River Falls police kept on their toes by strange, eventful week

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Police officers more than earned their pay this past week, topped off by plenty of weekend antics related to people celebrating River Falls Days. On Saturday morning a young man fled after being kicked out of a house party on West Park Street. At the party he’d taken a picture of two women kissing. After being kicked out on the street, he screamed homophobic slurs and pulled down his pants, allegedly exposing himself.

The suspect, described as white, in his 20s, bald, wearing a blue shirt and plaid shorts, ran away through back yards before officers arrived. He is believed to live in the neighborhood.

Police also:

--Investigated a fight between two men just before midnight Saturday outside Bo’s ‘N Mine bar. One witness, a 21-year-old Hudson woman, identified the two as her current boyfriend and her ex-boyfriend. The current boyfriend was allegedly punched in the face. His two front teeth were knocked out and his mouth bloodied. No arrests yet. The case will be sent to the district attorney.

--Investigated a brawl at a rental house at 684 S. Main St. Saturday afternoon. A 23-year-old man ended up with a badly slashed arm and was taken to the hospital. Another man had a head wound that required staples. A backpack was tossed through a window. The disturbance was described by several witnesses as “being a mutual fight between two individuals who did not get along with one another.” Police are still trying to identify and question all those involved.

--Cited a 22-year-old woman for pulling a small knife on a man in the patio area of Bo’s ‘N Mine last Thursday at 12:20 a.m. The woman later told an officer she didn’t mean the man any harm, but wanted to show him she was serious. She said she was actually after a mutual acquaintance, another woman, who was harassing her. She allegedly reached into the chest area of her shirt and unclipped the knife for the officer to take. Given the $177 citation, the officer reported that the woman was upset by the fine and didn’t recognize the gravity of pulling out a knife in a public place.

--Arrested a 40-year-old city of River Falls woman for walking out of EconoFoods with a grocery cart of unpaid merchandise last week Wednesday afternoon. The woman insisted she was going to return to the store with her shopping list and pay for everything. She couldn’t explain why she first went to her car without paying. She was given a $177 fine and a no-trespass notice for EconoFoods.

--Issued two citations to a 23-year-old local man for disorderly conduct and property damage for his actions after 3 a.m. Sunday. A 21-year-old woman, describing herself as the man’s ex-girlfriend, said he was drunk but she picked him up downtown from River Falls Days to make sure he got home OK. After doing this good deed, she said he flipped out, screaming, following and tackling her, then jumping on her car, kicking it, cracking the windshield. She said he also got down behind her tires and told her to run him over. When she finally drove away (without running him over), she said he followed her down the street and leaped on the hood of her car. Later she flagged an officer for help. The man was given fines totaling more than $400.

For more, please read Police Beat in the July 13 print edition of the River Falls Journal.

Tags: crime and courts, river falls, news, crime