I was reading a book entitled Unidentified Woman #15 by David Housewright [First Down and Out Books June 2020 – Copyright @ 2015]. The featured character, Roosevelt McKenzie, ponders the fact that a Minneapolis Star-Tribune “article dealt more with the manhunt involving eight squads, one ambulance, and one fire truck than the actual shooting.” About that time, it was barely audible, but I heard the “whoop” of the beginning of a police car’s siren. Next, I saw the blue and red lights blinking in my window. I got up off my chair and went to the front door window to see a man down on my neighbor’s yard with two other men hovering over him.
The police cruiser pulled up to the curb and an officer got out of the car and scurried to the scene. It was across the street, and I had a very good view of what was taking place, but I had no idea what had happened. Did the guy fall on the ice? Did he have a heart attack? All I could see was his back. He was wearing a white T-shirt, and he was lying on the ground on his left side, his knees bent slightly.
Before it was over, there were seven Des Moines squads, one ambulance, and a paddy wagon. No firetruck. So, after reading the passage in the book, I assumed the guy must have committed murder. Not even close.
Before the first squad pulled up, two men were standing over the person on the ground. They were not in uniform, so I figured they were good Samaritans. Not even close. After reading the Des Moines Police Case Summary Report (PCSR), I discover that the two men were bounty hunters working for a bail bondsman. They had identified themselves to the police officer as “fugitive recovery agents.”
We sat outside on the stoop watching the action. Stephanie could hear some of the conversations. I didn’t have my hearing aids in my ears and couldn’t hear anything. Police kept shining a light in the suspect’s eyes, and the paramedics from the Des Moines Rescue Ambulance were paying attention, as well. The PCSR emphasizes that the suspect was pepper sprayed and handcuffed by the two vigilantes. Both sides indicated so. He ran a little over a block with his hands cuffed behind his back and pepper spray in his eyes. He was tackled by one of the bounty hunters. They were hovering over him like a hunter might stand proudly over his prey.
The presence of police power was overwhelming. Even though it was an arrogant display of flashing lights and blue uniforms all over the place, the suspect was charged with trespass, interference with official acts, and possession of drug paraphernalia, all simple misdemeanors. Compare how many squads show up in the inner ring suburb of Little Canada [in Minneapolis] for a murder to how many show up for three simple misdemeanors in Des Moines, Iowa.
Enough of the crying liberal in me. There are several problems with what we witnessed. In addition to the descriptions above (wanna-be police, more emergency vehicles and personnel than necessary), I looked into the suspect. He is a 40-year-old Black male with a history of trespass, interference with official acts, and other misdemeanors. He has one class “C” felony on his rap sheet, but he served no prison time because of The Pandemic. His only crime this particular night was walking into an apartment building when he was told to stay out.
This past week, we had a double murder occur at the far end of the block. Understandably, there were about seven police patrol cars on the street, along with the fire truck and ambulance. It was obvious from the media release that it was a murder/suicide without actually saying it. Also, the ambulance left the neighborhood without lights or sirens.
The following night, we heard the “whoop” of a police car siren, and saw a vehicle pull to the side of the road [M.L. King Jr. Blvd] about 150 feet from our house. Pretty soon, there were more than seven police cars on the block, not including the paddy wagon. There was no fire truck or ambulance at this scene.
Police had what appeared to be their weapons out, but it was hard to see in the dark. One by one, three young men exited the vehicle with their hands on their heads, walking backwards about 20 feet toward the officers at the rear of the car. Officers handcuffed each of them at the front of the patrol car. We saw an officer pop the trunk and look into it with his flashlight. Another opened the passenger door and shined the flashlight into the interior. Eventually, police vehicles left the street and the driveways until only one was left to watch over the impoundable car until it could be towed.
The following morning, I searched for the cause of the previous night’s entertainment. The driver of the vehicle allegedly “disobeyed a traffic control signal” and began to elude law enforcement. The driver was the only one of three detained for processing at the jail. He was released at 10:00 am the following morning, about twelve hours after being held in the pokey.
Last November, the neighborhood was again inundated with emergency vehicles when a young woman hanged herself in the woods on the other side of the levee.
With all this recent activity, you would think we live in a dangerous neighborhood. That’s debatable. Our neighbors are wonderful, decent, and welcoming residents. Our immediate neighbors represent a melting pot of people from different countries, backgrounds, and cultures. Not one of those incidents mentioned above had anything to do with the people who live in this neighborhood, with the exception of the murder/suicide. Trouble drives, runs, and walks into the neighborhood. Trouble does not exist in this neighborhood; it tends to drift into it.
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