January 27, 2000 Sheriff's Calls

WOODACRE - A vandal broke an exterior light fixture at the Improvement Club.

STINSON BEACH - A propane company complained to deputies that after it stopped service to a customer on Buena Vista Avenue for lack of payment, the customer cut a lock off a valve to resume getting gas.

POINT REYES STATION - A deputy at 9 p.m. responded to a report of a drunk at Third and C streets but found no merit to the report.

STINSON BEACH - The Union City Police Department notified West Marin sheriff's deputies that they had contacted a townswoman who'd told her boyfriend she was going to kill herself by "purposely" getting into a traffic accident. The woman, who had previously threatened to kill herself with a gun, was no longer suicidal, she told police.

POINT REYES STATION - A man at 3:15 a.m. called deputies to say his truck had gotten stuck along the Point Reyes-Petaluma Road west of Platform Bridge after he swerved to avoid a traffic accident. Deputies reported that a tow would be provided to free the truck.

FOREST KNOLLS - Up to $50,000 in personal property was stolen from a home, the resident reported. Deputies were told the resident may know who did it and that, "It's a long story."

INVERNESS - A deputy found the window of a house partly ajar. All appeared in order inside, but the officer was unable to lock the window.

LAGUNITAS - A 14-inch-diameter tree fell across Sir Francis Drake Boulevard at 3 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 19, and knocked down power lines, which started a small fire. The fallen tree also left a considerable amount of debris on the roadway, which had to be closed in both directions.

MUIR BEACH - Part of a tree fell onto Muir Woods Road between Panoramic Highway and Muir Woods at 10 a.m. Branches were cleared off the road before a deputy arrived.

PT. REYES-PETALUMA ROAD - A small rock slide fell onto the roadway at 1:15 p.m. near the Gallagher Ranch. A deputy reported, "The roadway was temporarily cleared; however, [the rocks] keep coming down. The roadway is not clear now." The deputy stood by until a Highway Patrol officer arrived.

LAGUNITAS - A woman at 10:20 p.m. notified deputies that six to eight boys were being very noisy near the intersection of Sir Francis Drake Boulevard and West Cintura Avenue.

WOODACRE - A man reported a squatter camping on Marin Municipal Water District land near the intersection of Castle Rock and Laurel avenues. The squatter's car was parked nearby, he said. A deputy could not find the squatter but left a message on his car that it is illegal to camp on Marin Municipal property.

INVERNESS PARK - A woman at 8:30 p.m. complained of a yellow pickup truck spinning donuts and peeling out downtown. A deputy located the vehicle, and the problem was abated.

SAN GERONIMO - A woman on Juniper Avenue at 2 a.m.. reported a man yelling outside. She said she was concerned about a neighbor and had called the neighbor's house, but nobody answered.

BOLINAS - A woman at 11 a.m. said the mother of two boys had asked her to call deputies for help because the boys were fighting. Deputies noted one of the boys had now left, so the problem was abated "at this time."

BOLINAS - A man reported having problems with his ex-wife over custody of their child. Deputies noted the man had documents showing both parents were supposed to share custody.

SAN GERONIMO - A vandal cut the fence of a horse pasture beside a new road in a subdivision, the builder reported.

WOODACRE - A woman on Redwood Drive reported there was a car with a "Police Parking" sign on its windshield but missing its rear license plate. A deputy determined the car belonged to a neighbor.

FOREST KNOLLS - A Montezuma Avenue woman at 1:30 p.m. reported hearing a man and woman outside screaming loudly at each other.

LAGUNITAS - Fairfax Police asked that a deputy check a residence for a vehicle belonging to a suspect in a battery case involving 18-year-old boys.

WOODACRE - A deputy on Laurel Avenue arrested a man wanted on two warrants.

POINT REYES STATION - Two cars collided at Highway 1 and Mesa Road on the north end of town, blocking the southbound lane. A person in one of the vehicles had a minor complaint of pain but did not want medical care. The Highway Patrol handled the mishap.

