- December 4, 2024
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3:10 p.m., 400 Benjamin Franklin Drive
Disturbance: The driver of a Bay Runner Trolley told a responding officer that a unknown white female was yelling in the direction of the bus. The officer told the woman to stand by and stop causing a disturbance while he entered the trolley to speak with the driver and passengers.
They were all consistent in asserting that the woman entered the trolley and was creating a disturbance by yelling randomly at passengers while expressing a racial epithet. After retrieving all the information, the driver advised she wanted a trespassing warning issued.
Unsurprisingly, by the time the officer completed his interviews aboard the stylish open-air trolley the suspect had left the scene and couldn't be located. The driver was provided with a card and case number and was advised if she encountered the woman again to call law enforcement so the warning could be issued.
11:15 p.m., 1400 block of Main Street
Fight: Inside a popular night club an officer arrived to find two males fighting in the floor, prompting the officer to draw his agency-issued stun gun and aim at the subject on top of who appeared to be a victim. Once the subjects realized law enforcement was present the scuffle quickly ended.
The subjects were separated and their statements gathered. The first subject advised that although he was hit first he did not wish to press charges, did not provide his personal information and only wished to leave. The second subject two was bleeding from his nose was described as uncooperative. He, too, claimed to have been hit first. He refused any medical treatment and declined to make a report, although he did say the two had previously worked together and the fight resulted from an argument.
Based on statements given it was concluded that no crime occurred as the fight was mutual between the two and neither wanted to press charges.
12:42 a.m., 1400 block of Main Street
Dispute: While on a call to dispatch, a complainant exclaimed in no uncertain terms his intent to harm a man who would not get out of his vehicle. Who the uninvited occupant was or why he was in the vehicle was not disclosed.
The man continued to yell into the phone, "I will kill him, I will put a bullet in his (colorful metaphor) head,” and "I have a gun, I will put a bullet in his (same colorful metaphor) head."
Responding officers patted the man down for weapons. The incident report does not specify whether any were found. He then informed officers that the subject who would not leave his vehicle had finally done so, perhaps out of fear of a bullet entering his (colorful metaphor) head, and left the area on foot. Officers canvassed the area but were unable to locate him.
The complainant showed signs of intoxication, but did not meet criteria for the Marchman Act. An officer advised him to leave his vehicle in a parking space and to secure another ride home. He left the area without further issue.
6:45 a.m., 1000 block of Highland Street
Property damage: A punctured tire, scratched paint and multiple broken eggs on a vehicle appeared to be the result of revenge by a lover scorned. An officer met with one of the registered owners of the vehicle who stated upon return from St. Petersburg with her cousin, who was staying at the residence, she went straight to bed.
The complainant said her grandmother woke her up at 6 a.m. to alert her of the vandalism. An officer estimated that the damage totaled less than $1,000.
Both women suggested the complainant’s ex-boyfriend, which whom she had been fighting since a breakup, caused the damage. The victim contacted a nearby business with cameras and officers were able to view footage from the overnight hours. Video captured a man parking a known vehicle nearby and exiting wearing distinctive pants and footwear, then walking toward the residence.
Asked why they were so confident they could identify the shadowy figure, the complainant stated she purchased the pants with a pattern of horror movie faces — as in “Jason” and “Freddie Krueger” — printed on the fabric. He was also wearing a favorite pair of sandals, which were clearly visible.
It was determined there was probable cause to charge the man with criminal mischief and the case was forwarded to the state attorney’s office.
7:44 a.m., Central Avenue near Ninth Street
Lewd and lascivious: While New York City boasts the infamous "Naked (but not quite) Cowboy," Sarasota is now becoming known for its "Naked (completely) Bathers." Combined with a recent spate of women found au naturale in swimming pools featured in prior editions of Cops Corner, last week another was discovered soapy and wet on a downtown sidewalk.
When they arrived, they discovered a female, completely naked and wet standing on the sidewalk.
The woman was observed, among other things, as having white soap around her hair and body. She claimed to be taking a bath and did not know at first where she placed her clothes. Covered by a bedsheet from a bystander, she then walked with officers to find her bathing suit.
A reporting witness was clear about not wanting to be identified as a “snitch” regarding her report to officers of the woman exposing certain portions of the body best left covered. The report reads that the "800 block of Central Avenue was very populated with bystanders during the time of the woman’s actions."
The officer concluded probable cause existed to arrest the woman on charges of obscene disorderly conduct and sexual exposure “in a vulgar and indecent manner out in public in front of (a witness), me and other bystanders in the area.”
5:36 p.m., 300 block of John Ringling Boulevard
Civil dispute: Officers were dispatched to a St. Armands Circle location known for selling delectable sweets where the complainant said she and other store managers were having issues with an ex-employee who now works at another nearby purveyor of confections.
They alleged the woman still comes near the store property and causes damage. The complainant said she and other managers have caught the ex-employee going into the store’s employee parking lot and would throw “some sort of liquid” onto their cars. She also showed footage of the disgruntled former colleague throwing trash into the full receptacle outside the storefront, spreading the refuse onto the ground.
The officer advised the complainant of a case number, but stated all of this is a civil matter for the time being.