BRISTOL — On Feb. 28 Bristol police received a report from a Kountry Trailer Park resident who saw a dog belonging to another resident bite and injure a child.
Police investigated and found out that the family had taken the child to Porter Hospital, where he got 11-12 stitches in his right arm. The dog, the subject of at least two prior bite complaints, was seized for observation as it did not have a current rabies certificate.
The Bristol selectboard last week had a hearing and fined the owner and ordered the dog banned from Bristol. The family agreed to take the dog to a family farm in Washington County to avoid the dog’s destruction.
In other activity since the last log was published, Bristol police:
•  On Feb. 17 at 2:53 a.m. Police Chief Kevin Gibbs received a call at home advising him of a suspicious incident on Main Street. A resident had called because an unknown male subject had come to her apartment door, rung the doorbell and left, twice. Gibbs checked the area but did not locate anyone.
•  On Feb. 17 at 12:32 p.m. looked into a report that a car had been damaged in a parking lot off West Street.
•  On Feb. 17 at 4:07 p.m. dispatched to Munsill Avenue to investigate a reported threatening complaint. The resident of an apartment there had argued with the owner of a diesel pickup over a parking space. After police spoke to both of them, both parties agreed their attitudes were wrong and said they would work with the landlord about better parking arrangements.
Police took the resident, Dennis E. Gaskin, 26, into custody and processed him for possession of marijuana following the observation and seizure of marijuana within his apartment. He was released on citation.
•  On Feb. 19 looked into a report that an East Street resident was receiving unwanted text messages from an unknown person.
•  On Feb. 19 received a call from a Yonkers, N.Y., woman reporting fraud from the estate of a local disabled man. The woman, who had become the disabled man’s guardian in December 2011, told police she had recently learned money from an insurance settlement had been taken from the disabled man. An amount, estimated to be $12,000, was paid out but the guardian could not locate it. Follow-up is being conducted.
•  On Feb. 20 at 12:40 a.m. assisted state police and Four-Hills Farm in corralling cows that were loose in the roadway during a snowstorm.
•  On Feb. 23 initiated an investigation of a report of at least two dozen instances of embezzlement from Maplefields by a store employee. Investigation continues. The employee has been terminated by Maplefields and court action is pending.
•  On Feb. 24 at 9:30 a.m. checked the VIN of a motorcycle purchased from a subject in Newport so the buyer could get a Vermont registration. The officer found the motorcycle was stolen. The buyer provided, to Vermont State Police, a sworn written statement and copy of the bill of sale describing the purchase of the bike, and the motorcycle was impounded at state police headquarters in New Haven. VSP found the motorcycle was stolen in 2011.
•  In late February unsuccessfully attempted to locate 34-year-old Kathleen Gorton and 25-year-old David Ciulla, both of Bristol. Both were wanted for failure to appear in court in separate cases. Anyone with information on their whereabouts is asked to call Bristol police at 802-453-2533.
•  On Feb. 26 received a watch found in the driveway of the Bristol Recreation Field. Police said they would hold the timepiece pending identification of an owner or disposal.
•  On Feb. 28, a citizen turned in a Vermont license plate found on the street in the Bristol area. The owner was identified and contacted to retrieve it from the Bristol municipal offices.
•  On Feb. 28 received information about a suspected child neglect case and forwarded it to DCF.
•  On March 2 delivered subpoenas to several local people regarding a criminal case against Kelvin Emmons.
•  On March 2 at 1:31 p.m. checked a report of a 911 hang-up call from an Elm Street residence. The homeowner said a young child was trying to teach a younger sibling how to dial 911 in an emergency.
•  On March 2 opened an investigation into drug sales in the police district.
•  On March 3 at 8:55 p.m. assisted VSP at a traffic stop on West Street involving possession of marijuana and driving under the influence.
•  On March 4 at 12:11 a.m. assisted VSP in attempting to locate a subject reportedly walking in the roadway on the Monkton/Bristol Road near the town line.
•  On March 4 at 2:06 p.m. helped out a woman in the municipal office who was suffering from dementia and had walked away from her home on Plank Road. She was returned home. Police urge residents with family members with similar family care issues to take periodic photos of the family member and to contact police so they can assist in safety planning.
•  On March 4 at 3:20 p.m. received a report from the Hub teen center staff that a vehicle traveled through the parking lot at high speed and nearly hit a fence at the tennis courts. Police warned the driver.
