I-295 prank leads to lawyer's arrest

[mainegreen]

I-295 prank leads to lawyer's arrest
Porland Press Herald

SOUTH PORTLAND - Tom Connolly's political activism is eccentric, sometimes even goofy, including his penchant for dancing around in a George W. Bush mask on the Casco Bay Bridge.

But his donning of an Osama bin Laden costume, complete with plastic assault rifle, and waving a TABOR-related sign along Interstate 295 went too far, police said of Tuesday's Halloween political prank.

"This redefines the word 'stupid,'" said South Portland Police Chief Ed Googins, whose officers arrested Connolly at gunpoint on a misdemeanor charge of criminal threatening. "Whether it was a political ploy or not, we had officers responding to something they felt was a serious threat to public safety," Googins said.

Police say Connolly is lucky he wasn't shot by the officers who converged on the hill at the Westbrook Street overpass around 9 a.m.

Connolly, a prominent Portland defense lawyer and Democratic gubernatorial candidate in 1998, was freed on $500 bail pending a future court date. When the 49-year-old Scarborough resident was released Tuesday afternoon from the Cumberland County Jail, he apologized for causing the police officers anxiety but not for dressing up to get his message across -- in this case, that passing a referendum to cap government spending would be bad for the state.....

More at link

Um, that was stupid. Especially since Osama has not been campaigning too hard here for TABOR.

[Gormy Cuss]

1. I have to agree with Chief Googins

Not the brightest stunt, walking around with a realistic AK-47 toy. Without the fake weapons though I'd find the whole thing pretty entertaining.

[Oeditpus Rex]

2. I don't get it

Scaring people is against the law now? :shrug:

[ContraBass Black]

8. Scaring people with something that looks like a gun is.

[Oeditpus Rex]

9. Wow, the cops could have a field day

at Civil War re-enactments and stuff like that.

[WritingIsMyReligion]

3. We were talking about this in school today.

A couple of neocons were all for executing the guy.

:eyes:

[mainegreen]

4. Well, that's a might harsh isn't it?

Waving a fake gun around dressed as a terrorist is a bit stupid and all but I think a small fine and a "Don't be a dumb wanker" admonishment would be fine.

[petronius]

5. I've been thinking about this one...

I'm sure that officially he got arrested for the fake gun rather than the costume or his politics, but it raises a question - would he have also been arrested if he'd been dressed in a cowboy costume and waving an equally-realistic toy six-shooter?

[mainegreen]

6. Good question. I'd like to think anyone crazily waving around realistic guns would be

arrested, or at least told to not wave around gun-like toys on highway overpasses. Our police department is fairly even handed compared to most I've encountered so I'd say they'd probably frown on most such things. They certainly never bother protesters around here. They're very good about that!

[Elidor]

7. Gee...this sounds like something I would do

I'm glad he thought of it first.