Drunk drivers often can’t help calling attention to themselves

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One went into a snowy ditch in the 1800 block of South Main Street while trying to turn around. Another swerved at a squad car, honked and then sped off in the area of Johnson Street and Bartosh Lane. Both incidents occurred after midnight, and River Falls police report that both drivers were cited for drunk driving.

In the first, a 34-year-old St. Paul woman visiting her River Falls boyfriend admitted she was lost and went into the ditch while attempting a U-turn. She was spinning her wheels trying to get out when an officer found her and told her to stop.

The woman, said to reek of alcohol, allegedly gave a fake name. Then it was learned her driver’s license was canceled. Then, that she already had three prior drunk-driving convictions.

The woman’s car was towed. She was brought to the hospital for a blood sample, then moved to county jail in Ellsworth. Her fourth drunk driving charge will be heard Feb. 21 in Pierce County Circuit Court.

The other alleged drunk driver was a 19-year-old River Falls man. After swerving and honking at the officer, he was pursued to an apartment building parking lot in the 1100 block of State Street.

The young man admitted there was no excuse for his poor driving but denied drinking. Field sobriety tests seemed to show otherwise. After the tests the man allegedly said he’d been drinking at a few local parties.

He was given an $812.50 fine and released to the sober care of his brother.

The man’s two underage male passengers, both from River Falls, were given $177 citations and released.

River Falls police also:

--Arrested a 19-year-old local woman for marijuana possession in Glen Park Sunday night. Officers were sent there because someone reported a noisy vehicle doing donuts in the parking lot. The 19-year-old and two other females were found in a parked car by the pool. An officer said the 19-year-old had a bag of pot hanging out of a jacket pocket. An open bottle of vodka was allegedly found in the car. A 20-year-old woman and a 17-year-old girl, both having the same River Falls address, were given underage drinking fines. Both have been cited before for drinking.

--Arrested a 61-year-old River Falls man for shoplifting a pound of meat from EconoFoods last week Monday morning. The man wasn’t caught until three days later. Store employees recognized him. Officers arrived as the suspect was walking south toward Dairy Queen. The employees pointed him out. He was eventually given a $177 retail theft fine and also a no-trespass order for a year from EconoFoods.

--Cited, for the second time in January, a 23-year-old man living at 203 S. Cudd Ave. for loud and unnecessary noise. In both instances police took complaints about booming music heard from outside the house. The first time, the man could allegedly be seen in the front window dancing to his music. He wouldn’t answer the door and was cited later. This time, at 3:25 a.m. Friday, police say the man finally answered his door after repeated knocking, including on windows. The man told the officer he couldn’t hear the knocking because he had a hot-tub party going downstairs. The officer replied that the music upstairs was a disturbance and gave the man his second $114 noise-violation citation of the month.

--Investigating a burglary to a house in the 600 block of Pine Ridge Terrace between Jan. 22 and 25. The house was unoccupied when the break-in occurred. A front door was forcibly opened. The inside of the house was ransacked room by room. It wasn’t apparent if anything was taken. The intruder appeared to be looking for something specific and left many valuables untouched. If you have any information of this crime, call police at 715-425-0909. To remain anonymous and be eligible for a reward, call area Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

There’s more. Find it in Police Beat in the Feb. 1 print edition of the River Falls Journal.

Tags: crime, river falls, news, accidents