The Weird Week in Review

Santa Claus, Candidate for North Pole City Council

Santa Claus is a politician. He wants to be on the North Pole city council. The city of North Pole, Alaska, held municipal elections on Tuesday, and two men waged write-in campaigns for two city council seats, as there were no official candidates. One was Santa Claus, the only man legally named Santa Claus who lives in North Pole. Claus was once the president of the North Pole Chamber of Commerce. The election results will not be released until next week, but with two candidates running for two seats, we might assume they both won.

‘Too High’ Man Found in Pile of Doritos

An unnamed 22-year-old man in Austintown, Ohio, called 911 and reported that he was “too high.” He reported he had used weed, and wasn't specific about what kind of help he needed, so the police were dispatched to his address.

When officers arrived, they were directed to an upstairs bedroom by the caller’s grandfather. As they got upstairs they could hear “groaning from a room at the end of the hall.” When they opened the door, they found the 22-year-old laying on the floor in a fetal position, surrounded by “a plethora of Doritos, Pepperidge Farm Goldfish and Chips Ahoy cookies.”

The man refused medical attention, and faces charges of drug and drug paraphernalia possession. The emergency call has been published.

Car with No Wheels Gets Parking Ticket

The 2011 GMC Denali was parked on the evening of Wednesday, September 23 in Chicago. Sometime between midnight and daylight, all four wheels were stolen and the vehicle was found the next morning on concrete blocks. Police responded, and advised the car owner to leave a note with the number of the police report on the windshield, to avoid a parking ticket. But that didn’t work, and the car was ticketed later that same morning for blocking the street sweeper. The vehicle owner was left with a towing bill, repair bills, and no wheels, and also had to contact an alderman about the parking ticket. The city of Chicago voided the ticket after the alderman intervened.  

Glass Walkway 3,000 Feet In The Air Cracks

A glass walkway was built around the sheer sides of Yuntai Mountain in Henan Province, China, 3000 feet above the valley below. It was opened to the public on September 20, and saw its first crack on Monday. A tourist dropped a steel cup on the glass, cracking the top layer. Tourists panicked and pushed their way through to get off the glass path, although from looking at the structure, it’s hard to see where they would go. Witnesses say the glass pane was shattered, while authorities say it was only cracked. The break came in only the top layer of three glass layers, and officials say there was never any danger. However, the skyway is closed until the damage can be repaired. 

Stolen Vehicle x 3

Carnell Eugene Butler was facing charges of car theft over an incident that occurred in June. He was given documents related to a court appearance on the matter. But he left those court documents in a car, a stolen Infiniti that St. Petersburg, Florida, police found. The police called Butler and asked him to come down to the station and collect the documents. Butler went to the station on Monday to collect the found documents, and was arrested. How did he get to the police station? He had driven a third stolen car, a Hyundai Sonata. When cops found the keys to the car in his pocket, more charges were added. Butler now faces three different charges of car theft. He is being held without bond.

Cat Helps End Police Standoff

Officers of the California Highway Patrol pulled over a car on Wednesday in San Francisco. The police determined that the vehicle had been stolen, and the driver fled from the scene. The unnamed suspect jumped a fence and into a two-story building. He perched on the ledge of a second-floor window and threatened to jump. The police climbed a fire escape to negotiate with him, and set up mats on the ground beneath him. The standoff lasted several hours., but the turning point was when they brought in the man’s kitty.

The suspect’s cat was brought to the scene by family, Gatpandan said. The cat “assisted” with “negotiating” the suspect off the ledge, according to Gatpandan, and the cat’s presence was “paramount” in getting him down safely.

The suspect eventually climbed back through the window and into police custody.