UW-Eau Claire has welcomed back its students after being sent home due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Because students are occupying campus, that means the UW-Eau Claire Police Department has their hands full. 

The last two weeks consisted of naps on abandoned couches, hit and runs and a false alarm.

Nap Time

On Aug. 25 near midnight, an officer observed a male subject sleeping on a discarded couch next to some dumpsters in the north alley of the 200 block of Water Street, near 2nd Ave.

The officer woke him up and the male identified himself. He said he was homeless and saw a couch so he decided to lay down and take a nap on it. 

The officer told him he was off campus property; however, there was a city ordinance. The male said he knew about the camping ordinances.

The male said he usually stays at The Sojourner House or his sister’s house in Chippewa Falls, but didn’t have a place to stay tonight. He said he would be on his way and walked away on foot. 

Hit and run

An officer was dispatched to a hit and run in the Governor’s lot on Aug. 26 around 2 p.m. The officer was told the complainant was no longer on scene. 

The officer made contact with the complainant and they said they parked their car in a legal parking space in the Governor’s lot. They said their vehicle was facing the UW-Eau Claire Police squad car row. 

The complainant said they exited their vehicle and began filming the move-in activity. They then heard a weird noise and looked up to see a black truck sideswiping their vehicle while pulling into the spot next to theirs. 

They watched a male subject exit the driver’s side door and walk to their vehicle. They said he viewed their vehicle, looked at them, then walked off on foot. 

The complainant viewed their vehicle and said it had damage to the right side, including scratches and a broken taillight. The officer later viewed the damage and confirmed what they described. 

The officer walked the parking lot and found the suspect vehicle, a black 1998 Chevy GMT 400. The officer placed a business card on the windshield. 

The next day, the officer received a phone call from the male who hit the complainant’s vehicle. He confirmed he had hit the vehicle parked next to him. 

He said he attempted to write a note for the vehicle owner, but when he returned to the parking lot, the vehicle was gone so it went unreported. 

The officer said the male would be receiving a citation for hit and run and he said he understood.

The officer prepared the citation for the male and cleared the scene.  

Burglary… maybe

An officer was dispatched to Davies Center on the morning of Sept. 4 in response to a burglar alarm. The alarm company had tried to call the key holders, but there was no response. 

The officer arrived and observed normal traffic coming in and out of Davies Center. They entered the building and observed the Service Center was still closed with the gate across the front desk. 

The officer did not see anyone at the front desk area and spoke with an employee in the Blugold Card Office instead. 

The employee said another employee was having problems with the alarm and may still be in the Lost and Found room. 

The officer knocked on the door and the door opened by the other employee. They said they were a Service Center employee and were opening up for the day. They said other staff had reported problems with arming and disarming the alarm system and managers were notified.

The officer concluded there was nothing problematic there and cleared the scene. 

Dirks can be reached at [email protected].