Spring Storm Keeps Authorities Busy

A nasty spring blizzard forced most people off the roads in Grand Traverse County this weekend, keeping deputies busy handling assaults that occurred between people cooped up inside.

Deputies responded to 10 assault complaints over the weekend, although none of them resulted in serious injury. In one case, a 17-year-old attacked his dad after the older man complained that the teenager was being too rough with the refrigerator door handle; in another, a 43-year-old man assaulted his 46-year-old live-in girlfriend early Sunday morning after having too much to drink.

Capt. Christopher Clark of the Grand Traverse Sheriff's Office says the roads were unusually quiet over the weekend, though the traffic that was out ran into trouble – the department responded to 20 property damage crashes and helped out 25 motorists who got stuck between 7am Friday and 7am Monday.

In Leelanau County, deputies say the weather kept them busy over the weekend helping drivers who got stuck in ditches, responding to crashes, and conducting welfare checks on home-bound residents.

Things were quiet in Traverse City, where people stayed off the roads and did not get into car crashes, Traverse City Police Department Chief Jeff O’Brien says.