police

Crime Report: Man Stabbed Near Ballston Metro

By Katie Pyzyk

(Updated at 4:25 p.m.) A man reportedly was stabbed in the chest early Wednesday morning after exchanging words with his assailant near the Ballston Metro.

From this week’s crime report:

MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 131218005, 4200 block of N. Fairfax Drive. At 1:30 am on December 18, an unknown subject allegedly stabbed a 30 year-old victim in the chest after a verbal altercation. The suspect fled on foot towards the Ballston Metro. The victim was driven by a friend to Virginia Hospital center with non-life threatening injuries. The suspect is described as a black male in his thirties, approximately 5’9″ tall and 150 lbs. He was wearing a khaki colored jacket with a black vest over top of it and a light blue skullcap at the time of the incident.

The rest of this week’s crime report, after the jump. All named suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. (more…)

Police: Drive Safely During the Holidays

By Katie Pyzyk

Arlington County Police Department badgeIn light of the holiday party season being in full swing and lasting through the new year, the Arlington County Police Department reminds residents to pay attention and stay safe on the roads.

ACPD reminds drivers to use seat belts, drive safely and pay attention to the roads. In addition to an increase in drunk drivers and distracted drivers around the holidays, police report 32 percent of drivers are more likely to drive more aggressively during this time.

Police had noticed an uptick in drunk driving incidents last month, just before Thanksgiving. During the Thanksgiving weekend alone, Virginia had 11 traffic fatalities. The ACPD hopes drivers will heed its safety message in order to avoid a similar scenario around the Christmas and New Year’s Eve holidays.

Here are the safety tips offered by ACPD:

  • Buckle up — The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that more than half of the people killed nationwide in traffic collisions were not wearing seatbelts.
  • Protect Child Passengers — The safest place for child passengers is in the back seat. Be sure they have a child safety seat and that it is used the correct way.
  • Don’t Drink & Drive — Every 45 minutes in the U.S., someone dies from an alcohol-related crash. Be responsible and don’t drink and drive. If you do drink, designate a sober driver or take a cab or public transportation. The Arlington County Police Department is participating in the annual “Drive Sober Or Get Pulled Over” enforcement initiative that continues through the New Year’s holiday.
  • Avoid Distractions — 10% of fatal crashes and 18% of injuries caused by crashes were distraction related in 2012. Distractions to avoid while driving include, but aren’t limited to, cell phone use, texting, eating, drinking, and using in-vehicle technologies or portable electronic devices.
  • Prepare for Inclement Weather — Last year, 4% of car crash fatalities over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend were weather related. Be sure your car is weather ready and fully serviced. Should the weather be bad, avoid driving. If you are driving, be sure to drive slowly and know your vehicle.

The department added the following greeting: “From our family to yours, the Arlington County Police Department wishes you a safe, happy, and accident free holiday season.”

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

"Blue Light Special" in Clarendon (Flickr pool photo by Christaki)

Rosslyn Holiday Market Open Today — The Rosslyn Business Improvement District will be hosting a “pop-up” holiday market today from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. at 1500 Wilson Blvd. The market will feature boutique shopping, gift wrapping as well as snacks, sweets, cigar and spirits tasting and massages. Disclosure: As you can tell by the temporary site background, this event is being advertised on ARLnow.com.

New ‘Aerial Yoga’ Studio Opens — Spark Yoga, an “aerial yoga” studio, has opened at 2201 N. Pershing Drive in Lyon Park. [Washingtonian]

Woman, Friends Arrested in Towing Dispute — Updated at 9:20 a.m. — A woman and her two friends were arrested Tuesday night after a dispute over towing. The woman tried to block her car from being towed from a parking lot and called police. When police arrived, the officer tried to remove her from her vehicle, and she allegedly fought back. Police say her friends also physically confronted the officer. The woman and one friend were charged with obstruction of justice and the the other friend was charged with assault and battery of a policy officer. [Patch]

Flickr pool photo by Christaki

Crime Report: Armed Robbery in Hotel Room

By ARLnow.com
File photo

Last Wednesday, an armed man robbed a woman at gunpoint in her room at the Sheraton hotel on Columbia Pike.

