East Precinct cops nabbed a bad guy today -- Washington State Department of Corrections Most Wanted's Bartholomew Lee Jones. Jones was captured this afternoon after eluding arrest near Olive Way at Harvard. The 5'9" 200-pound man was caught by another officer a few blocks away and booked into King County jail on charges of obstruction. Jones was convicted on charges of child molestation in Snohomish County in September.

After a day of joy and hope for the future, here's a look back at the last week's activities in Capitol Hill's shadows. Items are culled from Central District News, SPD reports and, on occasion, other media outlets. Bonus lowlight -- this report of an attempted home break-in on Sunday, Jan 11.

Capitol Hill Police Activity for Jan 12 trough Jan 16 - CDN Scanner Reports

Monday Jan 12
2:53PM  - 1300 E Madison St  - Narcotics Activity  - Several people doing drugs under the bus shelter

Tuesday Jan 13
2:25PM  - 900 19th Ave E  - Suspicious Circumstance  - Man going through a yellow purse. White male, 40s, 6'2

Wednesday Jan 14th
5:49PM  - 417 Broadway E  - Shoplifting  - 15-year-old boy in custody at QFC. His parents are refusing to pick him up.

Thursday Jan 15th
4:33PM  - Bellevue and E Pine St  - Vandalism  - Three men tagging a building, hispanic males, teens, dark hoodies. Update: the men are contracted to paint over the graffiti

9:45PM - 100 block of Broadway...

Haven't posted this one yet as I've been trying to find out a little more about the incident. Not my job to draw a line between insane behavior and hate, but the initial report from SPD and the write-ups from the PI and KOMO leave me wanting to know more. In the meantime, here's the report from SPD:

Malicious Harassment Arrest in East Precinct
On 1/15/09 at approximately 9:45 PM East Precinct Officers responded to a call of a man chasing a woman in the 100 block of Broadway Ave. E. Upon arrival, officers located the suspect, the victim and several witnesses. Investigation revealed that the victim was taking a cigarette break from her job, and had walked outside with her friend. The suspect fixated on the victim and made threatening statements that referenced sexual orientation. The suspect than attempted to assault the victim and threatened to kill her because of her sexual orientation. The victim was able to run away from the suspect and was not injured. The suspect was arrested and booked into KCJ for Investigation...

This account of an attempted home break-in in Radio Point will make you want to go double-check your deadbolts -- or be thankful you live in a condo or apartment building. The post showed up on CHS Monday morning but I didn't want to bring it to everybody's attention until I was able to get more details and confirm a few facts with SPD. Here's the description of the attempted break-in:

12.30am Sunday morning January 11 we experienced an attempted break-in to our townhome on 18th Avenue. We were home upstairs, with the lights on. The door bell at our upper door (split level entry) rang a few times in quick succession, followed by a brief wait, and another few rings. We stayed quiet; discussing whether or not to see what was up.

Shortly thereafter, they tried to kick in our lower door and break the frame. This shook the front of the house and was very forceful. At this point I (Matthew) came downstairs while Tricia phoned 911. I looked out the window and noticed there were two young gang members (confirmed later...

Central District News reports daily on the ugly, mundane, odd and sometimes humorous crimes that happen across the East Precinct including Capitol Hill. The police scanner crackles off another dispatch and they take note. I've looked for various ways to include a selection of their Capitol Hill reports -- here's another. Let's try the weekly round-up approach. I think there is value in keeping up on the nastiness and strangeness that hits CDNews' radar -- if nothing else, it helps me as a reporter to keep track of the crime buzz in the neighborhood.

Police Scanner Report Activity for Jan 5 trough Jan 9 - CDN Scanner Reports
Monday 4:37PM  - 1401 Broadway  - Disturbance  - A man walked into the QFC, slit his wrists, and then walked back outside

Tuesday 1:13PM  - 1400 E. Howell  - Suspicious Circumstance  - A man in the alley told the complainant that he needed a gas can and would be looking for one in people's sheds. Black male 40s, dark blue sweat pants, possibly intoxicated

Wednesday...

Somebody is threatening Capitol Hill gay bars with attacks using the deadly poison ricin. The Stanger reports that it and 11 gay bars received threatening letters today describing how the attacks would unfold. Here is the letter received by Re-Bar that appeared on the Slog:

The letter writer named Elite, Neighbours, Wild Rose, the Cuff, Purr, the Eagle, R Place, Re-bar, CC's, Madison Pub, and the Crescent in the letter sent to The Stranger. The writer, it seems, knows his or her gay bars including the top 5. Some talk of bar crawls this weekend in defiance of the threats. Going out?

A King County judge set bail at $2 million each for the two suspects in this weekend's shootings at Chop Suey. Documents from the hearing paint a picture of a personal dispute that played out with deadly consequences for those who happened to be caught in its path.

