Harvey Updyke (Auburn tree poisoner) now living in his car
Just guessing that this is how Harvey Updyke looks when he wakes up in the morning in his car. (AP photo)
I’m assuming this will not elicit a lot of sympathy, but the yahoo who allegedly poisoned the Auburn oak trees apparently so concerned for his safety that he’s living in his car. Also, he’s now being defended by an attorney who represented the former Birmingham mayor, who’s now in prison for bribery, fraud and money-laundering.
Is this a movie of the week or what?
According to a friend of Harvey Updyke, who phoned a Birmingham sports talk show that he poisoned the iconic oak trees at Toomers Corner in Auburn, public enemy No. 1 has gone into seclusion and is living in a car by a creek somewhere in Alabama.
So I guess it follows that if Updyke phones another sportstalk show, his handle of “Al from Dadeville” becomes “Al from Chevy.”
Wayne Barnes, a friend of Updyke’s, told the Birmingham News: “He left [his home] and went to buy a new cell phone, and while he was at the Wal-Mart somebody cut two of his tires.”
Hah! Roll Tide.
It’s not all bad news for Updkye. After three court-appointed attorneys in succession managed to talk their way off the case, somebody finally has stepped forward and taken the case: Glennon Threatt Jr. Representing hated and morally reprehensible individuals is nothing new for Threatt. He defended former Birmingham mayor Larry Langford, who last year began serving a 15-year sentence in federal prison following his public corruption trial.
Threatt said of Updyke in an interview with the Paul Finebaum radio show: “He has very limited resources He is exactly the kind of person the law requires to get adequate representation. Now he’s facing a hostile crowd that rather than have a jury, he’ll probably have a crowd of pitchforks and torches out there waiting for him.”
No sympathy here.
By Jeff Schultz
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500 comments Add your comment
CW
February 23rd, 2011
9:14 pm
Check out http://www.ToomersOaks.com and make a donation to Auburn’s Tradition Fund.
sports
February 23rd, 2011
9:16 pm
word is Auburn are planting some cactus there
Al's Herbie Side
February 23rd, 2011
9:56 pm
With Auburn not being able to roll themselves after winning a game, how will they celebrate in the future? We need a poll here. Will they start a new tradition of ringing their neighbor’s door bell and running? Cow tipping in the Toomer’s Corner pasture? Will Auburn’s new fight song really include the word, “Timber”?
Reality check
February 23rd, 2011
11:48 pm
Finally won that National Title but had to pay your QB to do it. Less than two months later your school tradition is poisoned.
Now that’s Karma.
Red Dog 77
February 24th, 2011
12:19 am
Personally, I have a great deal of simpathy for Mr. Updyke………This pathetic human is no doubt sick beyond any cure. This story has absolutely nothing to do with college football and all about mental illness. When “normal” people pick up a newspaper or turn on the nightly news, often times they are greeted by stories similar to this, and worse. Back when Jimmy Carter was president, he decided those with multiple diagnosis of severe mental illness had “rights” and should be supported by society until they were deemed a danger to themselves or others. This man is NOT a football fan, he is a nut that will offend again if or when he is released from prison………….Just be thankful this example of dangerous mentally ill person didn’t gun down those celebrating at the trees……………..If anyone is shocked by this mans actions, learn more about mental illness, then demand that your local, state, and federal representatives bring back the “funny farms” that were done away with under Carter………….The nuts would be happier, and society would be alot safer………………The reason I tell you all this, my brother was mentally ill, and did some horrible things before he died………his life was a living hell……..and so was his families………………Sincerily RED
Katherine
February 24th, 2011
12:52 am
Red…I’m sorry about your brother. I think this man needs help as well. The people calling for him to be put away for life or to be hurt physically are ridiculous. The sad part is…there is no way he can get a fair trial there now….he can’t even get a lawyer there to represent him. That should make us all very nervous about our rights……..
scottbravesfan
February 24th, 2011
2:25 am
That guy is a moron. I mean who does crap like this? Drives 30 miles to poison trees? Over a college football team? A college that you didn’t even attend! People need to get a life.
mistermak
February 24th, 2011
2:38 am
No body dislikes Auburn more than I do, but it is just a game. what I can’t believe is that he was dumb enough to brag about it before they even died. I would have at least waited until they started to die and then maybe said my name is Forest from Greenbo, Alabama. It is a shame that someone would take a football game to this level. Pathetic!!!