From this week’s crime report:

ROBBERY, 900 block of S. Orme Street. At 10:17 am on December 4, an unknown suspect allegedly robbed a female at gunpoint in her hotel room. The suspect is described as a black male in his late 20’s with short hair. The suspect was wearing a black shirt, blue jeans, a gray sweater, and black and gold shoes at the time of the incident.

The rest of this week’s crime report, after the jump. All names suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

(more…)

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

A robin finds a post-snowstorm worm in Arlington (Flickr pool photo by Wolfkann)

Wreaths to Be Placed at Arlington Nat’l Cemetery — Wreaths will be placed on nearly 130,000 gravestones at Arlington National Cemetery on Saturday. Most of the wreaths are being made possible by a $250,000 donation from Google. [Washington Post]

Church Works to Package 100,000 Meals — More than 500 volunteers worked to package 100,000 non-perishable meals for hungry children around the world last week at Jefferson Middle School. The effort was organized by Grace Community Church. [Sun Gazette]

ACPD Hiring Recruit Officers — The Arlington County Police Department is looking to hire a number of entry-level police officers this winter. The application process involves a written exam, physical ability test, interview, polygraph test, psychological evaluation and medical evaluation. [PoliceOne.com, Arlington County]

Flickr pool photo by Wolfkann

Another Tire Slashing Spree in Hall’s Hill

By Katie Pyzyk

Arlington County police car (file photo)Dozens of cars parked in the Hall’s Hill neighborhood had their tires slashed over the weekend in the same area where a similar incident occurred last month.

Police say 40 cars were hit sometime from 12:30-7:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 7. The first vandalized car was discovered at 7:00 a.m. that day and dozens of others were found as residents emerged from their homes.

The targeted cars were found along several blocks in Hall’s Hill: the 1800 and 1900 blocks of N. Dinwiddie Street, the 1800 block of N. Culpeper Street, the 1700 block of N. Cameron Street, the 4900 blocks of 17th and 18th Streets N., the 4700 and 5000 blocks of 19th Street N. and the 5000 block of 20th Street N. Most of the vehicles were in the street but some were also parked in driveways.

This is the same neighborhood struck last month when 36 vehicles were discovered with slashed tires. Some of the vehicles vandalized on Saturday had been hit last month as well.

Police do not have any suspects so far but the investigation is ongoing.

“We are aware of the continued target of that general area and without going into specifics about the tactical strategy, we will be deploying resources in that area,” said Arlington County Police Department spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.

Anyone who may have seen suspicious activity in the Hall’s Hill neighborhood or who may have information about the vandalism incidents is asked to call the police non-emergency number at 703-558-2222.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Ice on tree branches

Metro Proposes Loop Line — Metro officials are considering a proposal for establishing a loop line between Arlington and the District. The line would include a new cross-Potomac River connection between Arlington and Georgetown in D.C., plus new stations near Rosslyn and the Pentagon in Arlington, and in Georgetown, Logan Circle and East Potomac Park in D.C.  However, the plan also eliminates the direct Yellow Line connection between Arlington and downtown D.C. [Greater Greater Washington]

Unemployment Rises in Arlington — The unemployment rate in Arlington rose from 3.7 percent in August to 3.9 percent in October. However, Arlington’s unemployment rate remains the lowest in the Commonwealth of Virginia. [Sun Gazette]

Man Attacks Officer Across From Police Station — A 48-year-old homeless man is accused of assaulting a police officer across from Arlington County police headquarters in Courthouse. Police say the man was “shouting profanity” and “chasing after people” before the alleged scuffle with police. [Patch]

Police: Arlington Man Struck By Taxi on Rt. 1

By ARLnow.com
File photo

Arlington police have released details of this morning’s pedestrian accident on Route 1 near Crystal City.

In a press release, police say a 38-year-old Arlington resident is fighting for his life after being struck by a taxi in the southbound lanes between 20th and 23rd Streets.

The Arlington County Police Department’s Critical Accident Team responded to a pedestrian struck incident at 2:39 a.m. on December 6, 2013 in the 2200 block of Jefferson Davis Highway. The victim, a 38 year-old Arlington man, was transported by emergency personnel to GW Hospital with life-threatening injuries.

Police preliminary investigation reveals that the victim was attempting to cross a five lane portion of Jefferson Davis Highway when he was struck by a taxicab driving southbound. A passerby reported the incident and the driver of the striking vehicle remained on scene. As a result of the investigation, the driver of the striking vehicle was not charged.

