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Noticed this story today in the Sun. I personally think its hilarious, and having to deal with this kind of behaviour via the store, I don't blame them.

Joker goes too far?


Is a jail sentance really neccesary, I know its only an option, but should it be at all?

Thats actually rather funny. Jail time? No. they should get probation at the worst IMO. I really do understand why they did it. Teens standing outside my place for hours at a time really get under my skin as well

A warning to the couple from the police to 'never do that again' would have sufficed.

I guess I can see the potential harm... If the teens had all got out of the car and beat seven shades of gak out of the axeman, then where would we be? Or if in their panic to escape they had crashed the car...

Hmmm... Police warning imo, anything more in this case is a waste of money.

Meh. 20 bucks says it will either get thrown out or the final sentence will be super lame (paying a fine).

The kids deserved it. Next case.

What happened? This is blocked at my workplace.

I can sympathise with that, miss alot of stuff due to work blocks, especially vids, don't even see them anymore. At least before it just told me content wasn't working, but I could see the title etc.

Joker faces jail for 'Axe Maniac' Stunt

By ALASTAIR TAYLOR

Published: Today
A PRANKSTER may be jailed after he faked an axe attack on his fiancee to scare off teenagers loitering outside his home.

Three lads sitting in a parked car watched in horror as John Powell, 28, chased screaming, ketchup-smeared Lucy Walton up a lane while waving a 4ft axe.

She banged on their window screaming: "Let me in!"

Powell is said to have tapped on the window with the axe before the panic-stricken lads started the engine and sped off.

But the joke backfired when the teenagers alerted police who arrested Powell and Lucy, 27. Magistrates were told the couple decided to scare the lads off because they were sick of people sitting in the lay-by near their home in Crook, Cumbria, after dark and leaving litter.

Simon Jackson, 19, said he and his mates were "absolutely terrified". Weeping Lucy told South Lakeland Magistrates' Court: "I don't understand how they didn't realise it was a joke." Powell admits harassment and having an axe in a public place.

Magistrates will sentence him later but said jail is an option.

Brewery worker Powell said outside court: "I can't believe something this stupid ended up in court."

Some bloke was annoyed by teenagers parking their car near his home.

One night his girlfriend had the brilliant idea of squirting tomato sauce over herself, and running off down to the teenagers' car to ask to be rescued by them from an axe murderer -- the boyfriend who pursued her with a four foot axe.

Hilarity, as might be expected, ensued.

It ended with the boyfriend and girlfriend being arrested for carrying weapons in a public place, and so on.

Weeping Lucy (the girlfriend) told South Lakeland Magistrates' Court: "I don't understand how they didn't realise it was a joke." Powell (the boyfriend) admits harassment and having an axe in a public place.

Brewery worker Powell said outside court: "I can't believe something this stupid ended up in court."

That's why he needs a good stiff dose of porridge.

Thanks for the insight. Maybe he should have used a plastic axe? I think it is a pretty cool idea. Heck my dad would have probably gotten arrested for a joke he did on my 7th birthday. He came out of the woods wearing coveralls, a machete, and a hockey mask, (this was 1987, so Jason was still scary). We ran pretty far to get away from him. He was covered in fake blood and scared the gak out of all of us. So if a neighbor saw this, he probably would have gotten arrested too right?

The problem I see with this behavior, although funny, is very dangerous in a situation involving someone who was not scared.
What if those kids had been chavs and had stabbed the guy to death?

Given a different situation, imagine if the bloke sitting in the car had been an ex-SAS or British Military man. I met alot of Brits during my time in Iraq, and for the most part they aren't to be trifiled lightly with... and they dislike "surprises." He very well might have lept out of the car, taken the axe from said "maniac" and killed him before he might have realized it was a prank.

Here in Texas we have a concealed carry law, and no matter the man/woman this WOULD have ended badly here.

So although it was definately funny, I can see the point of the cops... they want to disuade this type of behavior.

Funny, but stupid.

So carrying an axe in public is illegal?

Hopefully he won't get jail time, stupid teenagers having fun and ruining everybody elses.

Connor McKane wrote:The problem I see with this behavior, although funny, is very dangerous in a situation involving someone who was not scared.

Imagine if the bloke sitting in the car had been an ex-SAS or British Military man. I met alot of Brits during my time in Iraq, and for the most part they aren't to be trifiled lightly with... and they dislike "surprises."

He very well might have lept out of the car, taken the axe from said "maniac" and killed him before he might have realized it was a prank.

Here in Texas we have a concealed carry lawk, and no matter the man/woman this WOULD have ended badly here.

So although it was definately funny, I can see the point of the cops... they want to disuade this type of behavior.

Funny, but stupid.

What about shows like Fear Factor? Don't they kind of inspire people to pull off pranks like this? I admit they say this is not to be attempted at home and the people being pranked are probably in on it, but there are a lot of people out there that can't read or are too lazy to read that small text.

halonachos wrote:So carrying an axe in public is illegal?

Hopefully he won't get jail time, stupid teenagers having fun and ruining everybody elses.

Wasn't this on his property?

EDIT:

Just read it again: "Powell is said to have tapped on the window with the axe before the panic-stricken lads started the engine and sped off.". So unless the car was parked on his lawn, it was in public.

Why would an ex-SAS commando be sitting in a car, at night, and loitering near someone's house?

halonachos wrote:Why would an ex-SAS commando be sitting in a car, at night, and loitering near someone's house?

Possibly hired as a mercenary/assassin to kill the husband? If that is the case, the man needs the axe.

