It is time for another weekly re-cap. I was the print unit every night and had another four day work week because I started my new nights off on Saturday.
Tuesday night was one of the slowest nights in recent memory. There were very few calls for service, little traffic on the streets, and hardly any foot traffic as well. It was strange for a summer night. I ended up checking by with a unit on a suspicious event call. A lady heard what sounded like screaming coming from just outside her living room window. Her house sits on two lots that are filled with trees and shrubs. When we pulled up, the lady came outside immediately and was visibly freaked out. She told us what she had heard and we told her that we would look around.
She did not want to go back inside, so she followed us around her yard. She pointed out a few places behind bushes that she wanted checked, and we appeased her. After looking around the yard for about 10 minutes, we were all startled by the sound of screaming coming from the bushes by the house. We shined our lights at the bushes and did not see anything. As we walked toward the sound, two screaming cats ran out of the bushes. They were lucky not to get shot. The lady was relieved it was only cats, as were we.
Early in the shift on Wednesday night, I checked by on a major accident. I arrived to find one wrecked car in the middle of the intersection, an ambulance, and a pumper truck were blocking the traffic. The wrecked car had the bumper of another car attached to its passenger side. The ambulance attendants were tending to a young female in a nearby parking lot. We identified the drivers, got both involved vehicles into the same parking lot, and cleared the intersection.
Both drivers had the same story. A female, G, had a green light and wanted to turn left. Since she had the green, she thought that she had the right of way. She did not. The other driver coming from the opposite direction, also had a green light. G's left turn was not protected by a green arrow. She turned directly in front of the other car and was struck on the passenger side. This accident was very similar to my accident where my Camry was totaled. I wrote her a citation for failing to yield the right of way while turing left.
Her vehicle was not drivable so it was going to be towed. We told her to get all of her belongings out of her vehicle since it was going to a storage lot and was probably a total loss. She grabbed some stuff and took off with some friends. She did not get anything out of the trunk. Since we are responsible for inventorying a vehicle when it is towed, we checked the trunk. In the trunk we found quite a few gift bags that said "Happy Graduation" on them. G was the right age, 18, so that was not surprising. What we found in the gift bags was surprising. We found bottle after bottle of alcohol, and most of them had been opened. Everything from vodka to whiskey to rum to scotch, with some cans of beer as well. It was a bar on wheels. All she needed was a blender.
It was not surprising to find out that G, an 18 year old, might drink alcohol. What shocked us was that she kept it in the trunk of her vehicle. I guess her parents never look in her vehicle. G still lives at home. The vehicle is registered to her father. I can not believe that she is bold enough to keep that in the trunk of her car. Maybe her parents do not care, but that is just crazy. When the time comes, I know that I will look in my kids' vehicles from time to time. I know that you all are thinking, was G drinking on this night? Was that why she turned right in front on anther vehicle? Nope. She did not exhibit any signs of intoxication. Luckily for her.
On Thursday, they announced the print / picture unit permanent spot. It is an interview spot meaning that it is not based solely on seniority. I threw my name in the hat and so far, am the only person interested.
Around 2 AM, I checked by with a unit in a very low income housing area that has a lot of crime. The call was a loud noise, people were in the city park after hours making too much noise. We arrived to find 8 females sitting around a table having a party. There was a not any alcohol, but there was a bunch of food. It looked like a scene that you would find in any park, during the day. But this was 2 AM. Oh, by the way, they all had their children with them in the park. Teenagers, ok, middle and elementary school, way too late, but these kids were toddlers and infants. So, 2-4 year old kids running around in the park in the middle of the night. I asked one of the moms about this and she said, "We sleep all day, so we up all night. I watch my kids." Wow. Kids growing up with two strikes against them and the third pitch is on the way and right down the middle.
