Followup: Police report on last night’s West Seattle Bridge crash
As reported here last night, the west end of the West Seattle Bridge was shut down for a while late New Year’s Eve because of a multi-car crash. SPDBlotter has published a short update today, saying the driver, first reported “driving erratically” on The Bridge, is suspected of DUI:
(The car) subsequently struck two other vehicles as well as the jersey barrier forcing the shutdown of the westbound lanes for 90 minutes. In addition, the eastbound lanes were shut down for 15 minutes while the jersey barriers were moved back into place. There were no serious injuries and the suspect driver was processed for DUI.
West Seattle Crime Watch: 3 break-in reports
Three reports to share tonight (here’s how to reach us, with a Crime Watch report or anything else). First, from Suzanne:
Just wanted to let everyone know that a burglary happened at our house yesterday between 11 am and 1 pm on the 3700 block of 42nd Ave SW [map]. Stolen items included jewelry, laptop computer, camera, and various other electronics. The police officer responding to our call said that there have been an increase in burglaries in our area and that everyone should be vigilant. Please be on the lookout as we’d hate to see this continue in our and surrounding neighborhoods.
From Sonja:
I wanted you to know of a break-in the 6300 block of 38th Ave SW [map] early this evening. It’s my friend’s home and she called me about 4:45p to cancel our plans because her back glass door was shattered and her TV was gone. She thought it strange though since her laptop and other electronics were untouched.
And from Morgan, via Facebook:
I would like to let everyone know that my family’s home was robbed yesterday (december 28th,) We’re in the Arbor Heights area. We believe that the people came through our dog door in our back yard. If you have a dog door I would advise that you keep it locked unless you’re home. They took mainly electronics and jewelry.
Morgan says her neighbors spotted a “small gray car” in her home’s driveway at one point. Meantime, Seattle Police have some specific burglary-prevention tips online here.
West Seattle Crime Watch: St. John’s luminarias vandalized
(photo courtesy St. John the Baptist Church, taken Dec. 24)
West Seattle’s St. John the Baptist Church has just sent in a Crime Watch report, hoping you might know who damaged its luminarias, which were meant to light the way from Christmas to New Year’s. From St. John’s rector, Rev. Peter DeVeau:
We were saddened to discover that our Christmas luminarias had been vandalized between 1-6 p.m. on Sunday, December 27, 2009. All but one light bulb were removed and several light bulbs had been smashed on the walkway outside the main entrance to the church. A couple of the luminarias had also been damaged.
The luminaria display was put in place to brighten the entrance to the church during the twelve days of Christmas through the Epiphany on January 6, and would be a beacon of light for the Emerald City Wanderers’ New Year’s Eve & New Year’s Day walks which begin and end at the church. The display is especially meaningful to many members in the congregation, as it surrounds the Churchyard where many loved ones are buried.
If anyone has information about this senseless vandalism, please contact the church at 206-937-4545 or rector@SaintJohnOnline.org.
West Seattle Crime Watch: 2 break-ins – including one at ArtsWest
Two break-in reports this morning – one of them, from West Seattle’s best-known arts nonprofit, ArtsWest in The Junction. Executive director Alan Harrison writes:
I just wanted to report that at 6:00 Wednesday morning there was a break-in at ArtsWest. Someone (or perhaps more than one) broke the back door’s glass with a rock, ran in, and tried to steal the Lucite donation box. The alarm went off and the perpetrator smashed the box to the floor, breaking it and sending money everywhere before running away. We don’t think he/they took much money, but the new door is going to cost us $500 to fix. There was a police report on it. If anyone has any legitimate information about the break-in, they can report it to SPD.
$500 is a lot of money to ArtsWest. If anyone would like to donate money to help us fix the door and install a new security/camera system (an additional $1600), call us or click directly (here).
If they’d like (it’s optional), under the “Designation” box, they can type in “Back Door.” Maybe it’s a sign of the economic times, that someone would try to rob a nonprofit, but if you could spread the word, maybe we can continue to put our resources behind producing art instead of broken glass.
