no crime inspires 2-week jail term

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) -- A Louisiana woman spent two weeks in jail following a case of mistaken identity.

The Sun Herald (http://bit.ly/1LS5BfR) reports 50-year-old Jacqueline Renell Charles was arrested Nov. 18 during a Louisiana traffic stop after the officer found a warrant for her in Mississippi.

Charles says she was booked and spent one week in a Louisiana jail before being hauled off to another jail in Mississippi.

By Dec. 2, officials realized she wasn't the suspect. Officials say the original defendant had a tattoo that said "Earl" on her arm. Charles, however, has no tattoos. Additionally, the Jackson County District Attorney's Office realized the original suspect's name was Jacqueline Marie Charles and that her birth date and Social Security number did not match those of Jacqueline Renell Charles.

Charles has since returned home.

That's the entire Associated Press brief.

"Ooops" is not an excuse for this sort of inaccuracy. It might be interesting to know if police extended an apology: I'm not sure I'd want to spend a two-week-furlough in jail based on someone else's mistake. Also, although AP doesn't tell me, I wonder if this woman is black (she is). AP too is getting increasingly sloppy: If you can't write a brief, why should I trust you to write something longer ... and if you can''t assure you have arrested the right person (traffic stop) in a two-week time frame, why should anyone trust you for the more weighty crimes?