Pastor Jamie Coots insists he wasn't trying to wriggle out of anything or rattle anyone's cage when he drove five snakes through Tennessee. He just wanted to get the serpents to church in Kentucky.

Coots handles snakes as part of worship services at Full Gospel Tabernacle in Jesus Name Church in Middlesboro. In this case, the five snakes confiscated last month by Tennessee wildlife officials were bought in Alabama for $800 and intended for use at the religious service. Now, in addition to fighting a police citation, Coots wants the state to return the three rattlesnakes and two copperheads he purchased in Eastaboga, Ala., along with the boxes used to transport the venomous creatures.