BOWIE, Md. (AP) - It wasn't pennies from heaven -- but coins from an armored truck. Police in a Washington, D.C. suburb had to shut down a highway Tuesday morning after a load of coins dropped from the truck. The southbound side of U.S. Route 301 in Bowie, Md., was closed to traffic for about an hour to clean up the money spill. Police say the back door of the armored car apparently wasn't closed properly. Police aren't sure how much money was scattered on the highway. But authorities say it was just coins, no bills.
$5,700 PARKING TICKETS
DENVER (AP) - What can Brown do for you? How about racking up thousands in
parking tickets. The Denver Post reports a single UPS delivery truck is the
champion of local parking violations. The truck was ticketed 196 times last
year, with fines totaling nearly $5,700. UPS spokesman Mark Dickens notes
parking tickets are a cost of doing business in some cities.
99 CENT WEDDING
LOS ANGELES (AP) - The day of the triples nines was a lucky one for nine
couples. They were married at the 99 Cents store in Hollywood, yesterday --
9-9-09. They won their bargain store weddings as part of a promotion. The
couples paid 99 cents each for their five-minute ceremonies. There were 99-cent
flowers, balloons and crepe paper. Even a 99-cent buffet. But the store is
promising accommodations at an upscale hotel for the honeymoons.
ALLENTOWN ALLIGATOR
ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) - You usually don't think of Allentown, Pa. as being gator
country. But authorities in Allentown report police and animal control officers
have captured a 6-foot alligator that was sunning itself in a city park. Police
were tipped by a passer-by who saw the big reptile. Officers pinned the
130-pound alligator and taped its snout shut. It was taken to a reptile farm in
the Poconos. Police believe the park gator might have been set loose by someone
who had kept it as a pet.
UM-DORM GOES COED
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) - For nearly 70 years, Stockwell Hall at the University of
Michigan had been for women only. No more. The old dorm has gotten a co-ed
makeover. It reopens this week after a nearly $40 million renovation. Besides
men, Stockwell Hall now features upgraded plumbing, air conditioning and
wireless Internet access.
DOG DISPUTE
CINCINNATI (AP) - It's a big fight over a little dog. Two Cincinnati women are
suing the owner of a missing Chihuahua over a disputed reward. Carmen Dominguez
and Sheila Miller charge they never received an advertised $1,000 reward for
returning the little pooch named Wilfred. The Cincinnati Enquirer reports the
two women say they spotted the dog as it was about dart into traffic and picked
it up. It had no tags. Weeks later, the women say they saw an online ad offering
a $1,000 reward and returned it. They're charging fraud and seek up to $15,000
in damages. Defendant Lynn Creech says she won't pay because her daughter's
Chihuahua was stolen.
