In another incident of car window smashing, the victim and police are looking for witnesses to step forward.

Apparently some people saw a person smash in car windows about 1 a.m. Saturday, June 20, on High Street near Indian Street. But they didn’t talk to police about what they saw.

The car owner says the culprit used a pool cue or its carrying case to do the damage. Afterward the vandal ran toward the Western Washington University campus. He was about 5-foot-10 with short brown hair and wearing a white or light-colored shirt and blue jeans.

Anyone with info is asked to call Bellingham police.

Reported: May 8 2009 5:03PM
Location: 500 BLK GRAND AV
Offense: MENTAL PROBLEM
Officer took report from female stating she is being harassed telepathically. Suspect has not successfully been determined to be an actual person.

4/10 11:35 a.m. - Officer was contacted by a male juvenile who wanted police to assist him in retrieving an Xbox that his uncle loaned to a third person. He was having trouble getting the third person to return the game console. Officer assisted the young man in getting his property back.

4/10 7:40 p.m. - Blaine Police were notified of two suspicious subjects at a residence where the occupants were not home. Officers checked the area and found no apparent break in. Neighbors identified one of the young men as the son of the occupants. Officers found a open cold beer on the fence post. Officers cleared.

4/12 1:50 p.m. - Officers were dispatched to the Peace Arch POE for three out of state minors in possession of alcohol. Upon arrival officers found the juveniles not showing any signs of use. All three admitted to purchasing the expensive whiskey in Canada. They claimed they were unaware it was illegal to “just have it.” Officers gave the three the option of pouring the drink out or being arrested. They chose to pour and were sent on their way home to Oregon.

4/14 5:25 p.m. - Officers responded to a call of two “out of control” teenagers at a residence. The two had left the residence when officers arrived. Most of the argument was verbal, although one teenager had a can of cola poured over her head and the other had a cup containing tobacco spit thrown at her. Officers left the area to look for the two teens.
Before the first call had been resolved, officers received a second call of a fight involving one of the teens. It turned out that the two adults involved in the first call had been driving on their way to the Pipeline fields, when they saw one of the teens walking down the street. The teen apparently spit at the car, so the female driver stopped the car while the male passenger exited the car and grabbed the girl by the arms.
After they both spit on each other and yelled a lot, the fight was broken up by neighbors. All information was sent to the prosecutors office for review.

4/14 10:32 p.m. - 911 advised Blaine Police of an open 911 line from a local business. Officers found the business to be secure, closed and no emergent situation to exist. However, a portable phone from inside the business had been left outside on a small wall by business staff. Either a passerby called 911 and left the phone line open as a prank, or the phone called for help gettingin out of the cold. The poor thing was either abused or abandoned, so it was impounded for safekeeping.

2/11 12:23 a.m. - A motorist called to report that she had struck a sign on Semiahmoo Parkway near the county park. An officer arrived and determined the woman was not injured in the collision, but the sign will never inform again. A collision report was taken and Public Works was called to replace the post.

2/12 7:49 a.m. - An officer was dispatched to contact a complainant in a store parking lot. He arrived and met a man who wanted to report that a nearby motorist opened their car door, and struck the callers’ car. The officer determined that the door bump had not caused any damage to the reporting person’s car, but the officer took an informational report to be helpful. That was handy, because as the caller was leaving, he backed his car into another parked vehicle. Information was then exchanged between those two motorists.

2/12 11:16 a.m. - A concerned citizen called to report what appeared to be a theft of lumber from a construction site on D Street. Officers contacted the person responsible for the removal. He had not intended to permanently purloin the products, but was using it nearby to shore up other construction. The wood was returned, the owner was happy, and the borrower set sail to the lumber yard for supplies.

Read more! »

Readers have been wondering about the man who was found dead on Hannegan Road last Friday, the 13th. According to Sgt. Scott Huso of the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office, here’s what happened:

A woman called wondering about her ex-husband because she hadn’t spoken to him for several days. Deputies and medics went to his home on the 4700 block of Hannegan Road at about 7:30 a.m. Feb. 13 and found 52-year-old Allen Anderson deceased outside the home. Investigators do not consider the death suspicious, and there were no signs of foul play.

I’m awaiting a determination of his cause of death from the Whatcom County Medical Examiner’s Office, but barring any signs that his death was suspicious we won’t do additional reporting about this incident.

We did learn of this incident on the 13th, but we didn’t report on it because the death was not suspicious. I wanted to post this to help provide information to those who were wondering about what happened.

