Judge sentenced dog to death by stoning

Jerusalem - According to Ynet, the large dog made its way into the Monetary Affairs Court in the ultra-Orthodox Jewish neighbourhood of Mea Shearim in Jerusalem, frightening judges and plaintiffs. Despite attempts to drive the dog out of the court, the hound refused to leave the premises. One of the sitting judges then recalled a curse the court had passed down upon a secular lawyer who had insulted the judges two decades previously. Their preferred divine retribution was for the lawyer’s spirit to move into the body of a dog, an animal considered impure by traditional Judaism. Clearly still offended, one of the judges sentenced the animal to death by stoning by local children. The canine target, however, managed to escape.  More

Man robs bank, gets coffee around the corner

Mountain View, California - A man suspected of robbing a Mountain View bank was arrested when a police detective spotted him reading a newspaper at a Starbucks just around the corner from where the crime occurred. Police arrested Lawrence Petitta, 53, a transient from Southern California who frequents the Marin County area, on suspicion of robbery. The robber approached a teller, demanded money and claimed to have a gun, though no weapon was ever seen. The robber fled with $1,100. Officers found $1,100 in stolen money on Petitta. The clothing he had been wearing was recovered in the restroom trash can.  More

Woman hid $57.60 worth of meat in purse

 Fort Pierce, Florida - Police in Florida said they arrested a woman accused of trying to smuggle six racks of ribs and two packs of oxtails out of a grocery store in her purse. Fort Pierce police said a Save-A-Lot manager told them Marie Chester, 40, took the items from the meat department and moved to another aisle before transferring the goods from her cart to her purse. Chester paid for $1.73 worth of merchandise before leaving the store with the meat — worth a total $57.60 — concealed in her purse, police said.  More

Man arrested for collecting girls’ spit

Tokyo, Japan - A 55-year-old jobless Japanese man has been arrested in Tokyo for having three schoolgirls spit out saliva and filming them in the process. Toshihiko Mizuno was caught in Tokyo on suspicion of “habitual indecency,” which carries a penalty of up to one year in jail or a fine of $12,400, the police said. Mizuno separately approached the three girls, aged nine and ten at apartment towers or in the street, saying: “I am doing research on saliva. Give me your saliva,” an police spokesman said. “He videotaped them as they spat out saliva. He also asked them to open their mouths and filmed their mouth interiors and tongues,” the official said. “He has done so habitually to satisfy his sexual desire.”  More

US Airways Mechanic Stows Away on Flight

Charlotte, North Carolina - A US Airways mechanic with “mental health issues” stowed away on a flight from Tampa, Florida to Charlotte in North Carolina. The man, who hid in an unpressurized compartment, then bought a ticket and flew on as a legitimate passenger on a second flight to Pittsburgh. Police at Pittsburgh’s airport met the man — who was not named, but was in his 40s — after being requested to do so by US Airways, apparently as a result of the man’s behavior at the gate, said Lt. Richard Mullen, Allegheny County Police Department.  More

Man with no arms qualified for archery team

USA - Matt Stutzman is a young man in his late twenties, born with no arms. Matt never let his handicap slow him down, and could do most things as good or better than a person with arms. Matt does everything with his feet, and I mean everything - eat, drive a car, ride a motorcycle. You won’t find a handicap sticker on Matt’s car, nor is his car adapted for a person with no arms. He purposely challenges himself to do any and everything a normal person can do. Matt placed high and won several national competitions shooting against people without handicaps. Matt Stutzman has qualified for the National U.S. Olympic team in archery! Not the Special Olympics. The Olympic Team. In qualifying for the team, he had the highest score for people shooting that day. Out of 30 people testing, three made the team, and Matt had the highest score. Not bad for a guy with no arms.  More

Mother agrees to donate her womb to daughter

 UK - A woman in Nottingham has agreed to donate her womb to her infertile daughter if doctors gain permission to attempt the groundbreaking transplant operation. Eva Ottosson, 56, the director of a lighting company, said she would offer her uterus to her 25-year-old daughter, Sara, who cannot have children because of a serious birth defect that left her without a womb. If the operation goes ahead at a hospital in Sweden Sara could conceive and carry a child in the same womb she herself was born from, but serious technical hurdles must be cleared if the procedure is to succeed.  More

Filipino expected to be named world's shortest man

Junrey Balawing poses for a Guinness World Records-hired photographer after a series of measurement conducted by its representative at Sindangan Health Center, Sindangan township, Zamboanga Del ..Filipino expected to be named world's shortest man

