News of Madison Valley

There were 43 incidents reported to the police in Madison Valley during May, up from April but still substantially lower than the months in late 2014 and early 2015. Most of the increase over April was due to a rebound in car prowl theft and vehicle theft to more typical levels (16 incidents in May compared to 5 in April). There were three burglaries, a robbery, and an assault against a policeman during May.

1.  During the afternoon of May 23rd there was forcible-entry burglary at a residence on 22nd Ave. E. near John, but the police have not posted a description of that incident.

2.  On May 31 at about 7:45 PM police responded to a call reporting a non-forcible entry burglary at a residence on 23rd near Pine. The victims reported that the burglar had entered the residence sometime earlier in the day and stolen an iPad, a laptop, a backpack and a box containing items worth approximately $50. The police report does not mention whether the officers sought fingerprints at the scene.

3.  During the night of May 31 – June 1 a burglar gained entry to a business on Madison near 28th without using forcible means. The burglar stole a cash register containing about $200 in cash, a cash bag containing about $160, an iPad, and the hard disk of the business's security system. The police report suggests that the burglary may have been an inside job, and learned from the business owner that he had dismissed an employee a couple of months earlier for theft.

4.  On May 5 at about around noon police were called to the Post Office at 23rd and Union to deal with a disturbance caused by a heavily intoxicated man. After the police decided to arrest him for trespassing, they handcuffed him and started to pat him down, at which point the man head-butted one of the officers in the face. When the police were putting him into a patrol car to take him away, the man assaulted the officer again. The police report states that the man kicked at the door and roof of the patrol car as he was being taken to the East Precinct Police Station.

5.  On May 30 at about 1:30 AM a cab driver called 911 to report that he had been robbed. Earlier he picked up a couple who were intoxicated at a bar and took them to the corner of 21st and Olive. When the couple left the cab without paying the $10 charge, the driver asked them to pay but the male told him to “go home” and threatened to kill him. After arriving at the scene the police searched for the couple but were unable to find them.

Lowell Hargens is a Madison Valley resident and former University of Washington professor of sociology specializing in the statistical analysis of data.