If there's an emergency, who you gonna call? 911, of course. But some 911 calls are made by people who forget that the crisis service is not a hot line to make complaints or wacky requests. These offenders face arrest and other penalties for using poor 911 judgment under the influence of drugs, alcohol or powerful emotions.

After soaking in the hot tub of a suburban Portland home this month, a lonely homeless man called 911 and asked for a hot beverage. Listen to his other requests (video).
Mark Eskelsen (photos), 45, whom police said was in an altered frame of mind, was arrested and charged.

A Wisconsin woman didn't wait for another motorist to call 911 to report her dangerous driving last fall. Mary Strey (photos) ratted on herself. What did the dispatcher advise her to do (video)?
Strey, who told police that she had knocked back some cocktails before getting behind the wheel, was charged with misdemeanor drunken driving. Her blood-alcohol level was extremely high.

Emergency dispatchers in South Florida were badgered last month by Ronald Ernest Jones (photos), who claimed his landlady had stolen his liquor. What did he demand?
Jones received stern guidance from the judge before being ordered to take self-help steps.

Hunger and transportation seemed to have driven Benjamin Dewer (photos) to call 911 -- not once, but twice (video). But authorities neither fed Dewer nor delivered him, as requested. Instead, he got a ride to a lockup.
According to a police report, Dewer was under the influence of alcohol when he made the calls. For his crime, he was sentenced to spend some time in jail. (At least there was food there.)

Alcohol isn't the only reason some people dial 911 for non-emergencies. Sometimes they dial purely on emotion.
Latreasa Goodman griped to 911 after having a meltdown at a McDonald's (video). The emergency? The fast-food chain ran out of a signature menu item and wouldn't give her a refund.
The Florida woman (photos), who was charged with misuse of 911, later told the media that she was "embarrassed" and suffered public backlash.

Burger King boasts that you can have it your way. Apparently, Jean Fortune (audio) didn't get his way when he couldn't order his favorite beverage. "Unhappy" with his order, the Florida man told the drive-thru cashier that he would call 911. How did the cashier respond?
Fortune, whose thirst wasn't quenched, received a notice.

A man in Hayward, Calif., is a bit of a trickster. So say police, who charged John Triplette in 2008 with making phony 911 calls (how many?) to police and the California Highway Patrol. The calls, which were filled with strange sounds, overwhelmed the system.
Why did Triplette do it?

Maybe Elmer L. Hughes Jr. thought 911 had police-monitoring powers when he called dispatchers to disagree with a decision that an officer had made about his case (what was it?). Funny thing, though: The police were still at the scene.

Hughes was arrested and charged.