Beware scary people in parking lots

I got an e-mail from a coworker, who got an e-mail from a friend, who got a bunch of e-mails from women who wanted everyone to know to be careful because people have tried to get in the passenger side of their cars.

I’ll leave you with a few of the tales (these weren’t reported to police, fyi), and just a reminder to stay alert to your surrounds. Also, lock your doors as soon as you get in your car. I’ve been saved a few times that way, myself:

Yes,  a couple weeks ago I stopped at the ATM machine by the Spring House off Center  Point Rd. (my new car automatically locks the doors when I get in and put it  into drive) Thanks goodness! A young African American male came up from the  apartment side of the driveway and tried to get into my passenger side of the  car. He pulled on the door and then banged on my window to let him  in. I was close enough to the ATM machine that I didn’t feel that he would come around to the other side  but I still panic a bit. SCARY!!!!

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I had just been in Kmart across from Lindale Mall,  and I just got into my car & started it. when this guy (a black  male, about 35 yrs old, about 5′8) ran up to my car & got right up against the passenger’s side door  & tried to get in! He was telling  me to open the door, and I couldn’t see if he was pulling on the door  handles, but I’m assuming he was. Luckily, my doors lock automatically  when I put it into gear, because when this happened, everything went into slow motion & I got really flustered & couldn’t find the lock… So anyway, I couldn’t drive forward, because I was blocked by cars, so he just stayed there trying to get in & trying to get me to open the door. Finally I got a break in cars, and moved forward & he followed me for a bit, but  then ran away. I was parked far out in the parking lot, that last car in the line, so that probably wasn’t a great idea, and something I’ll never do again when I’m shopping alone.

So- I have no idea if this guy wanted to rob me, ask me for money, ask for a ride, or if this was his weird way of trying to hit on me? No clue what this was, or what could have happened, if anything, but I’m just glad nothing happened and I’m glad it didn’t end up as a news story.

But, it was scary! I was really shaken up about it. It just left me feeling less safe. I’ve never really had something that bizarre happen to me in CR. So, I want all my girlfriends to be extra careful when they’re out shopping alone this Christmas season, or anytime! Because you just NEVER know!

 

UPDATE: A slightly interesting revisitation of gun permit rules

The Dubuque Times-Herald ran a story today about the process behind issuing concealed carry permits in Iowa. You can read it here if you want, but basically it says that Iowa’s 99 counties have 99 ways of handing out gun permits to residents who want one, and the decision rests solely on the sheriff of that county. That creates disparities, and I know some people here in Linn County who believe that discriminatory. And, really, they’re right. Even Sheriff Don Zeller has said many times that he would support uniform guidelines statewide – the problem is, the legislature has to deal with it, and they didn’t last year given the opportunity.

I used our archives to find out how many people in the surrounding five-county area have gun permits. Linn County has issued the most in the area – roughly 470 – but that’s only about .23 percent of the population. That’s actually higher than a lot of other counties in Iowa. Johnson, for instance, has issued about 200 to .16 percent of the population. Benton County has about .75 percent of people with permits, and Buchanan County with .88 percent. The highest rate is in Jones County, with 1.67 percent. That’s hardly enough people to cause alarm.

After much research, I do have a beef with people who tie lower crime rates to the number of private citizens who are allowed to carry guns. I looked up violent crime rates for all states and compared right to carry states with the remaining 10 states that aren’t. And an in-state example for you: Black Hawk County is among the least restrictive in granting the permits (there were 17 permits per 1,000 adults there, with only about 2.5 here), but Waterloo has more violent crime than we do. But Dubuque also has more crime than we do, and issues very few permits. So, really, the free issuance of gun permits as a crime predictor is questionable.

Has anyone been in a situation where they feel the outcome would have been different if they were allowed to carry a gun? I really do want to know. Even though some people feel I am anti-gun, I merely don’t want one. I don’t feel they are necessary for protection. My basic stance: We need to make sure guns stay out of the hands of criminals, that background checks are done before guns are sold, and that if we’re going to have a “right to carry” state, we need to make sure the people who can carry guns actually know how to use them responsibly through self-defense classes. And that’s all, folks.