•  On March 5 met with Mount Abraham Union High School staff regarding two truant students from the same family; they both failed to attend school after repeated absences and after a truancy meeting with the parent. Police served a truancy notice to the parents.
While at MAUHS another case arose and police served a truancy notice on a different parent in a separate case.
•  On March 5 at 3:07 p.m. received a report from MAUHS staff regarding two students who had asked permission to use a parking lot, where they would hook the rear of two trucks together with a chain for a “pull off,” as they called it. The goal was to see which truck had more power, pulling the weaker truck as both trucks accelerated forward. The students were told they could not but did so anyway. Both students were ticketed for unsafe start and trespass with a motor vehicle. One of the students was also ticketed for driving with a suspended license.
•  On March 8 were told that a citizen had sold a vehicle to a Middlebury woman. One of two license plates was not removed at sale because of rusted screws. The buyer agreed to return the plate later but failed to do so, and was now refusing to. Police contacted the buyer and advised her that court action would be taken for theft of the plate if it was not returned. Action is pending.
•  On March 5 quieted a verbal dispute between a parent and a juvenile. Arrangements were made for a cooling off period for both parties.
•  On March 7 attended a meeting with school staff, parents and their student regarding discipline and truancy issues. Services were arranged for the student. No police action at this time.
•  On March 8, with a Department of Children and Families investigator, interviewed an underage female following a report the minor was involved in sexual relationship with an adult male. Follow-up is planned.
•  On March 8 were told by Bristol Elementary School staff that a boy was overheard by staff making a threat that he said would be carried out at a school dance. The student was interviewed by police, BES staff and the child’s parent. The child was warned for making threats and the parent agreed the child would not be permitted to go to the dance and would be closely supervised.
•  On March 8 at 10 a.m. received a report of the theft of an iPod from Martin’s Hardware. Police are attempting to identify suspects caught on a surveillance camera.
•  On March 9 at 11:05 a.m. responded to an East Street residence, where a parent reported her son was locked in his room and was refusing to come out and go to several appointments. The officer convinced the child to let him in the room, and then convinced him to go with his mother to the appointments.
•  On March 9 at 5:41 p.m. received a report that someone on a dirt bike was riding around on MAUHS property and cutting through a resident’s yard into the trailer park.
•  On March 10 at approximately 12:02 p.m. received a report from a resident who believed their vehicle had been taken from a parking space on Main Street. A short time later the resident located the vehicle.
•  On March 10 at 6:33 p.m. stopped a vehicle for speeding on Burpee Road, and cited the driver, Stephen J. Pickering, 20, of Winooski for possession of marijuana.
•  On March 11 received reports and began follow up on three separate incidents of people driving away from Maplefields without paying for gasoline. The amounts left unpaid were $26.50, $50 and $30.
•  On March 11 received a request from MAUHS to serve a Truancy Notice to a police district resident whose child was still failing to attend school regularly after a meeting on the subject with a parent.
•  On March 11 at 5:24 p.m. dispatched to a reported fight in the park involving several subjects. Upon approach police observed a group of four male subjects walking toward the old high school building. Investigation revealed at least two of the subjects had been fighting. This case remains open.
•  On March 11 served an abuse prevention order at the request of the Addison Superior Court.
•  On March 12 at 6:52 p.m. called to a Main Street apartment to investigate the odor of marijuana. After obtaining a search warrant and performing a search, police cited Debra Elizabeth Foley, 42, for possession of marijuana and violation of conditions of release. Foley has two prior charges pending for possession.
•  On March 13 at 12:58 p.m. investigated a report that someone had left Maplefields without paying for $20 in gasoline. The driver reported that it was accidental.
•  On March 14 at 3:20 p.m. responded to a two-vehicle crash with injuries on West Street near Liberty. Two female operators, one from Middlebury and the other from Starksboro, were both injured. The crash resulted when the Starksboro woman failed to notice the Middlebury woman was making a turn onto Liberty Street. Both vehicles were towed due to damage. The Middlebury woman was transported to Porter Hospital with possible back injuries. The Starksboro woman was checked at the scene by the Bristol Rescue Squad and released. No court action is planned.
•  On March 14 at 2:34 p.m. stood by at a Bristol residence while awaiting counseling help for a local person.