Capt. Denis O'Leary: Police Beat

Summertime is here, the kids are out of school and many Taraval District residents have called the station to complain about motorized scooters.
There are laws in the California Vehicle Code that regulate these scooters:
¥ Operators must be 16 years or older;
¥ Operators must wear a fastened bicycle helmet;
¥ No passengers are allowed on the scooter;
¥ Scooters can only be operated on a sidewalk when entering or leaving a property;
¥ Scooters cannot be operated in excess of 15 miles per hour;
¥ A headlight is required on the front and a red reflector on the rear during darkness;
¥ The scooter must have a functioning brake;
¥The operator cannot ride while under the influence of drugs or alcohol;
¥ A driver's license is not required to operate a motorized scooter.
Please call police dispatchers at 553-0123 to report these motorists if they are violating the law.

Fool's Gold and a Wise Woman
Officer Rebollini was investigating a possible fraud wherein an 86-year-old woman living on 39th Avenue received phone calls from people asking her to write three checks for $2,800 each and mail them to an address in Quebec, Canada. The people guaranteed prizes and hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The woman refused and called the police. A suspect called while Rebollini was in the house. He intervened and the suspect hung up on him. The investigation continues.

The Long Tooth of the Law
Officers Abrahamsen and Cunningham were on patrol at Ralston Street and Holloway Avenue in the wee hours of the morning July 15 when they tried to pull over a driver for not wearing a seat belt. A pursuit throughout the neighborhood ensued and ended with the van turning over on Portola Drive.
As officers approached the wreck they saw the driver climb from the vehicle's window and run away. Losing sight of the man on San Fernando, Abrahamsen and Cunningham called for backup.
The block was quickly surrounded by Taraval Station officers.
Officers Lance Bosshard and his partner, Lark, of the K-9 Unit arrived and soon located the suspect hiding in some shrubs. The suspect resisted arrest and Lark took him into custody. The man was treated for a dog bite and booked at Taraval Station.

Be On The Lookout
A woman called to report that someone stole her $1,000 pit bull puppy from her mother-in-law's backyard on Eighth Avenue. A local transient is suspected.

A Dynamic Duo
Officers Abrahamsen and Cunningham were patrolling the area of 47th Avenue and Noriega Street at two in the morning. The officers first became suspicious when a bicyclist that was talking with a parked motorist quickly rode away upon their approach. The driver moved his car away, too.
Abrahamsen and Cunningham saw that the car was missing its license plates so they stopped the driver. After arresting the driver for driving without a license, the two officers found copious amounts of crack cocaine on his person. He was booked at Taraval Station.

Be On The Lookout, Part II
A worker with the San Francisco Opera production of the "Merry Wives of Windsor" called to report that someone had stolen costumes from an unlocked box backstage at Stern Grove.
Taraval Station's officers are looking for a suspect or suspects who stole John Falstaff's aviator hat and goggles, among other things.

Capt. Denis O'Leary is the commanding officer at the Taraval Police Station.