Weird Iowa: Jesse James Surfaces, Party Bus Ride Goes Awry, Bouncer's Strange Discovery and Alleged Robber's Bad Day
Iowa has no shortage of weird news. Here's some of it from around our Iowa Patches.
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Some names come with a little baggage.
Take Jesse James, the infamous outlaw from the late 1800s. Flash forward a couple hundred years, and a present day Jesse James lives right here in Cedar Falls, Iowa. He allegedly tried his best to keep the spirit of the name alive this week.
Find out what Jesse James Johnson, 20, of Cedar Falls, allegedly did to get Tasered by police, not once, but twice, and why he is facing four charges. Here's a hint: the more famous Jesse James was a bit more successful at eluding police.
Moving on to West Des Moines, we find Jacob William Nielsen, 18, of Des Moines. This young man allegedly attempted an armed robbery of an, ahem, "gift shop" that sells glass pipes and other smoking accessories.
It apparently was not Nielsen's day. Just take a look at the picture accompanying this article. To make a long story short, police say staff tackled Nielsen and held him to the ground until police arrived during a prolonged physical altercation. Oh yeah, his day ended with a felony charge.
In Iowa City, bouncers at the local nightclubs get used to finding fake IDs, but what happened last weekend was likely a first for one particular door minder.
Steven Fiorella, 19, allegedly tried to enter the Union Bar with an ID that looked very familiar. That's because it was the bouncer's, according to police. He had previously reported it stolen, and Fiorella reportedly told police he bought it for $20 at a party. Fiorella faces charges for fifth-degree theft and unlawful use of a driver's license.
Finally, back in Cedar Falls, a party bus ride took a turn for the worse. The bus went around a slight curve causing passengers, some of whom were dancing in the aisles as the bus was moving, to lose their balance.
A young woman was pushed into an exit door, which gave-way, and she fell out. The bus driver didn't realize what had happened until passengers said something. The young woman has been released from the hospital, but suffered a concussion and road rash all over her body.
Weird Flashbacks:
Weird Iowa: 'Aliens' Attack, Zombies Live and Who Got Beat Up by Steven Colbert
Weird Iowa: Godzilla Attacks, 'Ma Barker,' Too Many Drunks, and the State Goes to the Dogs
me
1:28 pm on Saturday, May 12, 2012
The bus in Cedar Falls that the lady fell out of was the same bus that the doors were malfunctioning and opening as the bus was going down the road the week before. The worst part about it is that the guy that runs the party bus company knew the doors were opening and he still sent the bus out with a different driver that had never driven it before so she didn't know it was messed up.
knick fan
5:56 pm on Saturday, May 12, 2012
@me- You just helped with her suit.
Jesussaves
9:51 pm on Saturday, May 12, 2012
Prolly what happened was the body of the vehicle flexed as it turned warping the hole where the door is, therefore unlatching the latches on the door allowing it to swing open. I drive a city bus for a living, and have actually had windows swing out from the side of the bus when the buses body torqued a way it wasn't supposed too, while going over a bump. So I just fit it back into it's frame.