A prosecutor says an Ohio police chief accused of burgling the home of a woman who carried twins for Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick abused his authority and tried to “blame it all on being a joke.”

Assistant Attorney General Emily Laube argued Friday in closings of the trial of suspended Martins Ferry Police Chief Barry Carpenter. He’s accused of trying to sell items from the home to celebrity photographers.

Carpenter’s attorney Dennis McNamara told jurors the chief admits he acted stupidly, but denies he acted criminally.

The jury began deliberating the case Friday afternoon.

Snipes appeals sentence

Attorneys for actor Wesley Snipes have asked a federal appeals court to reconsider the star’s three-year prison sentence for federal tax convictions.

Attorneys for the star of the “Blade” trilogy also told the appeals court Friday in Atlanta that the actor should have been granted a hearing to decide whether his trial should have been in New York instead of Florida.

The three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals did not immediately rule.

The actor was convicted last year of three misdemeanor counts of willful failure to file income tax returns. A judge allowed him to remain free on bail as he appealed the convictions.

Prosecutors say Snipes hasn’t filed a tax return since 1998.

They argued there was ample time to ask that the trial be moved to New York.