
'This was a prank,' he said.
Jablinske, 18, who moved to Nebraska to attend college, said in June she was shocked charges were filed in the first place. She said the brownies prank was just a joke and she meant no harm to any teachers.
No one ate the brownies, perhaps because rumors were circulating that they contained rat poison or marijuana.
Police Chief Greg Brolsma said there is nothing specific in the law making so-called pranks legal just because they're meant in jest. "
09:46 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Squirrel Runs Circles Around Yanks, Tribe: "Wed Aug 25,10:30 PM ET
CLEVELAND - This squirrelly newcomer caused quite a stir at Jacobs Field. A brown squirrel ran onto the field in the bottom of the third inning Wednesday night and ran circles around the New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians.
After romping through the outfield, it dashed toward the infield to the delight of the cheering crowd. The squirrel then ran between Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez and shortstop Derek Jeter, who stood watching the critter.
After a brief delay, play continued when the squirrel ran out and settled down in center field. Several players smiled at the sight, and the squirrel was still out there in the fifth inning.
The Indians superimposed a team jersey over a photo of the squirrel on the giant television screen in center. "
09:45 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Ohio Woman Grateful for Hang-Up Call: "Thu Aug 26, 7:32 AM ET
SUMMERFORD, Ohio - A woman says her life was likely saved when she answered a hang-up phone call.
Mary Dhume was watching television Monday night when the phone in the next room rang. She got up to answer it, but there was no one at the other end of the line.
Suddenly, she heard breaking glass and saw her living room wall collapse onto the chair where she'd been sitting.
A pickup truck had missed the curve on the road in front of Dhume's home and smashed into the century-old house. Dhume said she saw the driver run away as she dialed 911.
Three hours later, State Highway Patrol troopers arrested Carlos Cummings, 41, of Mechanicsburg, on a charge of failing to control a vehicle.
'The phone ringing at that particular time? That's one of those things people would never believe,' Dhume said. 'Maybe it was God calling to tell me to get out of my living room.' "
09:43 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Worm Sightings Shut Hong Kong Public Pools: "Thu Aug 26, 7:40 AM ET
HONG KONG - A spate of worm sightings in public swimming pools has forced several closures and police said Thursday they have been called to investigate the case that's left Hong Kong feeling a bit squeamish.
The worms, actually mosquito larvae, don't pose a health threat but they have generated intense local media coverage including TV footage showing them wiggling in the water.
Worms have been found in three pools that have now been closed for cleaning, and police are trying to determine whether a crime has been committed.
The worm sightings emerged at the same time public pool lifeguards are locked in a wage dispute with the government, but the lifeguards have denied planting them.
Experts say swimming pools are not likely places for such worms to grow naturally.
'There may be a human factor in this,' said Paul Cheung, a leisure and cultural services official. "
09:38 Posted by David
Student Charged With Clogging Toilet : Thu Aug 26, 7:37 AM ET
PORT OF SWEET GRASS, Mont. - Jesse Huffman insists he didn't do it on purpose, but the toilet he left plugged after "nature called" at this border crossing in north-central Montana has him facing criminal charges.
Toole County authorities charged the 19-year-old college student from Great Falls with criminal mischief after a border agent accused him of intentionally clogging the toilet.
Huffman said the clogged piping was completely unintentional, the result of an urgent, but natural bodily function.
"I've never been arrested before or anything like that, and I get arrested for taking a dump," said Huffman, a student at Montana State University in Bozeman.
Huffman was returning to Montana from a trip to Lethbridge, Alberta with four friends Saturday. Port authorities stopped their car for what was apparently a random search. The car's 19-year-old driver was cited for illegally possessing alcohol.
Huffman said he asked to use the bathroom while waiting for the driver.
A short time later, a port inspector discovered the toilet was clogged and threatened charges, Huffman said.
Cory Grayson, one of Huffman's friends, said he couldn't believe it when border agents first threatened charges.
"I didn't think they were serious at first, I was just laughing so hard," he said.
Port Director Larry Overcast said he could not comment on the case.
