Yahoo! News - Love-making couple spark emergency: "Wed Oct 20,11:29 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - Police sprang into operation after receiving an emergency '999' phone alert from a woman apparently in some distress -- only to discover it had accidentally been made by a couple having sex.
Officers at Durham became alarmed when the call came through to their headquarters in the middle of the night and all they could hear was what sounded like a woman crying with a man's voice in the background.
Police traced the number and rushed to the scene, where they found the embarrassed and dishevelled couple who explained they were 'messing around'.
'It happened while they were having sex. The woman had depressed with her foot the '9' button on the phone which happened to be on the floor,' a Durham police spokesman said on Wednesday.
'It certainly put a smile on the faces on the police side -- we were just very relieved it wasn't a violent situation and that the couple were clearly getting on very well together.' "
21:38 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Driver fined for forcing pony into hatchback: "Thu Oct 21,11:10 AM ET
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch police have fined the driver of a small hatchback car after spotting a Shetland pony crammed in the back.
'The small Shetland pony had no room to move and his head was pressed against the window,' police said on Thursday. A woman on the back seat held the animal by a rope.
Police fined the 42-year-old German driver of the Volkswagen Polo 220 euros (150 pounds) for improper transport of the animal, just bought on a local Dutch market.
'Once the driver has obtained an export certificate, the pony can go to Germany,' police said. "
21:34 Posted by David
Kravitz Sued for $300G Over Toilet Damage : "Sun Oct 24, 3:05 AM ET Strange News - APNEW YORK - An insurance company has sued Lenny Kravitz, saying it had to pay for more than $300,000 worth of water damage in a neighbor's apartment after one of Kravitz's toilets overflowed two months ago.
Amica Mutual Insurance Co. says in court papers that the apartment of retired executive Joel M. Disend 'sustained catastrophic water damage' on Aug. 1 due to Kravitz's 'allowing a commode to become blocked, clogged and congested with various materials.'
Because of the damage, according to papers filed Wednesday in Manhattan's state Supreme Court, Amica had to pay $333,849.77 to fix Disend's condominium apartment on the floor below Kravitz's flat in their SoHo building.
No description of Disend's apartment was available, but Kravitz's 6,000-square-foot duplex, which he bought in October 2000 for $8 million, reportedly has five bedrooms, eight bathrooms, a billiards room and a 3,000 square-foot terrace.
The Grammy-winning musician's building also has rocker Courtney Love as a tenant.
Disend, 62, retired in 2000 as chairman and chief executive of New York Life Benefit Services, a financial consulting company and retirement plan provider.
Amica's lawyer, Allen D. Werter, did not return calls for comment.
A spokesperson for Kravitz also did not return calls for comment."
21:32 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Couple Allegedly Have Sex in Shoe StoreMon Oct 25, 1:19 PM ET
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. - Two out-of-towners got caught in a rain shower, and decided to seek refuge by breaking into a shoe store. Then one thing led to another — at least that's what the couple told the officer who found them having sex amid new boots in the store's display window.
The officer responding to a burglar alarm at Hacienda Western Wear on Tuesday tapped on the glass door, disturbing Pauline Grace Rainwater, 20, and Brandon Lee Clark, 18. The couple was naked, but Clark managed to cover himself with one hand, and wave at the police officer with the other.
The officer told the couple to get dressed. Court records show they did — and then they took off running. A call for backup brought more officers to the streets, and the two were arrested.
Clark and Rainwater were charged Thursday with burglary, resisting an officer, assaulting an officer and indecent exposure. Bail for each of the transients was set at $7,500.
21:31 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Deer Crashes Through Store Window in S.D.: "Mon Oct 25, 5:10 PM ET SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - A store owner said it would take at least a day to clean up after a deer crashed through a window and knocked over displays and merchandise inside.
The doe darted through traffic and through a side window at Balloons, Bears and Bouquets in southwest Sioux Falls on Sunday.
'So if there's any gratification, it's that it was a smaller window versus a larger (front) window,' said owner Ken Brunick.
Bystanders watched as the deer knocked over plants and displays in its search for a way out. Officers with the city's animal control department killed the deer and removed it. "
21:30 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Bart Simpson Would Be Proud of Them: "Fri Oct 22,10:01 AM ET MILAN (Reuters) - Four Italian teenagers have confessed to flooding one of Milan's best known schools, causing an estimated 500,000 euros ($630,900) in damage, because they did not want to sit a Greek exam.
The three girls and one boy, aged between 16 and 17, delivered a letter to the school's headmaster on Thursday, explaining how last weekend they blocked drains in a bathroom before they turned on washbasin taps and left them running.
The headmaster, Carlo Arrigo Pedretti, said the pupils wrote in the letter that they flooded the school to avoid having to sit their ancient Greek test on Monday morning.
'I am stunned, I cannot believe it,' Pedretti said. 'These kids have no idea of the consequence of their actions.'
The Parini school, located in the heart of Milan and which was recently refurbished, is the oldest state school in Italy.