Who knew wool grew on trees

Jamie McCallum, five, from St Mary's Primary, enjoyed the sight of some colourful trees on Leith Links which have been decorated as part of the Leith Festival's Cool Wool arts ...Who knew wool grew on trees

Men rob Dunkin’ Donuts with knives and a hatchet

Massachusetts - Three Hyannis men are facing armed robbery while masked charges after police say they robbed a Dunkin’ Donuts with knives and a hatchet and only ended up with a bag of doughnuts. According to police, the men demanded a paper bag that was in one of the worker’s purses, mistakenly believing she was carrying cash from the day’s receipts. But police say the men never looked inside. The men were captured on video and police were able to track them down. Arrested were 19-year-old Nicholas Mercurio, 21-year-old Lukas Peterson (Picture) and 20-year-old Charles Iliffe.  More

Man Drives 3 Miles with Dead Man on Roof

Wichita, Kansas - After fatally striking a lawn mowing contractor, the driver of a van continued on for another three miles with the body on the roof of his vehicle in Wichita, Kansas — sparking 911 calls from people who saw the disturbing sight. The victim, an unnamed 32-year-old man, was working with a weed-eater near a street outside a Hawker Beechcraft plant when he was struck about 7:15am. The force of the impact threw the victim onto the windshield and then the roof of the van — Mohamed Sarrafizadeh, a 67-year-old man, did not stop. More

Asphalt helpers paid more than paramedics

Chicago, Illinois - The office of Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced today that it is publicly displaying the salaries for every employee of the City of Chicago. Emanuel and his $216,000 salary are on the list. So are transportation department “asphalt helpers” paid more than $73,000. That’s a heftier salary than some fire department paramedics who are paid $64,000. City salaries have long been public information but typically organizations have to request to see them. Emanuel said putting the information on the Web is part of his promise of “open, accountable and transparent government.” The salary list includes $81,000 for a “water rate taker” in the water department, $96,000 for a civil engineer, nearly $68,000 for a police officer and $70,000 for a truck driver.  More

Man kills dad, blames Red Bull

 Clearwater, Florida - A man who admits he killed his own father will see no jail time after a judge found him not guilty by reason of insanity. An expert has said drinking Red Bull was one of the things that led to the crime. Stephen Coffeen admits he smothered his father Robert with a couch cushion two years ago. He originally claimed was he was defending himself. His defense  was temporary insanity. Judge Nancy Moate Ley accepted a deal worked out between his lawyers and the State Attorney’s Office. Under the deal, in six months, Stephen Coffeen could go free. “The defendant is found not guilty by reason of insanity due to mental illness,” Judge Ley said, after explaining she had no choice but to send him to a mental hospital instead of putting him on trial. More

Men bet, fight over a bottle of urine

Bethlehem Township - The trouble started with a bet over a bottle of urine. Brian Hamedl was playing poker in an all-night game with Kyle Tarboro at a Bethlehem Township home when he told Tarboro he had urine stored in his vehicle that Tarboro could use to cheat on a drug test. They bet $300 on whether Hamedl actually had the urine, and when the poker game wrapped up, Tarboro demanded the money or the urine. When Hamedl told him the bet was absurd, Tarboro allegedly delivered a beating that left Hamedl in the hospital for four days and stole a roll of cash from Hamedl’s pocket.  More

Man Tries to Pay $25 Doctor’s Bill in Pennies

Vernal, Utah - A Utah man has been charged with disorderly conduct for allegedly trying to pay a disputed doctor’s bill in pennies, the Deseret News reported. Police said 38-year-old Jason West went to a clinic in Vernal, Utah, to dispute an outstanding bill for $25. “After asking if they accepted cash, West dumped 2,500 pennies onto the counter and demanded that they count it,” Vernal Assistant Police Chief Keith Campbell said. “The pennies were strewn about the counter and the floor.” West left the office as employees told him they were calling the police.  More

Substance on changing table was baby powder

 Milwaukee, Wisconsin - Frontier Airlines employees on a U.S. flight called a hazmat team to examine a substance found on a diaper-changing counter that turned out to be baby powder. Employees summoned the Milwaukee Fire Department’s Hazardous Materials Unit when a flight attendant making her final check before landing discovered a white powder on a diaper-changing counter in one of the plane’s lavatories. Peter Kowalchuk, a Frontier spokesman, said there were clues like the dotted pattern of the powder and the used diaper in the waste disposal, not to mention the two babies on board the plane.  More