ArtsWest (a WSB sponsor for the run of “Plaid Tidings,” which continues with a show tonight at 5 and concludes this Sunday) can be reached by phone at 938-0963 (administrative) or 938-0339 (box office). The non-emergency number for reporting info to police is 625-5011. P.S. We asked about insurance:
We do have insurance, but there’s a $500 deductible. And the upgrade to the security system is not covered and was not budgeted for the year, so unless we can raise some specific money for that, we’ll have to decrease funding to one of our programs.
Meantime, our other break-in report is residential – burglars that moved fast while residents were out shopping – read on:Read More
West Seattle totem theft: Suspect arrested again, home searched
(1 of 2 police cars that were still in the neighborhood when we arrived)
Here’s why police converged on Palm Avenue in North Admiral earlier this morning: They had a search warrant for the home of the suspect in the Nov. 30 theft of 
West Seattle Rotary Viewpoint Park‘s 18-foot totem pole (inset Rotary photo). The search was wrapping up when we arrived, and we didn’t see anything being brought out while we were there, but Southwest Precinct Lt. Steve Paulsen tells us officers have arrested the 69-year-old man again – this time in connection with the theft of the totem pole found on a trailer in Oregon along with the West Seattle totem (as we reported last week, that second pole turned out to have been stolen from outside the Renton Fred Meyer store). As with the first arrest, he was not at his home when police arrived, but was taken into custody elsewhere in West Seattle, and has been booked into King County Jail. We are not identifying the suspect until he is officially charged; we are checking frequently with King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office spokesperson Dan Donohoe, who just told us the case has yet to be referred (with ongoing investigations, that’s not unusual). We’ll update the latest developments if/when more information is available. Meantime, if you’re catching up on the backstory, here are links to some of our previous coverage:
Original story on then-suspected theft (published Dec. 3)
Theft suspect arrested (Dec. 9)
Stolen pole found in Oregon with (then-) mystery pole (Dec. 10)
Stolen poles brought back from Oregon (Dec. 14)
Second pole identified as having been stolen from Renton (Dec. 15)
Stolen West Seattle pole won’t be re-installed immediately (Dec. 17)
1:17 PM UPDATE: Lt. Paulsen says additional search warrants have been served in connection with the case – two in Black Diamond. No word yet if anything was found.
West Seattle Crime Watch: Grinches on the rampage?
This morning, e-mail came in from Lee:
If someone wakes up and is missing lit-up Xmas animals from the front of their house, I just walked by a seal and another thing (didn’t look too closely as I was rushing to catch a ferry) at the bottom of the Thistle stairs on the side of the street.
Just went down to check – what Lee reported is still there, along Thistle at 46th (map):
Whether related or not, that sighting comes hours after a report of stolen decorations in North Admiral – witnessed by “octoberjem,” who posted the report in the WSB Forums, including a description of and partial plate from the pickup truck seen making a getaway. Read that report here.
Regional news: 2 Pierce County Sheriff’s Deputies shot
Just a few weeks ago, the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department was investigating the deadly shooting of four Lakewood Police officers. Tonight, they are dealing with an attack on two of their own: 2 Pierce County deputies shot after answering a domestic-violence call in the Eatonville area. According to what Pierce County spokesperson Det. Ed Troyer just said in a live interview on Channel 7, both are in critical condition, and the person who opened fire on them was killed. For information directly from Pierce County, watch the red-bordered emergency-info box on its website, here. KIRO’s developing story is here; developing coverage from our partners at the Seattle Times is here; ongoing Twitter updates related to the story are here (tagged #eatonville). With the four Lakewood officers killed the Sunday after Thanksgiving, and Seattle Police Officer Tim Brenton – a former West Seattleite – killed on Halloween night, this makes seven eight law-enforcement officers shot in the Puget Sound area in the past seven weeks. 11:52 PM: Tacoma’s News-Tribune is also posting updates – here’s their story, updated a few minutes ago. We’ll be monitoring Web/Twitter over the next few hours and will note any major developments here.
