READER REPORT: Children approached in Admiral

E-mailed by Ann:

STRANGER DANGER ALERT! There is a woman wandering California Avenue in the Admiral Junction area who approached my children and told them to “get in the red truck.” at approx 12 pm. Thankfully I was right there with them when this happened. She is white, with sandy blond hair (a little messy looking in the back) small to medium build around 5’5”. She is wearing a purple sweater over a white shirt with dark pants.

We were at A Kids Place, too dentist office on our way out the door when she came inside and made her approach. I contacted 911 as did the receptionist, who then followed her down the sidewalk for several blocks. Another woman who she approached after walking in front of her moving vehicle also called the police. As an additional note, there was no red truck in sight. The receptionist did speak with her once she turned around after having walked straight into traffic, nearly getting hit. The receptionist asked her what she was doing in the office and the woman said she was opening the door to hell and was saving my children from the apocalypse. I don’t know what she said to the woman in the car. She obviously is in some paranoid/delusional/(semi?) psychotic state of mind.

As with the most recent two reader reports about children being approached, we want to conclude this one with safety advice to share with your kids, from SPD – find it here.

21 Replies to "READER REPORT: Children approached in Admiral"

  • Al September 13, 2017 (4:07 pm)

    Did they find her?

  • MrsT September 13, 2017 (5:02 pm)

    I definitely saw this woman by Andover on 44th at 2:30 today while watching my son go over to the neighbor’s house. I thought she was on drugs. She pulled a whole plant out of my neighbors yard and meandered North hugging it.  

  • Jason September 13, 2017 (6:10 pm)

    I spotted her at 1:00pm today sitting on the stairs of the apartment building between Pailin Thai and All About Kids Infant & Child. She wasn’t doing anything unusual but I thought it was strange that somebody would be sitting there.

    My guess is some combination of drugs or mental illness  along with possibly having her child taken away, that would certainly explain the behavior. 

  • Elle Nell September 13, 2017 (6:43 pm)

    So clearly people she is either mentally ill or is on drugs both of which are to be proceeded with caution but we do have weirdos and always have… once again, welcome to Seattle! 

  • Rita September 13, 2017 (9:42 pm)

    I saw her!  We were in the Copper Coin in Admiral it was a little after 2:30?  She walked past the window shaking her arms and swinging her hands. Ran her hand threw her hair! It was short dark messy! We thought wow weird!

  • Ann September 13, 2017 (10:15 pm)

    Between WS Blog, West seattle mom’s facebook page and the “nextdoor” website this woman has been spotted all over today, leading to at least three 911 calls.  I just contacted dispatch again and they said the officer dispatched earlier did not locate her.  I saw her about an hour ago leaving Met market.  As I was at the Cal/Admiral intersection she was sitting on a bench in front of the Wells Fargo.  I circled back around and she was then lying on the bench with sunglasses on.  I contacted 911 and they were dispatching another officer to the location.  It is my hope she is still there when they arrive.  If you spot her you should call 911.

  • Jon September 13, 2017 (10:21 pm)

    Ah, the classic “Person Experiencing/In Crisis” that has become so commonplace on our sidewalks and streets.

    Teach your kids about pressure points in self-defense if you’re going to let them walk around unsupervised and give them a basic cell phone with good battery life and GPS-sharing enabled on Google Maps or some other sort of service.

    Too bad our committal laws are a joke and there’s no way to do anything about any of this until these people inevitably hurt or kill someone.

  • jissy September 13, 2017 (10:30 pm)

    Good Lord,  just sit on her until help arrives, this is an emergent situation.  Keep our kids safe, so near a childcare facility?  

  • Mike September 13, 2017 (11:40 pm)

    This is a good reminder to be vigilant.  Just today Genessee Hill Elementary had Seattle Transportation promoting walking to school. Assistant Principal Elizabeth Dunn was out front shouting,  “walk to school kids”.  I think this is a good reminder that walking is nice, but you must be aware of crazy people around the area and how they will and do approach children.  I suggest walking with your kid or having a group of older kids walk with younger kids.  As much as we’d all like to think we live in pleasantville, we have a lot of crazy near by, including multiple registered sex offenders near schools.  Be smart, be aware, be vigilant.

  • Donna September 14, 2017 (5:04 am)

    Folks, can I get you to reconsider some of your language use, please?  Several of you have called this woman “a craz”, and used similar language as you express safety concerns about others with mental health issues.  Something you should know is that one of the big barriers to seeking treatment (not the only one, but a big one) is stigma.  Language such as referring to people as “crazies” reinforces that stigma, leading to many people being unwilling to get treatment at points when symptoms are less severe and therefore often leading to an escalation to the point where it appears this woman is.  A couple of points to consider: only 4% of violent crimes are committed by people with diagnosable major mental health issues, and people with major mental health issues are more likely to be victims themselves than to be perpetrators.  I am not saying that this specific woman might not do something harmful to children, but please don’t continue to spread the myth that people with mental health issues are “crazies” and dangerous.  At some point in our lifetimes 25% of us will experience a diagnosable mental health condition.  And of that 25%, only 41% will pursue treatment.  One of the big reasons not to pursue treatment? Stigma.