New Year’s Eve is tomorrow, and Whatcom County residents will no doubt be enjoying alcoholic drinks in celebration. Should they enjoy one too many, however, the Washington State Patrol has a good reason for them to avoid getting behind a wheel: More troopers will be on the roads looking for drunk drivers.

The State Patrol is increasing the number of patrol cars (both marked and unmarked) on state roads in Whatcom County as part of an emphasis patrol to crack down on drunk driving. The extra patrols will be back out this weekend as well.

The State Patrol is giving these patrols and others it institutes throughout the year partial credit in reducing the number of fatal accidents in Washington State by 15 percent in 2008 compared with 2007.

One of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers cleared after his arrest following a fight during a motorcycle rally in Sturgis, S.D., helped save the man wounded in a shooting there. That shooting led to several arrests of law enforcement officers on suspicion of carrying weapons without the proper authority, but those charges were later dismissed.

Read more about it here.

11/25 9:14 p.m. - A custodian working in a bank after hours accidentally broke his key off in the door lock. The problem was exacerbated by the fact that the door was locked, and the janitor was inside. Police responded, commiserated with the captive, and called his employer to come down with a spare key. It’s not known what penalty was assessed for the late bank withdrawal.

11/26 2:47 p.m. - Dispatch received a cell phone call from a man who was being assaulted in a business parking lot on H Street. The suspect fled as police responded. The adult victim told officers he had been called to the parking to help a friend, but it turned out to be a ’set-up’, because when he arrived his friend beat him up. A witness explained that the friend who fled was really angry about some emails the victim wrote to the friend’s wife. Officers contacted the suspect by phone. He declined to discuss the matter. Police are arranging for everyone to have their day in court.

11/27 1:00 a.m. - A resident on Blaine Avenue called police when someone kicked his front door twice and then fled into the night when the homeowner yelled out. Responding officers found fresh damage to the door jam, but no trail to follow. The resident did not know who had caused the $150 damage. No other incidents occurred during the night.

11/29 8:45 a.m. - A resident on 4th Street reported that two Christmas yard decorations were stolen from his front yard overnight. The family’s four-foot by four-foot wooden cutout reindeer were part of an heirloom collection that has been staked out in the yard each holiday season for many years. Police searched the neighborhood but could not find the ornaments.

11/29 11:30 p.m. - A resident on D Street reported that someone had taken a carved pumpkin from her porch and smashed it on the sidewalk in front of her home. The caller thought that the culprits might be nearby neighborhood kids. Officers followed up, and found the children were away visiting relatives for the weekend. No other suspects were found.

12/1 3:53 p.m. - An officer was dispatched to 4th St. where someone was reportedly speeding up and down the alley on a pocket bike without a helmet. Police were not able to find the mini motorist.

12/1 7:45 p.m. - An anonymous caller reported that a neighbor was being noisy and possibly using drugs. Officer arrived and contacted a gentleman who was home alone watching a movie. The only thing high in apartment was the TV volume, which the resident turned down.

From stealing common items such as wallets, purses and bicycles to bizarre items such as strollers and license plates, criminals in Bellingham were busy over the recent holiday weekend.

By this reporter’s count, Bellingham residents and businesses reported 95 crimes involving the theft of or damage to their property to the Bellingham Police Department from Nov. 26 to Dec. 1. This count is based off reports filed in Bellingham police daily activity logs.

The time frame may be stretching the holiday weekend, but I wanted to include the day before Thanksgiving, when many people - especially Western Washington University students - leave for the weekend, and Monday, which is when many people return from the holiday and report the crime to the police.

For more coverage of property crimes over the weekend, click here, here and here.

Broken down by category, there were:

35 thefts reported
26 cases of malicious mischief reported
17 vehicle prowls reported
12 burglaries reported
4 shoplifters reported
1 robbery reported

Broken down by neighborhood, there were:

Read more! »

Some readers have been wondering what the vote was to recommend cutting $400,000 out of the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office’s next two-year budget.

So, without further ado, here it is:

Council members Carl Weimer, Seth Fleetwood, Ward Nelson, Bob Kelly and Sam Crawford voted to recommend the cut; Laurie Caskey-Schreiber and Barbara Brenner voted against it.

Keep in mind, this is only a recommendation. The council will vote to adopt the cut after a public hearing in its budget meeting Tuesday, Nov. 25. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. at the County Council’s chambers in the Whatcom County Courthouse.

