Friday, June 08, 2007
From the "Not From The Onion But Shoulda Been" Files:One word: Vermont, which the venerable Onion so sharply skewered recently for that state's renewed call to secede from the Union.(AP) CHELSEA, V.T. A prosecutor has dropped charges against a woman who was arrested for staring at and making faces at a police dog. "Prosecuting a woman for `staring' at a police dog is absurd," said her lawyer. "People are allowed to make faces at police dogs and officers to express their disapproval. It's constitutional expression," said public defender Kelly Green, who represented Jayna Hutchinson.
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After a heated exchange, [Hutchinson] approached [Vermont State Police Sgt. Todd] Protzman's cruiser, where his dog Max was waiting, putting her face within inches of the window and "staring at him in a taunting/harassing manner," Protzman wrote in an affidavit. "While the defendant taunted my canine, Max was focused on the defendant and the perceived threat she presented to him," the affidavit said. "He was no longer focused on me and the other officers at the scene."
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"I think it was going to be difficult to prove her conduct changed the dog's behavior," [Orange County State's Attorney Will] Porter said. "Most of the time (in harassment cases) people would come tell the court what it felt like. Dogs can't do that." [read full article at CBS2 Chicago.com]
Vermont Woman Arrested for 'Making Faces at Police Dog'
