RAP SHEET

Operator: 911 . . .

Caller: Uh, two young men been knocking at my door and they just now walked into the patio and stole some stuff I just purchased at, uh, Menards yesterday.
O: Who are they?
C: I don't know. I've never seen them before.
O: And when did they do this? Just now?
C: Just now. Just now. It was two orange bags... with outdoor lights. And they came in through the patio door...
O: And you were home when this happened?
C: Yeah, yeah.
O: And it just happened now? Which way did they go?
C: Let's see. They went right towards the neighbor's house.
O: Which way is that?
C: That would be east... uh, north.
O: And they went in the house?
C: No, they came into my house.
O: But did they go into the neighbor's house?
C: I don't know. I couldn't see.
O: So where were you when they did this?
C: I was just coming through the back door to look out. To see what all this noise...
O: And what did they take?
C: They took three orange bags. From Menards.
O: Did you see what they looked like at all?
C: Yeah, one man had a stocking hat on and the other one kind of had, like a smaller...
O: Were they both white males?
C: Yes.
O: And one had on a stocking cap?
C: Yeah and the other one had a hat too but...
O: Do you know what kind of hat the other one had on?
C: No, I don't. It was just a black hat.
O: Did you see any vehicles or anything?
C: No, there were no vehicles. They were on foot.
O: OK. We'll get somebody out there.

Officer's Report: Dispatched reference a burglary that had just taken place. I went to the residence and spoke with homeowner, Michael, who told me that she saw two young, white males walk up to her front porch and knock on the door. She did not answer the door, just peeked out the blinds and saw the smaller of the two sitting in the rocks by the front of her house. Her dog went and stood by the side door that leads to the enclosed breezeway that has a sliding door entrance from the outside. She saw the taller subject inside the breezeway looking around. She knocked on the window and he grabbed the three orange Menards sacks off the table and ran out. Then both subjects ran toward the yard to the west. Michael called Menards to let them know what was taken in case the subjects tried to return the merchandise for cash. The area was thoroughly searched by several deputies, but we were unable to locate the suspects.

Docket Diving

The strategically placed iced donut holes left on her desk that were artfully arranged by her co-workers into the shape of a penis weren't quite enough for Nita Warne to mount a credible sexual harassment case that would stand up to legal scrutiny. Employed as a sandwich artist at a Subway/TCBY in Atlantic, Warne was accustomed to putting up with teenage part-timers who often "engaged in jokes and hijinks at work." But, according to Warne, such juvenile antics weren't limited to her younger coworkers and descended into what she claimed amounted to sexual harassment.

As early as 1998, Warne alleged that the shop's owners - Robert and Kristin Thornton - created a sexually charged work environment, with Kristin showing Warne "a calendar depicting partially nude motorcycle women, which she intended to give to her son," and Robert telling Warne's daughter that "her chest was not developed." Later, Warne claimed to have found, on separate occasions, two sexually explicit drawings and meatballs positioned into the shape of a penis on her desk, and, when she brought it to her employers' attention, the Thornton's simply told her to "lighten up." Then came the supposed final straw in November 2003, when she found a note on her desk - "Nita: Here's breakfast from your two favorite employees" - accompanying "doughnut holes which had been arranged in the shape of a penis, and which had icing or mayonnaise on it to represent semen." Shortly after the incident, Warne quit and, six months later, was granted a right-to-sue letter by the Iowa Civil Rights Commission.
But the subsequent trial in Cass County District Court found that Warne was hard-pressed for substantive evidence of a hostile work environment. The district judge noted that, in fact, the Thorntons responded promptly to the donut stunt, dispensing a written warning to the offending employees and ordering they apologize to Warne for their prank. The defense also brought forward two other female employees who contradicted Warne's claims of a sexually charged workplace and, pointed out that Warne's motivation for quitting was suspect: just two days after she resigned she began working at a local steakhouse where she could earn far more money than her Subway gig. As such, the district dismissed Warne's sexual harassment claims and the former sandwich artist took her case to the Court of Appeals.