Roger La Branche, 25, was arrested at the scene of the crime on Sunday morning after he was grabbed and detained by clubgoers in the chaos following the shootings. According to court documents, the shootings were part of a long-running dispute between the Everett man and one of the two victims who survived the shooting. The victim told detectives he saw Labranche outside of the club earlier in the night talking to a man that was later identified as the second suspect, 18-year-old Carlos Bernardez. Bernardez, who lives in an apartment near Harborview, was arrested by a SWAT team at his parents' home, Sunday.

According to the documents, Bernardez claims he was recruited by La Branche at Chop Suey the night of the show to help in the shooting and that...

A second arrest has been made in this weekend's Chop Suey nightclub shootings that left one performer dead and two patrons wounded. From the SPD blotter:

Second Suspect Arrested in Chop Suey Shooting
On the evening of January 4th, the SWAT team was deployed to apprehend the outstanding suspect, believed to be involved in the shooting incident at Chop Suey night club. After a lengthy stakeout, the second suspect, an 18-year-old man, was taken into custody outside of his parent’s home. The suspect was interviewed and subsequently booked into the King County Jail, for Investigation of Assault.

This is the second arrest reported related to the early Sunday morning crime. Previously, a 25-year-old man was booked on suspicion of felony assault.

12:43a No word on injuries but report of assault with weapons tonight at 1325 E Madison tonight just before 12:30a. Got scanner report that officer believes he has the shooter in custody but that the weapon was taken from the scene by another suspect.

UPDATE 1:04a Slog reports three people taken to Harborview.

UPDATE: 5:15a I still don't have official word on any of the victims. Slog says at least one had died.

UPDATE: 6:33a Heard KOMO AM report on the story. They are also reporting 1 dead, two injured. BTW, Baltic Room shooting just under 1 year ago, Jan. 26, 2008.

UPDATE: 7:00a Here's the release from SPD on the incident:

Homicide, shooting in Central District
On January 4th at 12:27 a.m. officers responded to 911 calls of shots fired at a nightclub in the 1300 block of East Madison Street. Officers arrived on scene in under a minute and discovered three gunshot victims, all males apparently in their 20’s. SFD Medics were summoned immediately and subsequently transported all three victims to...

Seattle PI

One of the most interesting -- and darkest -- pieces of local journalism wrapping up last year is this Seattle PI article by Casey McNerthney documenting every 2008 murder in the city. Included in the piece is this map pinpointing where each crime occurred.

A little difficult to read the small map -- but you can see three dots marking deaths between the I5-Madison angle and the shores of Lake Washington. One of those was the murder of 25-year-old Moe Allen:

Maurice "Moe" Allen Jr., Jan. 26 -- Allen, 25, was shot outside the Baltic Room nightclub on Capitol Hill as patrons left a hip-hop-themed night called "The Lick."

He was shot in the chest just before 1 a.m.

The Baltic Room owner said that before the violence erupted, staff members turned Allen away from the door several times because he was wearing athletic gear and a hat, which were violations of the dress code. Allen also lacked identification. Security video footage shows him apparently smoking a cigarette near the curb before the shooting....

Read this one in a Last Days David Schmader voice. Strange Tuesday on the Hill. And, some of you admit it -- you scan this report to find out where you can score drugs on the Hill if you wanted to score drugs which you don't really want to do but think would be cool to try again someday.

Central District News East Precinct Scanner - Capitol Hill - Tuesday 12/30/2008 - Full Report

OK -- warm and fuzzy holiday time is over. Time to get back to what's going on in the dark cold streets of Capitol Hill.

And be careful out there -- might get windy tonight.

Central District News East Precinct Scanner - Capitol Hill - Monday 12/29/2008 - Full Report

3:30PM - 225 Broadway E. - Shoplifting - Person in custody at Panache

4:52PM - Broadway & E. John Seattle - Eluding - Officers are behind a vehicle that had previously eluded them a few days ago. Two taken into custody.

A 911 dispatch came down the wire earlier tonight regarding an assault with weapons in the neighborhood. The callout was designated '7 per rule' which typically means life threatening injuries. The location was the main Group Health building so I set out expecting to find a bad scene. But when I arrived there no ambulances, no police cars, no press (except for me and, I think, the guy in the black Land Rover who circled the hospital 8 or 9 times). My first thought was a typo in the 911 dispatch. But I called the SPD's media update line just to be sure. Turns out, they already had their report on the incident.

According to SPD, the shooting didn't happen here. The 911 call was made from Group Health when, around 6:25p, a black male in his 20s showed up at the entrance to the emergency room with two gunshot wounds to the leg. SPD says there are no known incidents involving a shooting on Capitol Hill or anywhere in Seattle at this time and that the victim is not being "very forthcoming" with information. The investigation,...

How cop cars gets chains

Central District News East Precinct Scanner - Capitol Hill - Thursday 12/19/2008 - Full Report

A 64-year-old woman who walked dogs and watched homes while allegedly stealing thousands of dollars worth of art and jewelry from residents in one of the richest neighborhoods in the country made her home in an apartment somewhere on Capitol Hill, Seattle Times says. Allison Chodl is being hit with a variety of theft-related charges for a series of crimes in lovely Medina WA, home to Bill Gates and the richest ZIP code on the Puget Sound with households averaging income of more than $1 million.

