Government Law

Lawyer Found Lying in Trash Can Resigns Lucrative City Job

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Larry Wilder did the right thing by taking a limo home after celebrating a friend’s good news about passing a real estate licensing exam with a few drinks.

However, he didn’t make it the final few feet to his door. Finding him lying headfirst, seemingly asleep, in a trash can at 7 a.m. June 17, an elderly neighbor called authorities. The police walked Wilder home, filing no charges against him because he was cooperative, reports the Louisville, Ky., Courier-Journal.

However, the incident—which is documented in a photograph apparently taken by one of the officers on his cell phone and distributed via the Internet–has made the news because of the 48-year-old Wilder’s $107,000-a-year contract position as municipal attorney for Jefferson City, Ind., according to the newspaper.

The city council was planning to hold a special meeting to discuss Wilder’s future in the job, but he has forestalled any possible adverse job action by resigning, the Courier-Journal reports in another article.

“I was not driving,” Wilder tells the newspaper, apologizing for the embarrassment he has caused his children, in particular. “It’s a private matter, made public because I am a public person.”

The 80-year-old who called police is also regretful, telling the Courier-Journal he didn’t realize it was Larry Wilder who was lying in the trash can when he called police. Conrad Embry describes Wilder as a wonderful neighbor.

Hat tip: Above the Law.

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