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
AU Grad '87
February 23rd, 2011
1:33 pm
Ha! Can you imagine the UGA reaction if a Tech fan took a cutting torch to the base of that little arch thingy on East Broad one night? “Why, it’s just a piece of metal…at least he didn’t kill anybody.”
Those trees were about more than just football.
1eyedJack
February 23rd, 2011
1:33 pm
Not to condone Harv’s actions at all, but who among us hasn’t killed a tree at some time (city slickers and greenpeace activists aside)? How many of you have a fireplace, or wooden furniture or live in a house? Half of this country was once covered with trees.
It seems that the Awbun War Eaglets are more upset about the tradition than the trees. Relax, toilet paper will stick to a dead tree just as good as a live one.
Somebody previously mentioned Government cheese. I don’t think the government distributes that anymore, but when I was a kid my Mama used to buy it from the maid, and let me tell you, that was some good damn cheese.
Jeff Schultz
February 23rd, 2011
1:33 pm
Fire Rodney Ho – Had to delete a comment. You went over the line. Please clean it up or I’ll have to ban you.
AllAuburnAllIn
February 23rd, 2011
1:34 pm
What if an idiot like him had killed Uga, or LSU’s Mike, or toppled Bear’s statue and destroyed it? How would those fans feel? That’s exactly how we (AU fans) feel. It’s a very sad and tragic loss that meant a lot to the Auburn Family.
For all of you that say, “who cares – it’s just a tree” – just STFU because you don’t understand what we’re talking about. It’s clear you have no sense of pride or tradition and are just commenting to be a crap stirrer.
Updyke does deserves his day in court and I hope he gets the maximum sentence for every single charge. I have NO sympathy for him and he brought it all on himself. Karma is a beyotch.
WDE!!!
59bulldawg
February 23rd, 2011
1:35 pm
Wonder how Dawg fans would feel if someone burned the hedges, pushed over the bell tower, or hauled off and punted poor UGA. Then perhaps you’d have similar feelings as Auburn fans. It’s bigger than just a moron and some trees. And whether we like it or not, rolling the trees at Toomer’s Corner was an Auburn tradition. It’s not my cup of tea but that’s ok . . . it doesn’t have to be for me to condemn that idiot for what he did. But make no doubt about it. What he did was way over the line of being just a simple prank. The most tragic thing here though is that the yahoo needlessly put his personal safety at risk. It’s probably just a matter of time until someone just as stupid as he is catches up with him and tries to even the score.
Paul H
February 23rd, 2011
1:35 pm
I thought it was Al from Ford?
Wow
February 23rd, 2011
1:35 pm
An Auburn fan feels sorry that we have no traditions to cherish. What kind of tradition is littering and probably helping to kill the tree already? You guys are too funny.
Druid City
February 23rd, 2011
1:35 pm
AU 87,
UGA fans are far more likely to cut that thing down themselves. They demonstrate every game they have no respect for their university.
PR
February 23rd, 2011
1:35 pm
They need to pour poison on this a-holes and let him slowly die like the trees he killed.
Enus Stokesberry
February 23rd, 2011
1:36 pm
Whoever said that he would be better off in prison…Do you realize that most Auburn grads end up prison guards? not good if you ask me
Katherine
February 23rd, 2011
1:36 pm
DawginLex
February 23rd, 2011
12:53 pm
This idiot deserves whatever comes his way. Maybe he will freeze to death in his car.
Are you serious? Wow…wishing death upon the man is a little extreme…you seem like the crazy one to me for saying that!
Wow
February 23rd, 2011
1:36 pm
To the Auburn guy above, Karma is a bee-yotch. Maybe YOU people should remember that. Seems to me Karma took a little bite out of your silly a$$ traditions.
Chevy Dealer
February 23rd, 2011
1:36 pm
Get your Harvey Mobiles before they are all gone. If you get down to our lot tonight, we will give you a voucher for 50 gallons of tree killer. This on top of our already reduced, low, low prices. Be the first in your trailer park to own the new Harvey Mobile.
Buckeye
February 23rd, 2011
1:37 pm
Perhaps Updyke is a Democrat and hiding in Illinois
Cecil Fielder
February 23rd, 2011
1:37 pm
I’m still not convinced the trees are actually dying. Auburn could be doing this just to garner sympathy and take the attention away from their alleged cheating.
Forgive me for not believing anything coming out of Auburn.
AJ
February 23rd, 2011
1:38 pm
It’s a tree. It may have been a significant tree, but it’s still a tree. Think about it.
