Public Drunkenness Charge After Police Claim Disobedience

A Whitehall Borough police officer on patrol stopped at the Sunoco/APlus gas station and convenience store along Route 51 at around 12:53 a.m. on Friday.

When the officer walked into the store, he observed a man arguing with a clerk in what appeared to be an intoxicated state, Whitehall police Deputy Chief Richard M. Danko said.

The officer advised the man—John Mallon Kearns, 21, of 541 Elaine Dr. in Baldwin Borough—not to get into his car in his current condition and drive away, but Kearns responded to the officer with vulgarity and dismissiveness, Danko said, and tried to get into his car anyway.

The officer prevented Kearns from doing so and arrested him in the store's parking lot. Police are charging Kearns with public drunkenness.

10-Year-Old Charged with Stealing Fire Extinguisher

Whitehall police went to the Skytop Village apartments building at 1661 Skyline Dr. in the Wallace (Prospect) Park area at around 5:10 p.m. on Wednesday in response to a call from a maintenance worker who observed four juveniles stealing multiple fire extinguishers from the building, Danko said.

Police detained the children in the rear of the building and determined that one of them—a 10-year-old boy—was responsible for the thefts, Danko said. The boy is being referred to juvenile court on charges of theft, receiving stolen property, criminal trespass and tampering with a fire apparatus.

Three Juveniles Charged with Stealing GPS

Whitehall police went back to the 1600 block of Skyline at around 1 p.m. on Thursday in response to a call from a resident there who said that he recently observed three individuals wearing hoodies enter into his car and remove his GPS unit, Danko said.

With assistance from police officers from Brentwood and Baldwin boroughs, police were able to apprehend three juvenile males who matched the victim's description, Danko said.

One of the boys is 16 years old, and the others are 17 years old. They are each being referred to juvenile court on charges of theft from a motor vehicle, receiving stolen property and criminal conspiracy.

Danko said that officers tracked the boys down by following footprints and receiving information from residents in the area surrounding the incident.

Read through other Whitehall police items here.

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