Pa. Woman Arrested for Texting the Word 'Jerk'

Be careful what you text: you may get arrested for texting. In fact, a Pennsylvania woman was recently arrested for a "jerk" text.

Kimberly Bush, 45, sent a text to her ex-boyfriend late Friday night.

There was no threat. There was no accompanying, menacing voicemail. Just one word: "jerk." And, with that one syllable, it seems that Bush was able to strike a deep chord of fear within her ex-boyfriend, David Gosnell, Sr.

Maybe Gosnell does have reason to fear his ex. She was recently arrested for breaking into his house to try to retrieve a DVD, reports The Morning Call. She had been released on the condition that she have no contact with her ex.

Apparently, however, she couldn't really resist texting him. Bush does not remember that she sent Gosnell a text. She had taken four Xanax pills earlier in the day, and had downed another 3 drinks at a bar, reports The Morning Call.

And, after Gosnell got the "jerk" text, he got spooked because his dog barked the rest of Friday night and Saturday, which he took to mean he was being stalked by Bush, The Morning Call reports.

Bush was arrested for violating the order that she have no contact with him, and was charged with harassment by communication and disorderly conduct, reports The Morning Call.

Unfortunately, a court order is a court order, and telling someone not to have any contact means you should really cut off no contact. So, even if Bush had all the reason in the world to think that Gosnell is a jerk, she probably shouldn't have texted him.

Maybe she could have just thought the word "jerk" and saved herself a whole lot of legal trouble.

And, she would have not have gotten arrested for the "jerk" text. While getting arrested for texting may be rare, maybe there's a lesson to be learned: think before you speak, and also think before you text.

Related Resources:

• Nazareth Woman Charged for Texting 'Jerk' (Nazareth Patch)
• More Information on Protective Order Laws (FindLaw)
• What's New, Injured by Texting While Walking? (FindLaw's Injured)
• Texting Trucker Gets In Over His Head (FindLaw's Legal Grounds)