Police In Maryland Town: Please Remember To Wear Pants When Checking The Mail

Maryland's Taneytown police department posted a joking reminder asking residents to wear pants when going to their mailboxes.

LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, HOST:

The days are starting to blur. The novelty of Zoom meetings is indeed starting to wane. So it's understandable that things may be getting hazy, and some of us are getting lazy - so much so that northern Maryland's Taneytown Police Department had to post this reminder.

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BRADLEY WANTZ: Please remember to put pants on before leaving the house to check your mailbox. You know who you are. This is your final warning.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: That's the town's mayor, Bradley Wantz. The post instantly caught attention online. It got more than 4,000 likes and was shared more than 10,000 times.

WANTZ: Right now, people have a hard enough time remembering what day of the week it is, you know, with the stay-at-home orders that I can't expect them to remember their pants when they go get the mail.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Taneytown has a population of around 7,000 and rests near the Pennsylvania state border. And according to Mayor Wantz, like the rest of us, they, too, are adjusting to this new normal.

WANTZ: A lot of small businesses - and, you know, they're struggling right now with the COVID-19 going on. A number of people have been furloughed or laid off - so some economic issues there that we're constantly looking to address in some way, shape or form.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: The news of a pantless (ph) mail retriever was a welcome distraction, but who was the culprit?

WANTZ: The people who follow the page, especially the residents here - they got a good chuckle out of it and - you know, everyone being fun, accusing each other of, hey, was this you? Was this you? And the best part was it's none of them.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: That's right. It was all a joke. But that doesn't mean everyone's innocent.

WANTZ: Now, I'm not saying that there's not people that get their mail without pants on. But there was no one person that sparked it. It was just inspired by a healthy sense of humor.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: And Wantz wants to reassure people that if you do forget to put on your pants getting the mail, it's OK.

WANTZ: Just remember that everyone's in it together. You know, you're at home. You're losing your mind. Your neighbor is, too. So be comfortable, but be patient. If you want to go out in your boxers to get your mail, by all means - just don't show off the goods.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: That was Mayor Bradley Wantz of Taneytown, Md. And in case you're wondering, I am wearing pants.

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