The southbound lanes of Jefferson Davis Highway were closed for several hours during the investigation and were re-opened by 6:00 a.m.

Arlington Changes Parking Ticket Appeals Process

By Ethan Rothstein

A Crown Vic ticketed in ClarendonDrivers who are issued a parking ticket can no longer go to the police department to try to get it dismissed if it wasn’t issued in error.

Arlington County Police Department Chief Doug Scott and Commonwealth’s Attorney Theo Stamos agreed earlier this year that parking tickets that were issued correctly could no longer be reviewed by the police department, and all appeals would have to be taken to court. The policy took effect Oct. 1.

Tickets issued erroneously — for example, a ticket written at 6:05 p.m. for a meter that expired at 6:00 p.m. — can still be resolved administratively, according to Stamos.

When the ticket “was erroneously issued, in that case… the motorist will come to the police department and they’ll take care of that,” Stamos told ARLnow.com. “They’re going to continue to get rid of tickets that were erroneously issued.”

Before Oct. 1, a driver who was issued a ticket could walk into the police station and request a dismissal, and it would be up to the attending officer whether to enforce or dismiss the ticket. For instance, sometimes tickets for compliance violations like an expired state inspection sticker would be dismissed if the recipient could prove they worked quickly to get their vehicle inspected.

“[Chief Scott] didn’t like the idea of officers saying ‘you know what, we issued it, but we’re going to recall it, even though it was legitimately issued for a violation of some kind,’” Stamos said, noting the previously policy was also a drain on police resources. “If the recipient feels that it’s an injustice, they can go to court and deal with it in court.”

If a ticket recipient wishes to meet with a prosecutor to discuss a ticket, they will need to fill out the form on the back of the ticket and receive a court summons first. Then, Stamos said, they can bring the summons to meet with a prosecutor and try to get the ticket dismissed.

The process still involves showing up in person on a work day, something many ticket recipients decide is not worth the time and aggravation. Occasionally, for out-of-state visitors, prosecutors will conduct a dismissal discussion via phone or letter. Stamos estimated that 90 percent of ticket recipients are local.

File photo

Crime Report: Man’s Ear Severed in Fight

By ARLnow.com

Arlington County Police Department badgeA man lost part of his ear in a fight last week.

The incident happened Friday afternoon at a residence in the Alcova Heights neighborhood. The upper portion of man’s ear was severed, but he was “very uncooperative” and wouldn’t tell police what happened, according to Arlington County Police Department spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.

Police do not have any suspects in the case.

From this week’s Arlington County crime report:

MALICIOUS WOUNDING, 3600 block of S. 3rd Street. At 2:00 pm on November 29, an intoxicated male subject’s ear was severed in a fight. An investigation is ongoing.

Earlier this week, someone lit a field marker flag on fire at Long Bridge Park, causing minor damage.

ARSON, 400 block of S. Long Bridge Drive. Between 3:00 pm on December 2 and 7:00 am on December 3, an unknown subject lit one of the field markers on a soccer field on fire. No suspect description is available.

Police are also investigating a report of a woman being sexually assaulted after leaving a bar in the Courthouse neighborhood last Sunday night.

The woman was intoxicated at the time, can’t remember details of the alleged incident and reported it three days later, according to Sternbeck. There are no suspects in the case.

“The investigation is ongoing,” Sternbeck said.

SEXUAL ASSAULT, 1400 block of N. Courthouse Road. Between 10:30 pm on November 24 to 12:07 am on November 25, a female victim reported she was allegedly sexually assaulted after leaving a bar. An investigation is ongoing.

The rest of this week’s crime report, after the jump. All named suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Note that ACPD is now including case numbers and basic details of minor incidents in its crime report.

(more…)

Police Investigating Assault with Baseball Bat

By ARLnow.com

Police car lights(Updated at 2:15 p.m.) Arlington County Police are investigating a daytime assault in the Douglas Park neighborhood.

The incident happened just past 11:00 a.m., near the intersection of 16th Street S. and Glebe Road. A man struck his nephew in the head with a baseball bat following a verbal argument, according to police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.

The victim was transported to the trauma center at Inova Fairfax Hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries, including a “significant laceration” on his head. He was alert and conscious when police arrived.

The victim’s uncle surrendered to police without incident, Sternbeck said. He’s expected to be charged with malicious wounding.

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