- Sep 6, 2000
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A Tallahassee man trying to hotfoot it away from the cops had to do the stop, drop and roll when his trousers caught fire Sunday. Police said 30-year-old Carl Franklin would have kept right on running - trailing smoke and ashes - if his pants hadn't dropped to his ankles and tripped him up.
Tallahassee Police Officer Seth Stoughton spotted Franklin about 11 p.m. standing by a fence on Kissimmee Street. Franklin's pants were down, and he had both hands in front of him. Stoughton suspected he was about to urinate. When the officer shouted, Franklin yanked up his pants and turned to run.
"We prepare for a lot of stuff, but I'd never expected to see the man's pants on fire," Stoughton said. "His pocket was outlined in red, and it was clearly smoldering." Apparently, Franklin had been smoking a Newport when he stopped to heed nature's call. Lacking anywhere to put his smoke, he'd just slipped it into his pocket.
Stoughton chased after the man in the burning pants, yelling for him to hit the ground. Franklin kept going - until his trousers slipped from his grasp and pooled at his feet. He took a tumble, and Stoughton dived on top of him, slapping at the fire. Franklin was still trying to get away, punching and kicking, until another officer arrived and quickly cut away the burning pants. Stoughton arrested Franklin on a charge of resisting arrest, handcuffed him and took him to jail.
"About halfway to the jail, he was still shouting that his pants were on fire," Stoughton said.
The officer reported Franklin "smelled strongly of an alcoholic beverage and appeared intoxicated."
A Tallahassee man trying to hotfoot it away from the cops had to do the stop, drop and roll when his trousers caught fire Sunday. Police said 30-year-old Carl Franklin would have kept right on running - trailing smoke and ashes - if his pants hadn't dropped to his ankles and tripped him up.
Tallahassee Police Officer Seth Stoughton spotted Franklin about 11 p.m. standing by a fence on Kissimmee Street. Franklin's pants were down, and he had both hands in front of him. Stoughton suspected he was about to urinate. When the officer shouted, Franklin yanked up his pants and turned to run.
"We prepare for a lot of stuff, but I'd never expected to see the man's pants on fire," Stoughton said. "His pocket was outlined in red, and it was clearly smoldering." Apparently, Franklin had been smoking a Newport when he stopped to heed nature's call. Lacking anywhere to put his smoke, he'd just slipped it into his pocket.
Stoughton chased after the man in the burning pants, yelling for him to hit the ground. Franklin kept going - until his trousers slipped from his grasp and pooled at his feet. He took a tumble, and Stoughton dived on top of him, slapping at the fire. Franklin was still trying to get away, punching and kicking, until another officer arrived and quickly cut away the burning pants. Stoughton arrested Franklin on a charge of resisting arrest, handcuffed him and took him to jail.
"About halfway to the jail, he was still shouting that his pants were on fire," Stoughton said.
The officer reported Franklin "smelled strongly of an alcoholic beverage and appeared intoxicated."
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