Dirty Dawg
February 24th, 2011
2:57 am
Hey, How Could You Condone…KMA, and read my post again. I’m not condoning anything, I think it was a heinous act committed by a sick individual…what I’m saying is that in his mind – sick as it was/is – Auburn cheated to win and looked as if it was gonna get away with it, and he decided to do a terrible thing to ‘get even’. It’s called a ‘defense’…a motivation, wrong-minded as it was, that will be presented to a jury as the reason why, and by the time he comes before that jury, the truth about Auburn’s most recent pay-for-play episode will be out there for all to see.
As for my comment about it being ‘trees’ instead of the eagle, that should have been obvious – and for you to compare it to poisoning somebody’s pet, the Bulldog mascot, is bazaar at best. I mean your ‘yellow wood’ man would’ve gotten the difference.
One thing you probably didn’t get wrong, although you didn’t exactly say it…in my heart I believe that somebody in, or representing, the Auburn program cheated like hell to get Newton, and Fairley, and a few others to come play football…and play they did. For you and other Auburn fans, once the evidence is out, to continue to deny it will be the ultimate in cognitive dissonance. Yes the truth will out on this over the next few months and what I want to see is how good and faithful Auburn supporters will react. Will you at long last show a little contrition? Remorse? Shame? Or will you just keep on denying the reality staring you in the face, even after the NCAA, the SEC and the New York Athletic Club does their thing and removes ‘the symbols’ of yours, and Cam’s, season?
Jaydawg
February 24th, 2011
3:57 am
The poster boy for WHITE TRASH.-ROLL DAMN TIDE!!!
FanSince59
February 24th, 2011
5:21 am
I suggest they move the trial out of Alabama to another state like North Dakota.
War Eagle
February 24th, 2011
6:21 am
AU are NCAA National Chumps!
robertussen
February 24th, 2011
6:39 am
i feel kind of bad for him that was a pretty funny prank
slippery slope
February 24th, 2011
6:51 am
Harvey the “tree killer” better move to Winnipeg, Canada
with the Thrashers.
CobbDawg51
February 24th, 2011
7:13 am
Just think, this idiot can vote!
RGP
February 24th, 2011
7:22 am
Well, it’s not entirely fair….but it ain’t off by much (sadly): Is there any serious doubt that if one heard this story and was given about two nano-seconds to ponder the question, they would guess that this nutty behavior would occur in the SEC?
DaltonDAWG706
February 24th, 2011
8:00 am
oh really well jeff you dont look much prettier than mr. updyke, and who knows maybe someday God might have you living out of your car, seeing as you like to scoff at others misfortunes and what not. In a way this column is very immature and almost as bad as what updyke done. Jeff you are just as pathetic as mr. updyke.
Buckeye
February 24th, 2011
8:09 am
sports,
Isn’t it “cacti”?
gt
February 24th, 2011
8:22 am
This mentally unstable guy was a highway patrolman in Texas? That worries me more than the tree thing. The two off duty “body guards” that assisted the pro quarterback in his little bathroom rape in south Georgia were Pennsylvania. State Troopers. I am beginning to wonder if the problem we have with terrorist is a distraction to a bigger problem that our society is going crazy.
dawgfan
February 24th, 2011
8:57 am
Proving once again, there’s nothing dumber than a Georgia Bulldog fan.
QUESTION
February 24th, 2011
9:11 am
For Dirty Dawg:
what I want to see is how good and faithful UGA supporters will react. Will you at long last show a little contrition? Remorse? Shame? Or will you just keep on denying the reality staring you in the face, even after the NCAA, the SEC and the New York Athletic Club does their thing and removes ‘the symbols’ of yours, and Herschel’s, 1980 season?
People in glass dog houses shouldn’t throw stones.
As far as Updyke and his current situation, his own words say it best: “Do you think I care?”
