Compiled by Jared Curtis jared@dmcityview.com

On the clock
Des Moines Police — Jan. 28

Jan. 28, 2:30 a.m.
Assault in the 3800 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway. The victim stated she was in the suspect’s apartment when they got into an argument. The suspect slapped the victim in the face and she said she hit the suspect back and left the apartment. Officers attempted to speak to the suspect, but could not find him. The victim said the suspect works as a maintenance man for the apartment complex.

Date unknown, time unknown, reported on Jan. 28, 10:26 a.m.
Burglary and criminal mischief in the 1900 block of Burson Street. A maintenance company was hired to clean up the abandoned house and discovered the property had been broken into. The interior of the house was damaged, the hot water heater was missing, and several things were destroyed including the trim, a bathtub, a sink, bathroom and kitchen plumbing, cabinets and doors. The maintenance workers didn’t know when the house was broken into and damaged.

Jan. 28, 9:29 p.m.
Assault with injury in the 1300 block of Thompson Street. The victims were driving when they turned onto Thompson Street from East 14th Street and saw several males standing in the intersection of East 13th Street and Thompson Street blocking traffic. The driver slowly made her way around the crowd and stopped at a friend’s house. The passenger got out and began walking toward the house when a group of males began yelling at the passenger as they approached him. The passenger recognized one of the males and began talking to the group when one of the suspect(s) struck the passenger in the side of the face. The group jumped into an unknown vehicle and drove off. Both victims were unable to get a plate number on the vehicle.

BUSTED

Name: Machvl Bom
The story: Bom was a disgruntled employee who became physically violent when his female supervisor gave him orders. He spit in his supervisor’s face and then punched her in the right side of the face and kicked her in the stomach. Other employees pulled Bom away from the supervisor during the assault. Bom claimed he accidentally hit her because she was tugging on his arm. He was charged with simple assault.

DOCKET DIVING

The following is from a recent ruling made by the Iowa Court of Appeals regarding the case of The State of Iowa vs. William Morton.

“At approximately 10:30 p.m. on June 6, 2006, Sioux City police officers made a traffic stop for speeding. William Morton was the sole passenger. Officers approached the passenger side of the vehicle and asked Morton for identification. As Morton provided a driver’s license, the driver told the officers that they could search his vehicle if they wanted to. The officers accepted. When Morton exited the car, an officer told him, ‘I got to pat you down real quick buddy.’ The officer stated during the search ‘you don’t have anything sharp on you? Can you kick your shoes off?’ Morton fully complied with the officer’s directions and requests. The officer found two baggies of marijuana in Morton’s shoes. Morton was arrested for possession of a controlled substance.

“Morton filed a motion to suppress the evidence of marijuana. After a hearing, the court overruled the motion finding that prevailing law permitted officer’s to conduct the pat down search for weapons as a safety precaution and Morton consented to the search by quickly kicking off his shoes after the request. On March 9, 2007, after overruling a motion in arrest of judgment, the court sentenced Morton to two days in jail, a 180 day driver’s license revocation, a $250 fine, $125 surcharge, court costs and attorney fees. Morton claims his motion to suppress evidence should have been granted under the federal and state constitutional protections against unreasonable searches and seizures.

“Morton claims there was no basis for the pat down search because officers did not have a reasonable suspicion that Morton was armed and dangerous. Morton claims that even if there was a reasonable basis for a pat down search for weapons, the officer’s search exceeded the permissible scope of a protective weapons search when he requested Morton take off his shoes and looked inside them.

“The district court erred in overruling Morton’s motion to suppress evidence. The officer exceeded the scope of a protective weapons search by requesting Morton remove his shoes without a reasonable belief that Morton was concealing a weapon in them. We reverse Morton’s conviction and remand for proceedings consistent with this opinion.”

Most wanted

Name: Larry Golston Jr.
Age: 23
Height: 5’6”
Weight: 155 lbs.
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Wanted for: Weapons charges and escape.
If you know where to find this fugitive, call Crime Stoppers at 223-1400.

268 : The number of houses in Polk County that went into foreclosure
in November 2007.

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