ODDLY ENOUGH

ODDLY ENOUGH

Ex-judge admits illegally seeking wife’s texts for beer

RALEIGH, N.C.

A former North Carolina trial judge says he illegally offered a law-enforcement officer beer and money to produce text messages he believed would show his wife was having an affair.

Former state Superior Court Judge Arnold Ogden Jones pleaded guilty recently to a federal charge of promising gratuities to a public official.

A jury in October convicted Jones of crimes including bribery, but a different judge ordered a new trial. Two charges were dropped in return for Jones’ guilty plea.

Jones lost a re-election bid in November.

Prosecutors said Jones promised cases of beer and $100 to an officer who would pressure his wife’s mobile phone provider to provide text message records. Jones knew that was prevented by law except during a criminal investigation.

Hamsters left off list of Amherst mascot finalists

AMHERST, Mass.

Amherst College has whittled its list of possible new athletic mascots to five, and sorry rodent fans, Hamsters didn’t make the cut.

Hamsters was on the list of 30 semifinalists selected out of about 600 initial suggestions by a committee put together to come up with a new mascot for the Massachusetts school.

The five finalists announced this month are the Fighting Poets, Mammoths, Purple and White, Valley Hawks and Wolves. The committee noted that all five have connections to the school or region.

Alumni, students, faculty and staff can vote for their favorite of the finalists. The winner will be announced this spring.

Irish-butter sparks fight in butter-loving Wisconsin

MADISON, Wis.

In butter-loving Wisconsin, a ban on Irish butter has sparked a fight.

Some Wisconsin residents have filed a lawsuit challenging a 1953 state law that bans the sale of Kerrygold Irish butter, or any other butter that hasn’t been graded for quality.

Plaintiffs say it’s unconstitutional to require that all butter sold in Wisconsin undergo a “government-mandated ‘taste test.’” Wisconsin is the only state with such a stringent rule.

The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty is representing the plaintiffs. The conservative legal group says the issue is one of economic liberty, not consumer safety.

The lawsuit was filed against the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection. The agency says it has to uphold state law.

Associated Press