Man on Martha's Vineyard arrested for tax evasion in Brookline after spelling error
BROOKLINE -- One man's Vineyard vacation was cut short when he was wrongfully arrested thanks to two dollars and a typo from nearly a decade ago.
Angus McCoubrey, 37 of Philadelphia, has been vacationing at his family's home in Martha's Vineyard for 30 years. The island is full of memories and this year's vacation was no different.
McCoubrey and his wife arrived at the Vineyard on August 21 to start their weeklong vacation. Part of that day was spent at the beach.
"We were pulling out of the beach parking lot to go get some fish for dinner and we were backing up out at the same time as another lady and our cars hit and ours was damaged," said McCoubrey.
A simple fender-bender that led McCoubrey to call the police. They filed a report, and everyone involved was on their way.
McCoubrey said they had made it minutes down the road when in his rearview mirror, he saw police speeding after them.
"My wife was like what is happening?" said McCoubrey. "I said, 'I have no idea' and they were like 'sir, can you put your hands behind your back? We have to place you under arrest."
Chilmark Police told McCoubrey he was being arrested for a warrant out of Brookline from 2013. That warrant claimed McCoubrey was wanted on tax evasion.
The only trouble, McCoubrey said he had never filed taxes in Brookline.
"I don't know how it's possible to have a charge of tax evasion in an area I have never filed taxes," said McCoubrey.
The 37-year-old said he was held for two nights at the Edgartown jail before eventually being placed on a ferry in cuffs and brought to Brookline District Court.
While held at court, McCoubrey's wife was combing through the original police report, when she noticed something was off.
The original police report from April of 2013 had a criminal complaint for taxi fare evasion -- not tax evasion.
Turns out, McCoubrey had taken a taxi with a friend in Brookline when there was a discrepancy over the fare. McCoubrey said the driver was riding up the meter and he and his friend asked to be dropped off repeatedly.
The taxi driver wanted seven dollars, but McCoubrey and his friend paid five.
That taxi driver ultimately filed a police report. McCoubrey said he had never been notified.
McCoubrey's attorney was told by Brookline District Court the entire ordeal was a clerical error, a typo nearly a decade old.
Charges were dropped and he was free to go. McCoubrey said the choice to not pay the two dollars came down to a less than smart decision made in his twenties. He never thought it would end up turning into this.
McCoubrey said he has no plans of suing Brookline District Court but hoped sharing his story would shed light on a system in need of some changes.
"Protocol is a really destructive thing if it overrides all ability for common sense," said McCoubrey. "I think there are way too many people in the country who might be trapped in some kind of labyrinth of protocol."