Reversing a recommendation made in Whatcom County Executive Pete Kremen’s budget, the county council is proposing cutting $400,000 from the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office’s next two-year budget.

To fill a budget shortfall, Kremen requested that all county departments cut spending by 3.6 percent as they prepared their budgets in July. Every one did so except the Sheriff’s Office, which submitted a budget that increased spending to pay for additional deputies, Sheriff Bill Elfo said.

While Kremen did not OK the increase in spending, he did recommend to the council that the Sheriff’s Office be exempt from the cuts.

Councilman Sam Crawford proposed the cut, which the council approved with a 5-2 vote in a budget meeting Tuesday, Nov. 18, Crawford said. The proposal may be adopted in another meeting next Tuesday, he said.

Crawford initially proposed cutting two deputies positions, plus expenses, which amounts to about $200,000 per year. He amended this before Tuesday’s meeting and changed the proposed cut to $200,000 per year from the Sheriff’s Office budget - meaning Elfo can cut from other areas than personnel.

Crawford said the proposed cut amounts to eight-tenths of 1 percent of the Sheriff’s Office annual $25 million budget. In an e-mail, Crawford said other county departments may have to cut an additional 2 percent on top of the 3.6 percent they proposed to cut to meet Kremen’s request.

In the e-mail, Crawford wrote that the Sheriff’s Office could meet the proposed cut by using less fuel or overtime or not replacing equipment.

Elfo said that because his office must provide county residents emergency response 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, cuts like those would be difficult to achieve.

Elfo said Crawford’s modified proposal gives him some room to work as he reviews his budget this week to find $400,000 to cut.

“We’re going to try to make the most prudent decision possible,” Elfo said. “That was the council’s decision, and we’ll certainly abide by it as best we can.”

In the odd but apparently true category, a woman in Sekiu, Wash., says she was shot in the leg by her stove.

The woman told the Peninsula Daily News she had just stoked her cast-iron heating stove Sunday when she heard a loud bang and something struck her in the calf.

Davis surmised the problem began a month or so ago, when a case of shotgun shells spilled. One of ‘em must have landed in some newspapers used to light the stove.

The intrepid Davis removed the metal fragment from her own leg and was treated at the local hospital on Monday, the Peninsula Daily News reported.

No word if charges will be filed against the stove.

Written by Anna Walters
A brawl broke out at the intersection of Bakerview and Deemer roads around 7:45 p.m. on Wednesday, July 30.

A-19-year old man was in his car stopped at a light when a 34-year-old man, who had been walking on Deemer Road, opened the driver’s side door and assaulted him, said Bellingham Police Lt. Steve Felmley.

The 34-year-old’s cousin, a 20-year-old man who was also on the scene, joined the fight, in addition to the car’s passenger, a 19-year-old man.

Felmley said that the 34-year-old man was hitting the driver with a skateboard, then the passenger knocked him to the pavement. The 34-year-old was transported to St. Joseph’s Hospital for minor head injuries.

The day before the fight, the driver allegedly made threatening comments about the older man.

The feud apparently stems from the 19-year-old dating a younger girl.

The participants declined to have charges filed against each other, so police did not release their names.

7/2 1:17 p.m. - Officers responded to a home on 15th Street on a report of a confused and disoriented man there. Police investigating the call observed in plain view three pipes and a personal use amount of marijuana, and seized the drug paraphernalia for destruction. The resident was evaluated by medics at the scene and taken to hospital for further evaluation. Case closed.

7/3 10:35 a.m. - Police on patrol discovered a freshly minted car crash in the 1400 block of H Street. Officers assisted the unintended combatants with exchanging information, and completed a collision report. No injuries were reported and one driver received an infraction for the unsafe lane change which caused the crash. Both vehicles were damaged.

7/4 8:20 a.m.: A man brought a brindle Chow and another very large, very white, very hairy dog to the police station on July 4th. He has rescued the pair from the freeway onramp at the north end of town where they had been frolicking. Officers housed the rascals until a Whatcom Humane Society Officer could claim the friendly pets and ID the owner. The dark uniformed police then began a search for very good lint brushes. (I was actually there when the dogs were brought in - the officer looked like he had been in a snow storm)

7/5 8:33 a.m.: Officers contacted the concerned Blaine mother of a missing son and stepson. The stepson had been booked to leave on an early morning flight out of Vancouver, but had not returned from his night on the town. Officers checked with known friends, other departments, the jail and hospital without success. After an anxious few hours the boys came back on their own. They were safe, at least until they arrived home.

