September 4
Proper venue for the written word
A budding
writer couldn’t find an appropriate place for his writings, so he wrote on the
inside of the stall in the men’s room at the high school. School officials
reported that the graffiti artist did his work sometime between 1 p.m. on Sept.
3 to 8:30 a.m. on Sept. 4, causing about $50 damage.
September 3
Yeah, Right
While
serving an arrest warrant on a 30-year-old Santa Ynez woman, a deputy noticed
the outward symptoms of drug intoxication. The woman consented to a check of
her pulse rate and a check of her pupil reaction to light. Both tests resulted
in evidence of possible drug usage. Deputies transported the woman to the
Solvang sub-station where she consented to a urine test which returned a
presumptive positive result for amphetamines. The woman, upon further
questioning, admitted to being in a room where her friend was smoking
methamphetamine. The woman said that she got a “contact” high from being in the
room. The woman now has an additional charge of being under the influence of a
controlled substance.
Scratches on car
A
30-year-old resident of Figueroa Mountain Road reported that his car was
vandalized with scratches on three body panels. The man had been at the Old
Mission Santa Inés the evening before but did not notice any scratches at that
time. In the morning, when he was about to take his daughter to school, he
discovered the scratches. His insurance company required a police report.
September 2
Suspended license, felony warrants
A
40-year-old man and his 42-year-old girlfriend were stopped by deputies at 2
a.m. on westbound Highway 246 and Edison Street because the license plate on
the pick-up truck he was driving was obstructed by a trailer ball hitch. In
addition, the lights illuminating the plate were inoperative. The man told
deputies he had a valid driver license but not on his person. A records check
revealed that both the man’s and the woman’s licenses had been suspended and
the man was on active probation and there were two outstanding felony warrants
for the man’s arrest. The man was placed under arrest and when taken to the
Lompoc Jail he refused to provide a probation-mandated urine sample.
Suspended license
A
35-year-old Santa Maria man was stopped by sheriff’s deputies on Highway 154
and Edison Street for a burned-out taillight. The man could not produce a
driver license and a records check showed that his license had been suspended.
The man’s car was towed and he was cited for driving on a suspended license and
having a defective taillight.
August 31
Lost wallet
A
15-year-old from Rowland Heights was visiting Solvang. During a surrey ride
around town, the teen found that he had lost his wallet from the back pocket of
his shorts. The wallet contained his high school identification card, his
social security card, and about $60 cash. Deputies informed the youth to
contact credit reporting agencies to protect himself against identity theft.
Lost wallet, redux
A
49-year-old visitor from Denmark reported to Solvang deputies that he had lost
his fanny pack-type wallet somewhere in Morro Bay, Solvang, Buellton, or
Lompoc. The man was visiting the central coast and had visited a fast food
outlet in Morro Bay, where he last saw his wallet. He visited Solvang that
evening, where he tried unsuccessfully to find a hotel room. He tried also in
Buellton, and then Lompoc, where he found a room but then found that he had no
wallet. After retracing his steps he finally had to give up and made a report
to the Sheriff’s Department.
Found wallet
A man
riding his bicycle on Highway 154 east of the entrance to Cachuma Lake found a
wallet with identification, credit cards, and $3 cash. The identification
documents showed that the wallet belonged to a 26-year-old Camarillo man.
Deputies will contact the wallet’s owner.
Domestic disturbance
Deputies
were called to a home in the 3300-block of Numancia Drive in Santa Ynez for a
domestic disturbance. A 34-year-old man had been arguing with his former
sister-in-law about financial difficulties. The man had hit his head on a wall
but refused medical treatment for a small cut. Deputies took an incident report
only.
August 29
Wallet stolen from her kitchen
A
43-year-old Solvang woman reported that her wallet was stolen from her kitchen
table in the 2100-block of Holly Lane in Solvang. The woman had last seen the
wallet on her kitchen counter and was unaware it was gone until being called
the next morning by her bank informing her that someone had made unauthorized
transactions with her credit cards. The woman’s husband was awake in the house
until 1 a.m. and the dog did not alert to any noise. Deputies took a report.
