Santa Claus has been hailed a hero by local communities in Damascus, Virginia after aiding the police in the arrest of a streaker. Father Christmas assisted the local police in catching a 35-year-old man who was running naked outside a police station on Monday.

A 64-year-old woman who was trying to bring some groceries from her car into her Brooklyn home Monday was interrupted when the sidewalk under her suddenly swallowed her up. The sidewalk caved in, and the woman found herself in a sinkhole about 5 feet by 2 feet wide and about five feet deep. She was trapped under two large, heavy pieces of concrete and wasn't able to move until firemen arrived to help her.

A Kansas man on a kidnapping mission accidentally shot himself in the groin after he tucked his gun into the waistband of his trousers. The 23-year-old man was one of three kidnappers who were trying to abduct a teenager in a dispute over stereo speakers. According to the officials, the man had just shoved the gun back into the waistband of his pants, when it discharged, hitting his left testicle. The man, whose identity was not revealed, doubled over with pain, causing the gun to fire again and the bullet hit his left calf.

A professor of philosophy and a professor of criminology, enacting Canadian human rights and medical marijuana legislation, were granted the right to smoke the green plant in specially ventilated rooms near their offices this week. According to a report by Reuters, both professors suffer from chronic medical conditions and their doctors say smoking pot can alleviate some of the physical symptoms of pain. Each professor was able to convince their academic employers that they must have the right to smoke on campus as opposed to their previous arrangements to make trips just off university grounds to partake.