This week on Weird and Wacky Wednesdays, we look at how Austria’s morality laws really, um, stink. Then we examine a driving offence that even I would struggle to find a defence to. And finally, we head on over to Florida for the case of a man who decided a fake name was better than his real one… and I’m not sure about that.
Follow the jump to read this week’s roundup of Weird and Wacky legal cases from around the globe.
Morality Laws are Out Of Control
I… got wind of a recent hilarious case. In Austria, a man had a bit of an encounter with morality laws that led to a 500 Euro fine. His indecent act? Farting provocatively toward officers.
I shit you not. The man apparently had some sort of disagreement with police while sitting on a park bench. During the encounter, he got up and loudly farted, pointing his bum in the officers’ direction.
Although the law does not permit the police to fine individuals for accidentally letting one rip, if you do so aggressively toward police you can face a significant penalty. Which is just… well, hilarious.
I’m Innocent… I swear
This one comes to me via Twitter, where one Twitter user recently asked me whether I could come up with a defence for this case.
What happened was a minivan apparently collided with a motorcycle, sending the rider flying. Now, most normal drivers would stop and see if the rider is okay. Not the driver of the minivan, who in this case decided to flee the scene.
There was only one problem.
The motorcycle was still wedged the front grill of the minivan, and dashcam footage depicted it travelling down the highway, motorcycle acting as a cow-catcher, sending sparks flying.
So I guess the Twitter user was right… this case would be relatively difficult to defend.
Get a Better Alias
Meanwhile, in Florida, police were just trying to make a regular old arrest of an intoxicated man walking around with open containers when, because it’s Florida, everything went wacky.
In making the arrest, the man was asked to provide his name. Rather than just identify himself, the man told the police that he went by Michael Corleone. Which is the guy from The Godfather, in case you’ve been living under a rock. Even better is the Florida man actually has a cool name all on his own: James Ransom!
Frankly, if I were going to be arrested for open container violations and then provide a false name to shore up that obstruction charge, I’d go for something a little more apropos. You know. Bill McCoy. Lucky Luciano. Habana Joe. Or some other famous rum runner. If you’re going to pick a fake name that outdoes your real cool name, at least be topical. Right?
