Randy Bailey, of St. Paul, Minnesota, really wanted a hamburger. The only problem is that he had been sentenced to house arrest for a DWI conviction. If he ventured more than 150 feet from his home, his court imposed ankle bracelet would alert authorities.
Bailey figured out that the electronic device had a time lag of four minutes before it would trigger an alarm. The nearest Burger King was nearly a half mile away. He thought he might be able to race to the restaurant in his car, order a burger and get back to within 150 feet of his house before an alarm went off.
His manners and anxious behavior did him in though. According to the assistant manager of the restaurant, Bailey was very agitated when he ordered "an f—ing cheeseburger and f—ing fries." When she asked him to watch his language he continued swearing, which prompted her to cancel the order and refuse Bailey service. He responded by getting out of his car and kicking in the drive thru window. He then raced back home before the ankle alarm went off.
Burger King employees got his license plate number though and police were alerted. When the St. Paul police officers arrived at Bailey’s home he cited the ankle bracelet as evidence that he could not have left his property and been at the restaurant. In addition to the benefit of eye-witnesses at the scene of the crime, the police determined that the ankle devices are not that sensitive and that there is a gap before an alarm goes off.
Still, some expressed bewilderment about the timing of the mile long burger run and concern over the fact that the ankle alarm did not go off. Police retraced the steps between Bailey’s home and the Burger King, obeying all traffic laws, and found the round trip could be driven in less than four minutes. Bailey was charged with felony
criminal destruction of property.
November 11, 2014
