This is a hypothetical case of a “John Doe”. But, things like this do happen!

I’ve always felt that in many cases our society’s legal system molly-coddles criminals. But with this John Doe case it proves that it’s not always so.

John Doe was a small fellow, about 5 feet, 5 inches tall and 125 pounds, actually he was emaciated. At 50 years old he had not much luck in his life, in fact, it seemed like life had passed him by.

But, he was a criminal, even though he didn’t look like one. Looks are deceiving and John was a thief.

He lived in a run down, four- room bungalow on the north side of Chicago, with his dog.

Now, he wasn’t always a thief, circumstances made him one. He had a part-time job at a supermarket stacking shelves, but he had trouble making ends meet.

He tried hard to keep a roof over his head, clothes on his back, food in his stomach and a few scraps for his dog. He inherited the bungalow from his late mother, but he still had bills to pay. He rotated his bills, because he couldn’t pay all of them every month.

This particular month he was six months behind in his water bill. So the water company turned off his water.

John had asthma, which he had an inhaler for. This was the reason why he only worked part-time.

John figured out how to turn his water back on. But, that made him a criminal, he was stealing water because he wasn’t paying for it. His motive for this crime was thirst and the desire for a bath.

Eventually, this crime was discovered and the cops came to take John away.

His bond was set at $500. To someone who had to steal water that’s a fortune.

When John was jailed, his inhaler was taken away because inmates had to be stripped of all personal possessions.

So, on the third night of John’s incarceration he had an asthma attack. Nobody heard him gasping for breath. He was dead in his cell by morning.

Some criminals don’t get easy treatment. You have to admit death by choking is a severe punishment for stealing some water.

I don’t know what happened to his dog.