Ask any guy named John Smith what it's like having a common name and he'll likely have all sorts of crazy stories about getting calls from bill collectors or hate mail for some other guy.
But Paul Main's phone recently rang off the hook when reporters called wanting to know if he was the Paul Main accused of visiting accused prostitute Alexis Wright (shown here) in Kennebunk, Maine.
On Monday, authorities released the first batch of names out of more than 150 men accused of paying Wright, a Zumba fitness instructor, for sex.
Main's reply was no, he was not that guy.
But a decision to release the names of alleged prostitution clients without any ages or addresses caused big problems for men who have the same names as the accused.
It's called "John-shaming," and it's being done around the nation as a way to discourage would-be "Johns" from keeping prostitutes in business.
"I don't have a problem with releasing names. I think it's a wonderful thing, but I'll be darned if it's right to do it in a shoddy manner," said Main, a retired police detective.
-- Bill Miller (A very common name)
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