Drunk driver got into 10 hit-and-run wrecks before being stopped, police say

Story is from Arizona. A motorcyclist was hurt in one encounter. The suspect faces a slew of charges, including Super DUI.

Hat Tip: Many thanks, eephus!

Mugger steals woman's bank deposit, escapes on skateboard

Only in Arizona ...

Hat Tip: Many thanks, eephus!

Okie teen accused of stabbing other girl after fighting over boy on MySpace

They allegedly met at a local QuikTrip shortly before midnight to settle each other's hash, the Tulsa World reports. The victim got jabbed in the arm, but should live. The suspect is 14, the victim 15.

DON'T LOOK, ETHEL!

From Christine Vendel:

An inmate escaped from Kansas City police headquarters this afternoon, stripped off his jail uniform and ran onto an interstate in his underwear.

The incident began about 12:45 p.m. when Spencer L. Rounds, 38, appeared in city court on assault and indecent conduct charges.

After his court appearance, Rounds was escorted through a tunnel that connects the city courthouse with police headquarters. He was escorted up a ramp to a waiting bus that was going to take him back to the Municipal Correctional Institution at 8100 Ozark Road.

But instead of boarding the bus, he crawled under it and ran out a pedestrian door in the police headquarters garage. He ran eastbound through several parking lots — shedding his clothes along the way — and onto the highway, where he was arrested.

Vanilla Ice's wife won't press domestic-violence charge

Story from the Orlando Sentinel.

Your leg isn't broken, son, but there's plenty else wrong with you

Then: California mother begs rescuers to find her teenage son, who is lost in the forest and has broken his leg!

Now: He's fine. As it turns out, so is his leg. Police say Junior was dropping acid, which made him THINK he had a broken leg, police say.

Open Thread ... Wednesday

The Open Thread -- our blog's space for off-topic comments and discussion -- is up and running on a lovely Wednesday morning. Thanks again for stopping in! If you've seen an interesting story elsewhere, feel free to post a link below.

Please sign your comments, and please avoid profanity, as well as racially and sexually abusive language. And when you sign your comments, please use only one nickname. I read the OT, but if you need to contact me directly, my email is jhart@kcstar.com.

Thanks, and have a great Wednesday!

TX authorities say several FLDS kids had suffered broken bones

Which was revealed during a legislative hearing. The state authorities say it's way too early to draw any conclusions about the injuries or how they were caused, though investigators are going to be looking into that.

Hat Tip: Many thanks to the Incredible Tam!

Suspected tweaker loses high-stakes game of Hide-And-Seek, police say

Story is from Quincy, Ill., where police tried to arrest a couple of gentlemen for running an alleged meth lab. They got one right off, but the other ran to nearby Quincy University, sneaked into an office and hid under the desk of a computer-science professor, who thought he heard a truck:

"So I got up and looked out the window, but then I heard it again," Robinson said.

What Robinson heard was Wert breathing heavily as he tried to hide under a table and behind some boxes. Robinson said he saw a leg sticking out from under the table, so he calmly walked out of the office and downstairs, where he alerted QU security.

A minute later, Wert was in custody. "I guess this is a sign I need to clean up my office," Robinson said with a smile.

Midtown Miscreant

... reacts to the kid accused of planning an attack on his school in South Carolina --- allegedly so he could go to Heaven and kill Jesus. Take it away, Double-M:

At any rate, killing an omnipotent and all knowing god seems like a bit of over reaching to me. Apparently being a straight A student doesn't necessarily make you smart. Someone should have told Ryan that the whole kill Jesus thing had been done, and it didn't stick then.

The whole post is great stuff.

Police: Homeless man arrested after knives are found inside his prosthetic leg

But he was actually charged for carrying a gun without a conceal-carry permit, police say.

Saw this via Fark!

Report: Mexico produces 80 percent of U.S. meth

The good news is that we've stomped out all the little hillbilly labs. The bad news is that we've still got "superlabs" operating right across the border. In the first three weeks of April, the feds seized about $30 million of meth, a good chunk of which was bound for Kansas City, McClatchy reports.

LAPD and racial profiling

How many allegations of racial profiling were investigated by Los Angeles police last year: 320
How many were found to have merit: 0

The Los Angeles Time has more here. It's provoking different reactions from people. One of the police commissioners doesn't believe it, but the chief says it's in line with other big departments.