BravesFan79
February 24th, 2011
9:11 am
Theres alot worse pple in this world than this dude. Ray Lewis didnt get the attention this dude is getting after stabbing a man to death in Buckhead.
Bobby Lowder
February 24th, 2011
9:21 am
Cecil, here’s your money. Call me if you need some more.
Jesco White
February 24th, 2011
9:37 am
You Alabama people are truly White Trash
GTJeff
February 24th, 2011
9:50 am
All this over some stupid trees & football. How ridiculous.
No D
February 24th, 2011
9:56 am
Whats the big deal? You can always plant another tree. hahahaha
Best Buy Manager
February 24th, 2011
10:01 am
We will open early today at 10:00 AM to enable
all the Alabama fans to come in and use our
computers.
Katherine
February 24th, 2011
10:05 am
BravesFan79
February 24th, 2011
9:11 am
Theres alot worse pple in this world than this dude. Ray Lewis didnt get the attention this dude is getting after stabbing a man to death in Buckhead.
That’s what I’ve been saying…what he did was bad obviously…but for people to say they wish he would die and stuff like that….they are the sick ones….come on…its a frickin tree….you don’t take a life for a tree.
Gene
February 24th, 2011
10:25 am
Harvey could have a career as a character in “Justified” or maybe as a thug in the next Cohen Brothers’ movie. He could chase Josh Brolin through Texas with a big spray can of Agent Orange.
Old Dawg
February 24th, 2011
10:43 am
I’m Matt Foley, and I live in a van down by the river.
Fire Mark Richt
February 24th, 2011
11:04 am
Methinks Harvey isn’t playing with a full deck.
King Gator
February 24th, 2011
11:06 am
“Rolling Tide!!” War Trees – Go Gators!
Dirty Dawg
February 24th, 2011
11:18 am
Hey QUESTON, if I thought there had been any question of whether or not UGA paid a bunch of players, including Herschel, a ton of money to come play ball thirty-somethin’ years ago (by the way, is that before, after, or before and after AU has been on probation for those pesky ‘major violations’?) – then I’d understand the ‘throwing stones/glass house’ thingy – but guess what, there ain’t none, and there’s certainly no continuing investigation that’s about to expose this latest feces-laden process. AU is sitting on a smoldering inferno that will likely blow the lid off major college football, the SEC and certainly the ‘LVOTP’,,,and relying on a phrase that ‘the AU family’s all in’ ain’t gonna be nearly enough when the whole sorry mess is exposed to the light and the ridicule comes down all around you.
Harvey Updyke
February 24th, 2011
11:25 am
Hey guys, I’m back after a long night of sleeping in my car down by the creek. It got a little chilly last night but other than that I’m doing pretty good. After reading some of the comments from Auburn Fans on here, I’m even happier that I killed those trees. I’m starting to run low on cash so if anyone is interested in buying some Spike 80d, I have some extra left over and would be willing to sell. My only regret is that I didn’t use a chainsaw. It would have killed those trees much faster
Teddy
February 24th, 2011
1:37 pm
This is exactly why Auburn and Alabama fans are the worst types.
All the Dead Uga's
February 24th, 2011
3:05 pm
I don’t think any herbicide could kill those trees after all the Uga pee and drunk Auburn co-ed vomit that’s flooded them over the years.
All the Dead Uga's
February 24th, 2011
3:08 pm
There’s worse things than killing a couple of old trees. It was unnecessary, but the pathetic outpouring and faux outrage over it all is really ridiculous. Let’em die, make a couple of nice benches out of them, and get a life, everybody.
tim
February 24th, 2011
3:09 pm
Poisoning of trees, slashing of tires, driving around with those flags on your cars on Sat afternoons, barking like a dog…….
No wonder most of the country thinks you’re stupid and uneducated.
JOHN PEAVY
February 24th, 2011
4:17 pm
AUBURN GET A LIFE YOU PAID FOR A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
AND WILL GET CAUGHT. FREE BANK CARDS FOR PLAYERS
AT AUBURN DOES BO JACKSON STILL STUDDER.
Jim from t town...
