S.F. cops ignored calls about intruder

Subject: S.F. cops ignored calls about intruder Sun Jan 13, 2008 6:19 pm

The new year kicked off memorably for Donald Burnette and his wife, Deborah Martin, when they were awakened by the sound of someone kicking in the back door of their third-story apartment in San Francisco's Upper Haight about 1 a.m. Jan. 1.

Standing in the kitchen of the Stanyan Street flat was a vision out of a sci-fi comic book: a guy in his early 20s whose body, boots and gloves were studded with spikes, some more than an inch long.

"I'm being chased," the Studded One announced.

Burnette wasn't interested in providing refuge. He dialed 911 to report a break-in - but to his surprise, the dispatcher asked to talk with the intruder.

The guy with the spikes told the dispatcher he had been chased three blocks by four guys he'd tried to panhandle, had jumped three fences and had run up the back stairs of Burnette's building to get away.

With that, Mr. Studs hung up.

"I expected the cops to come through the door at any second," Burnette said. Instead, the minutes just kept ticking by, with the guy refusing to leave.

"I didn't know what to do," Burnette said. "I got my wife out of the house and just did my best to keep things calm."

In fact, Burnette's wife went downstairs to look for the cops. "I saw a black-and-white drive by and not stop," she said. (Apparently there was trouble at a bar just up the street as well.)

After about 10 minutes, 911 dispatch called back to see if police had arrived. They hadn't, and the intruder was still in the kitchen.

More time passed. Burnette called 911 again, and was told that there was a police cruiser about half a block away, but that it had gotten a flat tire.

The dispatcher suggested that Burnette go down the street and get the cops himself.

"When I got there, I asked the cops what they were doing," Burnette said. "One of the cops said, 'Can't you see we're changing a tire?' "

After some heated words, one of the officers - who thought someone else had responded to the call - finally arrived at the apartment and confronted the intruder.

He turned out to be a homeless guy from Florida. But because he hadn't stolen anything, Burnette said, the cop told him that the best he could do was book Studman for misdemeanor trespassing and vandalism.

The officer explained, however, that because the Stud was homeless, chances were nothing would come of the charges, Burnette said.

The officer did manage to get the guy to leave.

Park Station Capt. John Ehrlich confirmed the tale. He chalked up the confusion to the fact that it was New Year's Eve, a night when cops are besieged by calls.

Ehrlich denied, however, that the officer had told Burnette that nothing would come of arresting the guy.

"These were experienced and professional cops," the captain said. "They wouldn't say something like that."

Funny - we hear things like that from experienced cops all the time.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/01/13/BA4MUE050.DTL

S.F. cops ignored calls about intruder

S.F. cops ignored calls about intruder

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