STATUS UPDATES

A week in which a wayward pigeon is rescued by rhinestones, and a shot cop is saved by his holster

UNCOMMON:

A pigeon that flew the coop. Marlette Fernando and her husband were reunited with their pet bird Olive in Phoenix after Olive went missing two weeks earlier. A bird rescue centre in Peoria, Ariz., knew she was a pet: she sported a rhinestone-studded vest.

UNCOMMONSLY:

The behaviour of a group of British MPs. A video on social media showed Hannah Bardell kicking around a soccer ball after Tuesday’s sitting, and posing with other members. The Speaker said it was inappropriate, but ultimately there were “no hard feelings.”

BOOM:

A trial speed camera in the Italian town of Acquetico. It led to 58,568 speeding offences in two weeks. On average, a speeding car passed every few seconds in the 50 km/h zone. The camera is near the main pedestrian crossing, in a town on the French border with many senior residents.

BUST:

Three unusable water cannons. The weapons bought by Boris Johnson when he was London mayor have been sold for scrap. The 2014 purchase from German police led to humiliation: they weren’t roadworthy or compliant with emissions standards. The net loss is more than $500,000 Canadian.

LUCKY:

An officer who escaped a Chicago hospital shooting by inches. The officer was shot after responding to a call about the deadly shootings at Mercy Hospital. But Fox News reported he escaped injury because a bullet struck his holster and embedded itself in his gun.

UNLUCKY:

Friends of a California woman who won $5.2 million in a lottery. Judy Carroll, 59, pleaded guilty to scamming six people afterward. She and her husband won in 1989, and she later fraudulently told friends she needed money since the IRS had frozen her assets.

CRESTING:

The Deke Duncan show. Duncan, 73, has been broadcasting a radio show for four decades from his shed in Stevenage, England, to an audience of one: his wife. But the BBC will help him achieve his goal: a one-off show broadcasting to the surrounding area.

CRASHING:

The career of Broward County election supervisor Brenda Snipes. After South Florida confusion, recounts and acrimony that followed the U.S. midterms, Snipes stepped down. The Democrat had been targeted by Republicans.