From wire reports
April 14, 1995
NASHUA, N.H. - A moment of marsupial mayhem has landed a New Hampshire man in jail for 30 days.
David Jimenez was sentenced Wednesday by a New Hampshire district court after pleading no contest to a charge that he assaulted another man with an opossum, the Nashua Telegraph newspaper reported.
Jimenez was arrested in January after he thrust the animal at two men outside a Nashua social club. The opossum bit one of the men on the hand, police said.
The victim, Shane Barry, said they had approached Jimenez because he was acting suspiciously near some cars. Jimenez had apparently been attempting to coax the animal out of hiding.
Opossums, which resemble large rats, are relatively common in southern New Hampshire. They are the only marsupials found in North American and are probably best known for their ability to ward off enemies by feigning death.
Jimenez, 34, of Nashua, will be allowed to serve his sentence on weekends. In agreeing to plead no contest to the assualt charge, another wildlife-related charge was dropped, the newspaper reported.
The opossum fled the scene after the incident.