Since you have to prove what was going through an officer's head during an arrest, it could be pretty tough to prove racial profiling, but the police union says that, even so, discrimination isn't a problem for the LAPD.

Wichita police use Craigslist to arrest 8 in prostitution sting

See, the Internet makes life easier for everybody ...

Hat Tip: Many thanks, Greg P!

A treasure hunt

The P-D has a great story this morning about a prison guard who took up with an imprisoned drug dealer's girlfriend -- and she happened to know where the dealer had buried thousands upon thousands of dollars, authorities say. At some point, the IRS get involved in the treasure hunt, too ...

Who killed Robin Bell?

Bob Cronkleton has a report from the trial of Robert M. Haberlein, who's accused of murdering Bell at her Dollar General store in Bonner Springs, back in November 2005.

Witness (sort of) fingers suspect in KC homicide

Gary Eye and Steven Sandstrom are on trial for the slaying of William McCay -- who, prosecutors allege, was killed simply because he was black. On Tuesday, Mark Morris reports, Sandstrom's ex-girlfriend testified that she heard Eye confess to shooting McCay. A few minutes later, the ex said she might have gotten it wrong:

Eye’s defense lawyer, John Osgood, noted that a mixture of drugs, conversation among many people and possibly loud music could have confused Chirino.

“Is it possible somebody else said that?” Osgood asked.

“Yes,” she acknowledged.

Gary Dourdan

Dourdan, who stars on "CSI," was arrested by police "after locating suspected cocaine, heroin, Ecstacy, miscellaneous prescription drugs and paraphernalia," The AP reports. He was found passed out in his car, which was parked on the wrong side of the street.

Hat Tip: Many thanks, JUNGLE JIM

Smiley Face Murders = Shenanigans?

We linked to a story earlier in the week about two detectives who believe that a series of apparent drownings might actually have been murders. They used the phrase "Smiley Face" murders because of reported "smiley-face" graffiti found near the spots where the bodies went in the water.

Steve Huff from the True Crime Weblog has a good post here, though, explaining why there's reason to be skeptical about the claims. For one thing, the vast majority of serial killers work alone, which conflicts with the detectives' theory.

The last thing you want to hear when calling 911

Snoring.

Hat Tip: Saw this via RDM's Random Remarks!

Shots fired, burglar hurt during OP break-in

Police were called before 11 last night to Ratliff Guttering Company. From OP Police:

The responding officers were informed that an employee of the company had been sleeping in an apartment inside the business when he heard a loud crash coming from the garage area.  The employee grabbed a 12 gauge shotgun and went to investigate.  He saw company’s garage door partially open and then saw a person inside near one of the company’s trucks. 

He then fired one shot and heard the person, male voice, yell out. After a moment the intruder ran towards the garage door and the employee fired a second shot.  Investigators at the scene found blood on the garage floor. A K-9 responded but no suspect was found.

Life imitates "Grand Theft Auto"

Man is stabbed by suspect who was apparently standing in life for "Grand Theft Auto," UK police say.

UPDATE: GamesRadar interviews a source connected to the store, who says the victim wasn't standing in line and waiting for the game. Which agrees with the BBC account -- the Beeb says the suspect is the one who MIGHT have been waiting in line. The victim was walking by. (Thanks, David!)

Hat Tip: Many thanks to the Astonishing Ash!

Quote of the day

"I just got out of jail. I'm trying to have fun and whoop some ass." -- Kevin J. Diaz, 19, a Wisconsin man accused of using an ice scraper to hit a bicyclist in the back of the head.

2 critically injured in KCK shooting

From Sara Shepherd:

A double shooting tonight in Kansas City, Kan., left two men in critical condition.

The shooting was reported at 7:10 p.m. in the parking lot of a music and video store at 33rd Street and Parallel Parkway, where the victims were shot while inside a vehicle, Officer Troy Rice said.

The men, both thought to be in their mid-20s, were rushed to a hospital for treatment.

Police were looking for two men who fled the scene in a maroon GMC Yukon, possibly a Denali. The suspects fired multiple shots, Rice said, but it was unclear whether they fired from inside or outside their vehicle.

AL quadriplegic accused of making child porn

By secretly videotaping girls as they took showers at his house, police say.