Man who fakes seizures to get out of dinner tab is at it again, police say
The Baltimore man dubbed the "Dine and Dasher" by police is at it again, authorities and restaurant owners say.
Andrew Palmer, 46, notorious for racking up food and drink tabs at area restaurants, then faking seizures to get out of paying the bill, was arrested early Monday after owners said he refused to pay a $50 bill at Viccino Jay's Italian Gourmet on Charles Street.
The night before, he went limp at upscale barbecue restaurant Oliver Speck's in Harbor East when it was time to settle up on a $90 tab, according to the owner and a patron.
"The paramedics showed up and said, 'Looks like our guy's back,'" said Oliver Speck's chef Jesse Sandlin. "He would not wake up, and they were like, 'Come on Andy, stop faking.'"
Police say Palmer, who has a career rap sheet more than 90 arrests long and has been found guilty of petty theft at least eight times in the past year, is making the rounds again.
He's being held at Central Booking in lieu of $1,500 bail. His most recent public defender did not return a message seeking comment. Court records list Palmer as homeless or at an address on South Broadway that no longer exists.
It's not that prosecutors haven't been able to win convictions against Palmer. It's that the crime — in most cases, theft under $100 — doesn't carry a large enough penalty to deter someone with a taste for good food and drink who's willing to do jail time. And because it's a nonviolent offense, those who are found guilty serve only a fraction of their sentences.
Officials with the Baltimore state's attorney's office could not be reached for comment, but police accounts from recent cases tell a familiar story.
In December, police say, he had the $24.99 shrimp platter and four alcoholic beverages at the Inner Harbor's Bubba Gump Shrimp Factory. "This is an ongoing problem with Mr. Palmer in the downtown area," Officer Daniel Sexton wrote in charging documents.
In January, police say, he went large at Sullivan's Steakhouse, ordering the chicken piccata with a lobster add-on, a 22-ounce ribeye steak, four Blue Moon beers, three Bacardis and, for good measure, a coffee. It led to his second arrest of the week.
"Palmer's seizure occurred when he was confronted about his unpaid bill as he exited the restaurant," Officer Michael McGrath wrote in a statement of probable cause. McGrath added that Palmer is "well known to local restaurants and members of the Baltimore Police Department."
The unpaid tab: $160. The sentence: one year in jail.
Source: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-dine-and-dash-seizures-20131029,0,5587471,full.story
The Baltimore man dubbed the "Dine and Dasher" by police is at it again, authorities and restaurant owners say.
Andrew Palmer, 46, notorious for racking up food and drink tabs at area restaurants, then faking seizures to get out of paying the bill, was arrested early Monday after owners said he refused to pay a $50 bill at Viccino Jay's Italian Gourmet on Charles Street.
The night before, he went limp at upscale barbecue restaurant Oliver Speck's in Harbor East when it was time to settle up on a $90 tab, according to the owner and a patron.
"The paramedics showed up and said, 'Looks like our guy's back,'" said Oliver Speck's chef Jesse Sandlin. "He would not wake up, and they were like, 'Come on Andy, stop faking.'"
Police say Palmer, who has a career rap sheet more than 90 arrests long and has been found guilty of petty theft at least eight times in the past year, is making the rounds again.
He's being held at Central Booking in lieu of $1,500 bail. His most recent public defender did not return a message seeking comment. Court records list Palmer as homeless or at an address on South Broadway that no longer exists.
It's not that prosecutors haven't been able to win convictions against Palmer. It's that the crime — in most cases, theft under $100 — doesn't carry a large enough penalty to deter someone with a taste for good food and drink who's willing to do jail time. And because it's a nonviolent offense, those who are found guilty serve only a fraction of their sentences.
Officials with the Baltimore state's attorney's office could not be reached for comment, but police accounts from recent cases tell a familiar story.
In December, police say, he had the $24.99 shrimp platter and four alcoholic beverages at the Inner Harbor's Bubba Gump Shrimp Factory. "This is an ongoing problem with Mr. Palmer in the downtown area," Officer Daniel Sexton wrote in charging documents.
In January, police say, he went large at Sullivan's Steakhouse, ordering the chicken piccata with a lobster add-on, a 22-ounce ribeye steak, four Blue Moon beers, three Bacardis and, for good measure, a coffee. It led to his second arrest of the week.
"Palmer's seizure occurred when he was confronted about his unpaid bill as he exited the restaurant," Officer Michael McGrath wrote in a statement of probable cause. McGrath added that Palmer is "well known to local restaurants and members of the Baltimore Police Department."
The unpaid tab: $160. The sentence: one year in jail.
Source: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-dine-and-dash-seizures-20131029,0,5587471,full.story