TOMALES - A janitor accidentally set off a burglar alarm at 8 p.m. and told deputies he did not know how to shut it off. The owner of the building, however, soon showed up to turn off the alarm.

BOLINAS - An anonymous caller at 10 p.m. complained about loud music coming from a house on Terrace Avenue. When a deputy arrived, all was quiet, but the officer nonetheless asked the resident of the house to keep the volume of his music and television down.

BOLINAS - A woman on Mesa Road reported losing a cellular phone. When a deputy tried to call her, he got no answer but reported he would try again.

LAGUNITAS - A large tree fell across Sir Francis Drake Boulevard at 4 p.m. Monday, Jan. 24, bringing down high-voltage power lines. The Highway Patrol asked deputies and rangers from Samuel P. Taylor State Park to make traffic detour through Nicasio.

FOREST KNOLLS - A deputy and Fairfax policeman looking for a Fairfax suspect stood by at Montezuma Avenue and Sir Francis Drake Boulevard while another Fairfax policeman stood by at Oak Manor. The suspect got away.

FOREST KNOLLS - Deputies received a 911 call that sounded as if someone were cleaning their telephone. Officers noted they could hear talking in the background. Eventually the call was traced to a baby playing with a telephone.

STINSON BEACH - Deputies received a report of a suspicious sexual incident. The case is under investigation.

January 20, 2000 Sheriff's Calls

POINT REYES STATION - Deputies and paramedics responded when a sick woman complained of a severe headache at 5 a.m.

BOLINAS - A woman at 8:45 a.m. told deputies a man on Maple Road was living in a mobilehome with a pickup truck parked beside it. A deputy gave her advice.

CHILENO VALLEY - Deputies received a 911 hangup call from a home on Wilson Hill Road. An officer determined the call came from an infant playing with a phone and admonished the mother.

MUIR BEACH - Deputies received a 911 hangup call and got an answering machine on their callback. A resident said she had placed the call in error while programming her new phone.

BOLINAS - A man on Brighton Avenue complained that his ex-girlfriend was going on the Internet and slandering him. A deputy gave him advice.

FOREST KNOLLS - A woman on Montezuma Avenue said her neighbor's children, 12 and 13, were throwing rocks over a fence. This is an ongoing problem, she added. A deputy contacted the children's mother, who agreed to put an end to it.

STINSON BEACH - A 12-year-old boy was reported missing for 45 minutes from a home on Alameda Patio following a fight with his mother. He was described as wearing a red shirt, white pants, and no shoes. A Park Service ranger later reported the boy had been located.

STINSON BEACH - Deputies received a 911 hangup call but received no answer on callback. However, they determined the call was related to a non-injury traffic accident. They learned that a vehicle had run into a ditch and would now be sliding into Bolinas Lagoon were it not for a tow truck holding it back. The errant vehicle's registration had expired, officers added.

NICASIO - A Via del Sol resident reported that an old car had driven up her driveway at 8 p.m., turned off its lights, and then sped away. She said the car was occupied by an unknown number of males, adding that she heard one of them say, "Be careful. Don't fall." A deputy could not find the car.

JEWELL - Deputies were dispatched to an abandoned house after Park Service rangers reported someone was occupying it.

TOMALES - A boy was calling his father from a phone booth along Highway 1, when some juveniles, including his sister, began kidding him. The boy broke a pane of glass at knee level when he turned around, a deputy reported. The other juveniles ran off, but when the boy started to follow them, he was called back by the merchant who owns the phone booth. According to what the merchant told the Sheriff's Office, the boy said it had been an accident and apologized. The merchant was then ready to drop the issue; however, the boy's mother soon showed up extremely angry, said the officer. She claimed the glass had already been broken and implied she might sue the merchant for slander, the deputy added. At that point, the merchant asked to file a vandalism report.

BOLINAS - A woman on Brighton Avenue complained at 9:30 p.m. that tenants in a rental house had been in their backyard yelling and setting off fireworks for the past hour. A deputy reported he would give her advice.

