Watercooler Stories

Pa. woman, 91, living with 2 corpses

WYALUSING, Pa., July 8 (UPI) -- A 91-year-old Pennsylvania woman living with the corpses of her husband and twin sister will build a crypt to keep them around, an official says.

Jean Stevens' husband died 10 years ago and she dug up his body, which was buried behind her Wyalusing-area home and set him on a couch in the garage. Her sister's body is kept in a spare room where she is dressed in a housecoat and gets fresh makeup daily, WTXF-TV, Philadelphia, reported.

Police say the embalmed bodies were discovered in mid-June.

Bradford County's district attorney says Stevens plans to build a crypt on her property because she wanted to be able to see them and talk to them, WTXF-TV said.

One area resident whose name was not reported said Stevens is well known, having lived in the area "for awhile."

"And, the other thing is, as far as being friendly, I mean she's tops," the resident said.

Ethics committee: No judge lunch auctions

LAS VEGAS, July 8 (UPI) -- Nevada's judicial ethics committee said a non-profit research organization may not auction off luncheon dates with District Court judges.

The Standing Committee on Judicial Ethics and Election Practices said the planned silent auction by a research organization whose name was not reported, which several judges were invited to participate in, is "fraught (with) ethical peril," the Las Vegas Sun reported.

The committee said the auction is problematic because judges can't control who purchases the lunch dates, leaving open the possibility of bids from people with legal matters before the judge.

Dan Reaser, chairman of the committee and a private attorney based in Reno, said the auction could lead to "actual or perceived questions as to judicial independence or impartiality."

"Likewise, the judge cannot control the amount bid for the luncheon event with the judge, which in itself risks the public trust by suggesting that access to a judge, even if only social and for good purpose, is something that can be auctioned for any reason," Reaser said.

Illegal labels claimed in FDA cafeteria

SILVER SPRING, Md., July 8 (UPI) -- A Washington non-profit said a lawyer discovered at least three products with illegal label claims at the Food and Drug Administration headquarters cafeteria.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest said a lawyer employed by the group made a visit to the new FDA building in Silver Spring, Md., and discovered at least three illegal labels hiding in plain sight at the headquarters of the agency tasked with policing food packaging.

The non-profit said Purity Organic Functional Drinks Pomegranate Blueberry bears a label claiming it contains "Ginkgo Biloba to enhance your memory and keep you thinking straight." However, government-funded studies have found ginkgo has no effect on memory or incidence of Alzheimer's or dementia.

The cafeteria was also selling Crystal Light Immunity Berry Pomegranate, a beverage picturing blueberries and pomegranate on its label, despite not containing any juice whatsoever, the CSPI said. The group said there is also no evidence to support the "immunity" claims on the bottle and officials urged the FDA to take action against the beverage makers in 2008.

Officials said the lawyer also discovered a bottle of SoBe Lifewater B-Energy Black Cherry Dragonfruit, which does not contain black cherry or dragonfruit juice. The label also claims its B vitamins "help your body unlock the energy in foods," but the vitamins do not cause any noticeable boost in energy. The CSPI said the label's claims of "all natural" are also false because the beverage contains added citric acid.

"The fact that we were able to find so many labeling problems in the FDA's own cafeteria neatly illustrates why the agency needs to issue industry-wide rules, not just send warning letters to individual companies," CSPI legal affairs director Bruce Silverglade said.

Python found in school locker

NEWTON, Mass., July 8 (UPI) -- A Massachusetts school custodian said he discovered a 3-foot-long ball python while cleaning out lockers at a high school.

Ed Reardon, a custodian for the Newton School Department, said he was cleaning out lockers at the old North High School last week so abandoned textbooks could be donated when the snake fell from the top shelf of a locker, the Daily News Tribune, Waltham, Mass., reported.

"When I pulled (a notebook) out, a snake just fell to my feet," Reardon said.

Reardon said he grabbed the snake by the back of the neck and gave it water before taking it to Newtonville Pet.

"The women (at the store) identified it as a python, and I asked if she could take it off of my hands, and she called her boss, who accepted it," Reardon said.

The custodian said he reported the name of the student printed on the notebook to the school's principal.

"I'm more concerned about the cruelty of it," he said. "This is not a way of leaving school for the summer by leaving a defenseless animal in a locker without food or water."