by Mike Hudgins
It would seem Stevensville is full of jailbirds.
Residents were “arrested” on a variety of questionable charges Friday evening and throughout Saturday, brought before a judge and sentenced to time behind bars during Stevensville’s first Jail and Bail fundraiser.
The charges weren’t exactly the kind normally found on a police blotter. One woman, for instance, was charged with eating spaghetti with a spoon.
Fortunately, the jail wasn’t particularly secure, the charges weren’t particularly serious, and the whole thing was for a good cause.
The Jail and Bail, held during the annual Scarecrow Festival, was a joint fundraiser between the Stevensville Police Department and American Legion Post 94. By Saturday, plenty of people found themselves behind bars, and nobody seemed particularly upset about it.
The idea came from Stevensville Chief of Police John Boe, who approached the American Legion about putting the event together. Kay Gibbons, with Post 94, said the two organizations decided to join forces because both could benefit from the fundraiser.
“We both could use fundraising funds right now,” Gibbons said.
It all started with a warrant.
For a donation, someone could fill one out accusing a friend, family member or coworker of a made-up offense. Before the event, Gibbons said one American Legion member wanted the post commander arrested for being a “fashion catastrophe.”
Once a warrant was issued, the accused could be picked up or turn themselves in.
From there, they were put in toy handcuffs, dressed in black-and-white prison garb and posed for a mugshot before going in front of the judge.
Pleading innocent was useless.
The judge heard the charges, set bail and sent the offender to the makeshift jail. Prisoners then had 30 minutes with their cellphones to call friends and family and convince them to come down and help spring them.
Those who couldn’t raise their bail weren’t facing a lengthy sentence. Once their 30 minutes were up, they were free to go.
The jail was set up on the corner of Main Street and 2nd Street near Cenex, where passersby could get a good look at exactly who had been locked up. LD Custom Fencing supplied the fence panels used to build the makeshift jail, while Cowpoke Ranch Supply provided straw bales for the event.
And there were plenty of inmates to put behind those fences.
Organizers said Saturday that a large number of people had been jailed during the two-day event. People issued warrants, helped raise bail and stopped to watch friends and neighbors get hauled off to jail.
Before the event, Gibbons was optimistic about how it would go.
“I’m excited about it,” she said. “I think it’s going to be lots of fun.”
By Saturday, that appeared to be exactly what happened.
Gibbons and others working the event said the community embraced the idea, and they hope to bring Jail and Bail back next year. With the first year behind them, they believe it could be even more successful now that people have seen how it works and know what to expect.
Money raised through the event will benefit both the Stevensville Police Department and American Legion Post 94. Gibbons said the police department has equipment needs that aren’t always easily covered by its budget. Post 94 has an aging building in need of repairs and also maintains and replaces flags used for its community flag projects.
Judging by the number of people who spent time behind bars over the weekend, Stevensville certainly didn’t have trouble finding criminals.
And for this one weekend, that wasn’t a bad problem to have.
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