Crime, Punishment and French Toast

One of the highlights of our swing through Carmel on Spring Break was sitting down to a breakfast of Friar Tuck's French toast* and unfolding a copy of the Carmel Pine Cone.   I can't get you the breakfast, but enjoy this taste of the latest local crime sprees:

Pebble Beach: Someone entered a garage,  destroyed approximately $1,000 worth of pottery, and spray-painted an obscene word.  The suspect was positively identified by the victim and remains outstanding.

Carmel Valley: Reporting party on Laurel Drive called to report a suspicious rope hanging near her outer bathroom window. 

Pebble Beach: Resident reported two men walked into her house without her permission. The men were located, and they had mistakenly gone to the wrong home. The house they were looking for was next door to the resident’s.

Pebble Beach: Resident reported a neighbor was violating homeowner association rules by building before and after hours, as well as on the weekends. Neighbor became angry and confronted the resident, who asked that he leave, as he was trespassing. Neighbor did not leave right away and walked right up to the resident while screaming vulgar insults. Resident only wanted documentation and was given mediation pamphlet**.

Carmel Valley:  Reporting party stated her cell phone was stolen from her apartment at Carmel Valley Road and Esquiline Road. She later found the cell phone in her purse.  Case closed.

Carmel area: Female suspect was the driver of a vehicle stopped at South Carmel Hills Drive and Highway 1 for California Vehicle Code violations. Suspect consented to a search of her vehicle, and methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia were located inside of the vehicle. Suspect admitted to having more narcotics and paraphernalia concealed inside of her pants.

Carmel-by-the-Sea: Report of a subject who was taking rocks from the shoreline for personal use***. The subject was contacted and warned. No further action. 

Carmel Valley: Resident was upset because of the way his soon-to-be ex-wife was treating his belongings.

Carmel Valley: Resident was upset when she found her trees had been trimmed.

* They sprinkle it with cinnamon AND powdered sugar! Plus, there's a stuffed deer on the wall that scolds your kids.
** Apparently, they must stock the squad cars with these pamphlets, just in case.
*** My niece is on the lam in Michigan for engaging in this same criminal activity.

In-Law In Log

Here are some highlights from the latest edition of the Carmel Pine Cone Police Blotter.

BONUS QUESTION: My father-in-law was intimately involved in ONE of the incidents below. Can you guess which one?*

September 20, 2009

Carmel-by-the-Sea: Units responded to a reported verbal domestic dispute on Dolores Street. Officers contacted the female party, who advised her husband would not give her vehicle keys back to her. The husband stated he was holding her keys in return for Jazz Festival tickets that she was keeping from him. Both parties counseled and exchanged the desired property with each other.**

September 21, 2009

Carmel-by-the-Sea: Fire engine dispatched to a residence for a reported smell of smoke in the area. Crew made contact with a resident at the address and notified the occupant of the situation resulting from a fire in the fireplace.

September 23, 2009

Carmel-by-the-Sea: A Crespi resident reported finding a small portion of a cat and advised the officer of the location of the remains. The officer responded. It appeared it was involved with some type of wildlife and was transported to the department. No owner information could be found.

Carmel-by-the-Sea: A citizen found a loose dog on Santa Rita and attempted to contact the dog owner from the I.D. on the collar, but met with negative results. Person brought the dog to the Carmel Police Department for safekeeping. The owner was later contacted, and the dog was returned to the owner with fees paid and a warning given.

September 25, 2009

Carmel-by-the-Sea: Person reported that she wanted the police to talk to her guest and have her expedite her move out of her house. The person allowed the guest to stay in her house, and she has been there for about seven months. The person had told the guest that she wanted her out of the house by Oct. 1. Resident added that the guest said that she would try to get out by Oct. 1. Officer spoke with the guest and asked if she would be out of the house by Oct. 1. She said that she would try and showed that she had very little to move. Officer advised her to move something to her car every day. Officer told the resident to be patient and that the guest would try her best to get out. The resident accepted this and said she would be patient.

