Last week provided more reminders of the large amount of time, energy and resources that all law enforcement agencies are devoting to those with issues related to mental illness.
Early in the week, a person with whom we have frequent contact, who is transient and unpredictable, was arrested for breaking the window at a social service agency. He told officers he wanted to get in and was upset that they were closed, so he kicked the door, causing the window pane to break. He then fled, but was contacted near a bar on Sixth Street. Witnesses to the broken window positively identified him and he went to jail.
Later in the week, a person decided to camp out at the Kitsap Transit terminal for most of the evening. When he was politely asked to leave by the security guard, he became angry and threw all of their travel and sightseeing brochures on the ground. He then walked out, sat down and waited for us to show up. Officers determined he wanted to go to Seattle and escorted him to the ferry, where they watched him board. There was no damage to the property, but he did leave a big mess. We are referring him to the prosecutor for unlawful transit conduct.
Also last week, Poulsbo PD arrested a man for residential burglary and took him to Harrison Medical Center because he was exhibiting signs of mental illness. While at the hospital, he decided to call 911 and say he had a bomb. The call was quickly traced to him; video was found showing him doing it, but that didn’t matter: he still denied it. He went to jail with additional charges.
This week, Officer Derek Ejde responded to a minor crash at Sixth and Warren, and quickly realized that one of the drivers was intoxicated. When asked how much he had to drink, the man responded “one.” He then went on to clarify that “one” meant “one six-pack.” He went to jail.
On Sept. 14, officers went to the scene of a car rollover just west of the ferry terminal, where a car went off the road and onto the entrance to the tunnel, doing a “Dukes of Hazzard” and ending up wrong side up in the middle of the street. The driver turned out to be a very tired, but very sober, sailor on his way back to the base, who fell asleep at the wrong time. Thankfully no one was injured, including the sailor.
On Sept. 16, officers and deputies handled a high-profile incident that is a great example of the types of calls we get that require compassion and quick thinking. It also shows the importance of our Crisis Intervention Officer program.
At about 10:30 a.m., Kitsap 911 received several calls about a young man on the railing in the middle of the Warren Avenue Bridge. The man was on the west side, sitting on the outside railing, with his feet hanging over the edge. He appeared possibly intoxicated, had a beer in his hand, and a large knife visible in his belt. As officers got there, the man stepped down onto the sidewalk, but did not want anybody to come near him.
Officer Dana Clevenger was able to engage him in a lengthy conversation while standing in the roadway, with the railing between himself and the man. The southbound lanes of Warren Avenue were closed for more than an hour, and the fire department and medics were deployed nearby.
Crisis intervention officers from any part of the county respond when needed, and Kitsap County Deputy Alex Breitmayer came to the scene at our request. The deputy joined our officer in speaking to the man. After some time, the man gave officers the knife and eventually agreed to walk off the bridge. He went to the hospital for an evaluation. Many thanks to Detective Mike Nelson and our BCAPS volunteers for helping with traffic control.
Speaking of traffic control, on Sept. 17 at the scene of a house fire, Sgt. Kelly Meade enlisted the help of a nearby resident — approximately 8 years old — who we equipped with the proper traffic vest. She showed great style and promise and we hope she is interested in being a Bremerton police officer in about 10 years.
— Steven D. Strachan is chief of the Bremerton Police Department. Contact him at Steven.Strachan@ci.bremerton.wa.us
