What’s in a Name?
When police responded to a call from a home in Crawford County, Kansas, on Oct. 18, they found a red pickup truck that had been stolen earlier in the week, KAKE-TV reported. Officers were told that the truck had pulled into the property and the driver had asked the resident for gasoline, and to “not call the cops.” So they called the cops. The driver, Michael Jackson — “and not the one who sang ‘Billie Jean,’” they said — was arrested for possessing stolen property.
Compelling Explanation
The trial began on Oct. 17 in Houston for Kristina Chambers, 34, who is accused of manslaughter, the Houston Chronicle reported. In 2023, Joseph McMullin, 33, was leaving a doughnut store with a date when he was struck and killed by Chambers’ Porsche 911 Carrera. Police said Chambers was four times over the legal alcohol limit and had baggies of cocaine in her car and purse, and they estimated she was driving about 70 mph when she hit McMullin. He was thrown about 30 feet and died at the scene. Chambers’ attorney, Mark Thiessen, however, posited that it was Chambers’ Christian Louboutin shoes that caused the accident, claiming the heel got stuck on the car’s gas pedal. Chambers could serve up to 20 years in prison if she is convicted.
Nature Gone Wild
Residents of Christmas Island, about 900 miles from Australia, are carrying rakes in their cars and avoiding driving at certain times as the annual red crab migration begins, ABC reported on Oct. 21. Each year, 100 million crabs leave their forest burrows and make their way to the ocean, where they lay eggs. “We have to put rakes in our cars and leaf blowers to ensure the crabs have a safe passage,” said Christmas Island National Park acting manager Alexia Jankowski. “A lot of people, if they can, will work from home,” said resident Megs Powell. “It’s one of the most amazing wildlife experiences you can see on the planet,” said Oliver Lines, director of community services.
News You Can Use
Denise Bacon, 65, of East Sussex, England, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2014, The Washington Post reported. The condition affected her ability to walk, swim, dance, and play the clarinet. Doctors at London’s King’s College Hospital recently revealed that Bacon underwent deep brain stimulation in July — and played her clarinet during the procedure. As she played, doctors stimulated her brain, one electrode at a time. Neurosurgeon Keyoumars Ashkan said the effects could be seen immediately. As the right side of her brain was stimulated, he said, her left fingers were “flying,” while her right-hand fingers were “stiff and slow and couldn’t move.” Bacon is “delighted” with the outcome and said she’s “keen to get back in the swimming pool, and on the dance floor to see if my abilities have improved there.”
Saw That Coming
An accidental shooting left an 89-year-old woman with an injury to one of her legs on Oct. 20 in Flanders, New Jersey, the Daily Record reported. It happened at Frank’s Pizza, where 70-year-old William H. Schmieding was having dinner with two friends. Schmieding unholstered his handgun and moved to clear the ammunition from it, but a bullet was fired, ricocheted off a chair, and struck the woman. Schmieding, of White House Station, was charged with two counts of aggravated assault, violating safe carry firearm requirements, and prohibited carrying of a firearm.
Standing Room Only
Spanish police announced on Oct. 22 that they had arrested a group of criminals for stealing chairs — more than 1,100 chairs, to be more precise. The New York Post reported that the thieves, six men and a woman who did the pilfering under cover of darkness, had stolen the chairs from the outdoor seating areas of 18 different restaurants and bars throughout Madrid and a nearby municipality during August and September. Police said the chairs were resold in Spain, Morocco, and Romania, and estimated the impact at about 60,000 euros ($69,000). The gang will face charges of theft and belonging to a criminal organization.
NEWS OF THE WEIRD
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