Huffman said he has hired an attorney and intends to fight the charge.
09:27 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - 'Let's Just Cuddle': "Wed Aug 25, 8:26 AM ET
BERLIN (Reuters) - A leading German dictionary publisher plans to launch a guide it says will help men translate the subtext of female conversation.
The Langenscheidt publishing group, best known for its well-respected yellow foreign language dictionaries, will launch sales of a 128-page book to translate such baffling female banter as: 'Let's just cuddle' into 'No sex tonight please!.'
'Each themed chapter offers men behavioral tips and exposes hidden messages transmitted by women in everyday situations, such as on holiday or during shopping trips,' said Silke Exius, chief editor at Langenscheidt.
Other examples in the 'German-Woman/Woman-German' edition due out in October include explaining why a woman asks a man to take interest in the pair of shoes she may be trying on.
She wants him to look because he's about to pay for them. "
09:25 Posted by David
'Sorcerer' Kills 10, Sells Bodies for Cremation: "Thu Aug 26, 9:11 AM ET
BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese police have detained a 'sorcerer' who killed 10 people and sold their bodies to bereaved families to cremate in the place of loved ones who were secretly buried, police and a state-run newspaper reported Thursday.
The 34-year-old man, surnamed Lin, strangled or poisoned the 10 villagers at his home, next to a temple, in the southern province of Guangdong, the Beijing Morning Post said.
Chinese tradition, especially in rural villages, holds that burial brings peace to the dead and tombs are placed according to the laws of geomancy. But in a country of 1.3 billion people, the seemingly haphazard siting of graves wastes scarce farmland.
Since 1978, when China launched its reform drive, all levels of government have recommended cremation to save land.
'This region cremates its dead, but local people prefer to be buried in the ground. People bought the bodies to be cremated in place of their relatives,' a police official told Reuters Thursday.
Lin, whom the newspaper called a sorcerer locals consulted to communicate with spirits, sold the bodies for 1,000 to 8,000 yuan ($120 to $966) each, the newspaper quoted local police as saying.
Police caught Lin plying his trade in corpses in mid-August in the city of Shantou, it said.
Chinese newspapers, unrestrained by the contempt of court laws of the West, often quote police confirming guilt or a confession before a defendant has been charged or the case has gone to court.
Communist China considers itself free of mass violence. Its sensationalist but still self-censoring media tend to play down cases of serial murderers.
A Beijing taxi driver was executed in June for killing seven people, including four prostitutes.
Last year, China executed one of its worst serial killers in history, a man who murdered 67 people and raped two dozen women in a four-year spree."
17:40 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Couple Find Cocaine Hidden in Hotel Chair: "Thu Aug 19,10:36 PM ET
GRAHAM, N.C. - For a brief time, the Best Western Inn here had a chair worth about $50,000. The chair in room 204 wasn't an antique. Instead, an Ohio couple who stayed in the room Saturday found 4.4 pounds of cocaine in the chair, police said.
Graham police Capt. Jeff Prichard said someone cut a slit in the chair's seat and tucked two packages of cocaine inside.
A truck driver from Ohio and his wife rented a room there Saturday and discovered the cocaine about 6 p.m., Officer Robert Lovette said in a police report.
The truck driver told Lovette that a package fell out when he moved the chair. The couple picked up the package, thought it might be narcotics and called 911.
Graham Officer R. Parks tested its contents and confirmed that it was cocaine.
As officers searched the room, the truck driver tipped the chair and police found a second package of cocaine. Each package contained about a kilo of powder cocaine.
The couple are not suspects.
Police are looking for others who stayed in the room recently. 'I wouldn't call them suspects, but they are someone we would like to speak with,' Prichard said. "
17:34 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Bear Ignores Blaring Music, Raids Garden: "Fri Aug 20, 5:09 PM ET
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. - Not even loud rock 'n' roll music could discourage a 350-pound bear that repeatedly raided plums and watermelons from a couple's garden.
Eldon and Gerry Nihues hung a radio from the plum tree, tuned it into a rock station and turned it up loud in hopes of scaring off the bear, which helped itself to about 50 watermelons, including 11 in one night.
