Warning drivers gets woman arrested

A Houston woman's attempt to save drivers from a speeding ticket landed her something worse: 12 hours in jail.

As she rode her bicycle home from a grocery store last week near downtown Houston, Natalie Plummer noticed police officers pulling over speeders. After she parked her bike and turned one of her grocery bags into a makeshift sign warning drivers about the "speed trap" ahead, an officer drove up and arrested her.

"I was completely abiding by the law," Plummer told ABC's affiliate KRTK. "I was simply warning citizens of a situation ahead."

But Houston police saw it differently, and arrested Plummer for standing in the street where there a sidewalk was present, a misdemeanor charge. Houston police spokeswoman Jodi Silva said that officers found Plummer standing in the street, waving her arms as she held the sign. But Plummer denied ever leaving the sidewalk on West Dallas Street, alleging that the arresting officer invented a reason to detain her.

"He couldn't take me to jail for holding up this sign or he would have. So all he could do was make up something fake about it," Plummer told KRTK. The officer searched Plummer's backpack, she said, and threatened to arrest her for obstructing justice, a felony charge.

World’s highest paid athlete has taxpayers paying his rent

By Ryan Lovelace 

The world’s richest athlete is undefeated boxing superstar Floyd Mayweather.


He made $85 million last year from fights against Victor Ortiz and Miguel Cotto.


Mayweather, nicknamed “Money,” is currently serving a three-month jail sentence in a room one-third the size of a boxing ring in Las Vegas, Nev.

It was fun while it lasted ....

Terrell Owens' latest money woes can land him in jail.

The six-time Pro Bowl receiver, who is currently playing in the Indoor Football League, is $20,000 behind on child support payments for one of his children. The mother of the child filed a petition in Atlanta court that is asking for T.O. to be fined or jailed if he doesn't pay up.

The lawyer representing Melanie Paige Smith, the mother of one of Owens' four children, said in a letter to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that they have received no indication if Owens will ever pay for his daughter. "We plan to ask the court to send a strong message, given that he has only paid support in the last 10 months after a contempt action has been filed against him," Kessler said.

This is the latest in money troubles for Owens. Two of his homes in Dallas are in foreclosure. He tried to get his child support obligations lowered by a court last summer, blaming the NFL lockout on his inability to pay. The court refused his request. According to a January GQ article, Owens owes nearly $45K in child support every month.

After 15 seasons in the NFL where Owens became known as much for his off-the-field antics as his ability to catch, his contract with the Cincinnati Bengals was not renewed for the 2011 season. He couldn't find an NFL team to sign him, and he signed with the Allen Wranglers of the IFL.

He can reportedly make up to $500,000 for the Wranglers, which will not cover one year of child support.

Budget Crunch Forces A New Approach To Prisons

by Carrie Johnson

Budget problems are forcing states and the federal government to rethink their approach to prisons. More than 2 million people are incarcerated in the United States, and the cost is getting unbearable.

Even conservatives who describe themselves as tough on crime are starting to call for the release of some inmates. That's in part because the numbers are speaking louder than ever.

States spend about $50 billion a year to house prisoners, and experts say incarceration is the fastest-growing expense in state budgets, except for Medicaid.

It costs 23 times as much to have somebody behind the walls as it does in the community, and I think that disparity is what's becoming compelling.

Plaxico Burress

NEW YORK (AP)—Former Super Bowl hero Plaxico Burress apologized to his family and tearfully kissed his pregnant wife and young son goodbye Tuesday before he was led away to prison to begin serving a two-year sentence on a weapons charge.

Maybe it's just me, but I don't think, for what he did, and as full as prisons are, that he should get this sentance. Put a monitor on his leg, let him stay home for the sentence, but not prison.

They are saying, because of his celebrity status, they might have to keep him in maximum security. Then leave him at home. Let him pay for his incarceration rather than the taxpayers.

I don't see where any purpose is served, other than he might get killed, and then his family can sue the state for something, by his being in prison. He made a dumb mistake, as I recall, he shot himself in the leg, that was probably punishment enough.

I doubt that he will ever carry a gun again, but his jail time, to me, not necessary. And, it costs the state a lot of money, and Plaxico is probably a multi-millionaire. In this case, I don't think the punishment fits the crime.