Charge Flushed in Toilet Clogging Case
Wed Sep 1, 9:56 PM ET Add Strange News - AP to My Yahoo!
SHELBY, Mont. - A criminal charge accusing a college student of intentionally clogging a toilet at a border crossing was dismissed after a prosecutor said there was no permanent damage or monetary loss. "That's beautiful," said Jesse Huffman, 19, a Great Falls resident attending Montana State University in Bozeman.
Huffman said it was a case of nature calling and using toilet tissue as needed on Aug. 21 at the Port of Sweet Grass on the U.S.-Canada border.
Toole County Attorney Merle Raph said he asked Justice of the Peace Russell Mann to dismiss the case and Mann agreed Tuesday.
"I don't think I did anything wrong," Huffman told the Great Falls Tribune.
Huffman's mother, Paula, said she went public with her son's story to "bring the injustice to light." Her response Tuesday was, "Hallelujah."
"Honestly, I don't think they (Customs and Border Patrol inspectors) should be getting away with abusing their power like that," she said.
Huffman was a passenger in one of three carloads of teens returning to Montana after two nights in Lethbridge, Alberta, where the drinking age is 18.
A routine stop by port inspectors revealed alcohol in the car, and the driver _- who was under the legal age of 21 in Montana - was cited for minor in possession of alcohol by a Toole County sheriff's deputy.
While the driver was being interviewed, Huffman asked to use the port's public bathroom, which is locked for security reasons.
Huffman said he suffers from symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome and left the bathrooom without realizing the toilet was plugged.
Huffman was cited for misdemeanor criminal mischief by the deputy.
He conceded he and the other teens didn't take the allegation seriously when first confronted by a port inspector.
When he realized the accusation was not a joke, Huffman said he told the inspector he would flush the toilet and plunge it, if necessary, but was told "they had absolutely no toilet plungers within 40 miles."
Had he been convicted, Huffman could have faced six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. |
