The modern fad of loose, baggy jeans has had one unexpected result: more petty criminals are getting caught and arrested. According to today's "Wall Street Journal," the fad so prevalent among teens and young adults had its beginning in prison. The low-hanging pants were "inspired by the advent of beltless prison jeans... Over time, the tough-guy image associated with oversized trousers helped make the look standard for hip-hop performers, alternative music bands, skateboarders and snowboarders as it migrated from mostly black city streets to affluent white suburbs." These days, the slumping pants may be found on a teenager in your church or household.

Anyway, the pants have turned out to be a bonanza for police. Briefly put (pun intended), they tend to fall down when petty theives try to escape arrest. Police all over the country are reporting that young men with baggy pants have tripped and fallen as they ran to escape arrest because their pants fell down to their ankles. One 24-year-old in Hendersonville, North Carolina who was armed with a gun tried to jump over the counter of a Subway sandwich shop but tripped on his pants and crashed into the floor in the sight of store employees. He decided at this point that escape was the first order of business and ran into the adjoining neighborhood. But the police who were called to the scene found him upside down at a picket fence in someone's backyard. His feet were still in his pants which were caught in the fence when he tried to scale it. If there is a moral to this story, it is that baggy pants don't just look dumb; they are dumb.