But that didn't stack up in her favor, either. "Regarding the jokes, innuendos and calendars, the district court found Warne had been a willing and voluntary participant in these activities," appeals judge John Miller pointed out. And because there was insufficient proof to verify the sexually explicit drawings or meatball penis, the only hard evidence of purported harassment was the doughnut hole artwork and that alone "was not continuous, severe or pervasive enough to rise to a violation of the Iowa Civil Rights Act," Miller continued. Not to mention, there was additional evidence that Warne was disgruntled at her not being promoted to assistant manager, and that snub, not sexual harassment, may have spurred her departure. So, despite the various manifestations of genitalia that graced her desk, the Court of Appeals saw no reason to reinterpret the district's ruling and affirmed the lowers court's decision.

Sucks to be you

Name: Stewart Jenkins
Place of Incident: Des Moines
Posed for this picture because: Stewart Jenkins got himself busted with a simple salutation. Though a common greeting that typically requires no answer, Stewart asked "What's up?" of a man he encountered in an alley last week and, when he didn't get the reaction he intended, announced that he'd show him what's up and went inside to retrieve a handgun. Turned out the unresponsive man happened to be a plain-clothed police officer, who not only had a gun of his own but also the power to search Jenkins's home and discover 15 grams of crack cocaine and $8,000. In addition to drug charges, Jenkins was booked on assault and fugitive-related charges stemming from a Michigan conviction.

Unfinished Business

According to the Polk County Treasurer's Office, the following are among the $1.1 million in outstanding 2005 property tax payments due Sept. 30:

- The Metro Market owes $16,189 for property at 2001 High St., Des Moines
- Planned Parenthood of Greater Iowa owes $19,374 for property at 1171 Seventh St., Des Moines
- Willow Creek Golf Course owes $27,711 for property at 140 Army Post Road, West Des Moines
- Woodland Park Associates LC owes $31,654 for property at 3408 Woodland Ave., West Des Moines
- High Land Co. LC owes $37,287 for property at 2019 Ingersoll Ave., Des Moines
- DMA Enterprises owes $37,680 for property at 3300 101st St., Urbandale

On the Clock

Des Moines Police - Dec. 1

2:02 a.m. Robbery in the 4700 block of Merle Hay Road, involving a clerk at the Super 8 Motel who was counting down her drawer when a fire alarm on the south side of the building went off and she left the drawer open as she went to investigate. When she returned, the door had locked behind her but $450 in cash was missing from the drawer.

3:47 a.m. Attempted burglary in the 1800 block of Army Post Road, involving an alarm sounding at a bail bonds location, where a front window had been "smashed out with a large chunk of concrete." Bicycle tracks were observed leading away from the scene, but no items were reported missing.

4:07 a.m. Assault in the 900 block of Oakridge Boulevard, involving a mother reporting her son out of control, leaving his brother and sister outside in the cold while he was left to care for them. Upon the mother's return, the juvenile suspect allegedly became violent, pushing her through a closet door and acting "aggressive and uncooperative" with police, who transported him to juvenile court.

7:30 a.m. Assault causing injury at Hoover High School, involving a juvenile female who "dropped her books on the floor and started to hit and pull [the] hair" of another female student who was allegedly talking negatively about the aggressor's sister, who had purportedly "bumped into her while dancing" at Club AM the preceding weekend, sparking a fight at the nightclub. Four juvenile females were charged with disorderly conduct and referred to the Juvenile Court Office for their involvement in the fight.

8 a.m. Burglary in the 2700 block of Kinsey, involving a female witness observing a male suspect removing property from her deceased brother's garage. Upon arrest, the man told police he had entered through a broken window and intended on selling the items to a scrap metal vendor.

(Alleged) Drunk Drivers

Name: Vaclav John Rozanek
Arrested: Nov. 28
Third offense

Name: Clarence Eugene Johnson
Arrested: Nov. 28
Second offense

Name: Tyler Joe Steele
Arrested: Dec. 1
Second offense

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