Here is the inside scoop on Lytle Police Dept. activity and some of the fun happenings around town. Please consider any personal stuff I provide as an added bonus.
Officers responded to 58 calls for service, which is a bit above normal. There were 22 Class C citations issued, with 7 of those being for speeding with no insurance coming in 2nd place with 3 citations. We also helped out 5 people who locked their keys in their cars.
We had a few property/financial crimes reported which included an attempted burglary of a vehicle at H.E.B. Plus, they tried to “pop” the lock but failed. The next attempt on another pickup was successful and they made off with two rifles. We have identified suspects so hopefully we can put it all together. Officers took a report of forged checks being passed at H.E.B. Plus and another report of a forged check that went through Lytle State Bank. Dollar General reported a female entered the store with an empty purse and when she exited it was crammed full of stuff, so we don’t know what she made off with. A suspect was cited and released for shoplifting and possession of drug paraphernalia at H.E.B. Plus. He made off with a battery charger valued at $70. But, that wasn’t the oddest theft report of the week. The big caper this week is the theft of windshield wipers from a U-Haul truck on Adams St. That’s the first time in my career I have had a report like that.
I’m happy to report that we had another safe and successful Halloween. The “trick or treaters” were out in full force and we didn’t have any problems or issues arise that we were notified of. We had 5 patrol vehicles out that night but with all the foot traffic it still seemed hard to hit all the streets as often as I would have liked to. Wayne and Christi Vaughn reported about 1,000 people visited their “unhaunted house” on Adams St. so we definitely had a town full of people.
The living history fair at the Lytle Public Library was another successful event. I attended with the wife and kids and we had a great time. My son especially enjoyed the civil war re-enactors and their cannon since on our recent vacation we visited battlefields at Gettysburg, Fredericksburg and Vicksburg. There was even a group that were playing dulcimers, all three of my kids play the dulcimer too so they had to run home and grab theirs and joined in with the group. To help support the event we purchased some books and since I have plenty of books I opted for the beans and cornbread. If you missed it this year maybe you can check it out next year, I’m sure it will be even bigger.
Like everyone I am in shock of the tragedy at FBC Sutherland Springs. My family attends and was worshiping at FBC Lytle when this occurred, a church similar in size so it really hits home. Our prayers are with that community and their church family, it’s heartbreaking. This event will impact that community for a very long time.
I want to confirm the old saying that “crime doesn’t pay.” Here is the update on my recent speeding ticket in Zavala Co. I opted for defensive driving but I will still be out a grand total of $149.10, plus the time I’ll spend on the online course. I hope I learned my lesson, I guess when it comes to traffic tickets “it is better to give than to receive.”