An Angry Groundhog and Other News

A friend sent me a link to a news item in a New Jersey newspaper that caught her eye. Would you believe a groundhog that attacked a man in his garage and then went on to go after two cops? Here is what the article had to say about the groundhog:

Police Sgt. Mike Danyo and Officer Paul Ryan on Thursday encountered a different type of aggressive behavior. The pair found themselves pitted against an angry groundhog at an Oak Street home.

The resident, Alex Scott, told police he had attempted to leave his house at 11:46 a.m. and entered his garage to get his truck when the groundhog began to chase him. Scott, who kicked the animal several times but was unable to evade it, ran back into his house and called police.

When Danyo and Ryan arrived and Scott attempted to show them where the groundhog was, the rodent sprang toward the officers, Cacciabeve said.

Danyo tripped and fell as the groundhog pursued him, Cacciabeve said. But Ryan, who jumped out of the way as the groundhog charged at his feet, discharged the pepper spray into the rodent's face, Cacciabeve said.

The spray disoriented the groundhog and allowed Ryan to retrieve a snare from the back of the patrol car, said Cacciabeve, who had responded to assist.

The officers snared the groundhog and held it until assistant animal control officer Sandy Burkhardt arrived to cage it. The animal was later euthanized and its remains will be shipped today to the Department of Health and Senior Services for rabies testing.

Click "HERE" to see the entire article, including the part about a thieving black bear who raided someone's garage and freezer for his dinner... I can't imagine being chased by one of these little critters. But then I suppose they can be just as bad as the possums who hang out on the property next to where I live and come wandering over here looking for food every evening. They have a really nasty bite if you get them cornered or angry at you. I've never been bitten, but I've sure had them hiss at me when I've gone outside and suprised one of them in my yard in the evening. Right now, my daughter and her husband (who live across the street from me) are trying to clear a family of possums out from under their house. They've trapped two yesterday and they think there are at least 2 more under there. I haven't talked to them this morning to see if they caught any more last night.

Other News
The local newspaper hasn't done any updates about last week's bank robbery, the robbers in custody or the one that they said was still on the run. I checked the jail website this morning and the two in custody are apparently still there and are still under a "no bail" condition.

The other story I wrote about in my previous post, the dead man that was found in the apartment in the neighboring town, had a followup article that said that an autopsy was going to happen yesterday, but nothing further in the paper today. I'm guessing the coroner will have to do a tox screen and other tests to determine the cause of death.

This morning's "breaking news" on the paper's website was about an accident last night where a truck drifted off the road and collided with two mobile homes in a trailer park north of Marysville. Fortunately, none of the residents of the home were seriously injured, but the driver of the big rig died at the scene because he was thrown from the truck. The California Highway Patrol are investigating the accident and are asking that anyone who witnessed the accident to call. Perhaps the man either fell asleep or had a medical problem before the truck drifted off the highway. I don't know, but I hope that the paper will say something when the investigation is finished. I have a feeling though, that this will be another of the stories that just go "poof" and we never hear about again. My condolences go out to the family and friends of the driver, Michael J. Angerer from Red Bluff, CA.

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Geez... I just looked at the front page of the paper's website and there is another "Breaking News" story... This time about a person that was found dead this morning in a vehicle pulled from a canal east of Gridley. The story says that a witness reported the submerged car a little after 6 am this morning. Crews from Cal Fire and Butte County Fire Department joined the search for the vehicle, which a tow truck pulled from the canal shortly after 8:20 a.m. A second person had been inside the vehicle but managed to escape, according to a CHP officer. How the car went off the road was not immediately clear and I'm wondering where that second person went. Was he the "witness" that called the emergency in?

UPDATE: Dead Body Story

The paper just posted an update to the story of the decomposed body that was found in an apartment in Linda, Calif. The state Department of Justice positively identified the decomposed body through fingerprints and the deceased man is Scott Dana Malmstrom and he was a victim of a homicide. The results of the autopsy showed Malmstrom was stabbed to death with a sharp instrument. Investigators are still going through evidence found at the scene and are calling for any witnesses to come forward.