Preacherman
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From the Union Leader, New Hampshire (http://www.unionleader.com/articles_showa.html?article=59609):
News - August 26, 2005
Store prankster charged at Conway Wal-Mart
By LORNA COLQUHOUN
Union Leader Correspondent
CONWAY — There are times in a Wal-Mart store when customers need a little assistance from associates, but a request for help Tuesday by a Pittsburg teenager wearing an orange jumpsuit and handcuffs had clerks calling police.
“He asked them for a hacksaw,” said Conway Police Lt. Joe Faia.
It turned out that Joha D. Turner, 18, had not escaped any official custody, but was instead pulling a prank.
But now he’s going to court next month to answer a charge of disorderly conduct, after being freed on his own recognizance.
According to Faia, Turner walked into the Conway Wal-Mart just after 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, wearing the jumpsuit and the handcuffs. He was accompanied by a couple of friends, who were videotaping the escapade.
“When we got there, he was leaving the store and was trying to hide between two cars,” Faia said. “He was still wearing the handcuffs.”
Faia said he didn’t know how store clerks reacted to the sight of Turner, although the teen apparently didn’t get as far as the hacksaw department.
Turner was taken to the police station and officers examined the jumpsuit, which had “state prison” written on it. However, Faia said, the jumpsuit was not the property of any corrections facility.
While Turner and his friends may have been looking for a laugh, Faia said police took the call from the Wal-Mart clerks seriously.
“While we recognize the humor, we take issue with the public alarm,” he said. “For the public to see a potentially escaped convict had the makings of a panic response.”
Faia said sending officers to respond to the store drew them away from other calls.
“It draws away from legitimate calls for service,” he said. “If you pull a prank, you have to deal with the consequences.”
News - August 26, 2005
Store prankster charged at Conway Wal-Mart
By LORNA COLQUHOUN
Union Leader Correspondent
CONWAY — There are times in a Wal-Mart store when customers need a little assistance from associates, but a request for help Tuesday by a Pittsburg teenager wearing an orange jumpsuit and handcuffs had clerks calling police.
“He asked them for a hacksaw,” said Conway Police Lt. Joe Faia.
It turned out that Joha D. Turner, 18, had not escaped any official custody, but was instead pulling a prank.
But now he’s going to court next month to answer a charge of disorderly conduct, after being freed on his own recognizance.
According to Faia, Turner walked into the Conway Wal-Mart just after 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, wearing the jumpsuit and the handcuffs. He was accompanied by a couple of friends, who were videotaping the escapade.
“When we got there, he was leaving the store and was trying to hide between two cars,” Faia said. “He was still wearing the handcuffs.”
Faia said he didn’t know how store clerks reacted to the sight of Turner, although the teen apparently didn’t get as far as the hacksaw department.
Turner was taken to the police station and officers examined the jumpsuit, which had “state prison” written on it. However, Faia said, the jumpsuit was not the property of any corrections facility.
While Turner and his friends may have been looking for a laugh, Faia said police took the call from the Wal-Mart clerks seriously.
“While we recognize the humor, we take issue with the public alarm,” he said. “For the public to see a potentially escaped convict had the makings of a panic response.”
Faia said sending officers to respond to the store drew them away from other calls.
“It draws away from legitimate calls for service,” he said. “If you pull a prank, you have to deal with the consequences.”
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