The “movie police” are on the case.
A South Carolina woman who allegedly didn’t return a movie that she rented in 2005 was arrested and thrown in jail.
The nine-year-old VHS tape movie rental in question was Monster-in-Law starring Jennifer Lopez and Jane Fonda.
Pickens County Sheriff’s deputies arrested Kayla Michelle Finley, 27, on Thursday for the long-overdue VHS cassette rental which was supposed to be returned in 72 hours.
Dalton Video, the store which is now defunct like most if not all bricks-and-mortar rental shops, apparently obtained a warrant from a local magistrate nine years ago. While it was open, the store reportedly mailed the customer several warnings before going to court, but Finley denies ever receiving any of the notices.
Officers discovered the outstanding warrant when she visited the sheriff’s office on another matter on Thursday. Finley was charged with the misdemeanor offense of petty larceny and spent the night in jail. A judge released Finley the following morning on a $2,000 personal recognizance bond.
Said the woman after her arrest on the alleged overdue movie rental, “It’s obvious that Pickens County has nothing better to do. I fully intend on fighting this, it’s ridiculous I had this happen to me.”
Police indicated that “they had no choice but to serve the warrant for her arrest, no matter how old or outmoded.”
It seems questionable that anyone would allegedly be unwilling to part with the movie rental in question. Critics panned Monster-in-Law which received an underwhelming 16 percent rating from Rotten Tomatoes. J.Lo’s performance in the comedy earned her a Golden Raspberry Award nomination for worst actress. The film was considered a success at the box office, however.
Last April, YouTube “celebrated” the 57th anniversary of the videocassette recorder by including a VHS mode on selected videos.