Druid City
February 23rd, 2011
1:39 pm
AllAuburn,
Why would anyone waste their time trying to kill the Ugas? They do a fine job of offing themselves.
DawginLex
February 23rd, 2011
1:39 pm
Katherine got her feelings hurt and can’t take a joke on a blog.
*************************************************************
This Updyke dude grew up in florida.
that explains a lot………………………
Chi Town
February 23rd, 2011
1:40 pm
ATTN: Jeff Schultz …….why dont you ever mention the fact that this nut job did not grow up in the state of Alabama, has never seen a classroom in Tuscaloosa, worked in TX majority of his lfe, and has never been a season ticket holder???
Probably bc you’re always trying to put the state of Alabama in a negative light, correct?
Chi Town
February 23rd, 2011
1:41 pm
Enter your comments here
JIm
February 23rd, 2011
1:41 pm
Wow, four pages of comments. Almost as if something major had happened here. Let’s see, what was it again? Something about a prank involving trees? Really? Amazing. First, that he would think to do it. Second, that people would lose all sense about it. Third, frighteningly, that a judge would be so incensed that he would imprison the man with murderers and rapists.
It was stupid and shallow. Let’s move on before people see how many others want to claim the same status.
OBAMA
February 23rd, 2011
1:41 pm
I’m going to pardon Mr. Updyke and appoint him as our new tree czar.
McDawg
February 23rd, 2011
1:42 pm
this tree thing borders on idolatry-worship the tree by putting toilet paper on it???? really ???-i know there are alot of weird religions in the world but this one ranks right up there-again the whole concept of Auburn (or why someone from the sate of GA would choose to attend) completely mystifies me
Auburn09
February 23rd, 2011
1:42 pm
Agree with you AU Grad ‘87,
Had A tech fan poisoned UGA, they would be saying the same exact thing that we are and would want the guy to be punished too. I don’t want the guy dead, but that doesn’t mean I have to like him either. So UGA fans please be quiet about this and worry about something else like your 6-7 football team. “oh there are more important things than football” well this is a sports blog so not really on here. Rambleon84 I like Tech because I grew up being a fan because my dad went there, but please don’t turn into Alabama fans or UGA fans talking about something you have no connection to. I stepped on a yellow jacket yesterday and killed it by mistake and for that I’m truly sorry. For ANYONE saying that we bought our National Championship, I’m sure the FBI, IRS, NCAA, would love to have a phone call from you with your proof because they can’t seem to find any. My lunch break is over. I have to get back to work.
Rollie Fingers
February 23rd, 2011
1:42 pm
Cecil “Big Daddy” Fielder,
I’m with you. I guess if these trees “miraculously” heal and recover, we’ll have our answer.
Rollie
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…….
Dare I say...
February 23rd, 2011
1:45 pm
IN A VAN DOWN BY THE RIVER.
GaBlue WDE!
February 23rd, 2011
1:45 pm
WOW,
You are an idiot. It’s not just about throwing toilet paper at something. If that were the case, we’d kidnap you, tie you to the lamp post, and throw it at you until you wiped the stink off your behind.
That little corner you care nothing about is like an old home that’s been in our family for generations… a place where we always felt welcomed when we returned, a place where we enjoyed jubilance in our youth and took our children to run across the lawns decades later. A place where we gather in good times and sad. The trees, (like your great-grandmother’s rose bushes would be to you if your family still actually spoke to you), are a part of the beauty and legacy of a place that matters to us. Yes, I feel sorry for you.
DawginLex
February 23rd, 2011
1:46 pm
aubie09,
While I agree updyke is an idiot and should be punished, comparing poisoning a tree to poisoning a dog is not a good comparison IMO
Kevin Dyer
February 23rd, 2011
1:46 pm
Who really cares it is just a stupid tree. Trees die all of the time. Just because Auburn finally scammed a Nat’l title they want to act like the stupid tree is some kind of monument. Harvey updike is a true american and patriot, he stands for everything that is right in Alabama. I can’t wait for the NCAA to take the National title away from Auburn so there will be another story to talk about because this isn’t a story.
Kevin Dyer
February 23rd, 2011
1:47 pm
You are a homo
DawginLex
February 23rd, 2011
1:48 pm
Kevin Dyer, University of Alabama Class of ????
BartenderBart
February 23rd, 2011
1:48 pm
The Harvey Updyke
1 shot Bud Light
1 shot Milwaukee’s Best
1 shot Mad Dog 20-20
1 shot creek water
1 shot Spike 80DF
Mix in portable toilet. Chill. Then serve.
***NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT EVER ATTEMPT TO MAKE THIS DRINK. BARTENDER BART TAKES NO RESPONSIBILITY IF YOU ARE DUMB ENOUGH TO DRINK SPIKE 80DF***
You know what
February 23rd, 2011
1:48 pm
I bet everybody cept Auburn fans are glad this happened but wish it had been the stadium or something besides the tree. Why? Because what goes around comes around. They cheated to get to the bowl and cheated during the bowl. Wrist was down. If Arkansas running back was down, the Auburn was clearly down.
Fleming Island Dawg
February 23rd, 2011
1:49 pm
Auburn players do get to tear up the GA hedges (once every 5 years or so) but we don’t ask that they be put in jail. Its just a hedge just like they are just trees i guess next time my neighbor’s dog kills a patch of my grass using it as a restroom I should shoot the dog or have the neighbor arrested.
Sad state of America.
February 23rd, 2011
1:49 pm
I am not defending the idiot but it is sad when in Atlanta there is more uproar for a tree that the University can haul another one from a local golf course than for kids burned in mother’s meth lab. Our country is going down the TUBES.
Justin Beaver
February 23rd, 2011
1:50 pm
Do you know what a girl from Alabama says while having sexx for the first time????
“get off dad, you are smashing my smokes”
Druid City
February 23rd, 2011
1:50 pm
Self-righteous UGA fans,
Apparently destroying your own campus is time-honored tradition.
The story also notes the reaction of R.I. Brittain, a university official. Brittain said it was unfortunate that students ”on the college level” had minds on the level of ”grammar school or nursery children” and ”react violently to anything new, with which they have not had previous experience.” – May 26, 1954
http://www.onlineathens.com/stories/022799/sli_0227990017.shtml
Itellitlikeitis
February 23rd, 2011
1:51 pm
The economy is in shambles, unemployment is at the highest that it has been in I can’t tell when, gas is expected to creep up to $5.00/gallon due to the unrest in Libya nd regions of the Middle East, Somalian pirates killed 4 Americans and this makes front page news? Well, ALRIGHTY THEN!!!
Gator
February 23rd, 2011
1:51 pm
He should be made to get up every Sunday morning and clean the stadium after each Saturday game.
Jared
February 23rd, 2011
1:51 pm
It’s a freaking tree
bc
February 23rd, 2011
1:51 pm
Jeff Schultz- How come not one mention of the tide for toomers raising $40K for the tree? It’s the best thing to come out of this and not one word about it.
Grim Reaper
February 23rd, 2011
1:52 pm
It’s a shame no one cared for the millions of trees destroyed the last 30 years in the rain forests, Brazil, Amazon area and elsewhere that does have an effect on wind currents, temps, etc. And to think back before toilet paper Auburn fans threw corncobs up in to those same trees… Sad but true…
Motocross Survivor
February 23rd, 2011
1:53 pm
He’s obviously a retard, even by Alabammy standards.
1eyedJack
February 23rd, 2011
1:53 pm
Run Harvey, Ruuuuun!!
Chi Town
February 23rd, 2011
1:54 pm
bc,
Schultz never mentions anything positive about the state of Alabama.
Unbelievable
February 23rd, 2011
1:55 pm
If anyone ever doubted that people in the state of Alabama are at the shallow end of the gene pool, all you have to do is read some of these comments. In Alabaman’s minds, this is bigger than Egypt, Iraq and Iran put together. Don’t any of you people realize how very ignorant these comments make ALL of you sound? It just reinforces the Alabaman stereotype..and folks, if you dont realize it, .that is not a good thing.
Chi Town
February 23rd, 2011
1:55 pm
When was the last time Justin Beaver got laid by a female?
Druid City
February 23rd, 2011
1:55 pm
Fleming Island,
No one has done more damage to those hedges than UGA fans themselves.
October 7, 2000: Georgia beats Tennessee. This is the first, and last time, the goal posts have been torn down in Sanford Stadium as the students section rushed the field. Unfortunately, the famous hedges were ruined in the process.
Grim Reaper
February 23rd, 2011
1:56 pm
Itellitlikeitis said: “gas is expected to creep up to $5.00/gallon”
And yet they’re still people jumping on the bimbo bandwagon praising Palin and screaming drill baby drill while a million gallons a day seeped into the Gulf of Mexico last year and morons still believe there’s an oil shortage, sad but true…