|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
A burglary suspect crashed into a police car Thursday night after he attempted to evade arrest at an In-N-Out Burger parking lot, injuring one officer, according to police.
Mountain View Police Department detectives were parked outside of the fast-food chain at 1159 N. Rengstorff Avenue at around 8:30 p.m. to follow up on multiple car burglary reports when they noticed two suspects pull into the parking lot in a Mercedes Benz with paper license plates. The two suspects, both men, got out of the car and begin searching adjacent vehicles with a flashlight, Nelson said.
When the officers approached the suspects, the driver allegedly backed the Mercedes out of the parking spot and attempted to leave the parking lot. The driver sped up to about 35 mph before striking the driver’s side of a police vehicle, Nelson said. The officer inside the vehicle suffered minor injuries and was later taken to a local hospital.
Another officer approaching the suspects on foot had to jump out of the way to avoid being struck, Nelson said.
Both men, identified as 36-year-old David Godfrey and 32-year-old Claude Frazier, were arrested without incident, and officers did not need to deploy their firearms, Nelson said. Godfrey and Frazier were both booked into Santa Clara County jail on charges of assault with a deadly weapon, attempted burglary and conspiracy to commit a crime.
Police located several stolen items in the car, including laptops and cellphones, and are still trying to identify the rightful owners. Godfrey and Frazier are suspected of being connected to multiple auto burglaries in Mountain View, Nelson said.
The In-N-Out Burger parking lot on Rengstorff Avenue has been a prime target for auto burglaries in recent years. Police department data from 2016 shows that of the 342 reported auto burglaries last year, 55 occurred in the small In-N-Out parking lot alone, making it far and away the most common location for auto burglaries in the city.
Detectives were following up on reports of auto burglary the day before, but the department is aware that it’s a hot spot for theft, Nelson said.
“This is a serious issue in this area because of the easy access from the freeway and the ability for suspects to hit multiple vehicle in mere seconds,” Nelson said. “We were seeing a clear uptick in reports specifically in this location over the last couple months.”
Thank God we have ouR police. All the leftist movement hasn’t lessened these determined officers from keeping us all safe.
THANK YOU MOUNTAIN VIEW POLUCE
No “movement” is concerned with legitimate police work. Go hide under the rock.
MVPD does an incredible job keeping the citizens of Mountain View safe. This incident last night is a prime example. The In-n-Out parking lot is ALWAYS busy and this could have gone completely sideways. Because of the officer’s & detective’s actions, no one was seriously injured or worse. Local police need the support of the communities they serve & protect. Just think about how it would be if they weren’t there. Don’t break the law. If an officer gives you a command, obey it. They put their lives on the line daily to keep the citizens of Mountain View safe. Appreciate that.
@AntiTroll “legitimate police work” is enforcing all of our laws, not ignoring those (or even flaunting the breaking of those) that have fallen out of favor with one side of the political spectrum.
In any event, glad to hear that these two are off the streets. These QOL crimes are a serious problem in MV/LA.
@Taxpayer Please list specific laws that someone is encouraging police to ignore and for the citizens to flaunt or break?
Just like everyone else, I commend MVPD on their excellent work here and all around.
This:
http://mountainview.gov/documents/SCC%20Letter%2003132017.pdf
@Greg David,
What specific part of that letter do you disagree with? A quote would be helpful.
“The agencies of this county will not enforce federal immigration laws”
@Greg David,
Isn’t enforcing federal law the responsibility of the federal government? Congress has not given that power to the states.
If a domestic abuse victim reports that crime to the MVPD, should they check her immigration status?
Law enforcement officers and agencies have an obligation to the people to cooperate between the local, state, and federal levels. Failure to due so is a dereliction of duty.
Just because an individual is a victim of a crime, it does not excuse them from their own criminal acts. Entering the US illegally is a criminal act.
Its hard to see how many people simply don’t understand this. We will never agree and you will always have some comeback, so go ahead and put in your last word.
@Greg David,
I’m trying to have a conversation and understand your viewpoint, there’s no need to be snarky.
How long should MVPD detain people for alleged immigration violations? They don’t have the authority to deport people, so they would need ICE to pick up any people.
I’m not saying it excuses anything, but wouldn’t it concern you if innocent victims of violent crime cannot look to the people for safety? The perpetrator of that crime will now be walking free, and criminals will know they can prey upon people based on their immigration status. How does that help our community?
Well, if they weren’t here in the first place, they wouldn’t be a victim.
MVPD doesn’t generally detain anyone beyond initial investigation. That is the job of the county jail. The suspect should be held in county until ICE can take over the investigation. The state and federal governments don’t have local detention facilities, so they rely on the county jails.
The victim, who is also a criminal suspect, can be held in jail until their attacker is tried and convicted and then they can be processed for deportation.
Not terribly complex.
@Greg David,
How long should county detain them until ICE picks them up?
To your second point, if a victim knows they will be held and deported when they report a crime, why would they report the crime in the first place? Without the community reporting crimes and cooperating with them, MVPD cannot effectively protect the community. By making it unsafe for members of our community to assist the police, you will make the rest of our community unsafe.
Just asserting that something is not complex does not make it so.
Greg David, you are aware that while “Improper Entry” is a crime, “Unlawful Presence” is not a crime, but a civil matter instead, right? And if someone is present unlawfully, the local police have no idea if they performed an improper entry?
So while generally cooperation between agencies at various levels is a good thing, so is the priority of our local police departments on fighting *crime*, which we are all thankful for.
Thus if you a logical law-loving person, “our officers will not detain or arrest any person on the basis of person’s citizenship or status under civil immigration laws” should be something you wholeheartedly agree with, eh? Since it’s not a criminal matter, and the local police see it detrimental to fighting crime?
“… have an obligation to the people to cooperate between the local, state, and federal levels. Failure to due so is a dereliction of duty” is a nice black-and-white opinion that you hold. Trust me, I get it. But it’s just that, an opinion.