Quote:
Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby
I'm not changing the rules. I'm honoring them. I'll sit down, and as soon as the people they're saving the seats for show up, I'll yield them back. If they're not already there (dancing, going to the bathroom, getting a drink, etc) then those seats are unoccupied, whether they're saved or not. Three nights ago a lady claimed to be saving SEVEN chairs for people who hadn't shown up yet. She was by herself. Sorry but that just doesn't fly with me. Those people can have the chairs when they get there because they've been "saved" by that lady. Those people won't need them until then.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by coffeebean
What can possibly be wrong with sitting is a seat that is empty? Isn't it OK to assure the person who is saving the seats that you will vacate the seat as soon as the person arrives? There are times that seats remain empty until later in the evening when those seats could have been utilized. Doesn't make any sense to me that someone could be arrested for sitting in a "saved" seat..
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Two examples of what can go wrong.
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From the online news:
June 2, 2016
A Village of Hillsborough man was arrested after a fight with a 72-year-old woman over a seat Wednesday night at Spanish Springs Town Square.
Bruce Raymond Benard of 3525 Nance Run is facing a charge of battery after he allegedly grabbed the woman’s wrist “very hard” and stomped on her left foot two times in an attempt to remove her from a chair, according to a report from the Lady Lake Police Department.
The woman told police she was at town square and observed some empty seating, so she took a seat. Bruce Benard confronted her about sitting in seats he had reserved for his friends and family and threatened to throw her off the chair if she did not move, the report indicated.
The woman said she told Benard she would move in a minute and that’s when the attack began, the report said.
The woman told police she felt like his arms were ready to come down on her.
When police interviewed Benard he said, “she should have moved and I have a right to stand up for myself and stand my ground.” He admitted to grabbing the woman.
Two witnesses confirmed the woman’s version of events.
Benard was booked at the Lake County Jail. He was released after posting $1,000 bond.
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Another from the online news:
May 24, 2016
Rocky and the Rollers remain one of the most popular acts in The Villages.
On Monday night, the popular band brought in a big crowd at Spanish Springs Town Square.
But there is a price to be paid for popularity.
Before noon Monday there was plenty of evidence of seat saving at the square. Numerous green chairs were adorned with towels, cushions, ribbons and even yellow crime scene tape hours before Rocky and his fellow musicians stepped on stage at the Gazebo.
Officially, “saving” seats at the squares is prohibited in The Villages.
Saving seats at the square twice ended in arrest this past summer.
A 65-year-old Water Oak resident on Sept. 9 was accused of pushing a 77-year-old Villager who dared to sit in a seat “saved” by the Water Oaker at Spanish Springs Town Square.
When the Villager attempted to sit in one of the “saved” seats, Gary Lee Herzhaft informed the Villager that the chair was “taken.” When the Villager ignored him, Herzhaft “jumped up and pushed (the man) back and jammed his fingers into the upper chest area,” of the Villager, according to an incident report from the Lady Lake Police Department.
Herzhaft told police that the “chairs were taken,” but denied pushing or poking The Villager.
Herzhaft is now serving a year’s probation as a result of that incident. He was also ordered to undergo anger management training.
A 70-year-old Village of Santo Domingo man paid a nearly $300 fine in Lake County Court after pleading no contest to charges of disorderly conduct and resisting a police officer. He had been arrested June 26 after he allegedly punched a man and insulted a supporter of the LGBT community who he accused of taking his seat near the gazebo at the square.
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