'It was this crazy rock stuff that was playing, but it didn't bother him,' Gerry Nihues said. 'He'd eat the plums right out from under where the thing was playing.'
The state Division of Wildlife set out a trap, and the bear walked into it sometime Wednesday night. Wildlife officers tranquilized the bear, tagged it and released it in a remote area.
Eight bears have been relocated from the area in the past three weeks, Division of Wildlife spokesman Randy Hampton said.
More encounters are expected statewide as bears try to fatten up before hibernating for the winter. "
17:28 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Komodo Dragon dies in zoo love plunge: "Sat Aug 21, 7:28 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - Love could not conquer all for a rare, 10-year-old Komodo Dragon who plunged to her death at London Zoo after she scaled a dividing wall to reach her mate.
Six-foot-long (2-metre-long) Nina died from internal bleeding after she fell trying to reach Raja, who is still in good health and on display, a zoo spokesman said on Saturday.
'Immediate measures have been put in place to prevent a similar incident happening and we are carrying out a thorough investigation into what occurred,' London Zoo's curator David Field said in a statement.
The Komodo Dragon is the largest flesh-eating lizard in the world and is found in the wild on only four small Indonesian islands. They number about 5,000 worldwide.
Nina arrived at the zoo last month and staff hoped she and Raja would mate and become a major attraction.
The dragons were being held in adjacent cages separated by an 8-foot-high wall with a gap at the top so they could gradually become accustomed to each other."
12:35 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Would You Like Some Pot With That?: "Wed Aug 18, 7:34 PM ET
AMBLER, Pa. - The secret at one McDonald's wasn't just in the sauce. The manager at a McDonald's in Montgomery County, Pa., has pleaded guilty to selling pot along with Big Macs.
Authorities say word about Denise Stilwagon's $10 bags got out and she sold some of the illegal weed to an undercover detective.
Stilwagon was sentenced to time already served plus four years of probation.
Her boyfriend and supplier, James Harry, has also pleaded guilty and was ordered to serve 90 days in jail. "
12:32 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - L.A. May Ban Silly String on Halloween: "Wed Aug 18,10:23 PM ET
LOS ANGELES - Banning Silly String in Tinseltown on Halloween? It's a proposal that to some seems almost too silly for words.
The City Council considers the issue no laughing matter, however, and on Tuesday gave preliminary approval to an ordinance banning the discharge of the gooey aerosol string in Hollywood on Oct. 31.
'I know we may think this is silly, but it is not silly to the storm drain system of Los Angeles, or to the ultimate destination, the ocean,' said Councilman Tom LaBonge, whose district includes Hollywood.
The council voted 10-0 to approve the ordinance, but another vote is required before it can take effect. "
12:30 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - German dog eats owner's money: "Thu Aug 19,12:10 PM ET
BERLIN (Reuters) - A German woman thought she had been robbed by sedative-toting thieves when she returned to her car to find 380 euros (242 pounds) missing and her dog vomiting, only to discover the pet had eaten the cash, police say.
'She thought the dog had been drugged and that thieves had taken the money,' a police spokesman in the western town of Aschaffenburg said on Thursday. 'The woman had withdrawn the money and hidden it under bank statements on the passenger seat.'
She informed police and took the dog to a vet.
'The vet gave the dog an injection and after 20 minutes six of the 50 euro notes reappeared,' the spokesman said.
'The dog spat out the rest of the money in shreds along with the bank statements.'
'It should be noted that the damaged bank notes can be changed at the state central bank, so that there was no material loss in this case,' the police said in a statement. "
12:28 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Human Ad Given Five Months Jail for Diving: "Thu Aug 19, 9:15 AM ET
ATHENS (Reuters) - A Canadian man advertising an online gaming site, who broke security and jumped into the Olympic diving pool, was given a five-month prison term on Wednesday for trespassing and disturbing public order, court officials said.
'He has appealed the decision and was released without bail,' the official said.
