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Arrested Man, 71, Says Jail Was on His 'Bucket List'

By Tanya Roth, Esq. on March 15, 2013 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

A retired Ohio schoolteacher who spent three days in jail says he couldn't be happier about his experience. In fact, it was just one more thing to cross off his "bucket list."

"It was a picnic. An unadulterated picnic," Obie Cargile, 71, told The Cincinnati Enquirer about his recent time behind bars.

While spending time in jail may have been on Cargile's list of things he'd always wanted to do, it wasn't until January when the proper opportunity presented itself.

Cargile was pulled over for improper brake lights. When he was called to court, he pleaded guilty.

Or more specifically, he told the court "I plead absolutely guilty as charged," the Enquirer reports.

He was fined. But he refused to pay. Instead, he ended up in jail for three days.

Cargile claims that he went to jail in protest of what he claimed was a ridiculous fine. Jail admittedly wasn't part of his original plan, but when the opportunity to check another item off his bucket list came up, he jumped at the chance.

So what were some highlights of Cargile's experience in the slammer?

In jail, Cargile went jogging and ate three meals a day. They weren't exactly gourmet, but they weren't the worst meals, either.

He also got a clean cot to sleep on -- though, due to overcrowding, he was placed in a tiny cell "the size of a shoebox," which he shared with a cellmate. And Cargile says fellow inmates treated him with respect -- even the skinheads called him "Big Man."

In fact, Cargile says he now understands why jails are overcrowded: It's too "easy" behind bars.

While that might be the case with jails -- which are designed to hold inmates for short periods of time -- not everyone behind bars would agree with Cargile's assessment.

Indeed, prisons have a reputation for rape, violence and gang corruption. It's no picnic for prisoners, especially for those in maximum security.

Nevertheless, Cargile's "bucket list" experience shows how some people may be better off on the inside, especially for those who have nothing going for them on the outside.

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