Below is the the 2007 violent crime comparison:

Right to carry states	Population	Violent crime rate per 100,000 residents
Maine	1317207	118
Vermont	621254	124.3
New Hampshire	1315828	137.3
North Dakota	639715	142.4
South Dakota	796214	169.2
Utah	2645330	234.8
Wyoming	522830	239.3
Idaho	1499402	239.4
Connecticut	3502309	256
Virginia	7712091	269.7
West Virginia	1812035	275.2
Montana	957861	287.5
Oregon	3747455	287.6
Minnesota	5197621	288.7
Mississippi	2918785	291.3
Iowa*	2988046	294.7
Kentucky	4241474	295
Nebraska	1774571	302.4
Washington	6468424	333.1
Indiana	6345289	333.6
Ohio	11466917	343.2
Colorado	4861515	347.8
Pennsylvania	12432792	416.5
Alabama*	4627851	448
Kansas	2775997	452.7
North Carolina	9061032	466.4
Arizona	6338755	482.7
Georgia	9544750	493.2
Oklahoma	3617316	499.6
Missouri	5878415	504.9
Texas	6156719	510.6
Arkansas	2834797	529.4
Michigan	10071822	536
Alaska**	683478	661.2
New Mexico	1969915	664.2
Florida	18251243	722.6
Louisiana	4293204	729.5
Nevada	2565382	750.6
Tennessee	6156719	753.3
South Carolina	4407709	788.3
Low/No permit states
Rhode Island	1057832	227.3
Hawaii	1283388	272.8
Wisconsin	5601640	290.9
New Jersey	8685920	329.3
New York	19297729	414.1
Massachusetts	6449755	431.5
California	36553215	522.6
Illinois	12852548	533.2
Maryland	5618344	641.9
Delaware	864764	689.2
District of Columbia	588292	1414.3

 

The FBI wants you to know…

That they’ve started releasing weekly podcasts on their work (haha, and you thought you were in trouble). Visit the page here and get access to the current shows. The archives work in some instances, not in others.

It’s somewhat interesting, as they talk about the “big news” of the week and revisit old cases. The best stuff, I think, is found in “FBI 1oo: A Closer Look.” FBI historian John Fox is being interviewed for a special radio series and sharing his perspectives on the agency’s past.

 

Do we want sex offenders living underneath bridges?

I’m pretty sure it’s a bad idea, especially for people like Eugene Anderson. I watched KGAN’s story on Eugene tonight with interest, mainly because they probably got the idea from my coverage on sex offenders who are allowed to live in parking lots and under bridges, as well as the change of address listings I’ve started putting in our Police Log. But I’m also interested because I know the law that helped force him there needs to be changed.

Anderson was convicted of raping his stepdaughter while displaying a dangerous weapon in 1994 outside of Iowa. He was later released from jail, and he showed up in Cedar Rapids 10 years later. He registered his address as 531 12th St. SE and within 3 years was twice charged with failure to register his correct whereabouts with the Sheriff’s Office. After he served his jail time for the last charge, he registered his address as living underneath the Third Street bridge in mid-November. And, apparently, he’s keeping true to his word.

KGAN reporter Chris Jose went down there tonight to talk to Anderson, and he found him. He told Jose that he doesn’t want anyone to feel sorry for him, but that people should try living a week in his shoes. Basically, he wanders the streets of Cedar Rapids all day because he has nowhere else to go, then sleeps under a bridge. Sounds like a good plan for a guy convicted of violently raping his stepdaughter, no?

Here’s an idea — how about trying to make this guy’s life better instead of worse? He’s got no money, no house, no job, no family. He says he doesn’t break the law, but what’s he got to lose? Clearly, he hasn’t always been a good guy, but laws like Iowa’s 2,000-foot law haven’t made it any easier on him post-conviction. Don’t we  need to plan for the reintegration of ALL criminals into our communities once they’ve completed their sentences and try to help them become awesome, healthy tax-paying citizens such as ourselves? After all, the only difference between them and us is that they got caught doing something wrong.

So kudos to you, Chris Jose. I’ve been able to catch up with very few registered sex offenders in my time. Especially in the bitter cold.

 

Self-defense semantics in Dyersville

I went to Dyersville on Saturday evening when we first heard about the shooting at 511 Ninth St. SE. I spoke to the next door neighbors, where David Herman and Jen Fauver left their children before getting that last fateful load of belongings from their apartment. They didn’t want to talk to me because the children — one they had together and two of Jen’s — didn’t know Herman was dead yet.

Gutwrenching situations like this always present a problem for people on both sides of the fence on self-defense.

Here’s what we DO know about what happened: That afternoon, Herman confronted Christopher Leppert, a Dubuque man hired to change the locks after Herman and Fauver were evicted. They punched and shoved each other. The Dubuque Times-Herald reports that Leppert was able to retreat to his car, where his .32-caliber pistol was hidden. Herman, who was not carrying a weapon, jumped into the locksmith’s car. Another fight broke out, and sometime during the second altercation the locksmith shot Herman in the chest, according to the sheriff’s department.