The man, who disrupted the men's three-meter synchronized diving Monday when he climbed up on a springboard and jumped into the indoor pool to the delight of hundreds of cheering fans, was also fined 300 euros.
Wearing a tutu and with the Web Site address written on his chest, he raced up the ladder, dodging tight Games security. "
12:25 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Bear Passes Out After Only 36 Beers: "Thu Aug 19, 8:23 AM ET
SEATTLE (Reuters) - A black bear was found passed out at a campground in Washington state recently after guzzling down three dozen cans of a local beer, a campground worker said on Wednesday.
'We noticed a bear sleeping on the common lawn and wondered what was going on until we discovered that there were a lot of beer cans lying around,' said Lisa Broxson, a worker at the Baker Lake Resort, 80 miles northeast of Seattle.
The hard-drinking bear, estimated to be about two years old, broke into campers' coolers and, using his claws and teeth to open the cans, swilled down the suds.
It turns out the bear was a bit of a beer sophisticate. He tried a mass-market Busch beer, but switched to Rainier Beer, a local ale, and stuck with it for his drinking binge.
Wildlife agents chased the bear away, but it returned the next day, said Broxson.
They set a trap using as bait some doughnuts, honey and two cans of Rainier Beer. It worked, and the bear was captured for relocation. "
12:23 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Woman Holds $4,000 Divorce Party in Park: "Thu Aug 19, 8:21 AM ET
RIYADH (Reuters) - A Saudi woman threw a 15,000 riyal ($4,000) party in a public park to celebrate her divorce from her abusive husband, al-Watan newspaper said on Thursday.
The daily said the woman, who was not identified, gathered family and friends in the city of Medina to celebrate the end of her unhappy marriage -- a rare occurrence in the ultra-conservative kingdom which frowns upon divorce.
She also invited everyone that was in the park at the time to join in, plying them with food and drink, the paper added.
Divorce is legal under Islam but rights activists say many women in Saudi Arabia prefer to stay in unhappy or violent marriages rather than be stigmatized by society or lose custody of their children. "
12:22 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Judge Accused of Masturbating Resigns: "Thu Aug 19, 8:25 AM ET
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (Reuters) - An Oklahoma judge facing removal over charges that he masturbated and used a device for enhancing erections under his robes during trials said on Wednesday he would retire from the bench.
Creek County District Judge Donald Thompson, 57, wrote to Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry resigning effective Sept. 1, a move that will allow him to retire with a full pension.
A former state representative and a judge for 22 years, Thompson was accused by state Attorney General Drew Edmondson of using a 'penis pump' to enhance erections during trials and exposing himself to a court reporter several times while masturbating on the bench.
The state Court on the Judiciary was scheduled to hear a motion on Friday to suspend Thompson.
The judge has denied the charges and did not refer to them in his letter of resignation.
'I have greatly enjoyed my public service and offer my gratitude for the public trust reposed in me during the terms I served,' he said. "
17:01 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Robbers Strike Jelly Bean Plant: "Fri Aug 13, 8:57 AM ET
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Two armed men robbed the Jelly Belly factory north of San Francisco, making off with cash but none of the jelly beans that were a favorite of the late President Reagan, officials said on Thursday.
Two masked men entered the factory after the close of business on Tuesday as staff were counting the takings from the visitors center. They fled with an undisclosed amount of money but no sweets.
'It happened after hours, number one, so no visitors were put in any danger and no one was hurt here,' company president Robert Simpson told Reuters by telephone. 'The outcome was as good as we could have hoped for in circumstances like that.'
Jelly Belly, which says it is the largest U.S. maker of jelly beans, gained much publicity from Reagan who kept a jar of the company's jelly beans in his office. "
17:00 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Inmate Loses Court Bid to Grow Hair: "Fri Aug 13, 8:51 AM ET
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Californian prison officials can cut the hair of an inmate despite his objection that to do so would violate his Native American religious beliefs, a U.S. appeals court ruled on Thursday.
Philip Henderson had maintained that cutting his hair, except under extraordinary circumstances, would defile the creator.
