When I first saw this story on CNN.com about two New Jersey convicts who escaped from prison by digging through a wall and concealing the hole with pictures of bikini-clad women, I remarked to A. that it was unforgivable that the writer didn’t mention “The Shawshank Redemption.” That’s since been fixed.

But there’s something even dumber going on in the new version of the story. It doesn’t have anything to do with style, though. It’s this line: “There is an $8,000 reward for the men’s capture.”

I imagine a conversation between the sheriff (an older, grizzled type) and a deputy (one of his green subordinates) that went something like this:

Deputy: We need to offer a reward for these guys. Ya know, to get the word out.

Sheriff: I agree. $8,000 for the both of ‘em.

D: That doesn’t seem like a whole lot, sir.

S: What, like you got $8,000 cash layin’ around?

D: No, I don’t, sir. But doesn’t it make sense to offer something like $50,000 or $100,000? Ya know, something that really lets the people know how serious this is?

S: This ain’t about the money.

D: But sir, these guys came up with an ingenious and daring escape plan, and they have long histories of violent crime. I just think we should offer an amount that stresses the importance of capturing them.

S: Son, times get rough, I trust my gut. And my gut’s sayin’ $8,000.

D: Could we at least round it up to $10,000? A one with a bunch of zeros after it looks pretty impressive, ya know?

S: Let me ask my gut. … Nope.