I love writing about dumb Things criminals do to get themselves caught and subsequently ridiculed mercilessly by the press, Internet trolls, and of course bloggers like me. Remember this paranoid pair who got themselves busted with 20 pounds of pot in Idaho? Or the nerdy burglar who couldn't resist posting the clever steps he took to evade police - complete with geotags - on Snapchat? Pretty dumb, right? Well, meet Raymond Brooks of Youngstown, Ohio.

Mr. Brooks was pulled over last month after he cut off a police officer in traffic. The local paper reported that Brooks was "acting nervous and gave police permission to search his car." The search turned up a 9mm ammunition clip under a loose cup holder cover. The CD player also looked a bit loose, so police removed it from the dashboard. Behind it was a loaded handgun with an extended magazine.

Oh, but it gets better. Turns out Brooks is a convicted felon and therefore not allowed to possess a firearm. At all. So police arrested him. He was charged with "improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle and being a felon in possession of a firearm".

Still it gets even better. On the way to the jail, Brooks asked if he could get his gun back. On the way to the jail! According to the local paper, a response from police "was not recorded". My guess is if it had been recorded, the response would have been uproarious laughter.

See you next week,
Bobby