February 24th, 2011
4:20 pm
barking like a dog. lol
OJ
February 24th, 2011
5:47 pm
I know of some good lawyers
taylor
February 24th, 2011
8:00 pm
really people, get over the cam thing, he went pro so yall can quit crying cause we were better than yall for a year. ive never seem someone cry and whine bout something so much. and the trees were a trade mark, they were part of auburn and their history. so u dont have to help or do anything but u should be respectful and grow up, if auburn done somethin like that, yall would make shirts and everything talkin trash so jus shut up and if u dont like to see it on tv, change the channel, u dont wanna help then dont, but be respectful at least i mean geez
How Could You Condone This?
February 24th, 2011
9:16 pm
I re-read your post Dirty Dawg and you are condoning what he did yet again with your response. It doesn’t matter what AU did, there is no justification for this. He lost a football game and he did something very dangerous and reckless. This low-life could have poisoned the water supply & KILLED PEOPLE! Not to mention the hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage he has cost the state of Alabama. If the herbicide had spread it could have destroyed the entire area. Do you not understand the significance of Toomer’s Corner to Auburn fans and residents? He ruined the place where we as Auburn alumni have our most cherished memories, I don’t care if you hate our football team & root against us every Saturday. It doesn’t bother me one bit. But when you start committing acts of terrorism against the Auburn family, that’s where I draw the line. I love how you say “when all the evidence comes out”: Did you ever stop to think ” Maybe it’s all already out there & Auburn did nothing wrong?” No, because it wouldn’t fit your agenda. Or better yet did you ever stop to think maybe another school was pissed & blew the whistle because they got burned?
eagle beagle
February 24th, 2011
10:08 pm
maybe this scum can live in a treehouse.
aprilglaspie
February 25th, 2011
4:08 am
Total duckhead. There is no excuse. That guy looks like a Bama grad, but he probly just parks his double-wide somehere near there.
aprilglaspie
February 25th, 2011
4:16 am
Of course, Auburn players thought they were way clever when they stripped branches off the English privet in Sanford Stadium. Maybe it’s just instant Karma.
Dirty Dawg
February 25th, 2011
10:09 am
Hey CONDONE THIS… (got an imagination?)
Getting past the above, I suppose I’ll just have to give up trying to get you to understand…after all that’s what cognitive dissonance is, ain’t it? We’ll just have to wait and see how it all plays out…only then will we find out if you folks are capable of admitting you were wrong. At the same time, I will commit here and now that when the wiretap evidence in the political bribery/Milton McGregor, et.al., trial is made public…assuming key elements – say like stuff that involved AU’s pay-for-play – aren’t redacted…and there’s no proof that Cam and friends were paid to play at AU, I’ll admit I was wrong in thinking that all that history of cheating meant that it was still going on (I think the legal term is ‘prior bad acts should be inadmissible’) and that Auburn University, today, is as clean as a Safeway chitlin’.
Lawson
February 26th, 2011
9:37 am
this guy is a nut. he should be put under the jail. he should be made to watch every game of the team he hates so much and wear their fan gear. how can you be that into football to deface a campus tradition. what a dork. we call them tools at OLE MISS. “looser dork old fart tool shed” is what come to mind. The alabama fans I know well would never do anything like this they are good folks. Drink and root your team on but for god sakes lets just have good clean fun. Lawson
GaDawg
February 26th, 2011
11:12 am
Justin Beaver
February 23rd, 2011
1:43 pm
Did you know the toothbrush was invented in Alabama? If had had been from anywhere else it would be the teethbrush…….ha ha ha HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA………..Good’en!
GaDawg
February 26th, 2011
12:23 pm
It is truly a shame that this guy has brought all of this down around his own head, and it is a further shame that there are many more lunatic fringe fanatics who identify themselves with the various universities that compose the SEC. College pranks can be fun, and funny, but college pranks are fixable! Harvey Updyke committed an inexcusable felonious assault against the traditions of Auburn University, and its fans.
Sadly, he must be made to be an example for all fans to learn from. If he is convicted of the crime, he should suffer the legal penalties due him, and HE MUST BE BANNED FROM THE CAMPUSES OF ALL SEC MEMBER INSTITUTIONS. The possibility of SEC BANISHMENT should cause any fan to reconsider his thoughts before he puts them into, irretrievable, action!