A 41-year-old man was taken into custody with some difficulty Sunday afternoon after behaving bizarrely and assaulting passersby at the Junction. At one point he was stripping off his clothes, practicing karate chops, and crawling on the ground "like an ape," according to one witness. It took three minutes for three officers to get the man?who was unfazed by a taser? under control. Even after he was in handcuffs, the man kicked officers and thrashed at medics who transported him to Harborview for an exam. One officer suffered a hand injury and was examined at the hospital.

A tow-truck driver tried to gain some leverage on an icy street by strapping his truck against a couple of utility poles so that he could winch his vehicle free. Unfortunately, one of the poles moved slightly and caused a power outage at 41st and Holgate.

Banging on the doors and then on the drive-thru window, a man demanded service at a fast-food restaurant, saying, "I just got kicked out of my place and all I want is an F&@%#n cup of coffee". Refused service for repeated profanity and attitude, he slammed his hand against the drive-thru window, causing it to splinter.

A business owner reports that an employee recently confessed to stealing company funds for personal use: She amassed a credit card debt of $10,000 on a company credit card and withdrew nearly $28,000 from a company checking account. She has been fired.

A laser pen was seized from some teens who admitted to shining the red beam on a passing citizen. She had reported the incident, concerned that the light might have come from a weapon.

After being stopped for hazardous driving, a man was determined to be intoxicated. In fact, he admitted as much to the officer, saying he had been drinking vodka. "What kind of vodka drinks?" the officer asked. "Vodka vodka," the man replied. "Two?three?four?.too many." He was cited for DUI and several other violations and provided with a courtesy ride home. He had been previously convicted of DUI in the 1990s.

As was his habit, an elderly gentleman fell asleep at the table after lunch. His wife became concerned after a time when he seemed unresponsive. Medics determined that the man had been dead for a couple of hours.

A 25-year-old man with a history of mental problems taken to Harborview for an exam after he tried to slit his wrists and then jammed the knife through a bedroom door. He told officers that he ?had? to stab the door and that he could see things the officers couldn?t. In his room were a variety of unintelligible writings making reference to death.

Although the obviously shaken woman called 911 to report that she had been thrown down the stairs, she refused to tell officers her boyfriend?s identity or his whereabouts.

Early Wednesday, a man was robbed at knifepoint near the intersection of Fauntleroy Way and Harbor Avenue.

Two men entered a business in the 6300 block of California Ave. SW, armed with a sawed-off rifle and demanded money. The owner armed himself with a baseball bat and yelled at the suspects to leave. No money was taken.

A 53-year-old man called 911 to report that someone hit him in the head when he took out his recycling and that he had fallen. Officers found no blood or damage outside, and the man still had his money clip. Nothing was missing from the house. It turns out that the man had likely fallen on his own, considering that he had drunk a half case of beer prior to the incident.

Call him skeptical, but an officer was not convinced that the passenger in the car was telling the truth about the dripping wet outboard engine he was cradling in his arms. The 19-year-old claimed to have just "found it" by the side of the road. He was taken into custody anyway on an outstanding assault warrant, and if the engine is determined to be stolen he will face additional charges.

Burglaries/break-ins/car prowls by block: 6700 35th SW, 3000 SW Bradford, Chelan and SW Spokane, 4100 46th SW, 26th and Andover, 5900 Beach Drive, 3600 60th SW, 4000 SW Director, 2400 Harbor Ave. SW, 1600 Harbor Ave. SW, 2100 Ferry Ave. SW, 2300 California Ave. SW, 10200 40th SW, 3600 Roxbury SW, 4700 California Ave. SW, 2600 52nd SW, 3200 56th Pl SW, 5600 SW Spokane