EDITOR’S NOTE: Though some categories of crime are down, that doesn’t mean local police aren’t busy. This is the seventh weekly installment of this new WSB feature, and now it has a name. If nothing else, some of the summaries may answer questions you had about police responses you saw in the past week or so …
By Megan Sheppard
On the WSBeat, for West Seattle Blog
From reports on cases handled recently by Southwest Precinct officers:
*Around 6 p.m. Saturday, a call came in to 911 about a man running near 35th and Juneau with a large knife. Officers quickly found the man, who was fairly easy to spot, seeing that he was dressed in fatigues and carrying a machete. He was handcuffed and taken to the SW Precinct. An investigation soon showed that he was part of a group of military aficionados engaged in a scavenger hunt through the neighborhood.
*After placing an online ad to sell her computer (a MacBook Pro), a woman agreed to meet a potential buyer on Saturday evening at a fast-food restaurant at 35th SW/Avalon. As she pulled the computer from her bag so that he could examine it, the “potential buyer” grabbed it from her grasp and fled in a large dark-colored sedan driven by a woman.
(8 more summaries ahead:)
*Sunday around noon, officers in The Junction were alerted to be on the lookout for a
woman who had threatened to jump from one of the buildings. Shortly
afterward, 911 operators received numerous calls about a woman on the ledge
of the West Seattle Bridge — and the car nearby matched the description of the woman who had threatened suicide. Officers hurried to the span and were able to convince the 40-year-old to step away from the ledge. She was transported to the hospital for care.
*Around 3 a.m. Monday, a citizen called 911 to report a woman walking around inside an abandoned house in the Admiral area that was being used for training by the Seattle Fire Department. She admitted to officers that she was “scrapping” — searching the premises for “piles of metal.” The 42-year-old Arbor Heights resident was booked into King County Jail for investigation of criminal trespass.
*Around 4 a.m. Tuesday, at 32nd and Roxbury, someone in a group of young males threw a beer can at a passing car, causing it to swerve into oncoming traffic. When the driver stopped to question the suspects (who ranged in age from 18-21), they ran off. Officers found them hiding in the 9200 block of 32nd SW. The four had a variety of stories about what had happened and why. Two of the suspects were released. One had resisted being stopped and was booked into King County Jail for investigation of obstruction. The fourth — whose denials (“We were never on Roxbury”) — were in complete contrast to his companions’ stories—was booked into King County Jail for investigation of reckless endangerment.
*Saturday afternoon, officers responded to a Gatewood Hill address regarding a fight with a knife. The primary suspect recognized one officer and walked directly toward him, yelling that he hated him and would not comply with orders. As his friends told him to “chill out and quit resisting,” the 18-year-old had to be forced to the ground and handcuffed. The other alleged combatant followed officers’ instructions without incident. Although no knife was found, the angry young man was booked into King County Jail for investigation of obstruction.
*A 26-year-old resident of the Morgan Junction earned a trip to jail Tuesday evening after repeatedly threatening to kill another resident of his apartment building. He denied making the threats and said that the victim was 1) his dad and 2) God, and that he, himself, was Satan. He has a history of mental illness and also admitted to officers that he was carrying a needle in his pants pocket for his heroin habit. He was booked for investigation of harassment.
*While a mom walked her older kids to school, she left dad in charge of their 3-year-old. When she returned, dad was gone, along with some of her belongings (including a car). The child was found asleep and unharmed.
*An older gentleman with a black eye requested police assistance on Friday, saying that his son hit him frequently. The officers questioned him extensively, just to make sure that he was lucid and consistent. They found him to be quite competent and felt there was cause to arrest the son. When it was clear that his son was going to jail, the victim suddenly changed his story, claimed to have a bad memory and stated that perhaps someone else had caused his injuries. The 46-year-old son was booked into King County Jail for investigation of non aggravated domestic violence assault. Dad was transported to Harborview for an evaluation, and social services have been alerted to the situation.
*Around 3:30 a.m. Sunday, an Alki-area resident was taken to Harborview for an evaluation after being found yelling, screaming, and breaking windows. An officer noticed that inside his house, the man — who has a history of threatening police — had turned all of his pieces of furniture onto their sides. Just before he was transported by ambulance, the man was asking the officer why all of those people were hanging out in the back of his patrol car. The car, of course, was empty.
==============
Now that this feature has a name, it has an archive category of its own, though we’ll still link the weekly reports on the WSB Crime Watch page, so you can catch it there if you miss it in the main news stream.
| 15 COMMENTS