7/6 1:30 a.m.: An on duty Border Patrol Agent passed on a citizen’s report of an intoxicated person walking, with great difficulty, in the 500 blk of E St. Blaine officers met the meandering man. He had just moved to town and had been celebrating his arrival with great vigor. Police escorted the pickled pedestrian to his apartment and made sure he got inside safely.

7/6 8:38 a.m.: Officers responded to a report of kids setting off fireworks in the 1700 blk of D St. Officer contacted a teenager there who admitted to setting off the last of his stash of explosives. The young man said he will not shoot anymore off . . . until next year.

7/7 3:39p.m. The Community Service Officer documented damage that occurred in a one car vs. residence collision on Pintail Loop. A friend visiting the house had engaged in combat with the resident’s garage door. The car was pronounced the victor by unanimous decision. The vehicle had already been removed from the wreckage, so an informational report was taken to help the spectators commemorate the event.

7/8 1:14p.m.: Officers were advised that the fire department was enroute to a residential structure fire in the 700 blk of School Drive. Officers arrived on scene first and spoke with the watchful passerby who called 911 after spotting a large amount of smoke coming from a nearby house. Police made contact with the on-scene homeowner. He had forgotten about a pot of soup on the stove until the approaching sirens reminded him. The Smoky Vegetable remains looked MmmMmm Not So Good.

7/8 1:26 p.m.: A resident reported descending golfs had just struck both he and his neighbor’s homes. The caller led officers to the possible origin of the tee time rendezvous. Officers contacted two teens there.
One initially lied about the incident. When confronted with the evidenciary dimples in the “#3 wood” baseball bat on their porch, the other decided to tell the truth and admitted he had been using the bat to blast golf balls over his parent’s fence into a nearby park, about a 100 feet from the victim’s house. The “cause and effect” principle was explained to the duo, and they were advised to take up lessons from the pros or at least find a physics experiment that would stay on their property.

7/9 8:24 a.m.: A lady called to report that somebody planted a city traffic sign in her yard overnight. Officers went to the home on 11th Street, and removed the governmental yard art for her. The pranksters who felt it important for “Motorcycles (to) Use Extreme Caution” in her flower beds were not identified.

To dispel a common misconception, a bicyclist cannot be cited for driving under the influence.

Bellingham Police Traffic Sgt. Dave Richards says:

Several years ago a bicyclist could be arrested for DUI. The bicycle lobby was successful in getting this law passed to prevent officers from making this arrest while at the same time allowing officers to take the bicycle or the person into protective custody.

The legislature has even gone far enough to carve out an entire RCW on the issue:

(1) A law enforcement officer may offer to transport a bicycle rider who appears to be under the influence of alcohol or any drug and who is walking or moving along or within the right-of-way of a public roadway, unless the bicycle rider is to be taken into protective custody under RCW 70.96A.120. The law enforcement officer offering to transport an intoxicated bicycle rider under this section shall:

(a) Transport the intoxicated bicycle rider to a safe place; or

(b) Release the intoxicated bicycle rider to a competent person.

(2) The law enforcement officer shall not provide the assistance offered if the bicycle rider refuses to accept it. No suit or action may be commenced or prosecuted against the law enforcement officer, law enforcement agency, the state of Washington, or any political subdivision of the state for any act resulting from the refusal of the bicycle rider to accept this assistance.

(3) The law enforcement officer may impound the bicycle operated by an intoxicated bicycle rider if the officer determines that impoundment is necessary to reduce a threat to public safety, and there are no reasonable alternatives to impoundment. The bicyclist will be given a written notice of when and where the impounded bicycle may be reclaimed. The bicycle may be reclaimed by the bicycle rider when the bicycle rider no longer appears to be intoxicated, or by an individual who can establish ownership of the bicycle. The bicycle must be returned without payment of a fee. If the bicycle is not reclaimed within thirty days, it will be subject to sale or disposal consistent with agency procedures.

They estimate a DUI will end up costing you close to $5000, while a bike is a couple hundred. Decent trade-off in my book.

