Verizon Tells Cops "Your Money Or Your Life" 593
Mike writes "A 62-year-old man had a mental breakdown and ran off after grabbing several bottles of pills from his house. The cops asked Verizon to help trace the man using his cellphone, but Verizon refused, saying that they couldn't turn on his phone because he had an unpaid bill for $20. After an 11-hour search (during which time the sheriff's department was trying to figure out how to pay the bill), the man was found, unconscious. 'I was more concerned for the person's life,' Sheriff Dale Williams said. 'It would have been nice if Verizon would have turned on his phone for five or 10 minutes, just long enough to try and find the guy. But they would only turn it on if we agreed to pay $20 of the unpaid bill.' Score another win for the Verizon Customer Service team."
NSA (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Idiot Police imho (Score:5, Funny)
There will come a time... (Score:4, Funny)
...when we as a species will have to choose between whether we want to allow any and all life on this planet to survive, or whether we want to allow the corporation to survive.
The survival of Man and the corporation are mutually exclusive. In order for one to survive, the other must eventually die.
The reason they couldn't turn on his phone (Score:1, Funny)
He couldn't hear them now.
Re:Frankly I'm siding with Verizon. Good for Veriz (Score:3, Funny)
BTW - Verizon was perfectly willing to give up the location in return for $20.
Reminds me of the old punch line: "We've established what you are. We're just haggling over the price."
Re:They can do that? (Score:1, Funny)
What if the battery is drained?
Then they obviously can't. What kind of retard are you?
Re:Idiot Police imho (Score:3, Funny)
Regulations.
Police petty cash is reserved exclusively for undercover operations in topless bars. Buying the officers drinks and lap dances.
The real problem... (Score:2, Funny)
It was actually .002 cents he owed them.
Re:Not murder (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Terms of service (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Not murder (Score:2, Funny)
Out of the frying pan, into the steamer.
Re:Frankly I'm siding with Verizon. Good for Veriz (Score:3, Funny)
"BTW - Verizon was perfectly willing to give up the location in return for $20."
Hey officer. I've got the information you need right here. You want it? You pay me for it.
extortion, much?
Re:Frankly I'm siding with Verizon. Good for Veriz (Score:3, Funny)
They are a cell phone company.
Usually they confine themselves to extorting regular citizens, but it was only a matter of time until they started working their way up.
Re:How do you punish a corporation? (Score:3, Funny)
I don't understand this unwritten law that telcos must all act like they have some kind of mental handicap.
I guess sociopathy can be considered a handicap.