Boy arrested for breaking teacher’s nose

Adelanto, California - A fifth-grader is behind bars after he assaulted an Adelanto teacher and broke her nose at the Adelanto Community Day School, an alternative education school for the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools, officials said. The alleged assault took place at about 9 a.m. between the teacher and an 11-year-old student in one of the classrooms in the school when the teacher asked the student to move to another seat, according to San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Adelanto station officials. The child refused to move when instructed by the teacher and yelled vulgar language at her. Eventually the 11-year-old got up and punched the teacher in the nose, breaking it. More

Woman passes out, falls on subway tracks

 New York - An aspiring doctor was killed in a horrific subway accident when she passed out on a sweltering Upper East Side platform and fell onto the tracks — realizing what happened too late to escape an uptown train bearing down on her. Fatoumata Binta Amina Diallo, 21, “was cut in half,” said one shocked witness. Diallo fainted at around 3 p.m. at the 77th Street/Lexington Avenue station, which was filled with school kids on their way home, said transit and police sources. The Bronx woman had been returning from a dental appointment, said her family.  More

Man who buried himself alive dies

Russia - A Russian man has died after persuading a friend to bury him alive for a night, hoping it would bring him good luck. The victim dug a hole in a garden in the eastern city of Blagoveshchensk and climbed into an improvised coffin, with holes for air pipes, taking a mobile phone and a bottle of water with him. His friend covered the coffin with earth and then left, after the buried man phoned to say he was fine. The next morning, he returned to find his friend dead, investigators said. The 35-year-old victim had believed that burying himself alive for a night would bring him luck the rest of his life. More

Teacher Gets Handgun as End-of-Year Gift

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida - Some students give apples, but one student at a Florida school may have given their teacher a loaded handgun as an end-of-year gift. According to a report from the Palm Beach County School District, the eight-year-old student’s grandmother gave the Allamanda Elementary School teacher a gift of a box of toiletries while in the parking lot at the Palm Beach Gardens school. However, after opening the present when she arrived home the teacher found a loaded .22-caliber handgun at the bottom of the box. The grandmother said she was unaware there was a gun in the gift box. More

Man stabbed himself to avoid court

Spring Hill, Florida - Police in Florida said a man stabbed himself and made up a robbery story to explain why he failed to show up for court and didn’t have child support money. Hernando County sheriff’s deputies said Michael Cherubino, 51, told them two men attacked him at his Spring Hill home, stabbed him in the stomach and fled with about $4,000 of his money. However, deputies said he later admitted he had cut himself with a piece of glass and invented the robbery story to justify missing a court appearance and avoid paying the $4,000 he owes in child support.  More

Americans Are Too Fat To Drive Small Cars

Athens, Georgia - Karen Steelman, a stay-at-home mom from Athens, Ga., has tried to like small cars. She read plenty of reviews, kicked their tires, and has even taken a few test drives. But none of them make her feel safe. And none of them make her feel comfortable. Steelman has a body mass index of about 37 - seven points above the obesity mark. She’s among a growing number of Americans who feel they are too big to comfortably drive a small car. “I want to be environmentally friendly, but unless I am in an SUV these days I find no pleasure or comfort in driving,” she says. Automakers have long tried to figure out how to get Americans to buy smaller cars. But with obesity rates climbing, at least one analyst says there’s little point in trying.  More

Woman Wheels Trash Can Containing Body Parts

Ontario - A woman has been booked on murder charges after bringing a trash can containing the body parts of a deceased man to an area home and pushing it through the surrounding neighborhood. 51-year-old Carmen Montenegro was spotted toting a trash can down the street before bringing it to a home where she told the residents that a body was inside the trash can and asked the residents, reportedly her relatives, to help her dispose of it. Ontario police were alerted to the scene by a resident of the home and several witnesses who reported smelling a foul odor coming from the trash can.  More

Woman Takes Attacker’s Penis To Police

Dhaka, Bangladesh - A 40-year-old Bangladeshi woman cut off a man’s penis during an alleged attempted rape and took it to a police station as evidence, police in a remote part of the country said. The woman, a married mother of three, was attacked while she was sleeping in her shanty in Jhalakathi district. “As he tried to rape her, the lady cut his penis off with a knife. She then wrapped up the penis in a piece of polythene and brought it to the Jhalakathi police station as evidence of the crime.  More