I’ve been a bit busy with our recent run of unnatural deaths and neglected to post the Blaine Police logs last week. So here’s two weeks worth:

5/7, 4:10 p.m.: An officer observed an abandoned unoccupied truck blocking the truck lane on SR543. The truck was hauling carpet padding and it could not be determined why the driver left it abandoned in the roadway with out any emergency equipment activated or a note. A towing firm was contacted and removed the truck from the roadway. The driver was located about an hour later, and was issued a traffic ticket for Parking Unattended in Roadway and an expired vehicle license. The truck had apparently lost its clutch and the the driver had mistaken the Trucks Only lane for the Broken Truck Parking lot.

5/9, 7:50 a.m.: Officers responded to a report of a house fire on Harvey Road and assisted North Whatcom Fire on scene. After the smoke cleared, investigation revealed the teenager had not baked quite enough muffins for all the emergency crews who responded to assess his kitchen prowess.

5/9, 11:37 a.m.: Blaine High School asked police to contact a group of students regarding their internet harassment. An officer spoke with the involved teens about the personal and criminal nature of internet crime, and the surprisingly severe legal consequences of thinking digital misbehavior was immune from repercussions. The students said that they understood: the school will be monitoring the situation to see if the children are mature enough to change.

5/10, 9:40 a.m.: Numerous Saturday morning emergency calls were made to 911 by passersby concerned about a man’s corpse laying alongside Peace Portal at 4th Street. Responding officers found that the body to be an enebriated pedestrian who was engaged in a horizontal pursuit of sobriety while awaiting the bus. Police transported him to a more frequently serviced WTA stop.

5/12, 10:25 a.m.: A Whatcom County parent obtained physical custody of a teenage child who’d been happily living in California for many years with her other parent. The tanned side of the family tree arrived here in the rain with a temporary custody order and was reunited with them for the trip back to the Sunshine State.

5/12, 7:00 p.m.: A person reported that she went to a house to serve some papers to the owner there and found two young children there, apparently home alone. Officers arrived and knocked on the doors for several minutes before a woman came to the door and identified herself as a Mom who’s sleep had been interrupted. None of the kids in the house were in any danger. Mom wanted the process service arrested, but Nap Destruction isn’t in our bail book.

5/13, 4:55 a.m.: A transient from Chicago entered a duty free store, pocketed a necklace and slinked away. Fortunately he slinked across the border into the arms of watchful Canada BOrder Services officers who immediately arrested him for illegally entering Surrey. Our northern brethren arranged for the necklace’s repatriation. We’re not in any rush to get the scofflaw back.

5/14, 4:18 p.m.: A business called police to report a possibly intoxicated man had just climbed into a car parked nearby. An officer contacted the man in his vehicle, which was illegally parked in a handicapped stall in the 200 block of Marine Drive. Voluntary intoxication not being a protected handicap, the driver was arrested for Physical Control of a motor vehicle while impaired, and for the Handicapped Parking Violation as well. The 52 year old Blaine man was booked into jail for his criminal offense. Skagit County S.O. declined to confirm a warrant which they hold for the arrestee for Hit & Run of an Attended Vehicle. Case closed.

5/15, 11:06 a.m.: Police responded to a 911 call of a fight in progress at an apartment on Alder Street. Officers contacted a 28 year old woman in the apartment who had been having a yelling match with her mother by telephone. Her problem with authority apparently extended beyond her parents, as police arrested her for 3 warrants out of Snohomish County, King County and Everett P.D. The woman was booked into Jail and one of her friends took temporary custody of her young daughter.

5/15, 2:35 p.m.: A resident on E Street reported that someone had vandalized his home by cutting a swath at the street’s edge through the high grassy meadow which serves as his front yard. Police determined that the newly groomed stretch was city right of way and had been cut back by Public Works. The mower had escaped the adventure unscathed and no crime occurred.

5/17, 2:30 a.m.: An anonymous 2:30am caller reported several teenagers sitting on a back porch on C Street, talking and yelling. Officers arrived, corraled the gregarious gaggle, and found the scene bereft of adult supervision. Police learned that the homeowner was out of town, and no one was supposed to be home except the kids who lived there. Officers contacted the various parents and had them come collect their noisemakers so that the neighborhood could get some sleep.

5/17, 9:30 a.m.: Officers were dispatched to an audible alarm at the Boys and Girls Club. An employee from the Senior Center next door was trying to locate the newspaper and, Yes, had a Senior Moment and forgot about the alarm. Officers made sure the building was secure and cleared with no further incident.