Friday night started out normal enough. I made three quick traffic stops for illegal left turns. One attractive female was absolutely incredulous that I would dare to write her a citation. I imagine that her appearance has gotten her out of a few tickets in the past. Not on this night. Then I checked by on a disturbance involving a private property tow in an apartment complex parking lot. This particular complex has a contract with a towing company to tow any and all unauthorized vehicles from the parking lot. A man brought his girlfriend home to the complex and parked in the lot to walk her to her door. He was gone for 5 minutes and when he returned, a tow truck had picked up the back of his truck and was about to leave. Since he does not live there, his truck does not have a parking permit on the windshield. The man was understandably irritated. He ranted and raved and then jumped into his truck. He then started the truck and revved the engine aggressively. When then did not work, he tried to drive off of the wrecker claws. That did not go so well. He did not get free and ended up damaging his truck in the process. He ended up paying the wrecker driver the drop fee which was $70. He got off easy, the wrecker did not have to give him that option and at the storage lot the fee would have been close to $200. It would suck to be him, but there were at least 10 signs that we could see from his truck that said unauthorized unattended vehicles will be towed. His truck met that criteria.
After that call, the night turned into the Beat the Crap out of the Ones that you Love Night. I ran three picture calls and they were all for family violence. The first one was an intoxicated ex-husband came by the house to talk to the ex-wife. The discussion got heated, the husband grabbed the wive's wallet, and then managed to smash her hand in a car door before he left. She already has a protective order against him for previous violence. You can add aggravated assault, theft, and violation of a protective order to his rap sheet. I took photos of her and her injuries.
Next was two drunk brothers that started arguing. One decided he had heard enough and sucker punched the other in the face. I took photos of the punchee and his injuries.
The last one was by far the worst. It started in a second floor apartment where a man and woman live together. They have an argument and he completely flips out. He begins to destroy everything in the apartment. Nothing was safe. Flat screen TV, computer, monitor, table, couch, drapes, anything made of glass, everything in the refrigerator, all of it was ruined and strewn about the apartment. The female was found by neighbors near the base of the stairs in the parking lot. When the neighbors came out, the man was beating the females head against a concrete parking barrier. At that point, he fled the scene. I took pictures of the apartment and where she was found. Then I went to the emergency room, found her is a shock room, and photographed her injuries. The man returned to the apartment the following morning. The neighbors saw him and called the police. He was arrested and charged with aggravated assault.
Another week down and the summer is flying by.
Tuesday night was one of the slowest nights in recent memory. There were very few calls for service, little traffic on the streets, and hardly any foot traffic as well. It was strange for a summer night. I ended up checking by with a unit on a suspicious event call. A lady heard what sounded like screaming coming from just outside her living room window. Her house sits on two lots that are filled with trees and shrubs. When we pulled up, the lady came outside immediately and was visibly freaked out. She told us what she had heard and we told her that we would look around.
She did not want to go back inside, so she followed us around her yard. She pointed out a few places behind bushes that she wanted checked, and we appeased her. After looking around the yard for about 10 minutes, we were all startled by the sound of screaming coming from the bushes by the house. We shined our lights at the bushes and did not see anything. As we walked toward the sound, two screaming cats ran out of the bushes. They were lucky not to get shot. The lady was relieved it was only cats, as were we.
Early in the shift on Wednesday night, I checked by on a major accident. I arrived to find one wrecked car in the middle of the intersection, an ambulance, and a pumper truck were blocking the traffic. The wrecked car had the bumper of another car attached to its passenger side. The ambulance attendants were tending to a young female in a nearby parking lot. We identified the drivers, got both involved vehicles into the same parking lot, and cleared the intersection.
Both drivers had the same story. A female, G, had a green light and wanted to turn left. Since she had the green, she thought that she had the right of way. She did not. The other driver coming from the opposite direction, also had a green light. G's left turn was not protected by a green arrow. She turned directly in front of the other car and was struck on the passenger side. This accident was very similar to my accident where my Camry was totaled. I wrote her a citation for failing to yield the right of way while turing left.
Her vehicle was not drivable so it was going to be towed. We told her to get all of her belongings out of her vehicle since it was going to a storage lot and was probably a total loss. She grabbed some stuff and took off with some friends. She did not get anything out of the trunk. Since we are responsible for inventorying a vehicle when it is towed, we checked the trunk. In the trunk we found quite a few gift bags that said "Happy Graduation" on them. G was the right age, 18, so that was not surprising. What we found in the gift bags was surprising. We found bottle after bottle of alcohol, and most of them had been opened. Everything from vodka to whiskey to rum to scotch, with some cans of beer as well. It was a bar on wheels. All she needed was a blender.