The judge is just putting on his 'hem, hem, stop being silly' hat. They'll be let off with a warning.

halonachos wrote:So carrying an axe in public is illegal?

What if you're a lumberjack?

You know you're a geek when you read the title of this thread and think he'd finally done in Batman XD.

I would have been jailed ever so many Halloweens during high school if this were the state of the law in the US.

There is literally nothing better than scaring trick-or-treaters.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

LordofHats wrote:You know you're a geek when you read the title of this thread and think he'd finally done in Batman XD.

I thought that, then "Headline from Mass Effect 3?"

It's called disturbing the peace.

Running around with an axe and having your GF acting all bloody and terrified?

Noone see's the potential danger here? An undercover cop in the area may have simply SHOT HIM DEAD for the prank.

Yeah, placing your own life at risk is absolutely worth a jail sentence.

dogma wrote:I would have been jailed ever so many Halloweens during high school if this were the state of the law in the US.

There is literally nothing better than scaring trick-or-treaters.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

LordofHats wrote:You know you're a geek when you read the title of this thread and think he'd finally done in Batman XD.

I thought that, then "Headline from Mass Effect 3?"

QFT
Scaring Trick or Treaters is too much fun.

I have a similar problem with "lads" sitting in their car outside my place. It is always Muslims though, which means they are not drinking, so they rarely get too rowdy. I've spoken to them twice and politely asked them to keep it down, and they have done so. Not silent, but down to an acceptable level. I often hear them policing each other. There is normally at least one pillock being lairy, but his mates will remind him that people live here and get them hushed. They do, however, often leave litter. Not even in a tidy pile - just scattered around.

Far more annoying are the couples who park up and shag in the back of their cars. Only seen it happening twice. As I was walking home one time, fairly early in the evening (8-9pm-ish), I saw it going on. The guy could see me coming, so I made sure I gave him a good stare, in the hope he would get the message. Another time, I looked out of my window and saw them at it. It was about 3am, and I couldn't sleep, so I normally wouldn't have been awake at that time. It was more amusing than annoying, in some ways. At that time of the night, I saw less harm in it. Far more annoying are the 4-5 times I have seen condoms left there.

dogma wrote:Yeah, placing your own life at risk is absolutely worth a jail sentence.

....because any cop that would've shot him dead wouldnt care about the life he took after realising it was just a prank.


Wake up. Irresponsible actions such as what this guy (and girl) performed have the ability to disrupt people's lives. That's a right you DONT have, and IS ABSOLUTELY worth a jail sentence.

Performing in public like you're an axe weilding maniac about to kill someone can be traumatic to people. Perhaps those people are pussies or old, young, stupid or whatever, but they have rights just the same.

What about the 90 year old woman that witnesses this, has a heart attack and dies out of fear?

What about the 5 year old looking out the window that doesnt understand and has nightmares for weeks waking up screaming about the "bloody axe-man"?

What about the cop that just took the guys life trying to "protect the innocent". Killing someone has an effect on the protector, or it can.

What about the traffic accident that could've been caused by this prank?

The list goes on, all of which could be avoided by some guy and girl not acting like immature idiots. Sure anything else can potentially cause heart attacks, nightmares or traffic accidents...but why add this act of idiocy into the mix? It's something that's easily avoided by people acting the way they should.

It's why there are laws against this sort of thing.

Fifty wrote:I have a similar problem with "lads" sitting in their car outside my place. It is always Muslims though, which means they are not drinking, so they rarely get too rowdy. I've spoken to them twice and politely asked them to keep it down, and they have done so. Not silent, but down to an acceptable level. I often hear them policing each other. There is normally at least one pillock being lairy, but his mates will remind him that people live here and get them hushed. They do, however, often leave litter. Not even in a tidy pile - just scattered around.

Far more annoying are the couples who park up and shag in the back of their cars. Only seen it happening twice. As I was walking home one time, fairly early in the evening (8-9pm-ish), I saw it going on. The guy could see me coming, so I made sure I gave him a good stare, in the hope he would get the message. Another time, I looked out of my window and saw them at it. It was about 3am, and I couldn't sleep, so I normally wouldn't have been awake at that time. It was more amusing than annoying, in some ways. At that time of the night, I saw less harm in it. Far more annoying are the 4-5 times I have seen condoms left there.

You need a post light with a motion detector.

halonachos wrote:Why would an ex-SAS commando be sitting in a car, at night, and loitering near someone's house?

I was going to pose the same question, although SAS aren't commandos - that's the Royal Marines

Deadshane1 wrote:Noone see's the potential danger here? An undercover cop in the area may have simply SHOT HIM DEAD for the prank.

You obviously don't know Cumbria that well.

Imagine if the three lads had got out of the car and beaten the crap out of the would be murderer? Or if they decided to run him over?

There are pranks and there are stupid pranks. This was the latter.

Connor got it spot on. Funny but stupid.

I would have definately rammed him with the car!

Give him a warning and set him loose.

I thought it was pretty funny.. a caution seems fair to me

It was quite funny, although they got the punchline wrong.


In the proper version, you're supposed to hack one of them to death then yell 'MADE YOU LOOK!'.

Deadshane1 wrote:It's called disturbing the peace.

Running around with an axe and having your GF acting all bloody and terrified?

Noone see's the potential danger here? An undercover cop in the area may have simply SHOT HIM DEAD for the prank.

Shoot first ask questions later? Whatever happened to pointing your gun at someone and telling them to drop the axe?