Police Blotter: Crashes, Batteries and False Report

Late Thursday, Grosse Pointe Woods police arrested a man in his early 30s on a charge of possession of marijuana. The man has a medical marijuana permit but he had more marijuana than is allowed under state permit, which is the reason for the arrest. The marijuana was discovered by a home inspector who entered the home on Hidden Lane with the expectation that it was empty and found the plants. The inspector contacted police because the house was being lived in despite his information that it was vacant and then also alerted them to the marijuana, Woods Public Safety Director Andrew Pazuchowski said. The marijuana was confiscated by police and the case will be reviewed by the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office. 

Neighbor reports burglary

City of Grosse Pointe detectives are investigating a burglary in the 800 block of St. Clair Street in which two LCD televisions and an Xbox gaming system were stolen. A woman called police after hearing commotion in a neighboring apartment. When she went outside to check on it, she saw two teenagers running to the street. They got into an older four-door gray car and sped away, Detective Alan Gwyn said. There were no signs of forced entry and police do not yet know how the men entered the apartment. They are questioning possible suspects, he said.

Toddler returned to father

A 3-year-old Grosse Pointe Woods boy was returned to his father after Harper Woods police spotted him walking alone on Vernier Road near Harper Road. The boy was being watched by his mother's boyfriend in the 2100 block of Hawthorne in Grosse Pointe Woods when he left to walk to his grandmother's house in Harper Woods. Police spotted him before he got that far and Woods police went to the Hawthorne Road house to investigate. The 24-year-old man told police he was watching from the back door while the boy played in the backyard and then he was gone. He couldn't find him anywhere in the area but didn't think to call police. Police also discovered the man had his 7-month-old daughter sitting in his car, which wasn't running in 30 degree weather. They ordered the man to remove her from the car and take her into the house. The man told police the boy has gotten away before and that this most recent escape was the fourth time, according to Woods police reports. The boy was returned to his father by Harper Woods Police, who noted that the boy was appropriately dressed for the weather. Child Protective Services was notified and will investigate the case. 

Loaded gun leads to arrest

Woods police arrested a 44-year-old Madison Heights man March 1 after discovering he was carrying a loaded handgun at a high school sports competition on Cook Road. The man had a permit to carry the weapon but schools and churches are among locations in which permit holders are not allowed to carry. After the officer approached the man about the weapon, he discovered the man was also intoxicated, another violation of a permit to carry. Police have confiscated the man's handgun and his permit will go before a licensing board for review. 

Injury crash involved drugs

Officers from the City are awaiting results of blood drawn from a 44-year-old Detroit woman who admitted to using heroin shortly before causing a three-car crash that sent four people, including herself, to the hospital.

The woman was driving on Jefferson Road Feb. 27 about 2:15 a.m. when she rear-ended a vehicle stopped waiting to turn left onto Notre Dame Street. The vehicle she struck was pushed into oncoming traffic lanes and struck by another car. Three people in their early 20s were in the car and all were rushed to the hospital. A passenger was unconscious and the other complained of neck and back pain. The woman was also admitted to the hospital for a day and released to police with medications, according to police reports. The woman admitted to officers at the crash site that she used heroin minutes earlier before getting into her car.

City Public Safety Director James Fox said Michigan State Police traffic crash investigators were called to the scene because the extent of the injuries were unknown. Responding officers believed the injuries could have been fatal, he said. The three occupants of the vehicle struck by the woman have since been released from the hospital, Fox said. The driver of the third car was not injured during the crash, Fox said.

In addition to the use of heroin, a police officer witnessed the crash while on patrol and noted in a report that the woman didn't attempt to stop or even break before the crash. She was believed to be speeding, Fox said.

Driver flees scene of crash

Farms police are investigating a crash on Mack Avenue and Colonial Court in which the offending driver sped away from the scene and then abandoned the car. A patrol officer spotted a Ford Expedition pulled partially off the road on Mack Avenue Feb. 26 with fresh damage. When he stopped, the driver said a vehicle speeding on Mack Avenue came through a turnaround, struck her vehicle and kept driving. Officers found the offending vehicle parked in a nearby alley with fresh footprints in the snow leading to a fresh set of tire tracks. The car used was taken from a Grosse Pointe Shores home and the driver is a Grosse Pointe Woods resident. 

Battery of employees

Farms police are investigating an ongoing problem with former employees of Upper Mack Cleaners, 18500 Mack Ave. The police were most recently called to the business Feb. 25 after two former employees, both of Highland Park, assaulted a current employee with a stapler while demanding their checks. The employee told the women their checks were being mailed to their homes. This is the second time police have been called due to a disturbance inside the business involving these women, ages 23 and 35, according to reports.