12:08 AM UPDATE: Seattle Times photojournalist Cliff DesPeaux is at Harborview Medical Center, where one of the deputies were airlifted, and reports via Twitter that Seattle PD Deputy Chief Nick Metz reports that deputy “is still fighting.”
12:58 AM UPDATE: The Times has reported that the other deputy, at Madigan Army Medical Center, has spoken with investigators. And Pierce County has identified the suspect who was shot and killed as David Crable. And Cliff DesPeaux has uploaded this video (first streamed live a short while ago) of Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor at Harborview, asking people to keep the deputies in their prayers.
1:21 AM: According to seattlepi.com’s Casey McNerthney, the deputy who’s at Madigan is doing better and is now listed in serious condition instead of critical.
West Seattle Crime Watch: Burglary bustup; watchful neighbors
Two West Seattle Crime Watch notes tonight: First, via Twitter, Marty reported a burglary attempt today at his home near 35th/Othello (map) – we don’t have the full narrative but he did say police caught the suspects. Meantime, Cathy at 45th/Stevens (map) reports a car break-in, and something heartening she heard when she reported it to police:
Just a reminder to lock your doors and keep valuables out of the car. When I called to report it the dispatcher asked what kind of car. He said someone had already called in suspicious behavior on my block regarding my car. I was glad that I live in a community where people look out for others.
Crime Watch: West Seattleite’s car stolen – but not from WS
Seen this car? West Seattleite Bill Schrier hopes so. You may know him as webmaster for the 34th District Democrats, and/or in his acclaimed role as technology boss for the City of Seattle. But right now, he’s a car owner who put out a photo and details on Facebook, which we’re republishing here with his permission:
Be on the lookout for our 2001 silver Honda CRV stolen from Queen Anne at about 5:00 PM (Thursday). … License #940XMJ (Washington State), has a Wisconsin Badgers sticker on the back, plus the unique combination of an Army Reserve bumper sticker and a “peace” bumper sticker (which are shown as insets in the photo …). Call 911 if you see this vehicle. I’m offering a reward of everlasting gratitude and dinner in our remodeled kitchen. After talking to the responding police officer: (1) if you have a Toyota or Honda, get a club or similar very visible locking device and (2) park in West Seattle, not Queen Anne.
4:17 PM UPDATE: As Bill posted below in comments, his car has been found – with some distinctive new items inside:
SPD found it on University Street downtown across from SAM earlier this afternoon. Trashed inside (stuff strewn all about, CD’s missing), but only noticeable damage was a crack in the front bumper. Now I have two more requests: (1) anybody know a good auto detailer to clean the perp germs out of the car? and (2) be on the lookout (BOLO) for the perp who eats Mrs. Freshly’s Golden Honeybun donuts, shops at Whole Foods,and wears a size DD black bra,all of which I found in the vehicle!
ADDED 5:37 PM: And if you are skeptical about all that, Bill posted this photo on his FB page as proof (again, used here with permission):
West Seattle Crime Watch: 3 break-ins; school scare
4 Crime Watch notes: 1st, we checked with the precinct regarding a report published this morning at SeattleCrime.com regarding an incident last week on the grounds of Madison Middle School. Police confirm that “a bottle filled with flammable fluid was thrown on the roof of the school” around 5 pm 12/12 and that nobody’s been arrested.
Also in Crime Watch, three break-in reports. First one is from a WSB’er near 38th/Dakota (map) who says a neighbor’s home was broken into around 12:30 pm Wednesday – while someone was home. The burglar, they tell us, started knocking on the front door; the person at home decided to ignore the knocking – but shortly thereafter, the burglar went around back and kicked in the door. Our tipster adds:
… thankfully the person ran off when they realized someone was home. The police told our neighbor our block would be put on the watch list for extra patrols. It is scary — we live high up on a hill and it is not easy for people to come up all the stairs to knock to begin with — then to go through a gated privacy fence to kick in a back door? Really disturbing.
