Friday, February 10, 2012

Crime Capers

Fortunately, we've got more silly stories than serious crimes in Encinitas. A couple this week:

Encinitas schools on lockdown over homeless guy not on campus with toy gun:
Four Encinitas schools were briefly locked down Thursday as a precaution after reports that a man in the area was possibly armed with a gun.

San Dieguito Academy high school, Ocean Knolls Elementary, Oak Crest Junior High and St. John’s School were put on lockdown just before 9 a.m., sheriff’s Lt. Jeff Maxin said.

A code enforcement officer spotted the man in a transient camp in a canyon off Melba Road, Maxin said.

Deputies later located the man and found that he had a toy gun, Maxin said. He said the lockdown was lifted about 9:25 a.m.
Who knew there was a transient camp off Melba?

And somebody made a wrong turn onto the train tracks Tuesday night:
Authorities said a crash in Encinitas in which a freight train smashed into a car on railroad tracks may have been alcohol-related.

No one was injured in the crash, which occurred near E Street and South Vulcan Avenue about 10:45 p.m. Tuesday, said San Diego County sheriff's Sgt. Robin Lawrence.

Witnesses told investigators people inside the car got out and fled the area before the crash, Lawrence said.

"It is suspected this incident was DUI-related,'' the sergeant said in a statement. Sign up for FOX5 Breaking News alerts

There was major damage to the car and minor to moderate damage to the freight train, he said.

3 comments:

  1. Most of the "crimes" that are reported in the Union Tribune occur around the bars downtown. A rowdy crowd shows up on the weekends; that's why you see a concentration of the Sheriff's Department around that area (plus the cops ogle at the girls).

    ReplyDelete
  2. There are transient camps in Encinitas?!?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Maybe you are joking, but if not, yes, there are many encampments all over the county, and yes, they are even in Encinitas and other "nice" areas (got to be near the work, right?). Our census figures are definitely not accurate, thanks to our "unseen" neighbors ;-).

      Hard to see the encampments from a passing car unless you happen to notice an access point when someones emerges from a trail or thicket at the road edge while you are stuck sitting at a light. The likely locations are more apparent after checking out the google map satellite images of undeveloped strips of land behind commercial properties, on the edges of undeveloped property adj to neighborhoods, and in the many canyons. Then spend some time walking or cycling around those areas, and you'll often see numerous signs of a nearby encampment - litter, especially. Law Enforcement rarely does anything about them unless there has been a nuisance issue that has been made public, like the female jogger accosted in Rancho Penasquitos a few year back, or the prostitution situation that was behind the Petco shopping strip at Encinitas Blvd & I-5. Carlsbad tore down a number of encampments a few years ago (I think due to complaints by nearby neighborhoods), but as always, they return or just move a short distance away until the next crackdown.

      For many years, while sitting through the very long traffic light cycles, I've seen people coming and going down into the densely reedy area behind the Encinitas "wall sign" at the southwest corner of Olivenhain/ECR/Olivenhain Rd. I suspect the existence of other encampments in the undeveloped areas across the road adj to the Encinitas Home Depot. I've seen another likely spot off Palomar Airport Rd just east of Costco. Once the signs are recognized, the access points are fairly easy to spot.

      Delete