Drunken church break-in leads to arrest
A transient was arrested for burglary Wednesday after a neighbor saw him drunkenly punch out a glass window and enter a Spokane Valley church, police said.
Officer Mike McNees found Paul M. Peterson, 50, straddling a window sill at Valley View Baptist Church, half inside and half outside of the broken window, and bleeding from a minor cut to one hand, according to the Spokane Valley Police Department.
A neighbor called 911 about 5:20 p.m. and said she'd watched Peterson try to open doors and windows at the church, 6006 E. Eighth Ave., before he punched out a glass window.
McNess and backup officers arrested Peterson without incident.
The suspect gave a St. Paul, Minn., address when booked into jail for second-degree burglary, police said. He's to appear in Spokane County Superior Court this afternoon.