But the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals backed a lower court ruling that said the California Department of Corrections' reasons for requiring short hair -- such as making inmates easier to detect if they try to escape -- were justified.
'We therefore affirm the district court's judgment and its conclusion that the CDC's hair length regulation is reasonably related to legitimate penological interests,' the three-judge panel ruled. "
16:58 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Blazing Bunny Spreads Fire at Cricket Club: "Sat Aug 14,12:30 PM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - A rabbit set alight by a bonfire at a British cricket club got its revenge when it ran burning into a hut and set it ablaze destroying costly equipment, the club said on Friday.
Members of Devizes cricket club in Wiltshire, western England, were burning dead branches when a rabbit caught up in the waste sped burning from the flames spreading a fire which destroyed lawnmowers and tools worth $110,000.
'After it had been going 5 minutes, the rabbit shot out of the bonfire on fire and went into the hut which is our equipment store,' club chairman John Bedbrook told Reuters.
Two fire engines were called to extinguish the blaze. The rabbit's skeleton was discovered in the charred hut.
'The firemen were certainly concerned about the rabbit. They felt sorry for it,' said Bedbrook. "
21:59 Posted by David
Apology Given for Lemonade Stand Closing
: "Aug 12, 9:57 AM (ET)
ST. LOUIS (AP) - Two seventh grade girls really know a thing or two about turning lemons into lemonade. They were doing a booming business at their lemonade stand Wednesday - a day after a neighbor complained and the city Health Department temporarily put them out of business.
Mim Murray, 10, and Marisa Miller-Stockie, 12, of St. Louis, have sold lemonade together for three summers, hoping to save enough for laptop computers before school starts.
But the girls said a Health Department inspector told them Tuesday they didn't have the proper business licenses and were selling unsafe ice cubes. The girls were using powdered lemonade mix with ice cubes bought from a store.
A resident, O.V. Carreathers, 48, had registered a complaint about the stand on Friday with the city's Citizens Service Bureau. The girls didn't work Monday, but the inspector found them Tuesday.
Carreathers said she wanted to keep the girls off her property: 'I just didn't want them blocking my walkway.'
The girls said their stand had been on the grass behind Carreathers' property.
After the stand was shut down Mim's mother, Germaine Murray, called a St. Louis television station and the family's pastor, Monsignor Salvador Polizzi. He brought the situation to the attention of Mayor Francis Slay.
Melba Moore, the city's health commissioner, said temporary food and beverage vendors are supposed to obtain permits, but that doesn't apply to children's lemonade stands.
"It should not have happened. And I apologize," said Moore, who gave the girls $3 Wednesday for a 25-cent cup of lemonade.
Besides earning $112 Wednesday, the girls said they have learned something from their lemonade experience: "You don't have to sit there and take it," Mim said.
Marisa added, "We learned to stand up for ourselves."
--
Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, http://www.post-dispatch.com "
16:47 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Couple quits smoking for health of parrot: "Wed Aug 4, 6:07 PM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - A couple booked themselves into a clinic to quit smoking after the vet said it was the only way to save their beloved sick parrot.
Kevin Barclay and Sharon Wood gave up a 50-cigarette-a-day habit to save their Amazon orange-winged parrot J.J., said the vet, Glen Cousquer of the South Beech Veterinary Surgery in Essex.
'One of the key things that we need to get right with parrots generally is air quality,' he told Reuters on Wednesday.
'This particular bird presented with very severe respiratory problems. The owners were instructed to do everything they could to improve the bird's environment.'
'I think I must have shaken the owners up quite badly, because the next time I saw them they actually had booked themselves into one of these anti-smoking clinics and were determined to stop. They've gone five weeks,' he said.
J.J., he said, 'is doing really well. It is certainly going to improve his life expectancy.'
It may help the owners, too. "
16:46 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Mexico finds two "Most Wanted" in jail: "Sat Aug 7, 2:57 PM ET
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Two Mexicans from a 'Most Wanted' list released to great fanfare by the government last week have already been tracked down -- in jail.