There is at least one more crucial question that still need to be answered in my mind – Did Leppert warn Herman that he would shoot him if he didn’t back off? Situations like this one can be Monday morning quarterbacked to death, but that warning is the real key. Whether you’re pro- or anti-gun, I’m sure this case will turn out to be an interesting one, legally.

In the meantime, read a story about whether self-defense laws have gone too far here. Personally, I would have done the same thing as Mitch Morelli. Who threatens my kid and gets away with it? Not that I have one…

 

A relatively quiet Thanksgiving in eastern Iowa

We’ve made it through Turkey Day without much of a fuss. Hallelujah!

There was one vehicle fatality we learned of this morning near Ladora. Sad. And around 10 p.m., Linn County deputies got called out to Nancy’s Bar on Mount Vernon Road SE for a bar fight involving about 10 people. Nobody got hurt very bad, though. Other than that, just a few minor traffic wrecks, some medical calls and a small scare at the Bali Hai Estates Mobile Home Park in Hiawatha between some burning cigarette ashes and a piece of trailer skirting.

No burnt turkeys here! And I even got to try some collard greens.

 

Hawk fan says bathroom sex scandal ruined her life

It would have ruined mine, too…read about the sexcapade between two Iowa fans at the Metrodome this weekend here. It’s the best story I’ve seen on the subject.

Sorry we didn’t bring this to you, although I don’t know what happened with this story on our end. I was assigned to look into it Tuesday night and I couldn’t reach anyone who could tell me anything, so I left a note for the daysiders to take care of it. You win some, you lose some, I suppose. Clearly, these two lost even though they scored.

 

Porcupine woman charged with stabbing a man

This has nothing to do with eastern Iowa, but isn’t this headline hilarious? And, no, she isn’t really a porcupine…

Read the Federal Bureau of Investigation press release here.

 

Just a fact check on area firearm burglaries…

I’ve had a few conversations with gun owners who are worried about being targeted because The Gazette prints the list of people who renew or get a new concealed carry weapons permit each month from Linn and surrounding counties. We believe the public has a right to know who is legally carrying a gun, just as we all can readily identify a police officer or military officer. We also print charges brought against people who are found to have guns illegally. The people I’ve talked to are concerned that, because people know they carry, they may become the target of assault or home burglary.

I thought I’d go through The Gazette archives and look at all the burglaries in the past few years in which firearms were reportedly stolen. There have been only four that we reported, and one of those was at the home of a person who has a concealed carry permit. So, I suppose the fears aren’t totally baseless, but it’s not like they’re being victimized at a higher rate. I am also aware that many stolen firearms around here are taken during unreported burglaries, but I’m pretty sure those aren’t at the homes of diehard Second Amendment supporters. As a general fan of public information, I’d really hate for people to stop putting their names and/or addresses in the phone book, but I’ve gotta say — if you’ve got stuff you don’t want stolen, don’t give people the opportunity to find you.

The names of people who have concealed carry permits aren’t public record in some states. For example, Missouri keeps their list of concealed carry permits sealed. But I’m all for full disclosure of who’s packing heat — even if it were me. At least people should know what to expect if they tried to mug me, eh?

 

Girlfriend stalker gone wild

The story of poor Tara Sloan is enough to make me never want to date again.

The 29-year-old Cedar Rapids woman was called, e-mailed, text messaged and otherwise harrassed by her ex-boyfriend, Guy F. McDonald of Platte City, Mo., dozens of times between July and September, Cedar Rapids Police investigator Justin DeMoss reported in court documents. Several of the 42-year-old man’s e-mails detailed some of her daily activities, like receiving a massage, visiting a hair salon and having a doctor’s appointment. Two warrants were issued for his arrest, but he never came to Cedar Rapids to have them served on him.

Around 11:30 p.m. Oct. 18, though, McDonald’s harrassment of Sloan took a sinister turn. Police were called to Sloan’s house at 3622 E Ave. NW because he was trying to break down her front door.

Sloan and her boyfriend, Dane Harris, told police they were inside the house when they started hearing the doorknob jiggling. McDonald had a key and unlocked the door, but was stopped by a chain lock. Harris confronted the man with a baseball bat and tackled him in the front yard, holding him there until police arrived.

In McDonald’s car, police found a gun, ammunition, duct tape, a police scanner, flashlights, gloves, a spotting scope, binoculars, computer printouts, a GPS and a digital camera. You can just imagine what he was planning to do. Now THAT’S scary.

Police are examining two flash drives found in the man’s pocket, as well as the camera and his cell phone, for evidence of stalking to see if more charges can be filed.