It was not surprising to find out that G, an 18 year old, might drink alcohol. What shocked us was that she kept it in the trunk of her vehicle. I guess her parents never look in her vehicle. G still lives at home. The vehicle is registered to her father. I can not believe that she is bold enough to keep that in the trunk of her car. Maybe her parents do not care, but that is just crazy. When the time comes, I know that I will look in my kids' vehicles from time to time. I know that you all are thinking, was G drinking on this night? Was that why she turned right in front on anther vehicle? Nope. She did not exhibit any signs of intoxication. Luckily for her.
On Thursday, they announced the print / picture unit permanent spot. It is an interview spot meaning that it is not based solely on seniority. I threw my name in the hat and so far, am the only person interested.
Around 2 AM, I checked by with a unit in a very low income housing area that has a lot of crime. The call was a loud noise, people were in the city park after hours making too much noise. We arrived to find 8 females sitting around a table having a party. There was a not any alcohol, but there was a bunch of food. It looked like a scene that you would find in any park, during the day. But this was 2 AM. Oh, by the way, they all had their children with them in the park. Teenagers, ok, middle and elementary school, way too late, but these kids were toddlers and infants. So, 2-4 year old kids running around in the park in the middle of the night. I asked one of the moms about this and she said, "We sleep all day, so we up all night. I watch my kids." Wow. Kids growing up with two strikes against them and the third pitch is on the way and right down the middle.
Friday night started out normal enough. I made three quick traffic stops for illegal left turns. One attractive female was absolutely incredulous that I would dare to write her a citation. I imagine that her appearance has gotten her out of a few tickets in the past. Not on this night. Then I checked by on a disturbance involving a private property tow in an apartment complex parking lot. This particular complex has a contract with a towing company to tow any and all unauthorized vehicles from the parking lot. A man brought his girlfriend home to the complex and parked in the lot to walk her to her door. He was gone for 5 minutes and when he returned, a tow truck had picked up the back of his truck and was about to leave. Since he does not live there, his truck does not have a parking permit on the windshield. The man was understandably irritated. He ranted and raved and then jumped into his truck. He then started the truck and revved the engine aggressively. When then did not work, he tried to drive off of the wrecker claws. That did not go so well. He did not get free and ended up damaging his truck in the process. He ended up paying the wrecker driver the drop fee which was $70. He got off easy, the wrecker did not have to give him that option and at the storage lot the fee would have been close to $200. It would suck to be him, but there were at least 10 signs that we could see from his truck that said unauthorized unattended vehicles will be towed. His truck met that criteria.
After that call, the night turned into the Beat the Crap out of the Ones that you Love Night. I ran three picture calls and they were all for family violence. The first one was an intoxicated ex-husband came by the house to talk to the ex-wife. The discussion got heated, the husband grabbed the wive's wallet, and then managed to smash her hand in a car door before he left. She already has a protective order against him for previous violence. You can add aggravated assault, theft, and violation of a protective order to his rap sheet. I took photos of her and her injuries.
Next was two drunk brothers that started arguing. One decided he had heard enough and sucker punched the other in the face. I took photos of the punchee and his injuries.
The last one was by far the worst. It started in a second floor apartment where a man and woman live together. They have an argument and he completely flips out. He begins to destroy everything in the apartment. Nothing was safe. Flat screen TV, computer, monitor, table, couch, drapes, anything made of glass, everything in the refrigerator, all of it was ruined and strewn about the apartment. The female was found by neighbors near the base of the stairs in the parking lot. When the neighbors came out, the man was beating the females head against a concrete parking barrier. At that point, he fled the scene. I took pictures of the apartment and where she was found. Then I went to the emergency room, found her is a shock room, and photographed her injuries. The man returned to the apartment the following morning. The neighbors saw him and called the police. He was arrested and charged with aggravated assault.
Another week down and the summer is flying by.
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