Alfredo Cervantes Ramirez, also known as 'The Bullet-swallower,' and Alvaro Dario de Leon Valdes were withdrawn from the list after officials discovered they were already in prison, the Mexico City prosecutor's office said on Saturday.
The state prosecutor's office put out a statement saying it 'recognizes and values the unmatched cooperation of the citizens and authorities of the country ... which allowed us to locate these two dangerous evil-doers, who are already in jail.' "
16:44 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Man cuts off penis in sex protest: "Sat Aug 7, 7:14 PM ET
RABAT (Reuters) - A 70-year-old Moroccan cut off his penis in protest at his wife's long refusal to have sex with him, hospital sources say.
The unidentified man severed his organ on Monday in the southern town of Ait Ourir and was taken to a hospital in the nearby city of Marrakesh for treatment.
'He didn't bring his penis with him. He has left the hospital well, but without his penis,' a doctor from the Ibn Toufail hospital told Reuters on Saturday. "
16:42 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Lightning Jolts Teen Working on Computer: "Fri Aug 6,10:30 AM ET
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa - A teenager working on his computer was jolted by a lightning strike that hit his family's home.
Mike Bergeron, 15, of Council Bluffs was in the basement of the home about 9:30 p.m. on Tuesday when lightning struck the roof of the house, traveled through the electrical lines to the computer and shocked him.
Linda Bergeron said the impact of the jolt sent her son flying about 5 feet backward. His sister was heading downstairs at the time and heard him fall.
'He was unconscious when she found him,' Linda Bergeron said.
She said her son spent time in cardiac care at the hospital. He was released Wednesday morning but is going through outpatient care.
'I never would have expected something like this to happen,' Linda Bergeron said. 'It's a very weird thing.' "
16:36 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Man Glues Hand to Girlfriend in Prison: "Fri Aug 6, 8:17 AM ET
MADRID (Reuters) - A German prisoner in Madrid and his girlfriend glued their hands together during a jail visit in an attempt to fight the man's possible extradition to Germany, judicial sources said on Thursday.
The pair were taken to hospital, where doctors were considering whether to operate or use a powerful solvent to separate the man's left hand from the woman's right.
The glue is a type normally used in car repairs.
Spanish police arrested the 39-year-old man in the southern city of Cadiz in April on request from Germany, where he faces accusations of smuggling women from Eastern Europe to force them into prostitution, the judicial sources said.
The Madrid court studying the extradition request will not make a decision for several months, they added. The man has a separate judicial case pending in Spain and authorities want it resolved before any handover to Germany. "
21:37 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Priest and nun convicted after car romp: "Thu Jul 29,12:22 PM ET
BLANTYRE (Reuters) - A Malawian court has convicted a Catholic priest and a nun of disorderly conduct after they were caught engaged in a sexual act in a parked car with tinted windows.
The Malawian priest, 43, and the 26-year-old nun from neighbouring Zambia spent the night in police cells after being caught in the act on Wednesday, police said.
Passers by alerted police at Lilongwe International Airport after the parked Toyota Corolla, which had tinted windows, began shaking in what police described as 'a funny manner'.
A court in the capital Lilongwe handed down suspended jail sentences of six months with hard labour after the pair pleaded guilty to charges of idleness and disorderly conduct.
'These people were caught in a sex act,' Assistant Superintendent Kelvin Maigwa told Reuters.
Officials in the Roman Catholic Church, whose priests are barred from sex or marriage, declined to comment. "
21:25 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Woman Who Stole Fuel Ordered to Wear Sign: "at Jul 31,10:39 PM ET
SALISBURY, Md. - A woman who stole $4.52 worth of fuel was ordered to stand outside the gas station Friday wearing a sandwich board sign that declared: 'I was caught stealing gas.'
Sherelle Purnell obeyed the court order, although by the time she arrived 90 minutes late to her noon sentence, the crowd of people that gathered to watch her had dispersed.
'There were parents who came with their children, wanting to teach them a lesson,' said Jan Phipps, manager of Gordy's Tiger Mart, which pushed for the unorthodox punishment.
