Man gets probation in snake mail case
DETROIT - A federal judge has sentenced a suburban Detroit man to six months probation after he placed a 6-foot boa constrictor inside his mailbox to scare his letter carrier.
Federal postal officials had charged James Rutherford Mell, of Farmington Hills, with obstructing the mail, a potential six-month felony. The mail carrier said she found Mell in his driveway laughing when the incident took place last July 7.
Mell, 32, had described the incident as "an incredibly stupid practical joke that wasn't funny," The Detroit News reported Friday. He also said the carrier was in no danger because the snake was not poisonous and didn't bite.
Mell was sentenced Thursday by U.S. District Judge Marianne O. Battani in Detroit.
A snake in the mail, and a guy laughing under the Imperius Curse. Real bloody funny, Tom. Seriously, I'm laughing my arse off here. You think I wouldn't know about it? You think I wouldn't hear that you stuck one of your pets in the mail to torment Muggles? The only people who don't know are the BLOODY MINISTRY OF MAGIC! Stupid bastards.Just wait until I get my hands on your horcruxes mate. You'll regret laughing then.