5/18, 10:55 p.m.: An anonymous caller reported that the stench of burning marijuana was wafting from a neighbor’s apartment into her child’s bedroom on A Street. Investigating officers followed their noses and contacted a nearby 18 year old who was smoking marijuana in his own bedroom. They confiscated his marijuana pipe and a personal use amount of drug, and arrested him for the possession offenses.

5/20, 9:50 p.m.: Officers responded to a report of an odor of marijuana coming from an apartment. They contacted the residence, confirmed the odor of burning marijuana and provided an 18 year old man his second Possession of Marijuana arrest citation of the week. The arrestee was released with a mandatory court appearance date. A personal use amount of marijuana was impounded.

4/24, 10:05 a.m.: Police received a report of two pit bulls running loose, westound in the 700 block of Cedar Street. Officers responded and could not find the dogs and did not see anyone looking for them, or running from them.

4/24, 11:15 p.m.: Police received a report that loud late night music was keeping folks awake in the 300 block of Martin Street. One intoxicated guitarist was contacted at a residence. He listened to the police rendition of the noise ordinance and decided silence sounded better than having to accompany the officers. When officers departed, the resident was quietly engaged in a solo performance with his whiskey bottle.

4/26, 1:20 a.m.: Police were dispatched to a motel after receiving a late night report of running water flooding a room. Officers found that an intoxicated renter had fallen asleep in the bathtub. The sodden Birch Bay couple who occupied the room were asked to leave by the business owner, and they did so voluntarily. The incident was documented as the motel’s owner will be taking civil action against the patrons.

4/26, 2:51 a.m.: Officers responded to multiple 3am phone calls about shots being fired from the back of a residence in the 2500 block of Canada View near the US Canadian border. Officers arrived and found that handgun and rifle rounds were still being discharged. The scene was secured by Blaine Police and Border Patrol agents. An intoxicated resident was contacted, and admitted to shooting a 38 caliber revolver and 30-30 rifle into the ground of an adjacent field. The twenty-two year old man was arrested for Discharge of a Firearm in City Limits. The case has also been forwarded to Whatcom County Prosecutor’s Office for a possible charge of Felon in Possession of a Firearm. The firearms were impounded.

4/28, 7:00 p.m.: A resident parked his used vehicle on a vacant lot along Peace Portal over the weekend to advertise it for sale. Someone came along and stole the starter off the truck. There are no known suspects or witnesses to the theft. Officers are watching for newly resurrected mid-80’s pickups with guilt-ridden drivers.

From Bellingham Police’s daily activity log:

Reported: May 1 2008 12:33PM
Location: 1400 BLK ELECTRIC AV
Offense: DISORDERLY CONDUCT
Case #: 08B16157

(V1) reported being confronted in the park by someone who insisted on bringing religion into her life, grabbing (V1)’s clothing and restraining her from leaving.

Bellingham Police and Fire Departments will stage a mock car crash on Ferry Avenue in front of Sehome High School Friday morning to remind students of the consequences of drinking and driving.

Students will watch as paramedics and police respond to a staged fatal wreck involving an impaired driver, treat patients’ injuries and investigate the drunken driver.

The event will take place at 10 a.m.

EDIT: Meridian High School will be doing a similar event from 1 to 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 1. North Whatcom Fire and Rescue will be putting on the event, which will include the coroner’s van.

For the record, Dr. Gary Goldfogel prefers the title “medical examiner” to “coroner.” And if administrators really want to scare the kids, they’d have them tour Goldfogel’s examination room, like reporter Cat Sieh and I did a few months back. I drove five miles under the speed limit for a week afterwards.

Question: Did your high school do similar productions? Did they have any lasting impact on your driving, or were you far too cool to pay attention during your high school years?

I’ve been out of town on business for the last week, so here’s two weeks worth of Blaine Police Department hilarity:

4/9, 2:56 p.m.: WSP reported an erratic driver northbound on Interstate Five, speeding in excess of 120 mph. An officer set up on the freeway to intercept the speeding motorist. The reckless driver was not contacted on traffic radar. Perhaps at that speed the FAA’s radar would have had better luck.

4/10, 12:17 p.m.: Person reported that her cell phone had been stolen form the friend to whom she had lent it. Adding insult to injury, the thief was now using the phone to make calls and send obscene text messages to a lot of folks. An 18 year old Blaine man was identified as the suspect in the case, but the victim declined to assist in a prosecution.

