When most people think of the sentences handed down by judges, they think that there is always some kind of example or precedent that is followed. Usually you don’t associate “creativity” with these sentences. But some judges break the mould in some very interesting ways. Check out the list below of twelve crimes with some rather strange sentences.
1. A 13 year-old girl in Utah was given 30 days in detention and 276 community service hours for cutting off the hair of a three year old in McDonald’s. The judge showed some mercy and agreed to reduce the service hours to 116 if the 13 year old’s mother agreed to cut her own daughter’s hair in the courtroom. Seems like a fair compromise.
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2. Two teens who vandalized a nativity scene (specifically, a statue of baby Jesus) were sentenced to replace the statue and walk around with a donkey with a sign on it that read “Sorry for the jackass offense.” Justice served.
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3. Because she couldn’t pay for the damage she’d done, an old woman in Germany agreed to knit sweaters for the people she had victimized. Her crime? She slashed the tires of dozens of cars on her street because she was tired of them parking in front of her house.
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4. A man stole a hot dog from a convenience store and was caught on camera. Usually a first-time offender won’t be punished too severely for a felony theft, but the man had a record and would be facing six months up to three years for the stolen hot dog.
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5. Courtrooms do not allow cellphones. When one rings, the judge usually isn’t happy. In 2005, a judge in New York named Robert Restaino arrested an entire courtroom full of people when the person whose cellphone wouldn’t come forward.
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6. Base-jumping is a pretty crazy idea. Illegal base-jumping is even crazier. Two men were charged with burglary (the illegal entering of a premises with intent to commit a crime) when they base-jumped off One Freedom Tower in NYC. Base-jumping is considered a crime in New York City.
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7. In Sarasota, Florida a homeless man was arrested after charging his phone using an outlet in a public park. The officer accused the man of stealing public utilities. Luckily, the judge threw out this case.
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8. Christmas in jail sounds pretty awful right? Well instead of giving a woman fifteen years for a series of charges including making fake ID’s, an Ohio judge fined her $3,000, put her on probation, and ordered that she spend three days a year for five years in jail. The catch? These three days a year had to be spent over Christmas. Ouch.
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(via: listverse.com)
Even with these rather creative sentences and judgements, one thing is still for sure, kids: crime doesn’t pay.
