Drugs alleged in ferry dock disturbance
Published 11:00 am Wednesday, October 22, 2003
A disorderly man contacted three times over the weekend by Island County law enforcement got their attention again Monday by running around and under the Clinton ferry dock.
Island County Sheriff’s deputies responded to the dock Monday morning to a report of a man acting disorderly and violent toward passengers inside the terminal.
At first, it was reported that the man was nude, but when he was taken into custody after a 30 minute search, he was found to be wearing sweat pants.
The incident began about 10 a.m. when Washington State Ferry employees reported that a man was disturbing passengers waiting inside the Clinton terminal.
Island County Sheriff’s Deputy Laura Price and Langley Police Chief Bob Herzberg were the first on scene.
When law enforcement arrived, the man left the terminal and headed over the north side of the dock, walked along the beach to the other side where he voluntarily surrendered to officers and medical personnel. He was not arrested or charged.
“He was wearing sweat pants and nothing else,” said Dep. Price. “He was obviously wet and cold.”
The 45-year-old man described by Price, as a “known drug user,” was in need of medical help. She said the man’s behavior was characteristic of someone using methamphetamine. Monday’s incident was the fourth contact deputies had made with him since Saturday.
One contact was Sunday, when Price found him yelling at passing motorists at the intersection of Delphi and Bayview roads.
Price said he apparently sought medical help at Whidbey General Hospital sometime later that night.
The incidents, she said, are symptoms of what appears to be a new drug problem on South Whidbey. She said a methamphetamine variant known as “ice shard” has apparently made it to the island. Its effects are every bit as difficult to deal with as those associated with other methamphetamines.
“People on meth can’t just take a pill and get over it,” Price said. “It has to work through the body’s system.”
