Craughwell - Busted : Mugshots and Arrest Records of the Famous and Infamous

MUG SHOTS AND ARREST RECORDS OF THE FAMOUS AND INFAMOUS

Thomas J. Craughwell

Lots of people have run-ins with the law, and this book chronicles hundreds of them, ranging from the notorious to the famous to the hilarious. Youll find the truly terrifying Jeffrey Dahmer, the rapist, torturer, killer, and cannibal, but also the hapless Levi Detweiler, an Amish teenager who tried to outrun the cops in his horse and buggy. In between are serial killers, burglars, war criminals, chiselers, spies, assassins, and, of course, the stars of Hollywood, few of whom, it seems, can resist the temptation to get behind the wheel of car when theyve had a snoot-full.

Flipping through this book is a lot like snooping through police filesyou never know who youre going to find. That Lizzie Borden, O. J. Simpson, and Mel Gibson appear here will surprise no one, but what about Offer Vince Shlomi, from the ShamWow television commercials: He was arrested for punching a prostitute in the face. But he had his reasonsthe woman bit his tongue and wouldnt let go.

Then theres the short story writer, O. Henry. Before he began writing, he embezzled more than $800 from the bank where he worked as teller. His three-year stint in jail introduced to him to lots of colorful inmates and prison guards who would become the inspiration for characters in his stories.

The crime of tax evasion attracts an interesting cross-section of society: Theres the gangster Al Capone, the action-adventure movie star Wesley Snipes, and the immortal Henry David Thoreau. Capone and Snipes received lengthy prison sentences, but Thoreau spent only one night in jailhis aunt paid his back taxes for him.

Anyone who has watched an episode of MTVs reality series Jersey Shore knew it was only a matter of time before Nicole Snooki Polizzi would get picked up on a disorderly conduct charge, but who would have believed that at age 21 Al Pacino was arrested for carrying a concealed weapon? He told the arresting officer the gun was a stage prop he was taking to an auditionwhich is a great alibi. As it turns out, Pacino was telling the truth.

There are plenty of cringe-worthy moments here, including Congressman Larry Craig getting booked after cruising for sex in an airport mens room; Ozzy Osbourne being arrested for relieving himself on the Alamo; and the little-known case of Sada Abe, a Japanese Lorena Bobbitt.

A surprising number of cases are still being debated. Did Bruno Hauptmann kill the Lindbergh baby? Were Sacco and Vanzetti executed because they were killers or because they were anarchists? Was Henry Wirz, the commandant of the Andersonville prisoner of war camp, a heartless sadist? Did the cops who beat Rodney King get off easy?

Of course, not everyone who gets busted is a lowlife. Think of Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, and Rosa Parks. For social and political reformers, jail time is almost a badge of honor.

Here then is an arresting, informative, entertaining selection of some of the most notable jailbirds of the last 150 years.

(1948)

NATIONALITY

American

WHO IS HE?

With an IQ of 140 and looks that made him appear older than his actual age, Frank Abagnale began life as a con man at age 16.

WHAT DID HE DO?

Abagnale passed $2.5 million in bad checks in every state in the Union and in 26 foreign countries. Between the ages of 16 and 21, he successfully passed himself off as an airline pilot, an attorney, a college professor, and a pediatrician.

DATE OF ARREST

1969

CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE ARREST

While living in France, Abagnale was spotted by an ex-girlfriend who notified the French police. They arrested Abagnale while he was grocery shopping near his apartment in Montpellier.

THE CHARGES

Fraud and forgery

THE SENTENCE

Abagnale was sentenced to a year in prison in France, but after serving six months he was extradited to Sweden, where he was tried and sentenced to a year in prison. Then the Swedish government sent him to the United States where he was sentenced to 12 years. After serving 5 years, he was paroled. Abagnale was 26 years old.

AFTERWARD

Abagnale found a new career working for the FBI as a teacher and consultant to the Bureaus Fraud Prevention program.

THE MOVIE

Steven Spielbergs 2002 film, Catch Me If You Can, is based on Abagnales autobiography of the same name. Leonardo Di Caprio played Frank Abagnale.

(1986)

NATIONALITY

Nigerian

WHO IS HE?

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab is the son of a wealthy Nigerian banker. After high school he studied Arabic in Sanaa, Yemen, and then enrolled at University College in London, where he studied mechanical engineering and became head of the universitys Islamic Society. At some point he was recruited by Al Qaeda, and in November 2009 he disappeared. Abdulmutallabs father, Alhaji Umaru Mutallab, went to the U.S. embassy in Abuja to report that, given Umars association with Islamic extremists, he feared that his son had become a security threat. Embassy officials and a CIA officer sent a report of the meeting to Washington, but did not revoke Abdulmutallabs visa to the United States.

WHAT DID HE DO?

On Christmas Eve 2009, Abdulmutallab used cash to purchase a ticket from Lagos, Nigeria, to Detroit, via Amsterdam. He had no luggage. Several hours later, as the plane carrying 278 passengers approached Detroit, Abdulmutallab returned from the bathroom, threw a blanket over his lap, and tried to activate explosives made of PETN, or pentaerythritol, which he had concealed in his underpants. The bomb misfired, giving off a loud pop, and then setting fire to Abdulmutallabs pants. Many of the passengers panicked, but Jasper Schuringa, a Dutch filmmaker, leapt on top of Abdulmutallab and tried to put out the fire. It was doused by members of the cabin crew with fire extinguishers.

DATE OF ARREST

December 25, 2009

CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE ARREST

Abdulmutallab was taken into custody at the Detroit airport and transported for treatment to the University of Michigan Burn Center in Ann Arbor. He was arraigned the next day, handcuffed to a wheelchair.

THE CHARGES

Attempted murder and attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction

AFTERWARD

At the time of his arrest, Abdulmutallab was interrogated by agents of the FBI. At some point it was determined that he should be read the Miranda rights and given access to a lawyer, at which point Abdulmutallab stopped cooperating with his interrogators. The mirandizing of Abdulmutallab set off a firestorm of debate about whether he should be treated as an enemy combatant or as a criminal. Weeks later the United States brought two members of Abdulmutallabs family to visit him; after this visit, he began to cooperate with his interrogators once again. As of 2010, he was being held at the Federal Correctional Institution in Milan, Michigan.