Driver with two driver's licenses gets one ticket

Friday, July 25

Conversations with a doorbell

5:54 p.m., 500 block of Schooner Lane

Alarm: An officer arriving to follow up on an activated home alarm found an open garage door, a van in the driveway and a man from Bradenton. The officer first spoke to the man, then to the homeowner via the communications link built into the home’s doorbell system. The homeowner, through the doorbell, vouched for the man from Bradenton, ending police business at the address.

Saturday, July 26

Wheel on, wheel off, wheel on

10:26 p.m., 3400 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Highway obstruction: A vehicle off the road with hazard lights flashing prompted a look-see from an officer. What he found was a driver who reported the wheel lug nuts had fallen off, followed by the wheel. A jack was first no help, then broke. With the help of a substitute jack from the police department, the driver and her brother were able to lift the vehicle, replace the wheel and its lug nuts and set off again.

Sunday, July 27

Inside voices, please

12:25 a.m., 3000 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Noise: A day into a weeklong vacation, an out-of-town couple encountered two police officers investigating a report of bothersome noise. The officers reported hearing voices from within a vacation rental unit and knocked. The man responsible for the rental said he had been unaware their noise had risen to a level sufficient to warrant an anonymous call to police. The out-of-towners said they’d be more mindful of their volume.

Slow roll

4:26 p.m., 2100 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Disabled vehicle: An officer pulled in behind a troubled vehicle moving north at 15 mph with hazard lights flashing. When the car ground to a halt, the Spanish-speaking driver sald through an translation app that the engine was struggling. The officer followed the slow-moving car to a safe parking space, away from traffic.

Monday, July 28

Two licenses, one ticket

12:40 p.m., 6100 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Vehicle stop: The town’s license-plate recognition system alerted officers to a southbound car owned by a driver with a suspended Florida license. The officer confirmed the owner of the car and the driver were one-in-the-same and also that his driver's license had been suspended in the state since 2023. But, the man produced a valid license from a Midwestern state. He was ticketed for possession of an out-of-state license while the first license was suspended.

Large, masked subject at large

1:50 p.m., 700 block of Tarawitt Drive

Animal incident: A resident alerted police to the presence of a large, possibly rabid, raccoon in the neighborhood, last seen heading west toward Gulf of Mexico Drive, 45 minutes before a 911 call was made. When police promptly arrived, the raccoon had exited the area.

Electricity sought, electricity received

11:21 p.m., 200 block of Broadway Street

Citizen assist: A pair of pedestrians contacted a passing officer to say they were on their way from Coquina Beach to Downtown Sarasota, but their cell phones had run out of power and were unable to summon a ride-sharing service. The officer connected one of their phones to a charging cord, facilitating the ride-request process.

Thursday, July 31

She didn’t know she was missing

8:01 a.m., 4800 block of Gulf of Mexico Drive

Missing person: Police did not get a chance to begin searching for a missing woman on the beach before a family member reported finding her safe, not far from where she went missing about an hour previously. A caller to police reported the young woman walked off from a gathering on the beach and had not returned after sunset. Family members were searching while police gathered initial information. As the information-gather was nearing an end, a family member called in to report finding the woman. She had been on a walk, stopped to enjoy the sight of a sunset and did not realize her cell phone’s battery had run out. There were no signs of a crime.