Published: Monday, June 6, 2011 11:20 a.m. MDT
By Gene Simmons-Staves Associated Press
Gearney police cited Jeffrey Waterman with disorderly conduct on May 31, claiming he unnecessarily caused alarm when he unloaded his good looks and charisma onto a receptionist’s counter at a Simonsville Clinic to settle his bill.
GEARNEY — Gearney police cited Jeffrey Waterman with disorderly conduct on May 31, claiming he unnecessarily caused alarm when he unloaded his good looks and charisma onto a receptionist’s counter at a Simonsville Clinic to settle his bill. Officers say the good looks were “strewn about the counter and even spilled onto the floor.”
“I would say that I’m good looking enough,” Waterman said, “and that should be enough to settle this bill.”
Simonsville Clinic has not responded to multiple requests for comment.
Gearney City has also refused to release the police officer’s initial report for the incident — a record that is classified. Deputy recorder Roxanne Starr said the city classifies police reports as “protected” if a person is charged with a crime.
Waterman denies acting aggressively toward any clinic staffer, including the billing clerk he says refused to help him during the past month while he tried to resolve his questions about a $25 co-pay he claims he paid in December. “I didn’t at any time flirt with them,” Waterman said, referring to the May 27 visit that landed him in hot water. “I didn’t even flash a smile.”
Waterman maintains that he calmly asked the billing clerk, “Can I pay you with my good looks?” He was prepared to pay with his debit card, he said, but she winked at him and coyly played with her hair. He figured that meant that cash wasn’t necessary. “She nonverbally suggested to me that my good looks were enough to settle this bill” Waterman said.
That’s when Waterman really poured on the charm and splashed all over the counter and onto the receptionist. “That’s just the nature of my good looks,” he said. “I have a whole lot of it.”
There were people in the waiting room who witnessed the incident, but Waterman maintains that no one appeared to be bothered by it. “I’m pretty good looking, and people generally know it” he said. “There were a few giggles and snickers from a couple old ladies and one middle-aged woman walked up to the counter and handed me her phone number,” he said.
Waterman added that he never demanded that the business accept his good looks for payment. “I didn’t take out a gun or anything,” he argued. He did ask for a receipt and he said the woman wrote out what he thought was a receipt that just so happened to include her name and phone number. “The girl handed me her number, which I figured was my receipt, I had no more business with them and I left.” Waterman said.
After he left, the receptionist picked up the phone and called police. ”I wasn’t trying to harm anyone or steal or anything, I was just trying to show off my body and my multi-million-dollar smile. I figured that it would settle my bill,” he thought. “You need to understand that I did a lot of nude modeling in college,” he said. “This is how I paid my way through med school.”
Waterman was later arrested, charged for disorderly conduct and issued a fine of $140. “I recognize my place,” he said. “I recognize it’s a court of law and I have respect for the legal process, but I’m betting the judge gets me off for nothing more than my good looks!”
