The following incidents were reported to River Falls Police Department Nov. 23-Dec. 2, 2025.

Sunday, Nov. 23

Police were dispatched to a disturbance at 1:06 p.m. at a home in the 200 block of South Apollo Road for a disturbance. A 17-year-old male and an 18-year-old female admitted to arguing, which turned physical. They gave police conflicting stories of what happened, but both had visible scratches and/or bruises. Officers referred disorderly conduct charges to the district attorney’s office for both parties. The female left the home to go stay with a friend.

Monday, Nov. 24

• At 7:57 a.m., police spoke to a River Falls High School student about a necklace that went missing in September. The student had finally told his parents about the necklace going missing and they wanted a report filed. Two other students denied taking the necklace. No video footage is available due to the amount of time since the initial incident.
• Officers were dispatched to an altercation at 12:34 p.m. at Kwik Trip (1200 S. Main St.) Staff told officers a man, later identified as Deandre L. Jefferson, 49, River Falls, had confronted another man, a 47-year-old River Falls resident, in the store about an alleged traffic incident. Staff, the victim and a witness told police that when the victim exited the store, Jefferson took a machete out of his vehicle and pointed it at him. The victim told police he had pulled around Jefferson’s vehicle as it was leaving a parking lot on Johnson Street. Jefferson said the victim almost hit his vehicle, so he followed him to Kwik Trip to confront him. He denied pointing a machete at him, but video footage confirmed he did. A disorderly conduct charge was forwarded to the district attorney’s office.
• Police responded to a hit and run at 3:10 p.m. at Tip Top Nails (707 N. Main St.) An unknown woman came into the salon and asked if anyone was driving a Ford, because she had just struck it. In reality, she had struck a legally parked 2025 Chevy Traverse, owned by Tara M. Cernohous, 48, River Falls. Cernohous discovered minor damage to her vehicle when she went outside. The woman had not left her information.
• At 9:37 p.m., a resident at 644 Lake St. reported finding a growling dog outside her side door. The female bulldog mix had one blue eye and one brown eye, a leash and collar but no tags. It was transported to River Bluff Humane Society.

Tuesday, Nov. 25

• Julian Kristopher Lee, 18, River Falls, was cited $187 for habitual truancy at 9:33 a.m. at River Falls High School (818 Cemetery Road) for missing more than five unexcused days.
• Officers were informed of a hit and run crash at 4:05 p.m. at Main and Pomeroy streets. A 2002 Ford F150, driven by Shalako Shane Sims, 44, Knapp, rear-ended a 2019 Honda CRV, driven by Virginia Nelson Sorensen, 68, Cumberland, when she slowed for traffic at a red light while heading southbound. She pulled over and took a photo of Sims’ truck, which did a U-turn and left the scene. Police located Sims and cited him $313 for failure of operator to notify police of accident, $124 for operate motor vehicle without insurance and $124 for automobile following too closely. No injuries were reported. Sorensen’s Honda had moderate damage, while Sims’ truck had minor damage.
• Brandon Cooper Backhaus, 45, River Falls, was arrested for misdemeanor bail jumping and knowingly violate a domestic abuse order after going to his ex-wife’s home at 1450 S. Wasson Lane shortly before 6:30 p.m. He admittedly left their two children, ages 10 and 8, home alone with no phone access when he went to his ex’s house, which is a violation of a restraining order. He knocked on the door and window trying to talk to her, but she didn’t let him in. Police located him near his home in the 500 block of Walnut Street, conducted a traffic stop and arrested him.
• Officers were dispatched to a two-vehicle crash at 9:46 p.m. at Chipotle (125 Quarry Road) between a 2016 Ram 1500, driven by Cody Edward Lee Hakes, 32, River Falls, which backed into a legally parked 2021 Mazda CX-5, owned by Michael Richard Cook, River Falls. The Mazda had minor damage, while the Ram had none.

Wednesday, Nov. 26

• Police responded at 2:18 p.m. to River City Iron Workx Gym (264 Troy St.) for a trespassing complaint. The owner said he caught Benjamin Todd Manns, 19, homeless, sleeping in a storage room Nov. 18 and kicked him out because he had drugs on him. Security camera footage revealed he spent the whole night at the gym again Nov. 23. He was unsure how Manns was accessing the gym, but said he used to be a member and still owes money. Police delivered the no trespass notice to Manns at 9:51 a.m. at 1505 Paulson Road.
• Andrew Michael Nelson, 48, River Falls, was arrested and cited $986 for OWI ad $136.60 for operating left of center after a traffic stop at 7:20 p.m. at Cemetery Road and Sixth Street. Police had received a driving complaint about Nelson’s vehicle swerving on Main Street and almost striking another vehicle. Police located the vehicle had saw it go left of the center line. When police pulled him over, Nelson smelled of alcohol and admitted to drinking beer at Rush River Brewing. After conducting field sobriety tests, he refused to provide a breath sample or blood test, so police applied for a search warrant and took him to the hospital for a blood draw. After booking, he was released to his wife.