Pebble Beach: Two residents reported their home was burglarized, and 13 pieces of artwork worth $27 million, $3,100 in cash and a computer were taken.***

ANSWER: If you guessed "dog owner contacted with negative results", you win!! Sofi escaped by chewing through a locked gate, and proceeded to enjoy an afternoon out on the town. She reportedly had treats and a lot of attention at the station while waiting for a ride home. My father-in-law was out $52 in fines, plus the cost of repairing the gate.

The perpetrator, at home with my father-in-law.

*Clue: His incident does not involve part of a cat or $27 million worth of art.
** Red Herring alert: Although this sounds like it could have been me and my husband on our recent trip, it is not.
*** This particular incident was front page news, with the headline: "Art Heist Seems Fake, Cops Say". Read the full story here. There's even a bogus ransom note!

From the Log

I had a couple of books with me on our recent weekend away, but I also was pleasantly surprised to find some quality reading material available locally. While awaiting our food* on the patio of From Scratch in Carmel, I took a glance at the September 18th edition of The Carmel Pine Cone.

I could not put it down. Here is a sampling of the headlines:

• P.G. council picks mayor with a coin toss
• Poet-in-residence program to accept poets who aren't poor
• Rescued turtles need expandable homes
• Mother accused of hitting daughter with broom handle

But wait. There's more. Apparently every issue includes the Police, Fire and Sheriff's Log.

To quote the paper:

"Here's a look at some of the significant calls logged by the Carmel-by-the-Sea Police Department, the Carmel Fire Department and the Monterey County Sheriff's Office last week." My personal favorites...

August 30, 2009

Carmel-by-the-Sea: Contact was made with the owner of a vehicle parked on Santa Fe. Apparently, a pine cone from a privately owned tree fell and impacted with the front windshield of the parked vehicle. The owner of the vehicle parked at approximately 1015 hours. The owner's wife found the damage just before 1300 hours as she walked outside.

Carmel Valley: Suspect was angry and bit his mother and pushed her, causing bruising.

August 31, 2009

Carmel-by-the-Sea: A citizen reported finding a loose puppy in the area of San Antonio Avenue.

Carmel-by-the-Sea: Person reported the loss of a shopping bag containing clothing.

September 1, 2009

Carmel area: Report on Carmel Rancho Boulevard at Carmel Valley Road that an unknown person was using the debit card of a deceased client.

September 2, 2009

Carmel-by-the-Sea: While conducting an area check of Larson Field, graffiti was found in the restroom of the snack shack.

September 3, 2009

Carmel-by-the-Sea: Person called to advise that, while in the post office during a business transaction on Sept. 1 at approximately 1530 hours, he left behind a mammoth book of jokes. When the person returned to get the book, it was gone. Report is being taken in the event that the book is recovered.

Carmel area: Mother reported that son hit her in the ribs. This occurred during an argument about staying up late on the Internet. The mother did not wish to press charges against her son, only that the incident be documented.

Carmel-by-the-Sea: Two citizens residing in separate living quarters on the same property on Carpenter Street, one upstairs and one downstairs, were involved in a dispute over the placement of garden tools. An argument ensued, and one party claimed the other threw a clay pot at her, even though she did not physically see the other party throw the item. The other party claimed the clay pot fell off of a second story stairway when she tripped and fell forward, knocking it over and onto the ground below. The party upstairs claimed the other party was entering her residence without authorization, and the other party denied the allegation. Both parties counseled.

September 4, 2009

Carmel-by-the-Sea: A citizen was silently protesting in the business district with due regard for the law. A citizen approached from behind and swiftly grabbed the protest sign from the hands of the protester. A chase ensued, with the sign taker reaching his vehicle at San Carlos and Seventh. Witnesses observed the sign taker leave the area in a vehicle and provided the information to the protesting citizen. Contact made with the sign taker, who agreed to return the property to the protesting citizen. The protesting citizen only wanted the sign taker to be educated on the rights of citizens and free speech. The sign taker was counseled and released, and returned the sign as agreed.

Luckily for all of us, The Carmel Pine Cone, publishing continuously since 1915, is available online. Check it out for yourself, or just check back here. More from the log in weeks to come.

* I had an open-faced egg white omelet with bacon, sausage, green onions and blue cheese, with perfectly roasted red bliss potatoes. Fresh from the oven cheddar cheese biscuits with homemade raspberry jam on the side. Just sinful, I tell you.