45. Man Gets 12 Years for Fraud A federal judge sentenced Bruce Jones to 12 years in federal prison for fraud. Over a 10-year period, Jones had managed to swindle almost $10 million from thousands of gullible people throughout the state. He advertised his fantastic ideas on TV. “For some reason,” Jones said, “TV seems…

44. Larry Needs a New Air-Conditioner It had been another hot spring day. By ten o’clock in the evening, it had only cooled down to 87 degrees, according to Larry’s thermometer in the living room. He rarely looked at his thermometer because he usually didn’t care what the exact temperature was. Larry had two table…

43. Jimmy Fixes His Door Jimmy lives on the second floor of a six-unit apartment building. His front door has two locks — a security deadbolt, and a regular door handle lock. The front door also has a peephole — a tiny piece of glass through which Jimmy can look out his door at about…

42. Immigration Goes Online Thousands of immigrants who need to file papers related to immigration status, green cards, and resident cards no longer have to stand in line for hours on end. The immigration office now has a new system called Info Pass. Applicants simply schedule a time and a date to meet with an…

41. Bank Robbery It was 80 degrees in the shade. A man wearing a heavy army jacket, a pullover wool cap, and dark sunglasses walked into the First American Bank at the corner of Maple and Main streets in downtown Short Beach. The man walked up to the teller and held up a hand grenade…

40. City and Crime Crime in the city of Clio hit a 30-year low last year. “This is absolutely wonderful for our citizens, our businesses, and our visitors,” said Police Chief Louis Gates. Clio has a population of 28,000, but it has at least 30 gangs. The gangs make most of their money from dealing…

39. City Hosts 42nd Art Fair The Fernwood Library sponsored Fernwood’s 42nd Art Fair this weekend. The three-day event was held, as usual, at Memorial Park. Almost 100 artists showed up each day. More than 1,000 locals and visitors strolled through the shady park daily, as temperatures remained in the comfortable 70s all weekend. All…

38. Blood Drive at Civic Center The local university blood center had a blood drive today at the Civic Center auditorium. Almost 300 people showed up, but about 50 were turned away for various medical reasons. Fifty others left because the lines were moving so slowly. The event concluded at 6 p.m., three hours after…

37. Bathtub Blues A middle-aged man with a long beard was arrested by the police for disorderly conduct and property damage. “More charges might be added later,” said a police officer. The man, identified as Bill Wild, checked into the Motel Five last night about an hour after sunset. Telling the clerk that he would…

36. Tenants Watch Building Burn A 20-unit apartment building burned for about an hour before firemen were able to extinguish it. The fire started in the attic at about 10:30 p.m. yesterday evening. The damage was estimated at $1.5 million. A fire department spokesman said the fire might have been set deliberately. The tenant who…