Trouble alarm in Centennial

At approximately 6:10 p.m. on April 6, an officer received a call on the primary squad phone from the UW-Eau Claire Custodial Lead regarding a trouble alarm for room 1110A in Centennial Hall.

The same message was displayed on the main fire alarm as was during a previous police case on April 3. The officer advised the lead she would be on her way to check the panel.

When she arrived, the officer checked the main fire panel and observed that it was audibly alerting. This was the same trouble alarm alerting as the previous case.

The officer went to Centennial Hall room 1110A and did not see any issues including unusual flashing lights or alarms in the electrical room.

She used the primary squad phone to speak with a sergeant and ensure she was good to acknowledge and silence the repeat trouble alarm without notifying the electrician again.

The officer returned to the fire panel and saw that the trouble alarm message had disappeared and stopped audibly alerting.

She observed that the fire panel displayed all systems were normal in Centennial hall.

The officer cleared Centennial Hall.

Rugby induced speeding

On April 8, an officer was parked in his fully marked squad car on Summit Avenue conducting stationary radar on vehicles driving by.

At approximately 7:42 a.m., the officer saw a sedan traveling toward his location at approximately 45 mph. He activated his radar and locked in the radar at 42 mph.

The posted speed limit on Water Street is 25 mph, and all speed limit signs are clearly posted and free of obstruction.

The officer activated his emergency lights and initiated a traffic stop on the vehicle.

At the stop, the officer made contact with the driver, introduced himself and explained the reason for the stop. The driver apologized for committing the speed violation and said he was excited about getting to the rugby tournaments that day.

The officer returned to his squad car and conducted a records check on the driver, who returned as valid to drive with no warrants, and he was not on probation.

The officer completed a Wisconsin Traffic Citation for the violation with a bond amount of $200.50.

When completed, he issued the citation, answered any questions and ended the contact.

Maybe marijuana

At approximately 11:28 p.m. on April 7, an officer responded to the area of Oakridge Hall parking lot for a check vehicle. The Communications Center said the complainant said she heard a car alarm outside and males laughing.

Officers checked the area and surrounding parking lots for several minutes. The officer did not observe anyone in any of the lots or hear a car alarm going off.

The officer spoke to the complainant over the phone who said she lived in Oakridge Hall. She said she heard the alarm go off then quickly stop, but she could not describe a vehicle.

However, she did say she heard male laughter then the alarm stop.

Given this information, the officer determined a group likely stepped outside one of the Oakridge stairwells briefly. There are alarms attached to the doors that sound when the doors are opened after hours.

The officer called the complainant and told her she likely heard the stairwell dorm alarm. He said it is a common practice for individuals to step outside the “out of sight exits” and smoke marijuana so they do not get caught.

The officer told the complainant to call back if she witnessed further suspicious behavior.

Officer drove behind Oakridge and Sutherland hall because this is a common area for individuals to smoke marijuana during hours of darkness.

The officer detected a faint smell of marijuana behind Sutherland Hall but could not determine the source and cleared without issue.

Price can be reached at [email protected].