POINT REYES STATION - A woman at 12:30 a.m. reported two boys had been quarreling for 20 minutes on Mañana Way between Lorraine Avenue and Highway 1. A deputy gave advice to both boys.

POINT REYES STATION - A woman at 10 a.m. reported a male friend had head and leg injures which, she believed, he had suffered the previous night when hit by a car.

DOGTOWN - A woman called deputies to report two men with rifles and wearing camouflage were below Highway 1 on the shore of Tomales Bay near the Robert Giacomini Ranch. She said that when she last saw the men, they were heading toward two trucks. Deputies could not find them.

INVERNESS - An Inverness Way resident at 10:30 a.m. reported that a man wearing a motorcycle jacket and a cowboy hat had been standing in front of her residence for 10 minutes. She said he might be casing her house for a burglary.

BOLINAS - A man on Wharf Road at 1:30 p.m. told deputies through a translator that someone was pushing him around. The man acknowledged he had been drinking earlier that day. When a deputy arrived on the scene, he found only a couple and moved them along.

BOLINAS - Deputies received two calls from different people complaining about a loud person on Brighton Avenue at 7:20 p.m. A deputy contacted the person, who agreed to keep the noise down and move along.

DILLON BEACH - An Ocean View Avenue resident at 8:15 p.m. complained that three or four men in their 20s were shooting off bottle rockets, some of which were landing in trees and dry grass. He also said that some fireworks set off by the men had rolled under vehicles before exploding and that he was worried about fire danger. A deputy gave him advice.

BOLINAS LAGOON - When a car ran off Highway 1 at 8:25 p.m., a deputy noted that if the tide had been in, the car would be in water.

BOLINAS - A utility district director at 9:45 p.m. reported hearing people at a meeting yelling for two hours. He said the people yelling did not seem too angry, but he didn't know the nature of the meeting. A deputy determined the noise was coming from a birthday party and got the celebrants to agree to keep the noise down.

INVERNESS PARK - A vehicle ran off Sir Francis Drake Boulevard, through a fence, and into Papermill Creek. The mishap was handled by the Highway Patrol.

BOLINAS WYE - A man at 11:35 a.m. reported that a motorist in a black pickup truck had been lying against a window of his truck all morning and was either sleeping or something was wrong with him. A deputy determined the motorist was merely resting and that everything was fine.

BOLINAS - A resident of Hawthorne Road complained of receiving harassing phone calls for three weeks. She said the calls might be coming from a telemarketer.

WOODACRE - With residents of Nicasio and the San Geronimo Valley concerned about a rash of burglaries, a resident reported seeing a heavyset stranger who was wearing a checkered jacket and carrying what might be a fishing-rod case. He noted that the stranger had not been seen in the area before. The stranger was gone when a deputy arrived on the scene.

WOODACRE - A resident flagged down a deputy at 4:45 p.m. to report seeing a suspicious vehicle at Redwood and San Geronimo Valley drives.

BOLINAS - A man on Wharf Road reported receiving numerous hangup calls on his cellular phone. He said he has Caller ID and knew the phone number of whoever was phoning him. A deputy contacted the man's ex-girlfriend and told her not to call him anymore.

FOREST KNOLLS - A mother notified deputies that her 30-month-old boy had wandered out of his Aztec Avenue home 45 minutes ago. She said the boy's father was driving around looking for his son. She also said the boy was accompanied by a basset hound and was wearing pajamas with Winnie the Pooh on a shoulder. He was wearing diapers but no shoes, she said. The boy was soon found.

NICASIO - A man on Old Rancheria Road at 4:30 p.m. complained about a pickup truck driving cross-country and spinning donuts. When deputies checked the truck's registration, they found it belonged to a well-known cemetery in Glendale, Los Angeles County.

OLEMA - Deputies, who a week ago reported that a husband had been accused of pushing his wife down, this week noted he had been arrested.

MARSHALL - A motorist notified deputies that while she was driving northbound on Highway 1, a bullet hit her car and left a hole behind her left door.

