Teamwork

Step aside, Woodward and Bernstein. Here come Montgomery and Kruse.

This is the first byline I can remember seeing them share at the St. Petersburg Times. (I know they had at least one at the Times Herald-Record). Anyway, it happens to be one crackerjack of a story.

I’ve got only one complaint. Between the two of them, they couldn’t seem to conjure up the brand of Jose Linares’s favorite light beer. (Or who knows — maybe it got cut somewhere along the assembly line.) There’s an old saying about that. At the St. Petersburg Times, you always get the name of the dog and the brand of the beer.

All right, I’m done giving them a hard time. This is inspiring work:

TAMPA — Two men live at the end of Caron Road in Tampa in homes divided by a narrow fence. They have been at odds for almost 10 years. One man plays his music too loud. The other man calls the police.

This is how it was until January 22, when police caller had a few beers and shouted across the fence to music lover. Then came words and threats and fists. There was a trial and a guilty verdict. And then the sentencing fell to Judge Paul Huey, last week, in Courtroom 19.

Would he send the man to jail? Would he sentence him to probation? Or in the interest of a more cosmic justice would he do something he’s never done before?