Crime briefs

Shot possibly fired during altercation

A verbal altercation late Friday night at the Washington Square shopping center between a group of people and a 23-year-old Petaluma man escalated, resulting in punches being thrown and possibly a handgun being fired, said Sgt. DJ Phimister of the Petaluma Police Department.

Police officers reported to the shopping center at 11:38 p.m. after receiving reports that a man with a gun was there. They found that an altercation had developed between the Petaluma man and several people inside an older model, two-tone van.

Witnesses said that the confrontation was mostly verbal, but that one or two punches were thrown by the Petaluma man. Although witnesses? reports conflict, a handgun may have been seen in the van as it left the area, and one shot may have been fired.

No injuries occurred, and no damages were found in the area. Officers didn?t find any suspects, and the Petaluma man refused to cooperate with officers, saying he didn?t want anyone to get in trouble.

Man held on drug charge after crash

A 31-year-old Petaluma man was arrested for driving under the influence of heroin after smashing into the back of a car at Stony Point Road and West Sierra Avenue Sunday morning, causing the 77-year-old driver to suffer severe cuts and her passenger to break an ankle, said California Highway Patrol sources.

At around 8 a.m., David Navarro Loza, 31, was driving his 1991 Honda Civic at a high rate of speed when he crashed into the back of a 1995 Ford Escort that was stopped at a traffic light. The driver of the Ford, Dolores Decanter of Sebastopol, suffered serious cuts on her head and arm, and her passenger, June Miller of Petaluma, broke her right ankle.

Decanter and Miller were rushed to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, where they were treated and then released.

Both cars were badly damaged in the accident.

CHP officers found that Loza was driving under the influence of a controlled substance, and arrested him. After the officers found heroin in Loza?s car, they also charged him with possession of a controlled substance.

Items stolen from 11 vehicles

Items were stolen from 10 vehicles in the Turtle Creek Subdivision and one vehicle on Jester Court early Friday morning, said Sgt. DJ Phimister of the Petaluma Police Department.

Officers discovered the thefts at 3 a.m., and noted that there were no indications of forced entry. All of the vehicles were either unlocked or the owners couldn?t remember if they had locked them.

No witnesses have been found, and little evidence was discovered, Phimister said, adding that anyone with information about the thefts should contact Petaluma police at 778-4372.

?We would also caution people to lock their vehicles and not leave anything of value inside them if they are parked outside overnight. A common method in these types of incidents is (for thieves) to simply walk next to vehicles, checking every door handle while looking for property in plain view,? Phimister said.

Petaluma man, 42, arrested on drug charges

A 42-year-old Petaluma man who was stopped because of a mechanical violation on his vehicle subsequently was arrested for possession of methamphetamine and narcotics paraphernalia early Friday morning on the 10 block of Graylawn Avenue, said Sgt. DJ Phimister of the Petaluma Police Department.

Police officers detained Larry F. Kennedy at 12:13 a.m., and as he got out of his vehicle, he threw a glass pipe, commonly used for smoking controlled substances, on the ground next to the vehicle. The officers searched his vehicle, and found that a pack of cigarettes on the front seat had a small packet of methamphetamine in it.

Kennedy is on probation for possessing narcotics paraphernalia, and by possessing narcotics, he violated his probation. He was arrested on possession of methamphetamine and possession of narcotics paraphernalia charges, was booked at the Petaluma Police Department and then was taken to Sonoma County Jail. No bail was set due to the probation violation.

Man suffers heart failure, crashes into fence

A Petaluma man driving eastbound at 35 mph on Caulfield Lane near Crinella Drive experienced sudden heart failure, causing him to abruptly drive up on an adjacent sidewalk, through a fence and into a backyard Thursday morning, said Sgt. Tim Lyons of the Petaluma Police Department.

A police officer found the driver, Gilbert Bakke, 59, at 10:40 a.m., around a minute after the accident occurred, and broke a window to get him out of his 2002 Ford F-150.

?Bakke had no pulse initially, so the officer called the Petaluma Fire Department to resuscitate him,? Lyons said. ?It?s not clear what exactly happened to him, although it was some type of heart failure.?

Bakke was transported to Petaluma Valley Hospital, where he remained in the intensive care unit.

His car was totaled, and fences of two residences were damaged.

Van, car collide as worker repairs traffic signal

A van and a car collided on North McDowell Boulevard and East Washington Street Thursday as a Public Works employee was repairing a traffic signal indicator that was damaged during a recent accident, said Police Sgt. Tim Lyons.

At 2:32 p.m., a 1997 Ford van driven by Mark Evans, 53, of Petaluma, crashed into a 2005 Toyota Prius driven by Joan Decker, 53, of Novato. The Toyota rolled over onto its roof, and Decker walked out.

Decker claimed that after stopping at a flashing red light, she had proceeded ahead at the intersection. Evans said that he was driving forward because traffic in his direction had a green light, Lyons said.

?The Public Works employee who was there said that the signal was working correctly, though,? he added.

Neither driver was injured, and no passengers were in either vehicle. The Toyota may be totaled and the van had minor damage, Lyons said.

At 1:41 a.m. on Sunday, a three car collision occurred in the area, damaging the traffic signal.