January 13, 2000 Sheriff's Calls

OLEMA - A man pushed his wife to the ground at 10:45 p.m. Deputies reported she had "no visible injuries."

INVERNESS PARK - A merchant notified deputies at 7:40 p.m. that a crazy woman in her 40s had been outside his business for two hours, yelling and bothering customers. An officer determined the woman didn't qualify as insane and moved her along. The woman drove off in a Volkswagen Jetta.

MARSHALL - A citizen reported losing property on Highway 1 over the weekend and asked deputies if anyone had turned it in.

INVERNESS PARK - A Sir Francis Drake Boulevard resident at 10:20 p.m. reported seeing a light flashing off and on in a house nextdoor. She said she had called the residence, and no one had answered.

LAGUNITAS - A woman at 3 a.m. reported two men were quarreling outside her residence. She said she heard one man tell the other he was "going to kill them."

FOREST KNOLLS - An anonymous woman told deputies she had an ongoing problem with a neighbor smoking marijuana. It's so bad today, she said, "that my house smells." A deputy contacted the neighbor and found no smell of marijuana.

FOREST KNOLLS - A Montezuma Road resident reported he had been receiving hangup phone calls for the past year. Deputies took a harassment report.

TOMALES - A Highway 1 resident at 9:15 p.m. complained that someone had set off a "smoke bomb" on her front porch. It did not start a fire, she added.

TOMALES - A motorist at 10 p.m. notified deputies his vehicle had struck a cow on the Dillon Beach Road two miles west of Highway 1. He said he wasn't injured but the cow was. Deputies notified a rancher about the mishap.

WOODACRE - A woman reported her husband took their eight-year-old daughter after asking for a divorce. She said he had refused to say where they were staying.

LAGUNITAS - A woman asked deputies for extra patrols around her house, noting she had secured a court's restraining order against her estranged husband, 41, who lives nearby. Earlier she notified deputies he had violated the restraining order by calling her house several times during the evening, saying he was coming over to pick up his belongings. Later another man reported the husband had parked his van in front of her house. He said he had been told to notify deputies if the husband showed up without an officer's escort. The second man said the husband by parking in front of the woman's house might be trying to threaten her.

LAGUNITAS - A Sir Francis Drake Boulevard resident at 11:30 p.m. reported hearing noises from an animal scraping branches as it walked through trees. The resident added she also heard a man scream.

POINT REYES STATION - A burglar alarm went off in a business on Third Street at 11:15 a.m. When a deputy checked, he found a cat wandering around inside.

MUIR BEACH - A motorist reported a 40-year-old man, who appeared to be homeless, was walking in the middle of Pacific Way at 11:45 a.m. The motorist said he'd had to swerve to avoid hitting the man, who might be schizophrenic. A deputy could not find the man. However, deputies received a second call at 2 p.m. from someone who said a pedestrian, who appeared to be disoriented, was walking down the middle of Highway 1. Again, officers could not find him.

BOLINAS - A fisherman reported that an ocean kayaker had run into a 14-year-old surfer, possibly causing a concussion. The fisherman said he was concerned about how often surfers are being struck by kayakers.

SAN GERONIMO - A woman complained about a white cabin cruiser parked along San Geronimo Valley Drive for four months. A deputy contacted the boat's owner, who said he would have it moved "in a few days."

BOLINAS - A man complained that a bus, which has been converted to a camper, was parked on Park Avenue. The man said he believes people are living in it despite a county ordinance against vehicular habitation. A deputy, who reported the bus had been tagged before, tagged it again.

INVERNESS PARK - A woman at 8 a.m. reported there was a man sitting in a white vehicle at Bear Valley Road and Fox Drive. A deputy contacted the man, who turned out to be a member of a construction crew and waiting for the rest of the crew to show up.

WOODACRE - A Madrone Avenue resident reported someone had made entry into her house on New Year's Day. At first, she said, she'd thought the intruders were her tenants but now knows they weren't. She added that nothing had been taken. A deputy gave her advice.

