Since the other strange crime story from today was so upsetting, it’s worth it to point out this rather more lighthearted report from Anne Arundel County of an elderly woman who defended herself against a robber with a reacher.

Reachers are those long metallic arms with easy to pull handles that grasp and pick up objects, favored by the bed ridden, arthritic, and those recovering from surgery. I’ve personally also recently thought about ordering one for use in fishing out items that have fallen in the narrow space between the clothes washer and the wall in my apartment. Now that I know they can also successfully scare away home invaders, sign me up.

No one was hurt in the reacher incident. The assailant did make off with a purse belonging to the elderly Annapolis area woman.