Santa Claus breezes through jury duty on Long Island

COPIAGUE, N.Y., Sept. 1 (UPI) -- A Long Island, N.Y., man said he skated through jury duty because the case was dismissed, not because his name was Santa Claus.

The 54-year-old Copiague resident legally changed his name to Santa Claus last year, but that didn't prevent him from being summoned to jury duty in Suffolk County Court like any one else.

"I wore blue jeans and my green sneakers, a red dress shirt that just happened to have me, my sleigh and the eight reindeer on the back -- nothing overboard," he told the New York Post.

Claus was excused by the judge after the murder case he was assigned to was dismissed. "It wasn't just because I was Santa Claus I got off -- everyone else got off, too," he said.