Police Have This Man’s Number--but Not His Name

--John Doe is a man of few words. And his real name is not one of them. The man who spent a week in jail rather than reveal his identity has been released with his anonymity intact. Doe, a.k.a. No. 375220, was arrested in West Palm Beach, Fla., while boarding a bus after a tipster told police he was carrying a suitcase full of cocaine. No drugs were found, but Doe was jailed for refusing to state his name, address or birth date on the grounds that police had no probable cause to arrest him and were violating his privacy. His lawyer took a laissez faire view. “I haven’t even asked him his name, address, occupation,” said James K. Green, one of two lawyers who took on his case free of charge. “Frankly, it’s none of my business.” Doe still faces arraignment on a charge of obstruction of an investigation.

--New York Mayor Edward I. Koch, who is on a 10-day tour of Poland and Hungary, turned down an invitation to meet with a top Polish Communist Party official and instead traveled to Gdansk to meet Solidarity trade union founder and 1983 Nobel Peace laureate Lech Walesa. “This is a great privilege,” Koch said through an interpreter as he shook hands with Walesa outside St. Brygida’s church rectory, where they met for lunch. “Lech Walesa, to New Yorkers, is a world figure. I’m an admirer of his. Any person who is not afraid to speak his mind is to be admired.” Koch presented Walesa with a scarf that read: “I love New York.”

--Punxsutawney Phil had better be on the ball this year or he may be overshadowed as the harbinger of spring by a ground frog. The town of Angels Camp, Calif., where Mark Twain penned his tale “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County,” marked its 75th anniversary of incorporation Jan. 24 with the founding of Ground Frog Day, when spotting a ground frog is said to be a sure sign that spring is on the way. None was spotted this year, so Phil still has a chance to steal the limelight on Groundhog Day, Feb. 2.

--Paul O’Connell and Patricia Trimble of Covington, Ky., are hoping to put the squeeze on American car manufacturers whose products fall short of expectations. The American Lemon Club is made up of disgruntled car owners like O’Connell and Trimble, who had to take her 1983 car to the dealer 23 times for repairs during its 12-month warranty period. The club’s goal is to encourage U.S. auto manufacturers “to get back to basics--price, quality and service,” O’Connell said.