‘The Taking of A-Z’ continues as vinyl popcorn snobs take over this blog for the next 21 days.
Hi folks, my name is Brandon and I’m here today with an example of how insanely fucked up our nation’s legal system tends to be – especially when handling minor offenses. Last month, a police officer in North Carolina pulled over James Meyers for a broken taillight, while he was taking his daughter to school.
During this traffic stop, Meyers was also informed of an outstanding warrant out for his arrest. Want to know what was his crime? He failed to return a VHS of the cult comedy Freddy Got Fingered that he rented in 2002!
Meyers thought the officer was joking but the warrant was indeed real and he ended up turning himself in to face misdemeanor charges and a $200 fine for an overdue video rental. Freddy Got Fingered is a comedy film about an unemployed cartoonist who moves into his parents’ basement and starts spreading sexual abuse rumors about his father.
When I found out about James Meyers the arrest warrant for such a frivolous “crime,” my faith in the justice system has decreased significantly. Firstly, I do believe that there should be consequences for theft. I also agree with pursuing the collection of fines when customers renege on a deal or contract such as in this case where Meyers did not return a piece of property that he had on loan from a video rental store. To go so far as to issue an arrest warrant for a 2002 transaction involving one VHS tape? That’s a bit over the top!
The whole process of dealing with this man’s arrest including filing the paperwork, placing him in handcuffs, proceedings, etc. is such a frivolous use of law enforcement and resources that could have been better utilized in going after those who are deliberately committing other crimes such as robbery. There is a happy ending to this story. Tom Green, the director and star of Freddy Got Fingered, offered to help pay the fines for Meyers. Apparently, Green is another person who considers this whole ordeal -- of arresting a man because he did not return a movie -- to be just as ridiculous as it sounds.
How would YOU have reacted to this frivolous arrest over a video rental?
What was the last movie YOU rented?
Brandon is a popcorn snob that enjoys learning about weird film trivia. He likes technology and impersonating famous actors.