Crime in Our Town in Still Listening to Spirit

Crime is once again ramping up here in Our Town. Some seasons are better than others. Each season has its own challenges and miscreants. This one is starting out alarmingly.

The usual bicycle thefts have been increasing. Mostly it is drunk biking. A drinking someone will not want to walk home, so they grab the nearest bicycle and pedal on their way, leaving said bike either along the road where they wreck and walk home the rest of the way or near their temporary abode. These are usually seasonals, although there has been some bike theft in off season.

Bicycles are stolen from yards, beside buildings, you name it, they disappear. Most reappear magically somewhere and if they are registered, are returned to owner via cop shop identification number. Many now that FB is so popular, and we have a Skagway Swap page, show up in entries with finders posting photograph of said abandoned bike and location. Some days nearly all entries in Skagway Swap are missing or abandoned bicycles.

About a week ago a 21 year old seasonal worker new to Skagway was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated. Records into his record show this is his second DWI, his first one at age 19 in his home state/town.

A week later, he was refused service at a locally owned and operated establishment. The bartender cut him off as she would no longer serve him in his intoxication. The procedure around here is for that bartender to call the other 3 or 4 bars in town to notify the bartenders there that this individual has been cut off.

The owners/operators and bartenders are not only concerned about the intoxicated person, they are VERY concerned about anyone else getting cited or charged for over-serving. It is greatly Our Town's advantage that we are so small and can handily cut someone off for the night for good!

This intoxicated 21 year old young man had likely been building a grudge since his DWI and perhaps this latest outrage tipped him over into rage. For whatever reason he began a rampage at 1 or 2am. No one knows where he began, but the results are staggering.

All vehicle tires on all vehicles parked at the chief of police's house were slashed and his house was egged. Including the police cruiser, there were 3 vehicles damaged there. One of the deputies personal vehicle tires were slashed, all of them as well as his cruiser tires.

Tires of vehicles resembling police cruisers were slashed. These vehicles were located near another deputy's house and perhaps it was a mistake. Regardless, 2 more vehicles damaged with all tires slashed.

Two vehicles near the cop shop had vehicle tires slashed. At the cop shop, all the tires on one police vehicle were slashed. The dispatcher on duty had all her tires slashed and her vehicle was set ablaze.

The first awareness of all this damage was when the female dispatcher went out to her vehicle to retrieve something in it and found her vehicle on fire.

My account might be slightly erroneous but that's the way I remember it going. In all 9 vehicles had all 4 tires slashed, 3 or 4 of them police vehicles, and one had tires slashed and was set ablaze.

What a bad start to the season.

To make matters either worse, or absurd, no one sells tires in this town--not tires that they have in stock and ready to go. My office mate, Lisa, is married to the manager of Liarsville Tire and vehicle repair. "Tire" here doesn't mean they carry tires, but that they fix tires mostly.

Any tires one wants to buy, must be ordered and then wait for delivery from Juneau on the weekly barge. There are literally no new tires to be had on short notice. When we worked for the bus garage, a whole container full of tires from floor to ceiling were shipped into Our Town at the beginning of the season and when they were gone, more were ordered--by the shipping container load.

I have no idea how tires got here for the cop shop vehicles--I know they cost a fortune because I would guess in the emergency need if they were available in Juneau they were flown here at quite the hefty shipping charges.

The other alternative is to drive to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada and raid their tire stores for tires paying import fees and a 4 hour round trip from here to there and back.

To make this story even more interesting, Madame Dolly got word about this poor soul's rampage and she went to the cop shop to speak with the officers there. They would not let her into the jail area to pray over this poor misguided (read devil driven) young man. They did mention to her that there was a vent outside the building through which she could speak and be heard by the criminal in his cell.

So, Madame Dolly stood outside the cop shop and shouted and prayed through this vent rebuking the devil and trying to drive Satan out of him. (now I love Dolly but I am outraged that anyone in an official capacity would guide her to this vent to do this. Talk about harassment! At first, when she posted on FB, she left the impression that she was allowed into the jail to do this there. I asked politely if she was allowed to do this rebuking of Satan face-to-face and then she told me the exact circumstances.)

As I often say about happenings in Our Town, "only in Skagway".

So, season is interesting and only beginning. Three ship day Monday and then Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday are 4 ship days. We are beginning in earnest now and I shall settle down to the long haul. Thank goodness I can only do what is in front of me and no more.

Tomorrow, Monday, May 12, 2014, I will take work moment to moment, customer by customer, problem by problem, joy by joy, and come home after 3pm energized and happily exhausted. Blessed be!