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Since 1994, this is the 1685th issue of Randy Cassingham’s...
| 27 September 2026: Stand By Me | Copyright ©2026 https://thisistrue.com |
Precedent Set: Woman’s illegal arrest leads to repercussions on the entire police department. [Premium Only]
Picking Up: “Hi, I just saw like a truck with a crane toppled over, and the driver might be hurt,” the caller told 911. Firefighters responded to the Fort Lauderdale, Fla., home where, thankfully, nobody was hurt. The house wasn’t so lucky: the collapse significantly damaged the roof. The unnamed homeowner had been renovating their newly purchased home and was close to moving in. The crane company brought in a second crane to help with the cleanup — and the second crane also fell over,causing more damage. The house is now covered with a blue tarp, with a bright orange sticker declaring it unsafe. The homeowner said they don’t expect to move in anytime soon. (MS/WSVN Miami) ...Fortunately they know exactly what to do: bring in another crane.
Contraband: Man’s criminal charges includes a bizarre “Only in Florida” count. [Premium Only]
Fighting Back: Residents of an apartment complex in Sherman Oaks, Calif., noticed a man snooping around the property, and said his actions were “bizarre.” When theman noticed he was being observed, he ran to the building’s trash dumpster. “He just dove in headfirst and the lid closed behind him,” one resident said. Several residents opened the lid and ordered him out. “He just came out and had all these green leaves on his face,” said another resident. They say he then ran and tried to get into an apartment, then jumped out a window into the garage, where he tried to get into a car. “That’s when I pepper-sprayed him and we took him down and held him onthe ground until police showed up five minutes later,” said a resident. Police charged the unnamed man with burglary and vandalism. (RC/KTLA Los Angeles) ...That “bizarre” claim holds up pretty well.
Fighting Back II: IMO the funniest tagline of the week. [Premium Only] Yes, you can ask that your upgrade begin with Issue #1685.
Making Progress: Thanks much to great support in the past week — every week we need 5 upgrades or equivalent contributions to make this free edition possible without resorting to ads. “Surplus” support carries over, and there were 4 left over from last week, plus an $11 contribution. This week there were no new upgrades, but 3 returnees ...and several contributions — $212 total. Add in last week’s $11 and that’s SIX moreupgrades’ worth. Minus the 5 credits to replace the ad this week and there are still 7 credits to carry forward, so no ad next week for sure. Meanwhile, more readers are getting all the stories thanks to their upgrades, which is great. Join them if you can, or send a few bucks if just four stories is enough for you, and thanks!
Super Secret Stash: The Secret part was literal. [Premium Only]
Once Bitten: A video uploaded to social media showed what Richmond (Va.) Public Schools Superintendent Jason Kamras called “disturbing.” It shows an instructional assistant walking into Fairfield Court Elementary holding hands with two students. When one started crying, the assistant allegedly bit the child’s hand. “Our motto is to ‘teach, lead, and serve with love’ and we failed in the most extreme sense to live up to that with this incident,” Kamras said. The students’ mother, AspenCarter, spoke out, too: “I’m so grateful that this was caught on camera.” An investigation checked security footage, which showed the aide was wiping her face with the hand that was holding the student. It was hot outside and she was sweating. Investigators determined she didn’t bite the child, because “the accused instructional assistant has no teeth.” Carter also pointed out that she hadn’t seen any bite marks on her daughter. (MS/Richmonder) ...Seeing is believing, until you see it fromanother angle.
Hot Market: Earlier this year, Eric Bigone, 58, pulled up to his rented home in San Francisco, Calif. Before he could get out, his car was set on fire, and then Bigone was shot to death from behind. Someone clearly had a grudge, but who? Investigators centered on Philippe Chagniot, 68, a retired dentist. His alleged motive: Bigone had a lease on the house for just $3,200/month; Chagniot was his landlord, and is thought to have wanted to get Bigone out so he could get higher rent fromsomeone else. He was charged with murder with “special circumstances” — lying in wait, and using a silencer — which in California is punished by life in prison without possibility of parole. The judge ordered that the house not be sold until the trial plays out. Chagniot pleaded not guilty, but is being held without bail, so his family has put the house up for rent — at $6,300/month. A broker says that potential renters will be informed about the death of the prior tenant in writing, as part oftheir lease. (RC/KGO San Francisco) ...In the section outlining the penalty for paying late.
Model Students: Elite university’s marketing team screws up big time. [Premium Only]
Tales of an Eighth Grade Something: When the school board figures the law doesn’t apply to them. [Premium Only]
Dough Nuts: And lots of them. [Premium Only]
Too Prepared: Cops realize they really do need to crack down on ...what?! [Premium Only]
Truth in Advertising
Six Indicted in Baltimore Drug Ring That Allegedly Laundered Money Through Laundromat
WJZ Baltimore (Md.) headline
Did You Find an Error? Check the Errata Page for updates.
This Week’s Contributors: MS-Mike Straw, RC-Randy Cassingham.
Stories This Week were Written/Edited in Bangkok, Thailand, still. I should be done with my treatments this weekend.
It’s Not Often that I have taken one of the photos of the subject of an Honorary Unsubscribe — or be in a photo in the H.U. This week it’s both ...damn it.
No Longer Weird: I can’t remember the last time I mentioned that page, but I do add to it from time to time, including the 39th entry over the weekend. As of Sunday morning the page has had 25,580 views (since the page counter reset on 1 Aug 2020). This week, after mentioning it in Premium, a reader noted that many of the links to examples had gone stale, so I replaced them all with links to copies ofthose articles in the Internet Archive.
Ten Years Ago in True: Whoops... seems I skipped a week in mid-September and got off schedule. That said, I would have chosen Unconstitutionally Vague from 18 September 2016.
The Story of the Week is posted on social media for easy sharing, because sharing is the most important way True grows. This week’s SotW, about the dumpster diver, is posted on Telegram, Mastodon, Bluesky, Threads, Instagram, and/or Facebook, or grab from any of those to share elsewhere.
This Week’s Sunday Reading: Even with the police photo, this 2007 story is hard to believe! Yet, This is True.... Got Wheels?
This Week’s Honorary Unsubscribe goes to Bill Halterman. Bill was a good friend, and it’s my pleasure to introduce you to him. He’s one of the people it was my pleasure to know.
- This Week’s “Interesting in the H.U. Archive”: Jester Hairston, a singer and composer from the radio and early film days. From 23 January 2000.
- Honorary Unsubscribe Archive.
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Copyright ©2026 by Randy Cassingham, All Rights Reserved. All broadcast, publication, retransmission to email lists, web site or social media posting, or any other copying or storage, in any medium, online or not, is strictly prohibited without prior written permission from the author. Manual forwarding by email to friends is allowed if 1) the text is forwarded in its entirety from the “Since 1994” line on top through the end of this paragraph and 2) No fee is charged. I request that you forward no more than three copies to any one person — after that, they should get their own free subscription. I appreciate people who report violations of my copyright.
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