Crime Blotter: Man Arrested for Overdue Library Books
March 4, 2005 -- -- A Washington State man is arrested for overdue library books; a man who was found naked and covered in cheese last summer pleads guilty; and another man allegedly tries to break into an Alabama jail. Always expect the unexpected in "The Crime Blotter."
Washington Man Arrested for Overdue Books
BURLINGTON, Wash. -- A Burlington man has been ordered to pay a library $150 and do community service after he was arrested for overdue library books.
Jeremy Jones was arrested for failure to appear before a judge to answer charges of "detaining property." The property referred to library books Jones had checked out last July.
Jones' arrest came after he called Burlington police to his apartment recently to report an incidence of mail theft. Police ran a background check and told Jones and his girlfriend that there was a warrant for his arrest for the overdue books.
Jones insisted he tried to give his overdue library books to police.
"They wouldn't even take them. That kind of irked me," he told ABC News affiliate KOMO-TV in Washington. "I told them they are right on the table, take them. They said 'No, we have a warrant, we have to arrest you.'"
"They handcuffed him." said Jones' friend Misty Colburn. "He didn't put up a fight or anything, but they handcuffed him and went away."
The title of one of the books Jones failed to return is "Mysteries of the Unexplained: How ordinary men and women have experienced strange things."
Jones was released after spending an hour at the county jail. He thought his arrest was a drastic move.
"I'm sorry, they are books for crying out loud. If it was a computer part or a CD or something, I could understand," Colburn said. "I could see them revoking my library privileges, but having me arrested is a little bit extreme."
The library insisted no one wanted to arrest anyone, and tried repeatedly to get its books back from Jones. Librarian Christine Perkins said the warrant was issued after Jones didn't show up for a court hearing. She said the library didn't send out the police and that officers just did a normal check for outstanding warrants.
Perkins suspects Jones' arrest could have an upside. "Well, I'm interested to see if we get a lot of books turned in the next week or so."
Man Found Naked, Covered in Cheese Pleads Guilty
MARYVILLE, Tenn. -- A man caught by police last summer running naked and covered in nacho cheese on his birthday has pleaded guilty to burglary and four other charges.
Michael David Monn of Maryville appeared before Blount County Circuit Court Judge D. Kelly Thomas on Feb. 28 and pleaded guilty to burglary, theft, vandalism, indecent exposure and public intoxication. In a plea bargain with prosecutors, Monn was sentenced to three years in prison but was given supervised probation.
He also was given a judicial deferral, which means if he stays out of trouble for the next three years the charges will be expunged from his record. Thomas warned Monn that if he violates the sentencing requirements, he must serve the sentence in a state penitentiary.
Early on the morning of July 18, 2004, Monn "was highly intoxicated, broke into the John Sevier Pool snack bar area, stole some snacks and did some damage and was caught naked with some stolen snacks," Blount County District Attorney General Mike Gallegos told the courtroom. A police officer found Monn naked that morning in the parking lot of the pool facility after Monn had apparently scaled an 8-foot-tall fence and was seen running toward a Jeep with a box of stolen snacks and a container of nacho cheese.
In addition to being in his birthday suit, Monn had nacho cheese in his hair, on his face and on his shoulders, was incoherent and reeked of alcohol, police said. Maryville officers found clothes and an open bottle of vodka in his Jeep.
Another Man Jailed for Alleged Attempted Jail Break-In
UNION SPRINGS, Ala. -- For some reason, men are apparently so in love with the Bullock County Jail in Alabama that they are trying to bust INTO the jail.
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For the second time in a month, authorities have arrested a man who allegedly tried to break into the jail. Union Springs police said Ellis Hudson, 40, was arrested and charged with third-degree criminal trespassing after he was caught inside the fence of the jail on Feb. 21. Officials suspect Hudson was trying to smuggle tobacco to an inmate because he had pipe tobacco, three packs of cigarettes and rolling paper when prison authorities found him.
On Feb. 2, authorities arrested another man, Jimmy Tolliver, for allegedly breaking into the jail. Tolliver, 40, was charged with second-degree criminal trespassing after authorities found him hiding behind an air conditioning unit in a secure area of the jail.