Purnell, 18, who was caught on surveillance tape speeding away from the gas pump, walked along the convenience shop's grassy storefront as passing drivers honked horns and made catcalls.
Andrew Black, who stopped by on his lunch break, was critical of the punishment and converted an old beer poster into a sign protesting high gas prices.
'What is this, the Middle Ages?' said Black.
Purnell declined to comment.
Some passers-by considered the punishment to be a good deterrent.
'Embarrassment is the best way to deal with these things,' Randy Jedlicka said. "
21:22 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Couple Kicked Off Flight Over Risque Shirt: "Sun Aug 1, 9:53 PM ET
MIAMI - A couple returning home from a Costa Rican vacation was ejected from an American Airlines flight because the man was wearing a T-shirt depicting a bare breast.
Oscar Arela and his girlfriend were removed from Flight 952 on Saturday after he refused to change the shirt or turn it inside out at Miami International Airport.
The couple, who were making a connecting flight, said nobody on their earlier flight objected to the shirt and claimed the airline violated their constitutional right to free speech.
'It's a picture of a man and woman, and the woman's breast is showing,' said his girlfriend, Tala Tow. 'The flight attendant basically walked up to us and yelled, 'You have to take off that shirt right now.''
American spokesman Tim Wagner said Sunday that crew members acted properly, and said the shirt was more graphic than the couple described. The airline gave them a refund, he said.
Wagner noted on American's Web site the policy clearly states that someone who is 'clothed in a manner that would cause discomfort or offense to other passengers' can be removed from a flight. "
21:18 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - South Africa denies plans to cancel Christmas: "Mon Aug 2,11:26 AM ET
CAPE TOWN (Reuters) - South Africa has denied a media report that it plans to cancel Christmas.
The Sunday Times newspaper ran a banner headline 'Christmas may be cancelled' above a story quoting a task team evaluating the number of public holidays as warning no holiday should be regarded as sacred in multi-racial, multi-faith South Africa.
'I would like to reassure all of you that there is no such report which has been tabled before me,' Home Affairs Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula told a parliamentary committee on Monday in response to the article.
'There has not been that recommendation.'
Last year the Advertising Standards Authority banned a Post Office advertisement asking children to write to Santa Claus, saying it was 'profiting from the natural credulity of children' and perpetuating 'a falsehood that could break the fragile spirits of the already disillusioned youth of South Africa'. "
21:05 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Driving Teacher Without License for 43 Years: "Mon Aug 2,10:01 AM ET
BERLIN (Reuters) - A Berlin driving instructor who taught more than 1,000 motorists how to drive says he never got a driver's license because he was too nervous to retake the test after he failed the first time -- 43 years ago.
'I flunked it because I drove too fast at a roundabout and didn't come to a complete standstill at a stop sign,' the instructor, identified by police as Wolf-Dieter R., told Berlin's B.Z. newspaper on Saturday. 'I was too afraid to try again.'
He was caught by police after a minor accident with a Polish truck recently. He told police he never had a license. He said it was his first accident after four decades driving cars, tractors, and even tanks as a former East German army soldier. "
21:03 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Drug Sniffer Dog Dies of Overdose: "Mon Aug 2,10:02 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - A police sniffer dog died of a suspected overdose while out hunting for drugs, British police said on Monday.
Todd, a 7-year-old Springer spaniel, had been looking for drugs in a field and car in Preston, northern England, when his handler noticed he was looking unwell.
He was taken to a vet and then rushed to an animal intensive care unit at Liverpool University, displaying symptoms of ingesting amphetamines, a Lancashire police spokeswoman said.
He died shortly afterwards.
The death was said to have devastated Todd's handler, Police Constable Roger Moore, his wife and two young children.
'He (Todd) lived with them and they would all go for walks with him -- he was their dog,' Sergeant Peter Crane of Preston's dog unit told the Daily Mirror.
'He's going to be very difficult to replace, but police work is dangerous and unfortunately Todd has become a casualty.'
Police said a post mortem on Todd was being carried out. "
