Least Competent Criminals
• Nothing went right for a carjacker in East Memphis, Tennessee, on March 10, WREG-TV reported. An unnamed 22-year-old victim pulled into his own driveway that night, only to have a man yank the driver’s door open and point a gun at him. He asked for the victim’s wallet and keys to the 2006 Honda Element, then tried to back out of the driveway, but as he did so, he rolled down the window. That’s when the victim noticed the thief’s gun didn’t have a barrel, so he reached in and punched the carjacker in the face, causing the car to clip the side of the house and run into a pole. The carjacker jumped out and ran away; police were able to gather prints from the car and a recovered phone, but no arrests have been made. [WREG, 3/13/2023]
• As authorities in Gainesville, Georgia, searched the home of 75-year-old Alan Neil Thur on March 14 after receiving a tip that Thur had child pornography on his computer, Thur sat at his computer … “viewing five images of child pornography,” Hall County Sheriff’s deputies wrote in a report. WSB-TV reported that Thur was charged with seven counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and booked into the county jail. [WSB, 3/16/2023]
Oh, Canada
Fans of our favorite rude gesture, rejoice! Flipping the bird is a protected, “God-given” right in Canada, NPR reported, after Judge Dennis Galiatsatos ruled on Feb. 24 that “offending someone is not a crime.” The decision stemmed from a court case between two unneighborly neighbors in a Montreal suburb. “The complainants are free to clutch their pearls in the face of such an insult,” Galiatsatos said. “However, the police department and the 911 dispatching service have more important priorities to address.” [NPR, 3/10/2023]
Suspicions Confirmed
On March 20, police officers were called to a home in Mill Creek, Washington, on a report of items stolen from the house, Fox13-TV reported. As they investigated, they discovered someone was living in the home’s upstairs loft — with a bed, drug paraphernalia, and half-eaten food. The oblivious homeowners did say they had noticed the smell of cigarette smoke. Police suggested the homeowners wait until the person returned, and it didn’t take long: On March 21, they arrested Daniel Tomoiaga, 24. In his possession, they found the stolen items, along with meth and fentanyl. No word on how long he’d been staying at the home. [Fox13, 3/23/2023]
The Tech Revolution
Artificial intelligence has infiltrated television news in China, Oddity Central reported. Ren Xiaorong, a virtual news anchor, was introduced on March 12 to viewers of People’s Daily. “For 365 days, 24 hours, I will be reporting the news for the whole year, round the clock, without rest,” (Redundant) Ren told viewers. “Whether at news sites or back in the studio, you will always see me.” She has absorbed the talents of “thousands of news anchors” and will continue to evolve based on feedback. Ren can answer many questions, but her answers are all within the parameters of the Chinese Communist Party’s rhetoric. [Oddity Central, 3/17/2023]
Clothing Optional
In the early 2000s, Joseph DeRuvo Jr. of Norwalk, Connecticut, had developed painful bunions on his feet, and his doctor suggested surgery to remove them, The New York Times reported. While awaiting his operation, he started going barefoot, and he soon realized his feet felt much better. “The tactile feedback just kind of makes everything else going on feel a little bit smoother,” he said. Now 59 years old, DeRuvo has been barefoot for two decades, and he says navigating weather and terrain is easier than navigating people. He is sometimes asked to leave a business and on occasion, he fights back. “If I’m feeling feisty,” he said. His wife added, “We get thrown out of a lot of places.” But his shoelessness contributes to a mindful life: “I pay attention to every single step I take,” DeRuvo said. [New York Times, 3/7/2023]
News of the Weird is now a podcast on all major platforms! To find out more, visit newsoftheweirdpodcast.com.
NEWS OF THE WEIRD
© 2023 Andrews McMeel Syndication.
Reprinted with permission.
All rights reserved.