Two other break-in reports ahead:Read More
Update: More charges, higher bail for vandalism suspect Ryan Cox
Thanks to “Born to be Mild” for catching this in the King County Jail Register database first: New information regarding bail and charges for Ryan Joshua Cox, arrested yesterday for the second time this year and accused of multiple instances of vandalizing West Seattle homes, businesses and public facilities, usually with a profane three-word anti-gay slur. The register now says he’s charged with 10 counts of property destruction, as well as graffiti and having a dangerous weapon – as police told us yesterday, they found a fixed-blade knife on him when he was arrested in The Junction. Bail is now up to $20,000. We’re looking for more details on the latest developments in the case and will add whatever more we find.
Bulletin: West Seattle graffiti-vandalism suspect Ryan Cox arrested
(scroll down for latest information, added to the original report)
ORIGINAL 10:16 AM REPORT: Just announced by Seattle Police at SPDBlotter:
Ryan Cox was arrested this morning by Southwest Precinct detectives near the intersection of 44th Avenue SW and SW Alaska Street. Cox was taken into custody without incident at around 8:30 a.m. He will be booked into King County Jail. The Seattle Police Department appreciates all of the public assistance in this matter.
The arrest comes less than 24 hours after police released photos of Cox, including three like the one above, in which they say he was caught in the act of marking/painting the same three-word anti-gay slur that reappeared on businesses and homes around West Seattle repeatedly over the past three months (here’s the report we published Sept. 9), after incidences in the spring that led to his previous arrest. 10:44 AM UPDATE: We just checked with Southwest Precinct Lt. Steve Paulsen, with whom we have talked about the case multiple times in recent months (including yesterday, after we got three more reports, at which time he told us about the arrest warrant). Regarding more details on this morning’s arrest, he says Detective Nick Bauer spotted Cox at California and Erskine on the south end of The Junction, called for backup, and “several patrol units assisted in the arrest” two blocks north. 11:48 AM UPDATE: The King County Jail Register shows Cox was booked about an hour ago, and the charges are listed as property destruction and “dangerous weapon” – we’re checking on more information regarding that last one. 11:57 AM: Lt. Paulsen explains it: He says Cox was found carrying a “fixed-blade knife.” He’s scheduled to answer the charges in a hearing tomorrow; bail currently totals $1,330.
Update on West Seattle’s stolen totem pole: No fast re-install
That totem pole is back in its place outside the Redmond Library, where a Seattle company called Artech reinstalled it – along with another large work of native-inspired carved-wood art – on Tuesday. We were there that day to talk with Artech, after the Seattle Parks Department told us the company had expressed potential interest in doing some work on the West Seattle Rotary Viewpoint Park totem pole before it’s put back in place. First, a recap of where the stolen-then-found totem pole saga stands: Still awaiting word of charges against the suspect, a 69-year-old West Seattle man arrested eight days ago. The pole, found in Oregon a week ago after, police say, he told them where to find it, remains at a Seattle Parks facility (as we showed you Monday):
The pole found with it in Oregon has been identified as one stolen from outside the Renton Fred Meyer (as we reported Tuesday). Now the question is how long till the West Seattle pole can be returned to its home at the viewpoint alongside 35th at Alaska. The Rotary Club of West Seattle, which donated the park and the pole – carved by Native American artist Robin Young – in 1976, is taking a major role in sorting that all out, and has created a task force that will start meeting after the holidays, while raising money now for restoration/reinstallation. The Parks Department says it’s connecting Artech with the Rotarians. We got in touch with Artech to find out more about their interest, and what they’re all about – read on:Read More
Update: Search for stabbing suspect in 5200 block of Delridge
Police and fire have responded to an “assault with weapons/aid” call in the 5200 block of Delridge [map]. We’re on our way to the area to check; scanner traffic indicates a search is on, no word who was hurt, how, or how badly, yet. 6:03 PM UPDATE: Also from the scanner, sounds like a stabbing incident – the victim is on the way to Harborview Medical Center; there was a question about whether the suspect also “was cut.” 6:25 PM UPDATE: The search is centering on the building that used to house a much-scrutinized “used goods” business that cleared out a few months ago. No indication yet of an arrest, or of specific circumstances. Adding a photo. Delridge traffic is NOT blocked at the scene but IS moving slowly, as you might expect. 6:30 PM UPDATE: Just spoke with an SPD sergeant at the scene; he summarized this as one male stabbing another in an argument over a female. They’re not sure yet what the weapon was, but they continue looking for the suspect – who, per the scanner, indeed apparently was also wounded. The victim, we’re told, was stabbed in the arm – not a life-threatening injury. 6:57 PM UPDATE: Don’t know how soon we will be able to confirm but scanner traffic indicates an arrest.
