Crime Reports, April 19-25

The following incident and arrest information was compiled using official documents, reports and affidavits obtained from government and law enforcement agencies. This feature is not inclusive. It is a sampling of reported incidents in the Flagler County area. Note: The U.S. legal system provides the presumption of innocence to those charged with a crime until guilt is proven in a court of law.

House Party Gets Young Man Arrested

A noise complaint called in to Sheriff’s deputies just before midnight April 23 ended in the arrest of a 22-year-old Palm Coast resident. When deputies arrived at the Eric Drive home, the 19-year-old that answered the door smelled of alcohol and admitted drinking, the report said. Inside, 11 hands went up when deputies asked who there was underage and drinking alcohol, the report said. Deputies arrested the primary resident of legal drinking age at the home for holding an open house party. They also scolded the underage drinkers and made sure they had safe rides home.

IRS to Palm Coast Woman: You already filed

When Carol Palmer tried to file her annual income taxes earlier this month, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) rejected the documents, an April 23 report said. A 2009 income tax return was filed from California in Palmer’s name, IRS officials told her. But little other information was available when she reported the incident to deputies. Palmer told deputies she had never lost her social security card, but did live in California a decade ago.

Driving and Snorting With a Baby in the Back

A Georgia couple was arrested April 24 after deputies found them driving the wrong way on westbound Palm Coast Parkway with cocaine, painkillers and drug paraphernalia in the car. A charred spoon used to heat and administer drugs was also found within “arm’s reach” of the two-year-old in the backseat, the report said.

Stacey E. Smith, 28, Savannah, Ga., was charged with drug and parahernalia possession and child neglect. Deputies said she admitted snorting some of the painkillers and they found a syringe and charred spoon in her pocket. Her boyfriend and the car’s driver, Kevin T. Jiran, 31, Savannah, Ga., was charged for driving with a suspended license. The toddler, who was said to be dirty and in a car that was “covered in filth,” was taken into state custody.

Credit card thief spent big at Target

One Palm Coast man apparently got quite a surprise when he checked his bank account balance recently. He discovered a $932 transaction made at a Target store in Riverside, Fla., that wasn’t his. The man told deputies his card never left his hands but he uses the card frequently at the Race Trac gas station on Palm Coast Parkway.

Car burglaries

Vehicles were reported vandalized or burglarized at the following locations:

• Prairie Lane, Palm Coast, April 23. A key was used to scratch the hood of a Jeep Wrangler, causing approximately $400 in damage.
• Pillar Lane, Palm Coast, April 25. Papers from inside the glove box of an Infiniti model car were rifled through and left strewn across the passenger seat. A GPS device and charger was taken.

Home burglaries

Homes were reported vandalized or burglarized at the following locations:

• Becker Lane, Palm Coast, April 24. A mailbox, landscaping and garage of a home were vandalized. A hole was found in the mailbox, all of the flowers around the home were cut and the yard and garage were spray painted white.
• Sloganeer Trail, Palm Coast, April 24. A pool pump was stolen from a vacant rental property and PVC pipes for the pool system were cut.

DUI Arrests

In 2008, an estimated 11,773 people were killed in automobile crashes involving a drunk driver (someone with a blood alcohol content level of .08 or more), according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.  Soon, a varying list of traffic and law enforcement agencies will begin releasing the DUI data they compiled in 2009. Whether drunk driving’s annual death toll rose or fell last year, the number isn’t likely to be the only acceptable one: zero.

These reportedly impaired drivers were found driving on Flagler’s streets this week and were arrested.

• Samuel Earl, 34, Bunnell. April 24.
• Debra J. Matthews, 56, Bunnell. April 24.
• Douglas C. McRae, 27, Palm Coast. April 25.