TOMALES - A man reported trash had been dumped the length of North Alexander Road. He said he had taken the trash to the county Road Department and had found several items in the garbage that might identify the culprit. They included a health club membership, a bank statement, and a photo that might be of the culprit.

NICASIO - A Lucas Valley Road resident reported a man in "scruffy clothes" was working on an abandoned truck. He said that because of a rash of burglaries in the area, another man had asked him to call deputies if he saw anyone near some parked trailers. The resident gave deputies a description of the scruffy-looking man to see if they knew who he was.

WOODACRE - San Francisco police asked West Marin deputies to contact a woman on Railroad Avenue, who had been a victim of a fraud, and ask her to call a police inspector in the SFPD. Despite some difficulties tracing the woman, who had moved, deputies located her new residence and left a message.

BOLINAS - A Birch Road resident reported his sister, who is mentally unstable, had spent the night at his house and was now refusing to leave. She had two children with her, he said. With a deputy standing by, the woman left without incident.

BOLINAS - A very angry student ran away from school. The principal found him at noon.

BOLINAS - A trailer came loose from the vehicle pulling it and blocked North Mesa Road. A deputy assisted the motorist.

WOODACRE - Firefighters at 3:45 p.m. reported a man in his mid-30s was looking in a house's windows and might be casing the home for a burglary. They added he might also be drunk. When a deputy arrived, neighbors said the man had left the area.

NICASIO - A Lucas Valley Road resident, whose home was burglarized in November, told deputies she is now receiving numerous hangup phone calls. She said they might be coming from the burglar who could be trying to find out if anyone was home.

STINSON BEACH - The Highway Patrol at 1 a.m. asked deputies to be on the lookout for a speeding car that was traveling recklessly and passing over the double line. Deputies could not find the car.

BOLINAS - A Sonoma County man said his daughter, 15, had been staying with his ex-wife and her new husband in town. When the father drove her to his house, he said, she told him she had been engaging in sexual acts with a young man, 19.

January 6, 2000 Sheriff's Calls

STINSON BEACH - A woman about 35 years old stole a necklace and earrings, together worth about $240, from a Highway 1 shop when the merchant answered the telephone.

OLEMA - A San Jose resident staying at an inn reported the rear license plate and current registration tabs were taken from the resident's 1996 Mercury van. A deputy reported it was unclear if the plate had been lost or stolen.

MARSHALL - A night-watchman reported that vandals took a hatch cover off the window of a restaurant's door and threw things about inside. A nearby cabin was also vandalized, the watchman said.

FOREST KNOLLS - A woman reported a 13-year-old girl had run away when she was supposed to be going to school.

BOLINAS - Deputies received a phone call from a woman on Overlook Drive asking them to remove a 38-year-old man from her house. Deputies noted a court had previously issued a restraining order that the man stay away from her, but the order had expired. The woman subsequently said the man was no longer in the house.

NATIONAL SEASHORE - At the request of Child Protective Services, deputies checked on a fight between a brother and a sister, concluding it was a case of "mutual combat."

SAN GERONIMO - The school reported an 8th grade boy had a pipe for smoking marijuana, but a deputy determined no crime had occurred and gave the school advice.

MUIR BEACH - A motorist, who had been driving south on Highway 1, reported seeing an aircraft heading into the ocean about 10:30 p.m.

DILLON BEACH - Two juveniles staying in a motorhome shot and killed a seagull with a BB gun. A Fish and Game warden handled the case.

WOODACRE - A man asked that a deputy stand by while he got his tools out of a house on Madrone Avenue. Deputies reported the man had already violated a court's emergency protective order by phoning his wife, who also wanted a deputy to stand by - for her protection.

INVERNESS - A Madrone Avenue resident received a warning about her vehicle being parked too close to the center of the roadway. She asked for advice, and a deputy gave it to her.

TOMALES - A woman notified deputies that her husband, 43, had violated a court's restraining order by calling her daily. The last call was two days ago, she said.

LAGUNITAS - A woman said her daughter had not been seen in two days but that she did not want to report her daughter as missing. A deputy gave her advice.