    Anybody interested in participating in an 8 hour class called Mental Health First Aid?  It explains the most common mental health issues, teaches lay people how to recognize warning signs, and teaches lay people how they can respond in helpful ways.  A very important component of the class is suicide awareness and prevention.  If enough people are interested I am willing to provide it for a nominal fee.

  • Chris September 14, 2017 (6:18 am)

     When I read the headline I was scared. But after reading the story I just feel sad for the person.

  • Mike September 14, 2017 (8:09 am)

    Donna, the actual definition of what this lady did is crazy.

    mentally deranged, especially as manifested in a wild or aggressive way.”

  • NH September 14, 2017 (8:24 am)

    Thank you, Donna, for your interjection of sanity. Most likely the only person this individual is going to hurt is herself. A little less hysteria in the world would not be amiss.

  • sam-c September 14, 2017 (8:47 am)

    Did a lot of comments get deleted?

    For the record, I see one poster who used the term ‘crazy,’ not ‘several’ people.  

    Hopefully this woman gets the help she needs, and kids are able to remain safe.

  • SWinWS September 14, 2017 (9:48 am)

    Well, I think that we can all complain of “these” people on the streets.  But, the fact is that the state decreased the budget for mental health services this month, so we can thank them for that.  What happens as a result?  More people on the streets that need medical attention and an increase burden to our emergency services and police.  It makes no sense, we have to pay for it some how (which is more expensive in the long run, not dealing with the issue at hand) and kicking the can down the road.  So, I would employ those that consider this a concern to our public safety to speak to our state/local governments to make a sustainable effort into a solution to the problem.

  • AML September 14, 2017 (9:49 am)

    I think Donna needs to simmer down with the language plea.   This is one of the problems with Seattle- too darn soft.  We shouldn’t tip toe around this stuff- not after the recent incidents in WS the person at Gatewood that was stabbed or the young boy that was murdered.    Its time to take it up a notch- god forbid we offend someone….  Good grief!   I have a young child- and I am so glad the original person brought attention to this- as I will be even more vigilant. Thank you Ann for letting us know.

  • B.W. September 14, 2017 (10:13 am)

    It’s so funny to me how people call the police on seeing a mentally ill/drug addict person. It’s not illegal to be crazy. So by calling the police, the situation could actually get worse if they god forbid, have to restrain that person. Then some of the people in here will lose their minds that the police are using force. Just get used to it. These people are here to stay whether you like it or not.

    • Ann September 14, 2017 (11:56 am)

      I will continue to call when someone appears to be a threat to themselves or others.  And I will continue to encourage others to do so.  And I will continue to remind my children about keeping themselves safe in our home and neighborhood. A situation being illegal or not does not mean a person is unsafe or not.  

      I appreciate the statistics to help to keep things in perspective.  However, I hope they don’t keep someone from making a report by thinking something like…there is only a 4% chance this person will harm someone…

      Statistics do not predict how any one person will act.   Rather stats are the results of compiled and processed data on how certain groups of people have acted previously.  

       Empathy and kind language always is best when speaking about any person, group or topic. When compassion is part of the situation being discussed, kind language usually follows.

  • Becki W September 14, 2017 (12:08 pm)

    I was one of the people who interacted with her yesterday and based on these interactions, I am under the impression that she is a harm to herself and potentially others.

    Outside of the library, she charged after me and my three year old screaming at me and getting within a foot of my face.  I asked her to leave us alone, but that only agitated her more. I definitely didn’t want to get physically involved with her, so I got away from her as quickly as I could. Sure, nothing physically happened, but I didn’t know if she had a weapon or would grab my son. 

    After calling 911 and calming down enough to drive home, I saw her walk right into traffic on California without hesitation.

    I agree that it isn’t a crime to be mentally ill or drug addicted, but given these actions, I don’t think I am being hysterical by saying that this person may pose a threat to children or herself. We don’t need to see this escalate to the point where she actually abducts a child or harms herself. I’m not sure if there is a mental health agency or advocacy group that could help her, or if we need to follow up with the police. Donna–do you know of anyone that can help her if we see her around the neighborhood?

  • Ann September 14, 2017 (2:22 pm)

    Final update from yesterday. The officer dispatched after the three 911 calls yesterday around noon could not locate her.  The officer dispatched last night after my call when I saw her again outside of Wells Fargo on my way home also could not locate her. So to answer your question Becki, if someone sees her again even if she is not doing anything suspicious at the time you should contact 911 as the police DO want to make contact with her regarding yesterday’s reports. Now, I am leaving this up to the SPD and our community, I am off patrol! ðŸ˜‰ Stay safe!

  • Donna September 15, 2017 (3:58 am)

    Becki, thanks for your thoughtful description of the incident. I, too, would have been frightened, and I, too, would have called 911.  The compassion you show in your post is exactly the sort that helps to reduce stigma, thank you very much.

    Given the descriptions of her recent behavior, calling 911 if again sighted sounds like a good plan.  In situations  without the threatening behavior to others but in which a person seems a threat to themselves or gravely disabled A helpful local resource would be the 24 hour Crisis Line (206-461-3222).  

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