SENTINEL-NEWS (Shelbyville, Kentucky) 07 April 05 Snake prank puts three behind bars (James Mulcahy)
A Simpsonville woman and two men face charges after they allegedly released 13 nonpoisonous snakes in several Winchester businesses last week.
Police said Candace Conner, 22, of Simpsonville, along with Thomas M. Smith, 22, and Gordon Daniels (a/k/a Jones), 30, both of Winchester, face misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct and menacing behavior after they released the green garden snakes in a department store, a restaurant, a video store and a U.S. Post Office mail receptacle. The three had gathered the snakes from one of their back yards.
Winchester Police Detective Steven Caudill said officials first thought the snakes were forced out by recent weather. "I was like everybody else -- we've had a huge amount of rain and they've all come out," Caudill said.
County Attorney John Keeton is taking the prank seriously, Caudill said.
"Some people are terrified of these snakes," he said. "We got to thinking, what if somebody was looking through the produce and came across one of these and had a heart attack?"
The charges, he said, could each result in one to 90 days in jail and up to $250 in fines. The three are to appear in Clark District Court April 26.
Caudill said Conner is in the process of moving to Winchester.
Snake prank puts three behind bars