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This information is from the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office and the Menlo Park Police Department. Under the law, people charged with offenses are considered innocent unless convicted. The dates that police received the calls are shown.
WEST MENLO PARK
Animal cruelty report: The owner of a 3-year-old female cat on Lucky Avenue told sheriff’s deputies that her cat came limping home on or about April 9, her left front leg apparently injured. An X-ray by a veterinarian showed a bullet fragment that had “completely crushed” the bones in the cat’s shoulder, with the result that her leg will have to be amputated. April 17.
WOODSIDE
Disorderly conduct report: Deputies arrested and booked into jail a San Mateo man on suspicion of having entered a women’s restroom in Huddart Park on Kings Mountain Road, where he allegedly peered over a stall wall and photographed a girl. Witnesses detained the man until deputies arrived. April 20.
Prowler report: A resident of Moore Road claimed to be have been awakened after midnight by a banging noise at the front door. When she went to the door, she saw a slim man dressed in black running toward her front gate. April 19.
Fraud report: A resident of Oakhaven Way claimed that when he tried to file his federal tax return online, he received an error message. He said the Internal Revenue Service told him that his tax return had already been filed under the correct Social Security number but from an address that hadn’t been his residence for 18 months. April 18.
PORTOLA VALLEY
Fraud report: Someone opened credit card accounts for a resident of Portola Road using the resident’s name, Social Security number, date of birth and home address. When she received the cards, she had them canceled. April 18.
ATHERTON
Fraud reports:
■ A resident of Greenoaks Drive paid $10,150 over eBay for what turned out to be a fake Hermes Birkin blue Togo purse. Since the eBay posting originated in Plano, Texas, the police department there has taken the case. April 23.
■ A Tuscaloosa Avenue resident recently scheduled for jury duty called police to say that she received an anonymous phone call about having to pay a fee related to jury duty. No payments were made. April 23.
MENLO PARK
Residential burglary reports:
■ Someone forced open rear doors to two houses under construction and stole tools. Stolen from a home on White Oak Drive were four saws and a drill set, a value of $3,160. Stolen from a house on Oakdell Drive were a saw and a compressor, an $850 value. April 23.
■ A $1,000 bicycle was stolen from the open garage of a resident of Morgan Lane. April 20.
Theft reports:
■ Two unattended empty soft-drink vending machines were stolen from a parking lot on Haven Avenue. Estimated loss: $1,800. April 21.
■ Someone stole a delivered package containing a dress and a hat, together worth $380, from the front porch of a house on White Oak Drive. April 24.
■ A $325 camera was stolen from the trunk of an unlocked vehicle sometime in early April, and the trunk lid left not fully closed. April 24.
■ A woman who owed fees to the Menlo Park Public Library on Alma Street left the library and fled with a book she had not checked out and without having first settled her debt. April 24.
■ Someone stole a locked bicycle from a bike rack in the 800 block of El Camino Real. April 24.
Reckless vehicle report: Police cited a woman driving the wrong way on the Bayfront Expressway near the intersection with Chilco Street at about 3:20 p.m. April 20.
By Dave Boyce
By Dave Boyce
By Dave Boyce
For cat owners who are foolish enough to let their pet roam the neighborhood it is not an unusual occurrence for that animal to come home injured, sick or not at all. The world is too dangerous a place for domestic animals to be wandering around alone. The shooter may have done a favor to readers as well as this cat owner, though it’s a tough lesson. The owner bears as much blame as the shooter though will likely never admit it. With all the cat toys available including outdoor pens, there is no excuse to send a cat alone out into the neighborhood. Dumb and cruel!
It often isn’t easy to keep your cat(s) inside — they naturally want out. But I agree with Cat Advocate. There are many alternatives and pluses in keeping your cats safe from cars, poisonous materials and other animals including nasty people. If you have toys, scratching posts, windows and interact (PLAY) with your cat on a regular basis, there is no need for them to be outside. They also become much more attached to you when they depend on you for entertainment. If one cannot provide that perhaps people should reconsider a pet at all.
Don’t blame the cat owners! Cats are natural hunters and when the call of the wild beckons, they find a way to answer it! I have an indoor cat but occassionally he darts for the door (especially when we are distracted with guests or the mailman). If we chase him down, he will run across the road or even farther away. He slinks back home a few hours later, meowing at the door looking for his dinner.
So many shelter cats are euthanized. I would rather see them in loving homes, even if the owners are a little lax with doors, or don’t have the means to buy outdoor pens. Someone shot this cat. I blame that person for this poor cat’s injuries.
A cat occasionally darting out a door is one thing – purposefully letting them outside routinely is another. Dogs love to be outdoors and many will jump at the change to take off, but does that mean you let them roam?? NO. Yes, the person who shot the cat is to blame and that is exactly my point. Domesticated (and wild) animals cannot protect themselves from the dangers of people, cars, poisons — deliberate or not. Too many cats in shelters is not a good reason to let your pet run free.