UW-Eau Claire Police responded to a third hit and run in the past two weeks. 

Hit and run crash

An officer was dispatched on Sept. 21 in response to a vehicle crash that occurred in the Towers Hall parking lot. The officer on the scene observed that the hit car was parked legally within the parking lot. 

The victim said the car was parked two days prior and did not have any damage when the victim left it. The damage was found on the rear passenger side of the vehicle, and the office observed a red paint transfer. 

The victim told the officer he had done a search of the surrounding cars in the parking lot and located a vehicle with damage similar to that of his vehicle. 

The officer conducted a search of the suspected vehicle and was able to locate the owner of the vehicle and make contact with her. 

The suspected offender was able to meet with the officer and confessed to hitting the victim’s vehicle the day prior. 

Due to the fact that the offender was not in the vehicle after the accident and did not report the damage, she was given a hit and run citation. 

The officer issued the citation and cleared the scene. 

Checked vehicle

At 11:52 p.m. on Sept. 22, an officer out on patrol noticed a vehicle that was parked illegally in a no parking zone. 

The officer shined his spotlight to identify how many suspects were inside the vehicle. After seeing two individuals, the officer made contact with subjects in the van.

It was noted that the officer surmised the two individuals were living in their vehicle. 

After some questioning, the individuals said they were traveling across the country in their vehicle and had been told about the area through an attendant at a gas station. 

They stated they were unaware of the no parking sign and claimed they would move their vehicle to the Walmart parking lot for the night. 

The officer was able to do checks on both individuals, as well as the vehicle, to see there were no wants or previous offenses. 

The scene was then cleared.

Underage drinking

An officer on vehicle patrol observed an individual carrying around an orange construction cone at 2:55 a.m. on Sept. 23. 

According to the officer, the cone was being used to identify a no parking zone in Governor’s Hall. The officer observed the subject throw the cone into the bushes on the southside of Bridgeman Hall. 

The officer exited his vehicle and ordered the subject to return the cone to its original location, then began questioning the subject. 

The subject was identified and talked with slurred speech, had glassy eyes and smelled of alcohol, according to the report. 

The officer conducted a breathalyzer test and the subject had a 0.5 alcohol content level. 

An underage drinking citation was issued to the subject and the office explained the ramifications if more citations occur. 

Theft 

An officer was dispatched to Haas Fine Arts Hall on Sept. 23 to meet with a victim who was attending outdoor band practice. The individual said he left his backpack near a garbage can in the west parking lot.

However, when he went inside the building to get a new instrument and returned, his backpack was gone. 

The officer had the victim write up a written statement and gave him the case information so he could call if the backpack was found or returned. 

Shanahan can be reached at [email protected].