Crime & Safety
OMG PD: Drunk Driver Hits Cop Car, Cross-Dresser Crashes Into Home
We compile the odd, unusual "oh my gosh" police items from throughout the Tampa Bay region.
Drunk Driver Plows Into Deputy's Patrol Car, Officials Say
A suspected drunk driver picked the wrong car to plow into Tuesday night — a Manatee County Sheriff's deputy's cruiser.
Deputy Scott Schell's patrol vehicle was parked in the 1100 block of 61st Avenue East in Bradenton around 9:18 p.m. Tuesday when another vehicle crashed head-on into him, according to a sheriff's report.
There was no immediate report of injuries.
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Tests revealed the driver, Israel Lara-Contreras' blood-alcohol level was between .355 and .357. The legal limit in Florida is .08.
Cops: Woman Urinates in Police Car, Tries to Bite Officers
A Treasure Island woman being arrested on domestic battery charges violently resisted Treasure Island police officers, had to be Tased and then urinated in a police car, according to her arrest affidavit.Nancy Fitzpatrick, 52, of Treasure Island, was charged with domestic battery and resisting arrest with violence.
According to police, Fitzpatrick had been taking several prescribed prescription drugs and drinking when the confrontation began with the victim at an apartment complex pool.
Police: Cross-Dressing Burglar Accused In Tarpon Springs Attack
A 39-year-old Tampa man wearing a wig and woman's negligee is accused of driving his car into the garage door of a Tarpon Springs home, forcing his way inside and attacking a resident, police said.The victim suffered injuries to the hands, arms and face during the attack after Jeremy Middleton, 39, barged in, according to the Tarpon Springs Police Department.
After he made his way into the home, Middleton urinated on the bathroom floor, threw glass cologne bottles at the victim and broke a laptop by throwing it on the floor, police said.
After being read his miranda rights, officers say Middleton accused the victim of giving him a sexually-transmitted virus when they had sex together prior to the June 30 attack.
Officers reported they could not tell whether Middleton was a male or female when they entered the house.
Child Abuse Charge For Carnival Worker
A self-employed carnival worker was arrested in Land O’ Lakes on one count of child abuse Friday (June 28).
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Gregory David Haney, 58, of Odessa, got into an argument with a 16-year-old female under his care for the summer. According to a Pasco County Sheriff’s Office report, the incident turned physical when the teen tried to leave their vehicle when it was disabled on State Road 52. The teen fell on the pavement and Haney alleged dragged her across the pavement and back to the vehicle.
According to the report, the female is from Niagara Falls, New York. She met Haney when Haney was working a carnival there several weeks back. The girl’s mother signed a letter allowing her to travel with Haney and the carnival to earn money for the summer, the report stated.
Sick, Dead Calves Found on Sarasota Man's Property
Deputies found dead and sick calves on the Sarasota property of a man who they say attacked them during an investigation Monday morning, authorities said.
Deputies say they encountered David Damschroder, 63, after they were called out on a report of a suspicious person in his neighborhood around 10:30 a.m. Monday.
During their investigation, Damschroder took deputies to his home in the 16000 block of Winburn Place, where "his demeanor changed and he attacked them," according to Sarasota County Sheriff's Office spokesperson Wendy Rose.
When he was taken into custody, Damschroder told deputies he had dairy calves in the back pasture. When they checked on the animals, they found two dead calves and two that "were weak and sickly," Rose said in a media release. Those two were being treated at a local veterinary center.
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