Correctional Forum

Our prisons, filled with rapists, murderers ... caterers?

From the Associated Press:

NORRISTOWN, Pa. - A prosecutor said he will seek jail time for a former wedding caterer accused of bilking more than $40,000 in deposits and fees from at least four couples.

Matthew Belford, 36, who operated two area catering services, Ambrosia Catering Inc. and Fete Events, is charged with 20 felony counts of theft and a charge of deceptive business practices. He waived a formal arraignment Wednesday.

Prosecutors said one couple who contracted with Belford, John and Christy Gill, of Dresher, had paid him $7,046, but received only an e-mail on the morning of their May 21, 2005, wedding. "As of 12:01 a.m. today, Ambrosia Catering Inc. has officially closed their doors for business ... unfortunately we will not be catering your wedding today," the e-mail said.

Craig and Colleen Thompson, of Souderton, signed a contract with Belford to cater their May 20, 2005 wedding and had paid him $24,424. When a tent did not arrive by May 17 they became concerned, but Belford never returned their calls, according to the criminal complaint.

"Certainly a caterer who leaves a group of brides and grooms high and dry on their wedding day deserves to go to jail," Assistant District Attorney Steven J. Latzer said.

Belford was held in the Montgomery County prison in lieu of $500,000 cash bail.

Film treatment in the works

You wouldn't know to look at it, but SCI Frackville (pictured, very tinily) is ground zero in the war against terror. On July 31, at 4 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, during a routine contraband check, prison officials found an envelope filled with white powder. Anthrax? Other powdery bio-terror? The Pottsville Republican Herald's Shawn A. Hessinger writes:

[Sgt. Chris] Blugis said state police were contacted by prison officials and dispatched their clandestine lab team to analyze the material determined to be acetaminophen, an ingredient in Tylenol and other over-the-counter pain medications.

A clandestine lab team? How often do they get called in? It must have been disappointing to discover the powder was only Tylenol. Still, writes Hessinger,

The incident is being investigated as a terroristic threat.

Where's Tom Ridge when you need him?

Tuesday's International: No ifs, ands, and especially butts

Irish engineering college student Patrick Devine was working in Senegal when he got chicken pox, and had part of his toe amputated. But that was just the beginning of a bad week. At the end of it, he got put in a Senegalese prison. His infraction? He mooned the governor's house on a dare -- apparently not a humorous college prank in that part of the world, but a crime punishable by jail time. For three weeks, he's been sharing a cramped cell with 40 other prisoners, and there's no end in sight. Diplomats are working on it, from Nigeria, but it's tough to know when Devine, 19, will be released.

[Devine is pictured here with the class he was teaching in Senegal. He's the white guy in the back.]

Hello Pity

It seems alternative punishment is catching on overseas, in a way. Thai police officers who commit minor disciplinary infractions, such as showing up late, parking incorrectly, or littering, will now be forced to wear pink Hello Kitty armbands as a badge of shame.

“This new twist is expected to make them feel guilt and shame and prevent them from repeating the offense, no matter how minor,” Pongpat Chayaphan, the chief of the Crime Suppression Division of Bangkok, told the New York Times. “Kitty is a cute icon for young girls. It’s not something macho police officers want covering their biceps.”

Although the original experiment was to make the officers wear plaid armbands, that backfired when they took them home as souvenirs. After reexamining their strategy, the administrative officials of the police department decided Hello Kitty armbands might be more effective.

To Punish Thai Police, a Hello Kitty Armband [New York Times]

Some things are better left unsaid

There are times when saying you're sorry is not the best idea...

Inmate mistakenly released from Texas prison is caught after he apologizes to victim

Break-in turned love-in

Last week, a group of friends were enjoying some French wine and cheese on the back patio of a Capitol Hill home, when an unexpected guest crashed their dinner party. A hooded man got in through an open gate and put a gun to the head of a 14-year-old guest. He ordered them to give him their money or he would start shooting, according to staff writer Allison Klein of the Washington Post.

A more than just a little awkward silence followed until one of the other guests, Cristina “Cha Cha” Rowan, piped up: “We were just finishing dinner. Why don’t you have a glass of wine with us?”

The man sampled their Chateau Malescot St-Exupéry, and in a display of excellent taste, declared, “Damn, that’s good wine.” The intruder also helped himself to a bite of the Camembert cheese on the table, before putting his gun back into the pocket of his sweatpants.

He then surveyed his surroundings and told the group that he had made a mistake and had the wrong house. He then apologized to the group, and said, “Can I get a hug?” Each of the invited guests complied with his request. He then had one last sip of wine, and asked for a group hug. The adults then surrounded him, and granted his request for a group hug ... Barney-style.

After the “love-fest” was over, the unidentified man left the house, crystal wine glass in tow, without harming a single guest at the party. When he left, the group went inside and called the police. No evidence was found to aid in the investigation. On the bright side, however, the intruder left the wine glass in the alley behind the home, unbroken.

Many thanks to Bill B. who brought this story to our attention.

A Gate-Crasher's Change of Heart [Washington Post]

[image by fatal cleopatra via flicker]

 

Talk about an unusual escape plan ...

Four federal prisoners, and a conspirator on the outside were indicted Tuesday for conspiring to impede the duties of federal prison officials, and for mailing threatening communications with the intent to extort. Inmates Russell Dean Landers, Clayton Heath Albers, Carl Ervin Batts, and Barry Dean Bischof allegedly copyrighted their names, and then demanded millions of dollars from prison officials for using their names without authorization. The inmates allegedly sent demand notices for payment to the warden of the El Reno federal prison and even filed liens against his property.

With help from William Michael Roberson, on the outside, the four then hired someone to seize the warden’s vehicles, freeze his bank accounts and change the locks on his house, then when they thought his property had changed hands, they told him that they wouldn’t return it unless they were released from prison. In an (un)fortunate twist, the person they hired turned out to be an undercover FBI agent, said U.S. Attorney John C. Richter to the Associated Press.

All five co-conspirators now face a maximum sentence of 16 years in prison and a $500,000 fine.

Inmates Accused in Name Copyright Scheme [Associated Press]

[image by savinica via flickr]