Her beauty, reports KOMO, was an asset:

"Because she was an attractive lady, there was absolutely no suspicion that anything was wrong," said Nancy Robinson of Redmond Cash Brokers.

I tried digging into where Chodl's apartment is on the Hill but couldn't find anything in public records like licensing databases, etc.. Sometimes big media can be very liberal with the definition of "Capitol Hill" so it's possible she isn't a resident of the area. But if anybody saw the Medina police force loading a big truck full of...

Scanner tidbits from the Capitol Hill streets are below. Make sure to check out the outstanding coverage of last night's Garfield Community Center shooting over at CDNews.

Central District News East Precinct Scanner - Capitol Hill - Tuesday 12/16/2008 - Full Report

Monday's chill made for a quiet day in police action on Capitol Hill.

Central District News East Precinct Scanner - Capitol Hill - Monday 12/15/2008 - Full Report

12:08PM - 1719 17th Ave - Disturbance

Only two reports of note in the scanner hopper this morning but one of them is yet another car vs. pedestrian accident near Pike and Broadway. It's on the list of city's worst intersections. Be careful -- drivers, walkers and bikers. Also, following up on an incident we mentioned yesterday regarding a 911 dispatch to Bellevue & Denny, SFD says the call was for a man who became ill. No accident, etc.

Central District News East Precinct Scanner - Capitol Hill - Wed. 12/10/2008 - Full Report

Here are a few crime notes from a hey-that's-alright-with-me slow day on the Hill. One bonus item from Twitter:

12:44AM - 1521 24th Ave E - Single Car Accident - Twitter report of flipped SUV on 24th Ave early Monday a.m.

Central District News East Precinct Scanner - Capitol Hill - Mon. 12/9/2008 - Full Report

1:12PM - 1200 10th E - Suspicious Circumstance - A man has been following the female complainant recently. He's now sitting on a bench at 10th E & E. Harrison, and she wants police to give him what-for.

1:52PM - 900 12th E - Alarm - Audible residential alarm

2:40PM - 21st & E. Union - Narcotics Activity - 3 subjects are approaching cars to sell the drugs. Unknown race male in a black hooded jacket.

The case against Long Hoang Le, the 20-year-old man we named as the suspect in the Kerse tribute tagging in Pike/Pine last month, is now with the King County Prosecutors office, spokesperson Dan Donohoe confirmed for us this week. But it's still not clear if Le will be hit with the felony-level malicious mischief charge authorities initially were considering for the incident. From Donohoe: "There has been no decision regarding charges. The case is still under review."

Here's the rundown of Capitol Hill police activity for a soaked and shoplifting-full Tuesday.

Central District News East Precinct Scanner - Capitol Hill - Tue. 12/2/2008 - Full Report

10:33AM - 723 E. Pike - Disturbance - A man with mental issues walked into a store and started yelling, threatened to throw things around. He left eastbound on Pike. White male, 40s, pony tail, missing some teeth.

10:52AM - 1401 Broadway - Shoplifting - QFC security is chasing two shoplifters.
Update: Female caught, male still on the run. White male, 25, black coat, black pants
Update x2: Security is still following the man, now in the parking lot next to the B of A at 10th E. & E. John

4:25PM - Denny and Melrose - Accident - Pickup vs Two pedestrians, no injuries, Northbound traffic blocked

4:29PM - 11th Ave and E Howell St - Hit and Run - Tan Mercedes hit a car and fled. He is driving very slowly and might be intoxicated. Update: Officer sees the suspect vehicle attempting...

December's crime watch started with a whimper with this paltry list of Hill activity. Holidays for criminals?

We did get tip about some police activity down Roy off Broadway that we're looking into involving a shuttered apartment building and squatters. More when we find it.

Central District News East Precinct Scanner - Capitol Hill - Mon. 12/1/2008 - Full Report

In Google StreetView. Any idea what they are "discussing"?

Can't embed here (wish I could!), so you'll have to click:
cop and dude "discussing"

Update from jseattle: We have a solution to allow anybody to embed that we're ready to roll out any day now. In meantime, I can do it for you. Here's your Street View find from 12th Ave E. Looks like a meter maid is doing some lecturing!

I'll check in with SPD about the E. Prospect prowling suspect.

Central District News East Precinct Scanner - Capitol Hill - Tuesday 11/25/2008 - Full Report

11:44AM - Harvard E & E. Olive Way - Theft - A man stole some tips from the cafe. White male, tall, slender build, gray coat, black wool cap, with a messenger bag

12:40PM - 1200 E. Prospect - Suspicious Circumstance - Male on his bicycle was seen going into a backyard. Possible prowler. Update: "One at gunpoint in the backyard"

4:14PM - 1650 Interlaken Dr. E - Narcotics Activity - Twelve high school-age kids see smoking drugs at the entrance to the park

4:56PM - 1800 Bellevue Ave - Threat - Complainant says that he's had death threats via email from a known male.