4/12, 2:43 p.m.: A citizen reported seeing two boys who claimed to be “looking for kids to shoot” in Lincoln Park on H Street. The air soft equipped youths were contacted by police. They explained that they were engaged in a ‘war game’ and looking for the juvenile members of the opposing army. They were asked to be more considerate around people or expect to have their actions misinterpreted.

4/12, 5:30 p.m.: Officers were dispatched to a report of a fight between a large group of juveniles on Cedar Street. Officers contacted the group, who explained that they were “slap boxing” and not really fighting with malice. Everyone agreed to leave the area.

4/17, 1:42 p.m.: Police received a mid-afternoon complaint of an drunk pedestrian wandering in the 2700 block of Peace Portal Drive. Officers contacted the gent, who had reportedly been stumbling in the roadway. He identified himself and showed no signs of intoxication. The 37 year old said he had just fallen asleep walking down the road, and had lost his balance. Officers offered to give the man a ride to his house, or at least to a more exicting part of town. He declined, saying that his home and bed were nearby.

4/17, 4:08 p.m.: Police responded to a missing person call, and contacted a Ferndale parent who was searching for her 14 year old son. The urchin had refused to come home and had taunted mom to call the police and have them try find him. Officers took up the challenge and soon located the insolent ingrate hiding at a friend’s house on A Street. The parent there was advised of the young man’s noxious nature, and Mr Smartypants was carted to the police station for a date with Mom and Fate.

4/17, 7:37 p.m.: Officers were dispatched to a report of a 14 year old girl who was harassing another teen in the 600 blk of A St. Officers contacted the suspect, who profanely proffered that she had accosted the victim to discuss comments she felt were disrepectful. Officers explained the difference between conversation and provoking assault, and offered to engage the juvenile courts if she needed another lesson on the topic.

4/18, 11:52 a.m.: California Highway Patrol asked for Blaine PD’s assistance in contacting a suspect in a car/pedestrian hit and run event that had been reported in their state. A Blaine officer located the vehicle as requested by CHP, and obtained detailed statements from the driver and a passenger witness which indicate that the report to CHP was possibly an insurance fraud or extortion attempt on the part of the reported victim. An officer photographed the suspect vehicle and the driver, and forwarded a report to the California authorities.

4/18, 3:24 p.m.: Dispatch reported a complaint about a dog in the 500 block of C street. Patrol was notified. Officer located the complainant who said the dog was in a van and the owner was not present, so he let the dog out of the van because the dog was acting like he usually does. Officer located the dog and the owner. The dog was put back in the van. Officer did not find anything wrong with the dog.

4/19, 5:15 p.m.: A footloose carefree US transient asked for assistance purchasing fuel for his vehicle. He wanted to expedite a southbound journey which began the previous summer, when he and his broken van had been summarily disgorged by Canada and washed ashore in Blaine . He found kindhearted Blaine residents so friendly and their supply of free donated food, clothing and entertainment so plentiful that he had vacationed here for 9 months. But, sensing the winds of change at his back he decided it was time to leave his feathered nest for greener pastures and fresher faces. After confirming that his van did indeed now run and was pointed in the proper direction, an officer provided him with a salvation Army gas voucher.

4/20, 2:05 p.m.: An older gent who parted company with his ex-wife realized too late that she’d attempted to get the last laugh by sneaking his debit card out of his wallet. He discovered the trick only after fueling his car and finding he had no money, and no way to get any. When police contacted him, the man was going to sleep in his vehicle at the gas station until either family or friends paid the bill, or until his bank opened up Monday morning. To help out, an officer contacted the gentleman’s son in Oregon. The relative contacted the service station and paid the debt. Another family member from Canada was dispatched to make arrangements for a motel room until the family crisis is resolved.

4/21, 8:43 a.m.: Police responded to a reported altercation between two teenage students at Blaine High School. Officers contacted the vice principal and were introduced to one half of the altercation. The youth expressed regret for assaulting his classmate, and explained how the other guy provoked him. Officers countered with the unassailable ‘two wrongs equal a wrong’ hypothesis, and explained the personal ramifications of failing to learn from the encounter. The young man stated that he understood and that he would use better judgment in the future. No further action was requested by either the school or parents. Case closed.

4/21, 5:00 p.m.: Officers were asked to assist a citizen in recovering some personal property being held in another state. A resident here had visited an acquaintance back east, but after returning discovered that his host did not return some of his possessions. A police officer sent a letter to the out of state man, asking him to return the missing blanket with the picture of a bear and two cubs.