John J. Rigo was incredulous as deputies handcuffed, photographed and booked him in jail.
The McKinney businessman thought he was avoiding a safety hazard that he and his wife kept tripping over. That's why he unhooked a cable line that Comcast had left stretched across the sidewalk and his driveway for weeks.
At that moment, he shut off ESPN, MTV and Internet service to his neighbors. He also broke the law, police said.
"I don't think he realized the severity of what he was doing," said Capt. Randy Roland, a McKinney police spokesman. "It was an intentional act. [Once someone complains,] we don't have the leeway to say 'OK, don't do that again.' We have to say, 'Society says that's a crime'... We're going to send you to court to see if you're guilty."
McKinney police used a misdemeanor charge of criminal mischief because the damage to the cable was not greater than $1,500. Anything more would have elevated the offense to a felony.
"He's just lucky the repair bill wasn't more because he was playing with fire, basically," Capt. Roland said.
Theft of cable service is a well-known crime, but police said they haven't heard of someone removing a cable line because folks were tripping on it. By removing the line, Mr. Rigo could have affected 911 service to residents who use the Internet as a base for telephone service, police said.
Exposed cable lines are common across lawns and driveways throughout the area, particularly in growing neighborhoods. Mr. Rigo said he called and wrote numerous e-mails to Comcast complaining, but he did not get an adequate response. That's when he decided to take matters – in this case the cable – into his own hands.
Comcast spokeswoman Angel Biasatti said Comcast would not discuss Mr. Rigo's case or explain why and for how long cable lines are left exposed in general.
Mr. Rigo, past president of the Eldorado Homeowners Association and a major contributor to Collin County's homeless shelter, immediately turned himself in Sept. 29, after his attorney told him there was a warrant for his arrest. A couple of hours later, he posted the $1,000 bail and was free. Still, he said being arrested, frisked, handcuffed and fingerprinted was degrading.
"At 62 years of age, I have never been accused of any crime," Mr. Rigo said, adding that he was fingerprinted in the past for "top-secret" clearance from the Air Force and obtaining his federal firearms license.
Shocked
"I was shocked that they would press criminal charges against him for that," said Brian Loughmiller, McKinney's mayor pro tem. Mr. Rigo shared his dilemma before the City Council this week.
"To me, it's a little bit ridiculous," Mr. Loughmiller said. "It raises the level of concern when you have somebody like Mr. Rigo who comes in. He and his wife, they're upstanding citizens in the community."
Mr. Rigo's neighbors – at least those who weren't afraid to talk publicly – aren't very sympathetic. One of them brought the complaint to the police that led to the arrest.
"It went across my driveway, too, but I resisted the temptation to unhook it," said Carl Snyder, who lives next door. "I think that if you do something that's illegal then you've got to expect the consequences, whatever they may be."
Ruffled feathers
Mr. Snyder said cable was first interrupted when a sprinkler company accidentally cut the cable line while working in his yard in May. The cable line that ran from the box in Mr. Rigo's yard was a temporary fix.
"You see them all the time. You don't know if they're phone lines, cable TV lines, power lines or what they are," Mr. Snyder said.
Bill Nolte, another neighbor, said he was sitting out back when his kids told him that the TV had gone off. He said he walked out front and saw Mr. Rigo near the cable.
"I didn't see him remove it or whatever," Mr. Rigo said. "But there's no question that he did do that.
"The guy is pompous. He thinks he can get away with anything," said Mr. Nolte, explaining he filed the complaint because he thought Mr. Rigo was trying to irritate neighbors. "Who is stupid enough to unhook a utility?"
Mr. Rigo is not surprised by his neighbor's lack of support. He said he ruffled a lot of feathers when he served on the homeowners' association board. Others agreed, adding that some thought he was a difficult man few could work with.
In any case, Mr. Rigo said, this never would have happened if the city had enforced its contract with Comcast. City officials said the cable company was required to bury or remove the cable "within a reasonable time."
"My first concern was about the safety of my family, myself and my neighbors," Mr. Rigo wrote in a letter to the city manager.
He said he unscrewed the cable in early June from the green box in the corner of his yard and set it aside. Comcast and the police report allege that he cut the line. The cable company is seeking $507 in damages.
"That's all baloney," Mr. Rigo said, explaining that he was "falsely charged." He insists he wasn't trying to harm anyone or damage anything.
"I'm not a jerk," he said. "I'm not a fool. I'm an honest, law-abiding citizen with a lot of enemies out there."
He also broke the law
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