San Juan County Sheriff’s Department reported responding to these calls:
March 10: A San Juan Island man was arrested for DUI after crashing into a mailbox on Bailer Hill Road. The 40-year-old, who was taken into custody at about 7 p.m., struck a mailbox in the 1800 block of Bailer Hill and came to a halt following a failed attempt to steer his SUV back onto the roadway – a 60-yard struggle – after it drifted into a ditch.
March 26: A Friday Harbor man is the prime suspect in a case of vandalism of a pair of pop machines. Footage from a surveillance camera at a Carter Avenue gas station reportedly shows the 36-year-old damaging a pop machine there; a pop machine outside a rental shop about a block away sustained $500 damage the same night.
March 29: An Orcas Island man was arrested for DUI following an ill-fated encounter with a fence on Bartel Road. The 40-year-old, who was taken into custody shortly before 10 p.m., reportedly drifted off the roadway and crashed his pickup into the fence. He was also ticketed for driving without insurance.
March 30: Lopez Island school officials were in no laughing mood after someone scattered six dozen Easter eggs inside, including in a fish tank, in an apparent April Fool’s Day prank, and trespassing complaint. Several eggs had “No Bond” written on them, an apparent political statement about the school construction bond election; authorities found no sign of forced entry.
March 31: A dachshund could end up designated as a “dangerous dog” after it darted out of its Friday Harbor home and bit a 7-year-old girl on the back and arm as she fled from the front door of a neighbor’s apartment. The girl, accompanied by a friend, was selling Girl Scout cookies at the time of the attack. The incident and whether the dog should be listed as dangerous are reportedly under review.
• A San Juan Island man faces charges of theft following an alleged case of shoplifting at a Friday Harbor grocery store. The 65-year-old, who was taken into custody at about 7 p.m., strolled out a back door with a bag of merchandise, some of which he allegedly did not pay for. He reportedly admitted to shoplifting at the store several times before.
• A Friday Harbor man was arrested for DUI following a series of late-night traffic infractions on the streets of Friday Harbor. The 49-year-old, who was taken into custody at about 11:30 p.m., reportedly crossed a center line moments before making a left turn, and then failed to come to a complete stop at a stop sign a moment later, for which he was ticketed.
April 5: An Orcas Island man faces charges of trespassing after a woman decided she’d heard enough pounding on her front door. The 34-year-old was found on foot not far from the woman’s Deer Harbor home and taken into custody shortly after 10 a.m. He reportedly yelled and banged on the door on two separate occasions that morning, and had done so several weeks earlier, ignoring the woman’s demands to leave, and that he had no reason to be there.
• Authorities intervened after a Lopez Island woman threatened to shut off the water to a rental home on her Aleck Bay Road property. The couple living there, who struck a deal with co-owner of the property, the woman’s brother, have reportedly failed to pay rent for months.
April 6: A late-night noise complaint and failure to appear in court on a two-year-old charge of driving with a suspended license prompted the arrest of an Orcas Island man. The 34-year-old was taken into custody at his Mountain View Lane home at about 1:30 a.m. He was released pending a date in court after paying $200 bail.
April 8: A Friday Harbor man was banished from the airport for a day following a confrontation with a pilot whose plane he had just boarded, as well as for an ensuing tirade in the terminal after being kicked off the aircraft. A heated quarrel erupted after the 32-year-old questioned the aviator’s skills; he then reportedly challenged, threatened and abused airport staff in the argument’s aftermath.
• A Friday Harbor man was arrested for DUI and for furnishing alcohol to a minor following a failed attempt to elude an officer in pursuit. The 27-year-old was pulled over and taken into custody near the intersection of Harbor Street and Tucker Avenue at about midnight. His passenger, a 19-year-old man, was arrested for being a minor in possession of alcohol as well.
April 10: A golf cart disappeared from outside a Friday Harbor home in an apparent case of theft. The homeowner suspect those responsible must have pushed the cart, equipped with a canopy, form the driveway of his Dougherty Lane home because he would have heard if the engine had been turned on. The keys were reportedly left in the ignition.
April 7: Several bags stuffed with deer entrails were discarded on a Lopez Island woman’s property in an apparent case of illegal dumping. The bags reportedly contained chunks of fur, bones and guts and, according to woman’s 78-year-brother, who notified authorities of discarded carnage, it’s not the first time that bags containing animal entrails have been discarded on sister’s Hughes Bay Road property.
April 16: A familiar face and a $5,000 warrant issued in a Seattle courtroom prompted a late-night arrest of a 49-year-old man as he was trying to hitch a ride out of Friday Harbor. He was taken into custody near the intersection of Guard Street and Tucker Avenue shortly after 11 p.m. A deputy reportedly recognized the man, accused of making false reports, from a photograph circulated earlier that day.
— Scott Rasmussen