Update: Photos of West Seattle graffiti-vandalism suspect
(scroll down, more photos added at 3:36 pm)
As we reported earlier today, we were awaiting word on whether police would be able to release a photo of the West Seattle vandalism suspect who’s wanted for multiple instances of marking/painting a specific three-word anti-gay slur – and now a photo’s out, along with a few more details on SPDBlotter, which says he’s charged with five counts of property destruction, and is indeed the same man arrested earlier this year: 31-year-old Ryan Joshua Cox. SPD Media Unit Officer Renee Witt also tells us a second photo will be made public shortly, “showing him walking away from one of the crime scenes.” From the SPDBlotter report:
He is believed to be homeless and may be wearing multiple layers of clothing to keep warm. He may be wearing a dark colored jacket with a red collar and carrying a red satchel.
Cox is known to suffer from mental illness. Due to the volatility of his behavior, citizens should not approach him.
Anyone with information regarding Cox’s location is urged to call either 911 or the Southwest Precinct Detectives at 206 233-2623. Those wishing to remain anonymous are encouraged to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800 222-TIPS (8477) or send a text to CRIMES (274637). Your text message should include “TIP486” to ensure proper routing. If a tip leads to an arrest and the filing of charges, callers may qualify for a cash reward of up to $1000. Calls are taken 24 hours a day.
Cox spent almost a month in jail after his arrest last May; he was also charged then with property destruction, but the charges were eventually dropped when he was found not competent to stand trial. He was referred for a state-hospital evaluation at that time. The graffiti vandalism started reappearing about three months ago, and most recently had expanded to an even-wider area than where it had repeatedly been done before, including multiple incidents in the Admiral District. ADDED 3:36 PM: The aforementioned additional photo is actually THREE photos, and they have been released by police via SPDBlotter:
6:13 PM UPDATE: Got an e-mail report that similar tagging happened apparently within the past hour in the 5400 block of California SW. The person who spotted it has called police.
WS Crime Watch: “We have a warrant for the suspect’s arrest”
That’s what Southwest Precinct Lt. Steve Paulsen tells WSB this morning – we had asked about the status of the search for the man suspected in the ongoing “homophobic graffiti” vandalism, after getting three more reports this morning of new sightings of the same profane anti-gay slur that’s been appearing in an increasingly wide area, including businesses between The Junction and Morgan Junction. Lt. Paulsen says he was “seen in the Junction area yesterday” and adds that arresting him is a “precinct priority.” We don’t have a photo to share yet (that could change) but regarding a description, at last month’s West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting (WSB coverage here), police said “white male, late 20s, early 30s, always looks stressed out” and an attendee said he was known to wear hoodies.
Another piece of the totem-pole mystery solved: The other pole
Another new development this morning in the saga of the stolen West Seattle Rotary Viewpoint Park totem pole. The other pole found along with it in Oregon last week, with information provided by the West Seattle man arrested in the case, is no longer a mystery: We’ve learned it was stolen from Renton.
