Only in Florida 7/23/2013

     There are very few places in the United States that allow public nudity. Mostly, these places are either secluded beaches, campgrounds, or resorts. Outside of those areas, people tend to keep their clothes on, unless they are in New Orleans for Mardi Gras and are very intoxicated. Because of this, when an unidentified man decided to take a naked jaunt down the median of the Caloosahatchee Bridge near Fort Myers, he attracted no small amount of attention.

      Early in the morning of July 16th, the Lee County Sheriff's Office started receiving reports of a naked man walking southbound on the Caloosahatchee Bridge. Witnesses on the scene described the man as, "not wearing clothes and waving his hands with raised arms as he walked." When the deputies arrived, wrapped him  apprehended him, the man, with apparently nothing to hide, told the deputies that he had parked his car near the foot of the bridge, and it was rigged with explosives.

     Generally, law enforcement officers tend to not take bomb threats lightly, even if they are given by a naked, arm waving man. To keep everyone safe, the deputies closed off the bridge and called in the bomb squad to disarm the man's car. Using their specialized robots, the bomb techs carefully searched the car from a distance, eventually clearing the car to be approached. The car did have some suspicious items in it, but there was no bomb and the bridge was reopened later in the day.

     Normally, the man who made the threat would be charged and placed in jail. However, in this case, the man was Baker Acted, and was taken to a local mental health facility for evaluation. Most native Floridians know what the Baker Act is, but to those unaware, the Baker Act is a law in Florida where a person can be involuntarily detained for a psychological evaluation if they clearly have a mental illness, or they are a harm to themselves, a harm to others, or they are self neglectful. The act was named for a Florida state representative, Maxine Baker, who was deeply interested in mental health issues.


Other news in brief:

Angry homeowner threatens tree-trimming crew with shotgun - You can take my tree limbs from my cold, dead hands!

Man just out of prison for 1995 murder accused of beating woman to point of unconsciousness in West Palm Beach - Some people just don't learn their lesson.

Police: DeLand man sits on baby's head because child would not fall asleep - ....seriously, WTF. Father of the year material right here.

Man arrested for performing dentistry at his Boca home without license, deputies say - Nothing says professionalism like a laundry room dentists office.