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It's DaBomb

The rumor mill runs amok in lovely downtown Northampton tonight. I was home sick, only blocks away and missed all the excitement and I am not at all vouching for the veracity of this, but I do trust my sources to at least get close to the true facts.

It seems that someone posted a package to John Ashcroft this afternoon, in the mailbox right in front of the courthouse. The person who did the pickup allegedly brought it into the building to have it scanned by the metal detectors at the public entrance on Gothic Street. I would guess he found it slightly suspicious, but not enough to risk public embarrassment if he was wrong and called in the bomb squad. He probably knows the guards. So they all had a look. Unfortunately, they saw a clock and a mass of something in the package.

The ensuing uproar was apparently a sight to behold. Every form of law enforcement officer in the immediate area reportedly showed up for this one, including of course HazMat and the bomb squad.

There was apparently also a great deal of confusion at the courthouse over the incident and it took 45 minutes before they decided to evacuate the building. This is a lose, lose situation for the postman and the courthouse guards could be reprimanded as well I suppose for misuse of government scanners or something. I hope nothing bad happens to them.

No one could tell me what happened to "the bomb", but no one got hurt and the consequences remain to be seen. I think the three of them must have either just freaked when they realized it really could be dangerous or more likely, were stuck keeping it because the scans are recorded and they had a protocol to follow. Otherwise, I can't figure out why they wouldn't have just brought it back outside. I know these men. They're macho guys. They would not be afraid to move it again and there are parking lots all around the building.

We'll be posting the local coverage on this one tomorrow.