BOLINAS - A man on Wharf Road at 6 p.m. reported that the son of his girlfriend had just broken the window of his vehicle. Deputies simultaneously received a report of two people fighting. When officers arrived, a woman said she had injured an ankle when a man pushed her.

FOREST KNOLLS - A Montezuma Avenue man reported hearing either gunfire or fireworks.

LAGUNITAS - San Rafael Police reported detaining two girls who were possible runaways. The officers said they could not contact either girl's parents and asked deputies to try. At 1:35 a.m., a deputy managed to contact a parent of one girl, who said she did not want to report her daughter as a runaway.

OLEMA - Deputies received a report of a loose calf beside Highway 1 but could not find the animal.

BOLINAS - A deputy helped a Highway Patrolman herd a cow, which was loose on Mesa Road, back into its pasture.

NICASIO - A woman reported seeing men moving things at the county corporation yard and noted they did not appear to be county employees. A deputy, who checked the corporation yard, found only county employees and noted they were part of a crew hanging around in case of Y2K problems.

MARSHALL - Deputies received a report of a small fire beside Highway 1. When an officer checked, he found the fire was out, and although some people were at the scene, nothing was amiss.

STINSON BEACH - A resident of Calle del Sierra at 3 p.m. complained of a vehicle blocking her driveway. A deputy located the driver of the vehicle and issued a citation.

POINT REYES STATION - A woman reported losing her wallet in town. A market said it had found the wallet and put it in a safe. A deputy agreed to pick up the wallet.

INVERNESS PARK - Deputies received a report of juveniles throwing fireworks downtown during the night.

OLEMA - County firefighters reported there was a cow loose on Highway 1, but a deputy could not find it.

MUIR BEACH - Deputies were notified that an elderly Korean man, who speaks no English, had quarreled with his son and then caught a ride with someone driving a gray car. The car had picked him up between Slide Ranch and Steep Ravine, deputies were told.

DILLON BEACH - Firefighters asked deputies to check on a large Y2K party.

CHILENO VALLEY - A deputy responded when a herd of goats crawled through a stile formerly used to contain cattle. Although the stile, which kept cattle from leaving their pasture, has now been strung with barbed wire, the goats have learned how to get under the bottom strand in order to eat grass growing beside a road. The deputy said the goats do this periodically, and when they're finished eating, they merely lie down in the grass. The deputy added that all he had to do was whistle at the goats, and they crawled back into their pasture. "They know what to do," the officer explained.

DILLON BEACH - A resident reported receiving three hangup phone calls in a row from the same phone number. Deputies determined the calls were coming from a payphone. No one was at the payphone when an officer checked.

FOREST KNOLLS - A Resaca Avenue resident reported the theft of costume jewelry from her home. She said she suspects the culprit is someone who had worked at her house.

NICASIO - A woman was taking her 29-year-old son to a detoxification center when he jumped from her car and ran away. She told deputies her son was drunk and is manic depressive but not taking his medication.

CHILENO VALLEY - A man asked for a deputy to stand by while he picked up personal property from a ranch. The standby was provided.

NICASIO - A man reported seeing someone who might be a burglar officers are seeking. A deputy determined the person was not the suspect.

BOLINAS - A man on Terrace Avenue at 9 p.m. complained he was being disturbed by loud music for the third night in a row. The noise was coming from a band that was practicing, and the disturbance was abated before a deputy arrived. The officer, however, advised band members about a county ordinance forbidding excessive noise.

SAN GERONIMO - A car skidded on black ice and hit a phone pole at Sir Francis Drake Boulevard and San Geronimo Valley Drive at 3 a.m. The car's three occupants refused medical treatment.

INVERNESS PARK - A man at 9 a.m. complained about a hunter with waders and a black dog at the mouth of Papermill Creek.

STINSON BEACH - A woman asked deputies for information about solicitations for money, having been contacted by a group that believes women should have a choice regarding abortions. A deputy called the woman back but got only her answering machine.