The pupils have been suspended from school until next Monday. They were questioned by police on Thursday and could be put under investigation for aggravated vandalism, breaking and entering and causing a disruption to public services. "
21:29 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - 7-Eleven Gives Woman $711 Bonus for Baby: "ESSEXVILLE, Mich. - For 7-Eleven employee Erin Kappen, a surprise was in store when she had a baby. Because Parker John VanWormer weighed 7 pounds and 11 ounces when he was born Oct. 4, Kappen received a check for $711 from Garb-Ko Inc., which operates the Essexville 7-Eleven store where she has worked part-time for 18 months.
Saginaw-based Garb-Ko pays the $711 bonus to any employee giving birth to a 7-pound, 11-ounce baby. It operates 90 stores in Michigan, nine in Indiana and eight in Ohio.
'It's not something that happens every day, but through the 26 years that I have been with this company, it has happened several times,' Larry Hauck, the company's marketing director, told The Bay City Times for a Tuesday story.
Kappen, 22, of Bay City, said she hoped to use some of the gift money to open a bank account for Parker and pay some bills with the rest.
'I had no idea they were going to give me a check,' said Kappen, whose son now weighs 8 pounds and 5 ounces. 'I never knew that they had a program like that.' "
08:38 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Police Raid Cockroach-Infested Apartment: "Mon Oct 4, 4:11 PM ET ANSONIA, Conn. - They were looking for drugs, but also found bugs. Undercover agents raided an apartment early Saturday morning and found the place overrun with cockroaches.
Officers said the property was 'disgusting' and 'unsanitary.'
They also said they discovered some marijuana, cocaine and drug-packaging materials, but the tenants weren't home. Police said someone attempted to fumigate the apartment, but apparently was unsuccessful.
'Apparently, the bugs got to the dealers before the cops did,' Shelton Det. Sgt. Michael Madden said.
Police said they anticipate making arrests in connection with the raid. "
08:24 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Nameplate Switch Disrupts Council Meeting: "Wed Oct 6, 5:01 PM ET NITRO, W.Va. - A city councilwoman refused to take her seat because someone switched her nameplate with another council member and glued them down, leading the mayor to order the police chief to find the culprit.
Brenda Tyler refused to take her seat for Tuesday's meeting, said City Recorder Joan McClanahan. Councilman Tim Harrison tried to make a point of order about the seating arrangements, but Mayor Rusty Casto refused to recognize it until all regular business on the agenda was discussed.
Casto called the meeting 'the worst one I've seen in 25 years as mayor or a councilman.'
If the culprit is a city employee, he or she will be suspended for three days, Casto said.
McClanahan said many people use the council chambers, and it's not uncommon to find the nameplates moved.
'We will not be able to do anything for this city until we can resolve our own problems and not carry on childish and petty arguments,' McClanahan said. "
08:19 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Man Pours Gas Down Toilet, Causing Blast: "SALT LAKE CITY - If you can't stand the heat, don't pour gasoline down the toilet. An apartment tenant made that $75,000 mistake Tuesday.
The man came home for lunch and found gas leaking from the tank of his car. He caught the gas, and decided to dispose of it by dumping it down the toilet.
But the pilot light of a water heater ignited the fumes, causing a small explosion. The blast destroyed the porcelain toilet, and the intense heat from the flames melted the remaining pieces.
The man and three other people were able to get out of the home before the fire spread.
Officials said gasoline and kerosene should never be poured into the drain or toilet or sewer system. "
07:56 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Drunk Dozes Off in Sex Shop, Sparks Alert: "Wed Oct 6, 9:23 AM ET BERLIN (Reuters) - A German man got more excitement than he bargained for in a sex shop when he dozed off in a video booth, got locked in overnight and was mistaken for a burglar by police as he tried to get out, authorities said on Tuesday.
'He'd had rather a lot to drink and had gone in to enjoy himself,' said a spokesman for police in the southwestern city of Mannheim. 'Seemingly the effects of the alcohol proved the strongest stimulus though. He fell asleep.'
When the 50-year-old woke up in the dark inside the closed sex emporium, he struggled in vain to get out, only to set off the shop's alarms and alert police, who soon arrived.
'The officers initially thought he was a burglar,' the spokesman said. 'But he managed to provide them with proof that he was telling the truth.' "
07:42 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Sex in a Bar Bathroom -- Is It Legal?: "Wed Oct 6, 9:22 AM ET
ROME (Reuters) - Making love in a bar lavatory does not breach public decency laws so long as the door is shut, an Italian court ruled on Tuesday.
A Swiss couple was accused of committing obscene acts after the owner of a bar in the northern Italian town of Como caught them having sex in the lavatory, Ansa news agency reported.
State prosecutors demanded a six-month prison term for the un-named male defendant and a five-month term for his partner.
But Judge Luciano Storaci threw out the case, saying public decency was not offended because the door was closed.
However, he fined the Swiss man 200 euros ($246) for breaking the lock on the lavatory after he was caught with his trousers down.
'If the barman had given me time to get dressed then nothing would have happened,' Ansa quoted the Swiss woman as saying. "
