oddly enough

oddly enough

Man avoids $525 fine for refill at SC hospital

CHARLESTON, S.C.

A man who faced a $525 fine for refilling an 89-cent drink at a Veterans Affairs hospital apparently will get off with a warning.

When Christopher Lewis of North Charleston, S.C., refilled his drink without paying Wednesday, a federal police officer gave him a ticket. Lewis is a construction worker and says he never noticed the signs and has refilled his drink before without paying.

VA spokeswoman Tonya C. Lobbestael said after reviewing what happened at the Ralph C. Johnson Center in Charleston, officials decided a warning was sufficient.

Lobbestael says the cafeteria at the center has signs posted in the drink machines indicating the cost of refills.

Failing to pay for the refills is considered shoplifting.

Easter butter lamb gets ‘pardon’ at Buffalo market

BUFFALO, N.Y.

There’s at least one butter lamb in Buffalo that won’t be going under the knife this Easter.

Butter sculptures in the shape of a lamb are a traditional part of Easter meals among Buffalo’s large Polish-American population. Butter lambs are sold this time of year at western New York delis, Polish markets and supermarkets.

On Wednesday, an elected official went to Buffalo’s Broadway Market to “pardon” a butter lamb, much in the way U.S. presidents issue pardons for a turkey before Thanksgiving.

Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz pardoned a butter lamb from its traditional duties on tables throughout the Buffalo area for the duration of Easter.

Polish immigrants brought the butter- lamb tradition with them when they came to America and settled in large numbers in upstate New York cities such as Buffalo and Schenectady.

Did a German shepherd get called to jury duty?

BRIDGETON, N.J.

Could this prospective juror take a bite out of crime?

Cumberland County, N.J., has summoned IV Griner to jury duty. The only problem is that IV is a 5-year-old German shepherd.

Her owner tells KYW-TV in Philadelphia he sorted out the confusion soon after the summons arrived at his Bridgeton home.

The dog’s owner is Barrett Griner IV. He uses the Roman numeral for 4 in his name. He named his dog using the letters “I” and “V.”

The county’s judiciary coordinator says the computer likely mistook the Roman numeral for Griner’s first name and mailed the summons.

Associated Press