DAY OF THE JACKASS :

Man Fires Shot as French President Passes; Arrested by Police (Jacques Brinon, July 14, 2002, Associated Press)

A man pulled a rifle out of a guitar case and fired at least one shot as French President Jacques Chirac passed Sunday during the annual Bastille Day military parade. The man was arrested and no injuries were reported.

Cries of alarm from the crowd lining the parade route apparently alerted police to the gunman, standing near Paris' Arch of Triumph. The gunman fired just before he was wrestled to the ground. Agents stood him up, searched him and took him away in a van.

The Paris police said in a statement that the man was 25 years old and was a member of "neo-Nazi and hooligan" groups. France 2 TV reported that he had confessed to wanting to shoot Chirac and told police he suffered from emotional problems.

Didn't he know how the story ends? Posted by Orrin Judd at July 14, 2002 11:08 AM