Thursday, Nov. 27

Police and St. Croix County deputies responded at 9:51 p.m. to a home in the 1000 block of East River Drive for a man having hallucinations who was armed with a knife. The caller had locked herself in a bedroom to call police. She said her husband has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s and dementia and thought he was the captain of an airline. He came at her with large kitchen knife (found on the floor) because he thought he was saving passengers. Police were able detain the man safely and no one was hurt.

Friday, Nov 28

At 10:26 a.m., a woman asked police to keep an eye out for her vulnerable adult daughter, who had left their home in the 1300 block of Foster Street in a vehicle. She had a bag of clothes with her and had withdrawn $1,900 from her bank account. Her mother said she had a habit of being secretive when it comes to forming relationships with men online who might take advantage of her. She returned home around 12:58 p.m. safely, but wouldn’t tell her mother where she’d been.

Saturday, Nov. 29

• Derek Michael Murphy, 41, Fridley, Minn., was cited $124 for operate without valid license and $124 for operate motor vehicle without insurance after a two-vehicle crash at 3:22 p.m. at Cascade Avenue and Main Street. Murphy was driving a 2008 Dodge north on Main Street. He attempted to turn right onto Cascade, slid on the snowy road and collided with another vehicle. He left the scene without providing any information to the other driver.
• Chukwuemeka Joshua Uwagwu, 18, Brooklyn Park, Minn., was cited $187 for possession of THC after a traffic stop for driving without lights and a license plate at 7:47 p.m. at Main Street and Cascade Avenue. Uwagwu’s vehicle was searched because it smelled like marijuana. Police located a marijuana cigarette and seven baggies of dispensary products in the vehicle.
• Police were notified of a possible domestic at 8:26 p.m. at 454 Griffey St. A man and woman admitted to having a verbal argument. The woman was concerned he had been drinking when he is supposed to stay sober. He began calling her names when they argued, and her mother and sister called police (they overheard the argument on the phone). The parties agreed to separate for the evening. No charges were filed.
• Officers were dispatched to a disturbance at 11:30 p.m. at Broz Bar (127 S. Main St.) where an intoxicated woman was standing outside filming patrons and calling them underage. Mary Elizabeth Melstrom, 49, River Falls, was slurring her speech and accusing people of being underage. The bar manager said they had asked her to leave when she began filming and bothering random people. When police tried to serve her with a trespass notice, she refused to sign it. She accused an officer of working at Broz and serving underage people. After officers left, they stayed in the area to make sure she didn’t go back into Broz. She walked behind the bar, pulled her underwear and pants down and urinated in the alley. When she attempted to pull away from officers, they arrested her for disorderly conduct. After being placed in the squad, she began bashing her head into the divider and screaming. She kicked an officer and demanded to be taken to the hospital, where she was uncooperative with ER staff. After being medically cleared, she was taken to Pierce County Jail. She urinated in the back of the squad car and remained combative with police.

Sunday, Nov. 30

• At 9:19 p.m., police were informed of fraud at 564 N. Clark St. The resident had tried to sign up for health insurance online at FirstEnroll Insurance. After providing her card information, she was charged $295.42. None of the phone numbers for the company work. Police determined the website is a scam site.
• Officers forwarded an interfere with child custody – other parent charge to the district attorney’s office after a 34-year-old Minneapolis woman failed to drop her daughter off at the daughter’s father’s home in the 300 block of North Second Street at 10 a.m. Nov. 29. The report was filed by the father at 10 a.m. Nov. 30.

Monday, Dec. 1

• Officers responded to a two-vehicle crash at 3:18 p.m. at River Falls High School (818 Cemetery Road) between a 2015 Ford Escape, driven by a 17-year-old River Falls juvenile, and a 2007 Subaru Forester, driven by a 16-year-old River Falls juvenile. Both vehicles backed out of their respective parking spots at the same time and collided. Both vehicles had minor damage; no injuries were reported.
• At 5:48 p.m., a family residing in the 500 block of Foster Street reported harassment of their middle school age child by two other middle schoolers. The suspects had sent two videos to the victim, one with a death threat statement and the other with demeaning and excluding comments. Both suspects, when interviewed with their parents, admitted to sending the mean videos and said they were meant to be jokes because they were mad at the juvenile for annoying them. Both suspects’ parents said their phones would be taken away and their phone use more closely monitored. School administration were considering a restorative justice approach for the suspects.

Tuesday, Dec. 2

Officers responded to a three-vehicle crash at 1 p.m. at Main and Division streets between a 2001 Cadillac El Dorado, driven by Cherly Elaine Hafften, 77, River Falls; a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee, driven by Stacie R. Bornmann, 55, River Falls; and a 2017 Toyota Highlander, driven by Alison G. Gallo Santos, 19, River Falls. Hafften was traveling south on Main Street and Bornmann was heading east on Division Street. Bornmann had a green light and Gallo Santos was behind her. Hafften ran a red light and went through the intersection, where Bornmann struck her in the rear passenger side. Hafften’s vehicle spun to the west and struck Gallo Santos’s rear passenger side. Hafften said the sun was in her eyes and she didn’t see the red light. All vehicles sustained moderate damage; Hafften’s vehicle was towed. No injuries were reported. Hafften was cited $98.80 for operator violate red traffic light.