In this case, as with West Seattle, some non-official sleuthing was involved. According to information shared by Alex Pietsch from the City of Renton, it started when Renton Municipal Arts Commission member Fred Lund brought up concern about the condition of a totem pole on the property of Fred Meyer at Rainier and Sunset, which had been there since 1975. After a subsequent discussion about some possibilities, Lund visited Fred Meyer – and noticed the pole was gone. At first, as a variety of parties started checking into what had happened to it, the possibility of theft didn’t even occur to anyone – they thought perhaps the Duwamish Tribe had it for restoration, since they had talked to a tribal artist about the possibility. Then last week they heard a radio version of the story about the recovered West Seattle totem pole, and the fact a mystery totem pole was found with it. They looked at the photos (same ones we ran here), and comparing them to archived clippings from the pole’s dedication, made the match. They contacted authorities and yesterday, Seattle Police met with store management to confirm. Now the city of Renton will be talking with Fred Meyer and the Duwamish about the pole’s restoration and return. We are working on more details and will add to this story as we get them – we may also have a separate story later today as we continue working on other aspects of the West Seattle pole’s story.
West Seattle Crime Watch: Gatewood break-in
A Gatewood resident who wants to be anonymous is sharing news of a crime on her block:
A neighbor just came by our house to alert us to the break in at a neighbor’s home, on SW Rose St, between 35th & 37th Ave SW [map], around 10 am today. Apparently the burglars broke in through the back door and stole numerous valuables — inlcuding a digital camera, jar of coins and other items.
I don’t have any other details, but thought I should alert others of this incident.
By the way, though tomorrow’s the third Tuesday, the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council is NOT meeting – it’ll resume regular meetings in January.
Update: Stolen West Seattle totem pole brought back from Oregon
That’s the stolen-then-recovered West Seattle Rotary Viewpoint Park totem pole, which we photographed a short time ago at the Parks Department facility – we agreed not to identify the location – where it’s now being kept, after a trip “home” from Oregon over the weekend. (Thanks to the tipster who gave us the heads up it had been picked up and driven back to Seattle.) Parks spokesperson Dewey Potter says it “will stay at our facility until Parks has formulated a plan for inspection, needed repairs if any, and re-installation of the totem. There may be a need to wait until the turf recovers before we allow another heavy truck at the site.” She also says a local firm that often helps with the city’s art collection has offered to help with the reinstallation, and Parks is mulling the offer; meantime, the Rotary Club of West Seattle, which donated the pole and the park to the city in 1976, has a fund going too (you can donate here). As for the mystery pole found along with this one, after the theft suspect told police where to look following his arrest last Wednesday, Potter says it’s being turned over to the SPD evidence unit. (No new information yet today from police/prosecutors regarding the case/potential charges; if you’re just catching up with this story, all the background links are in the first part of this update.) 4:50 PM NOTE: Just verified, the case is not yet in the hands of the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, so no charges yet.
West Seattle Crime Watch: Nursery theft; home break-in
In a comment following another Crime Watch report from earlier this morning, “WSN Helen” reported a break-in/theft at West Seattle Nursery over the weekend:
A heads up to anyone that receives a black marble bench or a floral table and chairs patio set for Christmas or knows someone selling them – West Seattle Nursery was broken into on Saturday night and had these pieces of yard art stolen. This is stolen merchandise and not a kind gift!!
We went down to WSN to find out more; they told us the stolen bench is similar to the one shown in the photo above. The break-in happened sometime after they closed Saturday night at 8; someone got in through the back fence, and in addition to the items that were mentioned, also took “some religious statuary.” The value of the stolen items so far totals about $700, though they are still checking to see what else might be missing.
One other break-in report from over the weekend – if you are in the High Point area, you might have seen flyers about this (thanks to Marco for reporting the flyer sighting) – the e-mail is from Dave, who’s near 34th/Myrtle (map):
On Thursday night thieves smashed in our door and ransacked the house. The couch and beds were overturned, and every drawer emptied on the floor. After the mess was cleaned up, the current tally is a Toshiba laptop, red iPod Nano, 70mm Nikon FE2 camera, and a 50s era 28mm Kodak Retina camera. They also stole an Omega watch and some heirloom jewelry that has been in the family for generations and has more sentimental than financial value.
The next day, I went asking around the neighborhood to see if anyone had heard or seen anything. Some items were found at the HighPoint Community Center men’s room, and other objects were found outside.
On a Coen Brothers-esque note, also found at the assumed time of robbery were three crates of kale, collard greens and mustard greens, abandoned on the parking strip. Their connection to the crime is still unknown.
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