Posted on 01/26/2002 8:58:02 PM PST by Big Bunyip
Newton man could not stop smoking in custody: Joseph Hall arrested, hid lighter in body cavity
By DeAnna Putnam
NEWTON - A local man was in court yesterday after going to the hospital over the weekend for medical complications resulting from hiding a cigarette lighter, and possibly a pack of cigarettes, in his body cavity after police arrested him Saturday.
Police say they first took Joseph Hall, 40, of 138 Honeywell Ave., into protective custody for drunkenness Saturday afternoon. He was placed under arrest after police found he had a default warrant from Brookline District Court.
The Newton Police station does not allow smoking, but that did not deter Hall, who hid his lighter and most likely his cigarettes, police said.
Hall retrieved and concealed his lighter repeatedly during his stay at the Newton jail, until he began to experience severe rectal bleeding, police said.
Police said they ran into a drunken Hall early Saturday. At first they took him home, and Hall promised to sleep it off, police said.
The same officers saw him again, just before 4 p.m. the same day. They said he appeared drunk and was staggering in the area of Washington and James streets. This time, the officers decided to bring Hall to the station for his own safety, police said.
When Hall found out he was also being arrested on a warrant, he became hostile, police said. Officers decided to put him in a jail cell until he calmed down, and book him later.
Shortly thereafter, an officer saw Hall smoking in his jail cell.
But police had searched Hall before locking him up, and found no cigarettes, matches or lighter. The officer confiscated the cigarette, and Hall denied he had more.
A few minutes later, Hall again produced another cigarette, police said.
Officers took the second cigarette away, searched him, but found nothing.
Police searched the cell and took away Hall's blanket and roll of toilet paper, just in case he decided to light something on fire.
Shortly after that, an officer saw Hall smoking a third cigarette.
This time, officers ordered Hall to strip, but a thorough search again failed to produce cigarettes, matches or a lighter.
Then, an officer watching a television monitor saw Hall defecate on his jail cell floor. Within a couple of minutes, Hall was smoking a fourth cigarette, police said.
Officers went to the jail cell and found Hall covered in excrement, puffing on his cigarette.
Officers removed Hall from the jail cell to clean up the mess. Hall became combative, and an officer sprayed him with pepper spray, police said.
While getting his eyes flushed out from the spray, Hall admitted he had stuffed the lighter up his body cavity, police said.
Police said a bench Hall had been sitting on was covered in blood, and it was clear his rectum had been injured.
An ambulance took Hall with a police escort to the hospital. Doctors released him about 9:15 p.m., Saturday, and police brought him back to the Newton jail.
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