News of the Weird: Week of May 19, 2022

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There Are Rules

At the Rio condo building a few blocks from Central Park in New York City, building management has filed a lawsuit against resident Helen Hirsh, 83, alleging she "defecated in the fitness center's pool and then again in the fitness center shower," according to the New York Post. The lawsuit also alleges that Hirsh "screams and makes loud noises while using the gym and the pool" and doesn't always wear appropriate attire in the gym. Hirsh was banned from the facilities but apparently has snuck back in by following a real estate agent touring prospective buyers or catching an open door when other residents were leaving. Management has had to take both the pool and the fitness center out of use so both could be cleaned and sanitized. But Hirsh thinks the suit is payback because she doesn't tip. "I'm an old lady. Why should I tip you all the time? I don't want to live here anymore," she said.

Irony

Police were called to a home in Trenton, South Carolina, on May 7, where two bodies were found in the backyard, WJBF-TV reported. The first was Joseph Anthony McKinnon, 60, who apparently died of a "cardiac event," according to the coroner. The second body was Patricia Ruth Dent, 65, who was McKinnon's live-in girlfriend, and who clearly did not die of natural causes. An autopsy revealed that Dent had been strangled; police believe a struggle took place inside the home, and McKinnon wrapped her in trash bags and placed her in a pit he had dug in the yard. They concluded that McKinnon had suffered a heart attack during that process.

He Can't Help Himself

Brazilian defender Marcelo, 34, was dismissed from the Lyon squad of the Ligue 1 Uber Eats French Football League last August after reportedly laughing during captain Leo Dubois' speech following the team's losing match against Angers. But on May 10, ESPN reported there was more to the explosive story. Marcelo, who was considered one of the leaders of the team, apparently had an ongoing issue with passing gas and laughing inappropriately in the locker room among his teammates. He had signed a contract with Lyon before the start of the season, but it was terminated in January and he signed with Bordeaux, which is having a stinky season of its own, now at the bottom of the Ligue 1 table and seven points from safety.

Bright Idea

Eighty-two-year-old actor James Cromwell, known most recently for his role on "Succession," glued his palm to a midtown Manhattan Starbucks store counter on May 10 to protest the extra charge the coffee company assesses for plant-based milk in their drinks. He later used a knife to scrape his hand off the counter. The Associated Press reported that Cromwell, who starred in "Babe: Pig in the City," is a longtime animal rights protester. For its part, Starbucks seemed nonplussed by the protest, which was organized by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, characterizing the nondairy milk customizations as similar to any other, "such as an additional espresso shot or syrup."

It's a Mystery

In Schleiden, Germany, on May 11, high school students laid to rest a classmate who had been with them for generations: Anh Bian, the human female skeleton that had dwelt in the school's biology classroom since the 1950s, and whom they had given the Vietnamese name for "mysterious peace." Students, teachers and town officials buried the anonymous woman in the town's Protestant cemetery in a coffin marked with symbols of all the world's major religions, but before doing so, they collected DNA so that they might later learn her identity. The Associated Press reported that they had hoped to bury her earlier, but the pandemic had slowed plans to put her to rest. Future biology studies will be undertaken using a plastic skeleton.

DUI

"DUI" has a new meaning for drivers and hikers in the Normandy region of France, The Connexion reported on May 11: deer under the influence. The 30 Million Friends Organization, an animal rescue group, said at this time of year, deer gorge on spring flowers that are loaded with sugar, which ferments in their stomachs and makes them "drunk." For example, they may become disoriented and sometimes panicked, wandering into dangerous situations. Experts remind anyone who comes across a bombed Bambi to stay calm and not upset the animal.

Family Values

The BBC reported on an unusual lawsuit filed in the north Indian state of Uttarakhand by Sanjeev and Sadhana Prasad, parents of Shrey Sagar, 35, against their son "because of mental cruelty." The elders are demanding compensation equal to about $650,000 if Shrey and his wife do not produce a child within a year. Sanjeev said they spent all their savings on their son, sending him to the United States for pilot training, and that he returned to India but lost his job and required their support for two more years. They arranged a lavish wedding and reception for him, but after six years, the couple "are still not planning a baby," Sanjeev said. "At least if we have a grandchild to spend time with, our pain will become bearable."

Florida

• At the Palm Haven Mobile Home Park in St. Petersburg, Florida, feathers were flying on May 8, The Smoking Gun reported. Christine Terman, 57, became angry that a chicken belonging to her neighbor, Lawrence Stenzel, had been defecating on the patio. So, according to the arrest report, Terman "retrieved a bucket of pee from her bathroom" and threw it at Stenzel. The bucket struck him in the face, "causing him pain," but worse, the police report went on, "the victim was wet when we arrived and smelled of urine." Terman fessed up to the dousing and was booked into the county jail on a misdemeanor battery charge; her boyfriend, Kevin Avery, 59, was also arrested for threatening Stenzel in the presence of the officers.
• Janiya Shaimiracle Douglas, 19, was arrested on May 12 in the Florida Keys for reckless driving and fleeing from a Monroe County Sheriff's deputy, ClickOrlando.com reported. When the officer finally caught up to her, Douglas told him that getting arrested had been on her bucket list since high school. So, congratulations, Janiya! You can tick that one off!

Great Art

When Laura Young picked up a marble bust from the floor of a Goodwill store in Austin, Texas, in 2018, she couldn't have imagined the saga that was about to unfold. As it turns out, the Associated Press reported on May 6, her $35 bust is believed to be a centuries-old sculpture of Pompey the Great, missing from the collection of King Ludwig I of Bavaria since World War II. Experts suspect an American soldier brought the bust to the United States after the war. The piece will visit the San Antonio Museum of Art until next year, when it will be returned to Germany. "I'm glad I got to be a small part of its long and complicated history, and he looked great in the house while I had him," Young said.

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