May 1999 RETURN TO HOME PAGE FEEDBACK

Although one robbery is one too many, there was only a single robbery reported in my part of Noe Valley during March -- and it was on a bus.

On Tuesday, March 16, at 12:15 p.m., Officers Rosemary Castro and Manuel Solano were alerted to a robbery in progress on a 48 Muni bus heading east on 24th Street from Castro. The officers advised police dispatch and requested backup patrol units, who helped remove three suspects, ranging in age from 14 to 16, from the bus at 24th and Bartlett streets. The youths had targeted another 14-year-old in a foiled strong-arm robbery.

The suspects were arrested and booked at the Youth Guidance Center because of the violent nature of their crime. (Juveniles whose offenses are nonviolent are eligible to be sent to CARC -- Community Assessment Resource Center -- a program that mandates monitoring and counseling in lieu of routing through the criminal justice system.)

Auto Booster Nabbed

Meanwhile, there were 14 reported "auto boosts"-- car break-ins -- in Noe Valley during March, and one man was arrested for auto burglary.

A 25-year-old male resident of the 700 block of Vienna Street, who was seen by both witnesses and police inside a vandalized vehicle, was taken into custody by Officers Dean Bacciocco and Jose Jimenez. Thanks to neighbors' quick calls to police on Monday, March 15, at 2:36 a.m., the suspect was arrested and the radio he had apparently removed from the vehicle's dashboard was found along with burglary tools inside his bag in the car. The car owner identified the radio.

The suspect was booked on one felony count of auto burglary and one misdemeanor for possession of burglary tools. However, since the car owner was a Minnesota resident, she returned to her state shortly after the incident, and the charges against the man were dismissed.

Burglar Uses Rear Window

Noe Valley reported eight burglaries in March. Four involved houses or flats, two were of apartments, and two garages.

One of the burglaries was a "hot prowl," police jargon for when the resident is home during the break-in. In the early morning hours of Sunday, March 14, an unknown person illegally entered a flat on the 900 block of Douglass Street and stole items from inside the residence while the tenant was asleep in a front room. The thief apparently got in through an unsecured rear window. The tenant later reported he heard or saw nothing during the night.

As is mandatory in all break-ins where a resident is present, a crime technician was sent to the scene to collect evidence.

Four Domestic Violence Cases

Four people reported that they were the target of domestic violence during March. All four incidents involved the infliction of injury by a cohabitant. In other words, the injured person was hurt by someone living with her.

In one case, a 63-year-old woman reported that her 62-year-old former live-in boyfriend, who also owns the Church Street building in which she lives, had raped and otherwise abused her over a three-month period.

In a separate incident, occurring on Sunday, March 14, at 3 p.m., a 42-year-old man was arrested by Officers Diane McKevitt and Maria Oropeza after he reportedly assaulted and injured his wife in their home on the 800 block of Noe Street. The man was booked into county jail on a felony and held until the following day, when he was released upon posting bond. Since the arrest, the man has appeared in court three times, entered a not-guilty plea, and provided the court with proof of enrollment in an alcohol treatment program.

In the third incident, on Thursday, March 18, at 12:30 a.m., a 26-year-old man was arrested by Officers Tom Abrahamsen and Robert Padrones for assaulting his 28-year-old wife in their home on the 3500 block of 23rd Street. The man, who had apparently been drinking, was booked on a felony, but the charges were later dropped by the district attorney.

In the fourth domestic violence case, reported March 19, a 50-year-old woman told Officer Hope Nechuta that her 39-year-old former girlfriend, who lived in the same apartment with her, had dragged her by her hair out of bed and down the hallway. The older woman gained her release by biting her attacker on the hand. The attack occurred the previous week, on Friday, March 12, at her home on the 3500 block of 25th Street. The woman did not report the assault at the time because she feared further violence. But she decided to phone police on March 19, when the former girlfriend called and said she was on her way home to beat her up.

The suspect did not make good on her threat, but Commissioner Agatha Hoff issued an emergency protective order, prohibiting the ex-girlfriend from contacting the other woman and ordering her to move from the shared apartment. This type of restraining order expires in five days, so if protection is needed for a longer period of time, the targeted woman should request a permanent protective order from Superior Court (450 McAllister St.).

Threats, Stalking & Assault with a Car

A 49-year-old woman has been frequently targeted by her former 52-year-old boyfriend in a series of assaults, threats, vandalism, harassment, and stalking incidents, resulting in 11 police reports since their breakup in August 1998.

In the most recent incident, on Friday, March 19, at 3 p.m., the woman was driving on 24th Street near Vicksburg when the suspect sprang out from between parked cars, jumped onto her car's hood, and then fell off. The woman continued driving on 24th Street until the suspect appeared again, this time driving a blue Mazda Miata, which he rammed into the driver's side of her car. She immediately parked her car and called police.

Officer James Escobar responded, but was unable to locate the suspect. Three people came forward as witnesses to the crime, which is classified as an "ADW," assault with a deadly weapon (in this case, a vehicle). This serious incident and all related occurrences are being investigated by SFPD's Domestic Violence Unit, which can be reached at 553-9225.

Warm Weather Helps to Heal

In answer to your many queries about my case, in which I was injured last June in an ADW/vehicle incident in Oakland, the woman who assaulted me pled guilty to a felony and is now the responsibility of the Alameda County Probation Department, which is assigned to monitor her progress and compliance.

No word yet on monetary restitution to me. My injuries have healed, although as many of you who've had broken bones know, those sites seem to announce changes in the weather. I'll be very happy when the warmer weather is here to stay!

Thanks again for all your kind words and support. Until next month, be safe, and I'll see you on patrol.

San Francisco Police Officer Lois Perillo covers her Noe Valley beat-- from Valencia to Grand View and 21st to Cesar Chavez -- on foot and on bicycle. If you would like to discuss a crime or safety problem, call her at 558-5404, the community policing line at Mission Station.