Another auto burglary
A
48-year-old Solvang man reported the theft of his briefcase from his parked
pick-up truck in the 2100-block of Rebild Drive. The man had taken his laptop
computer and camera from the car as they’d been stolen once before.
Stolen property
A
61-year-old Solvang woman reported that several items had been stolen from her
parked car in the 2000-block of Rebild Drive. The stolen items were her
Bluetooth phone device, a digital camera, a bag of laundry, some new clothes,
and coin purse. There was no sign of forced entry on the car and the woman was
unsure if she had locked the car.
Another auto burglary
Deputies
took a report of stolen property from the car of an 18-year-old Solvang woman.
The woman had packed her car with property prior to leaving for college. The
car window was smashed sometime during the night and a bag with her digital
camera was stolen.
Dispute leads to a shove
A masseur
was providing a massage when footsteps from a residence above became a
disturbance. The 45-year-old masseur went upstairs to ask that the man stop
walking around. The confrontation became a shoving match and deputies were
called. At first the masseur said he didn’t want to file charges, but he later
changed his mind. Deputies interviewed two witnesses and filed a report with
the district attorney’s office.
Residential burglary
Another
burglary occurred on Rebild Drive, leading to a 49-year-old woman reporting
that a plastic jar with about $20 in coin was stolen from her garage. The woman
discovered the coins missing after being told of other thefts in the
neighborhood by her neighbor.
August 28
DUI
A
21-year-old woman with a Solvang address was followed by deputies from the
intersection of Highway 246 and Refugio Road. The woman’s car was observed
swerving while westbound on Highway 246. Deputies pulled the woman over in a
residential neighborhood and administered a field sobriety test, which the
woman failed. She was taken to Santa Ynez Valley Cottage Hospital where she
provided a blood sample. The woman was cited and released to a friend.
August 27
Bicycling under the influence
A
28-year-old Buellton man was observed riding his bicycle westbound in the
2200-block of Mission Drive. At 10 p.m. the man had insufficient lighting on
his bicycle to be seen at night. Deputies questioned the man, who had a valid
driver license, asking if he had ever been arrested. The man admitted to having
been arrested for being under the influence of drugs on a prior occasion. The
man had some of the outward signs of drug intoxication and deputies asked the
man if he would consent to a drug test. The test was presumptively positive for
methamphetamines. The man was cited and released for being under the influence
of a controlled substance.
August 25
Bicycles abandoned
An
anonymous call to the sheriff’s station about a bicycle collision between two
riders prompted deputies to check with the local hospital for the possibly
injured riders. No one was admitted for any such injuries and later deputies
checked the scene of the reported accident and then discovered two bicycles,
unlocked and unattended on the corner of Meadowvale and Robin Place in Santa
Ynez. The bicycles were taken to the Solvang sub-station for safekeeping.
August 24
Trespass to wash-up
Deputies
were called to a ranch on Highway 154 near the Santa Ynez River for a report of
trespassers. Deputies made contact with two men in a pick-up truck, who said
they were on a hunting trip and had stopped due to an oil leak. The men said
that their two partners had walked across the field toward the river to wash
up. Deputies contacted the other two men and they had no weapons or game. The
men had their rifles and a handgun in hard cases and not accessible. Deputies
could not find the required signs posted three per mile to warn trespassers.
Due to the lack of signs, the deputies took a report only at the request of the
ranch owner.
August 21
Eavesdropping or illegal meeting
A report
was taken by sheriff’s deputies regarding suspected eavesdropping after a
public meeting. Members of the public board had concluded the meeting and were
cleaning the facility and engaging in small talk. A member of the public had
left the meeting but remained on the property making a cellphone call. It
seemed odd to the man outside that the meeting had concluded but the members of
the public board were still in the meeting place. The general manager of the
public board was notified the next day and asked about a possible violation of
the Brown Act, which prescribes open public meetings and forbids secret
meetings. The general manager was concerned about the man hanging around after
dark as he had released the two female administrative workers without escort.
The general manager had requested a report be taken, as the meetings had become
contentious due to some controversial subject matter.