Crime Scene

Voter fraud goes to the dogs

In Chi-Town, they vote early and often.

In Federal Way, Wash., they apparently pull the lever with paws.

At least it seems that way at first blush after reading this Associated Press story about the suburban Seattle woman who allegedly who registered her pooch to vote.

A judge Monday dismissed a charge of making a false statement against Jane Balogh, who registered her mutt Duncan to protest a voting law loophole.

Balogh claims Duncan never actually cast a vote.

Still, it makes one wonder: Could pets be behind Tuesday night's horrendously slow vote tabulation in Broward?

10th DUI: Congrats, you're going to jail

When cops pulled over the smiley Janet Landrum (left) this weekend, they say the Manatee County accountant was drunk behind the wheel, and it wasn't her first time.

Wasn't her second or third or eighth time, either. Landrum, 41, has been arrested 10 times on DUI charges over the past 20 years, records show.

Landrum's been busted in Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia and six times in Florida -- 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005 and 2008. No one has ever been injured in any of the incidents, and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune reports that Landrum also has a number of arrests for driving with a revoked license.

"To get caught 10 times, obviously the majority of the time you're driving you are probably impaired," Manatee County sheriff's spokesman Dave Bristow said.   

Man offers "prostitute'' 2 cents for sex

There's not much you can get for two cents.

A homeless man learned that lesson the hard way.

Fausino Diaz Hernandez (left), 46, was arrested last week for soliciting a prostitute after he offered an undercover deputy two cents for sex, the Naples Daily News reports.

Before his arrest, he also offered the "prostitute'' other items, including a cigarette lighter and a bicycle.

Several other men were arrested as part of the undercover operation.

Teen chases kids with knife

So much for making nice on the playground.

A knife wielding 16-year-old chased kids off of a Port St. Lucie football field on Friday.

She told the teens: "I'm from the ghetto, I don't play.''

The teen faces a charge of aggravated assault.

Read the full story at TCPalm.

What happens in Key West...gets back to the boss

A Cape Coral police officer and his wife were arrested in Key West after the wife fired a gun in their vacation house and cops found marijuana when they arrived to investigate. The couple spent the day drinking, and then they had sex, before the argument that led to the gunshot, police said.

Christine Suskevich, left, shot a .32-caliber automatic handgun toward the bedroom where her husband was because she "just wanted to get his attention," according to a police report cited by the Fort Myers News-Press.

Her husband, nine-year Cape Coral PD veteran Curt Suskevich, was uninjured. When police arrived, they saw a marijuana pipe and a "green leafy substance" on the kitchen counter. Suskevich pointed his finger at his wife, who acknowledged it was her pot (cops also found some half-smoked joints elsewhere in the home).

Both were charged with marijuana possession, and Christine was charged with discharging a firearm while under the influence. He is on paid administrative leave from his $57,491 a year job pending the outcome of the case.

Man in woman's undies exposes self, gets payback

Don't mess with the bikini-clad women at this Parkland, Wash. coffee stand.

A man - wearing woman's underwear and exposing himself - drove to the espresso stand three times in one night.

The third time, baristas poured a cup of boiling water - a scorching 220 degrees - on the man's chest and face.

Instead of wincing in pain, he apparently replied "Oooh, yeah.''

Authorities are still looking for the man, who first drove up in a white bra and panties and touched himself.

The second time around, he favored pink panties.

"He has underwear over his face, he's wearing hot pink panties now and the underwear that he was wearing is over his face and there's a little peephole so he can see,'' Jamae Feddock, a barista, told KIRO TV. 

Cops sued for killing 'Lucky' the dog

An Omaha woman filed a lawsuit this week against the city and several police officers who killed her dog during a search of her home.

The woman, Colleen Carroll, claims the city owes her at least $250,000 for shooting Lucky Boy, her chocolate-lab mix, without provocation. (The cute puppy to the left is what I imagine LB looked like, but it's not actually him.)

Carroll, who was not arrested or charged with any crimes as a result of the search, described Lucky Boy as "a peaceful family pet" who did not show any aggression toward the officers and was contained to a separate room.

Thanks to the Courthouse News Service for the story. 

Teacher busted on prostitution charge

I know public educators don't make a lot of money, but sheesh.

Laurie Ann Lewis, a drama teacher in Cleveland, Texas, apparently tried to earn a little extra scratch with the world's oldest profession, according to the Houston Chronicle.

According to authorities, an undercover cop arrested Lewis at a hotel after the two met online.

Ready for the money quote? "She looks like your typical soccer mom. She's a very nice, quiet neighbor."

I played rec soccer as a kid. Don't think I ever saw anyone quite like her.

How many cops does it take to catch a monkey?

In Tokyo, at least, the answer is more than 30.

A prickly primate eluded police (and a throng of media) after hanging out atop a departure board at Shibuya Station Wednesday.

Evidently, monkey sightings are becoming more and more common in Japan's capital.

From what I hear, they have been spotted in South Florida, too -- far from their indigenious home.

A friend used to live in an apartment complex near woodlands on Sheridan, and told of monkeys chasing people around the parking lot.

Is this true? If you have ever seen a furry friend down here, let me know.

Manhunt for goat-killers

Remember the string of decapitated goats being found on the streets of Northwest Florida? 

There has been no break in the case, and authorities are now offering $5,500 for information leading to an arrest.

That's about $600 per goat.