The Star - News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area

Grand Coulee

7/24 - A woman with a Bridgeport address was banned from Coulee Hardware after the store said she was caught on a security camera taking a cutting tool without paying for it. When she returned to the store the next day, an officer advised her that she was going to be charged with theft and that if she returned to the store she would be arrested.

7/27 - Police were called to Burdin Boulevard where a woman had allegedly thrown a rock through her husband’s vehicle window during an argument. The woman was arrested and taken to Grant County Jail, facing charges of domestic violence and malicious mischief.

- An officer driving near North Dam Park saw a propane canister in the ditch. It appeared that it had fallen from a vehicle, which caused the valve to separate. The fire department was called and firefighters took charge of the tank and stopped the leak.

7/28 - An Electric City man was arrested and taken to Grant County Jail, charged with breaking into a house that he had rented to another party. He faces a charge of criminal trespassing.

- A Nespelem woman was cited for not having insurance after she was stopped for making an illegal turn.

- A woman in the area of Division and B streets reported her 3-year-old son missing. She told police she had been setting the sprinkler and when she turned around he was gone. The boy was found under the residence.

- Police arrested a man they knew to be wanted on a warrant for first-degree criminal trespass fourth-degree assault and domestic violence. He was taken to Grant County Jail.

7/29 - For the second day in a row USBR Plant Protection reported an alarm going off at a storage area in the lower Visitor Center parking area. Officers could not find anything wrong.

- A woman from an apartment on Hill Avenue was cited for disorderly conduct when officers went there because of a loud argument between two women. One struggled when told to sit down and quit arguing.

- Police stopped a driver known to be wanted on a warrant. His license had been suspended and he couldn’t provide proof of insurance or registration. He was taken to Grant County Jail.

7/30 - Police stopped a driver on B Street for not wearing his seatbelt. He was cited also for not having proof of insurance and not having his driver’s license on him.

- A woman on Roosevelt Drive reported that someone had taken a motorcycle from the side of her house. The motorcycle had been covered with a tarp.

- A woman on Second Street told police that someone had tried to enter her house. Police noticed that someone had removed a lock from the door.

- A man was stopped and cited near the top of the dam for going 50 mph in a 30 mph zone.

7/31 - USBR Plant Protection advised that a man was in a restricted area in the industrial zone. The man, who had a truck and trailer, explained that he was trying to make a delivery. He was told it was after hours and he would have to wait until morning. He was directed to an area on Marina Way where he could wait.

- A man on Kent Street in Electric City told police that he had loaned a vehicle to a man but it hadn’t been returned. He said he didn’t know the man’s name. While police were there, another vehicle drove up, and the officer could see a person wanted on a warrant in the back seat. While they were cuffing him, the vehicle that had been on loan drove up and police questioned the driver, who allegedly gave police false information. He later admitted that there was a warrant out for him. Police are citing him for not having a valid driver’s license, operating a vehicle without the required ignition interlock, possession of a dangerous weapon (a knife), obstructing a law enforcement officer, and making false statements. While being taken to the station to do paperwork, one of the men took off his socks and refused when asked to retrieve them. Both men were taken to Grant County Jail.

8/1 - A Kent woman hit a deer near Ludolph Road, causing an estimated $5,000 damage to her vehicle, which had to be towed away.

- A man on East Grand Coulee Avenue reported a sinkhole in the middle of the road in front of his house. He said the sinkhole was about one and a half feet wide and a foot deep. Police directed traffic until city workers could fix the problem.

- A clerk at Coulee Gas said a couple pulling a fifth-wheel trailer had turned too sharply, scraped the building, and then drove off. The clerk said that after striking the building the couple got out and looked at the damage and then drove off headed south on SR 155.

- USBR Plant Protection advised police of horses in the road near the 500 kv switchyard. Police helped a person who said he knew the horses get them into a fenced area.

8/2 - Police stopped a vehicle that was being driven in a jerky way and found two juveniles who smelled of marijuana and alcohol. When police noticed a jar with a green vegetable matter in it; one of the youths said it was just grasshoppers. When checking the two for driving violations, it was found that one was suspended and the other had a no-driving intermediate license. One of the juveniles turned to run away but was caught by an officer. The driver was cited for violation of his intermediate license and the other charged with making false statements, being in possession of alcohol and marijuana, and resisting arrest.

- Police were called to check on a man lying face down in the post office. The man stated he was homeless. He was referred to a church nearby.

- An employee of Coulee Gas reported that a man about 40 years of age pumped $31.41 worth of gas and drove away without paying for it.

- USBR Plant Protection advised police of three people in a restricted area after hours. Police found they had parked directly under a sign advising of the hours the area was open. The three people left the area.

- A lone fisherman was asked to leave a restricted area.

Coulee Dam

7/27 - A man on Tulip Street was advised that police had received complaints about his barking dogs late at night. The man has two dogs of his own and a third that he found and is trying to find a home for. He questioned how people know it is his dogs that are barking. He said he has an anti-barking collar he can put on the dog.

- A woman on Spruce Street told police that she’d heard a noise and went to the front door to find that her wheelchair was missing. Later, a city worker reported that he found a wheelchair in Mason City Park. Police got the chair back to the owner.

- A man on Central Drive told police that he thinks his neighbor poisoned his potted tree. He said the pot the tree was located in was right near the property line, and the tree was all shriveled up.

- A man was walking on the Elmer City Access Road and met a woman walking her two dogs. When he bent down to pet one of the dogs, it bit him on the arm, drawing blood, he told police. They couldn’t find the woman with the two dogs.

7/29 - A burglary alarm went off for the police department door. An officer worked with the lock and finally got it to work.

7/30 - A vehicle with an expired license was stopped at Crest Drive and Camas Street. The driver was advised to call the auditor’s office and take care of the license.

7/31 - A driver was stopped because he didn’t have a license plate on the front of his vehicle. The officer showed the driver that it states on his registration that there needs to be a license on the front of the vehicle. The driver said he would take care of it.

- A driver was stopped for speeding and talking on his cellphone at the intersection of Central Drive and Civic Way. He got a warning on both counts.

- Two drivers got warnings, one for speeding on Central Drive and the other for not stopping at a stop sign, at the same location.

8/1 - A tribal police officer found a bicycle near the Elmer City Access Road. It was logged into the property room at the police station.

- An officer on patrol saw a pit bull running loose on Holly Street. The officer found out where the dog’s owner lived and took the dog to that location. The owner said she would keep the dog on her property.

8/2 - An officer was flagged down at Jack’s Exxon by one of the staff, who reported that a man tried to sell him a bike he believed had been stolen. The bike was taken to the police station.