Watercooler Stories

Man steals seat from Reds game in Ohio

CINCINNATI, July 2 (UPI) -- A man from Batavia, Ohio, was arrested and charged with vandalism and theft after allegedly breaking and stealing a seat from Great American Ball Park.

Bradley Hosler, 20, allegedly broke and stole the seat part of the section 142, row 3, seat 4, spot at the Ball Park following Sunday's game between the Cincinnati Reds and the St. Louis Cardinals, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported.

"To our knowledge, no one's ever made it outside the ball park with a seat," Reds' spokesman Rob Butcher said.

According to the police report, the 6-foot-8 man apparently broke the part of the seat where fans place their buttocks and decided to take it home as a souvenir.

He also appeared to really like the Reds, since he appeared in court Monday in a Reds T-Shirt.

Hosler was charged with vandalism and theft and ordered held on $1,500 bond.

Box of Christmas lights causes bomb scare

CHESAPEAKE, Va., July 2 (UPI) -- A suspicious package at a grocery store in Chesapeake, Va., that brought FBI and other investigators, turned out to be a box of Christmas lights.

Chesapeake Fire Department Capt. Steve Johnson called the device "rather sophisticated" before a bomb squad detonated the package, revealing it was simply a box of Christmas lights, The Hampton Roads Daily Press reported Monday.

The package was spotted at the Food Lion shopping center, and Chesapeake firefighters, state police and agents from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were called to investigate.

They closed down part of the shopping center and asked for a voluntary evacuation of a nearby apartment complex.

"We're going to continue the investigation," Johnson said. "We still need to determine, was this intended as a hoax or did somebody just inadvertently try to get rid of some Christmas lights near a Dumpster? That's not an answer we have right now."

Ore. lawsuit may give chimps legal rights

BEND, Ore., July 2 (UPI) -- A lawsuit started by an Oregon animal sanctuary may soon give chimpanzees and other animals additional rights in the U.S. legal system, a report said.

The Portland Oregonian reported Monday a lawsuit initially filed by Oregon's Chimps Inc. against a Texas animal sanctuary could potentially be a landmark legal case.

Chimps Inc. had received two chimps from Texas' Primarily Primates Inc. last fall when the San Antonio sanctuary was found to have unfit conditions for its inhabitants.

When officials at the Texas sanctuary upgraded their facility and asked for their animals back last month, Chimps Inc. filed suit to keep the chimps.

Other animal sanctuaries that took in animals from Primarily Primates Inc. quickly joined in, alleging the animals are much happier in their new homes.

One legal expert told the newspaper the case could potentially impact future animal rights cases if the presiding judge decides to take into account the animals' best interests.

City attorney cited in neighbor dispute

BOULDER, Colo., July 2 (UPI) -- An outgoing city attorney in Boulder, Colo., has been cited for misdemeanor harassment and criminal mischief after a dispute involving his dog.

The police report of the incident said Beverly Potter phoned police to report that city attorney Ariel Calonne had threatened her after she reprimanded him for allowing his dog to walk on her property, the Boulder Daily Camera reported Monday.

Calonne "responded ... by telling her 'that if she touched his dog that he would kick her ass,'" the police report said. Potter also alleged that Calonne kicked the heads off of two sprinklers that she had turned on to get the canine off her property.

The police report said Calonne denied kicking the sprinklers to Officer Bud Kelt, the newspaper reported.

Calonne said Potter has made 53 complaints to police about her neighbors -- including three about him.

"It's an accusation that I'm confident will be found not to have any merit," he told the Camera of the citation.