Tuesday, May 3, 2011

** Naked New Mexico man hijacks and crashes ambulance

** New York paramedic pleads to lesser charge, given slap on wrist after teen rape

UNITED STATES NEWS

** Albuquerque police in New Mexico were confronted with a bizarre call Friday when a naked man hijacked an ambulance and then crashed it during a psychotic episode. KRQE (April 29) said the 1:30 a.m. incident played out with authorities arriving on scene only to find Christopher Halverson, 27, roaming the neighborhood au naturel. After tasering him, Halverson was loaded into an ambulance without recommended restraints. Though initially cooperative with medics, Halverson overpowered the attending practitioner, climbed into the front cab and ejected the driving provider. He crashed the unit a short time later. He was eventually located and taken to hospital. The medics, meanwhile, were unharmed. There is no word yet on whether charges will be leveled.

** A New York paramedic, charged with felony rape last January in connection with an inebriated 15-year-old girl, will be placed on three years probation after striking a plea deal. That is the word from the New York Post (Susan Edelman/Erin Calabrese/May 1) which said Joel Pierce, 42, who apparently committed the attack while off duty, pleaded to a lesser charge of endangering the welfare of a child. Formal sentencing is set for June 30. According to the newspaper, Pierce happened upon the girl in his apartment building lobby around midnight, offering to assist her in sobering up if she accompanied him to his suite. Since the girl, who also lived in the complex, had seen Pierce in uniform several times, she complied. Pierce’s attorney told the newspaper despite the charges, the girl was not an unwilling participant. Her parents, however, said she remains traumatized by the assault.