Infant in good health one day after crash

The 5-month-old infant rescued at the scene of a crash Wednesday afternoon on County Road 450 West, near County Road 500 North in Union Township, was in good condition Thursday at University of Chicago Hospitals.

Selena Guerra was blue from suffocation when rescued from the car her mother crashed into a telephone pole. A South Haven firefighter reached into the car to clear the baby's mouth, which was blocked by a piece of the car's interior.

Semi aluminum battery covers reported stolen

CHESTERTON | A day after aluminum battery box covers worth $500 were reported stolen from a semi in Portage, similar thefts were reported in Chesterton.

Aluminum battery covers from semis belonging to Chesterton residents David Beagle and Allen Latman were reported missing Wednesday. The thefts occurred at 165 E. U.S. 20. The total loss is $900.

It isn't known if those thefts are related to the recent rash of scrap metal thefts.

Theft spree continues throughout Portage

PORTAGE | Portage police said they have taken more than a dozen reports of items being stolen from vehicles in the past few days, and they've also had a rash of vehicle thefts.

The Times reported on many of the thefts in Thursday's editions. The latest victims to report thefts during Wednesday and on Thursday morning are Independence Avenue resident Christy Catschke, Hickory Street resident Kelly Aleksinski, Jacobs Place resident Christy Scott, Camelot resident Keith Kerr, Mulberry Avenue resident John Johnson, Redwood Avenue resident Larry Whitaker, Hickory Street resident Jeremy Escoa. Whitaker and Johnson had vehicles stolen.

Most of the reported thefts have occurred on the city's west side. In many of the cases, vehicles were left unlocked and valuables have been left in plain view. Some of the stolen vehicles were stolen because the keys were left in them, police said.

Police are advising people to remove valuables from their vehicles and to lock their vehicles. Police also ask people to report suspicious activity immediately.

Two arrested during traffic stop at night

VALPARAISO | Valparaiso police stopped a motorist because his brake lights weren't activating at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday at West Street and Horseprairie Avenue.

Police said the motorist, Jonas Miller, 23, of Westville, was found to be driving with a suspended license and was found to be wanted on a warrant for failure to appear in court on a drug charge. Police said they found heroin and paraphernalia in his possession.

Miller was arrested on the warrant and on charges of possession of heroin, possession of paraphernalia and driving while suspended. His passenger, Zachary Wright, 23, of Valparaiso, was arrested on charges of possession of a narcotic drug and possession of paraphernalia.

Union Center school reports damage

UNION TOWNSHIP | The principal at Union Center Elementary, 272 N. County Road 600 West, reported Wednesday that someone damaged two different sections of fencing.

The fence on the south side, near the fuel tank, and the fence on the north side, near the playground, were reported cut. The damage is $300.

CENTER TOWNSHIP

WEDNESDAY

Theft. Lismore Lane resident Denis Watson reported his pickup truck stolen. It was recovered, partially stripped, at County Road 1500 North and County Line Road in Pine Township.

LIBERTY TOWNSHIP

WEDNESDAY

Burglary. County Road 1100 North resident Bonnie Crowder reported $5,000 worth of jewelry and $100 cash stolen from her home.

PORTAGE

WEDNESDAY

Theft. Stone Avenue resident Timothy Reed reported a $260 pistol stolen from his home.

Theft. Camelot Manor resident Michael Parks reported two known suspects stole $2,000 worth of tools.

Theft. Coinstar Entertainment, of Glendale Heights, Ill., reported someone broke into a crane game vending machine at Kmart in Portage and stole coins. The loss is $224.25, and the damage is $400.

PORTAGE TOWNSHIP

WEDNESDAY

Burglary. South Haven resident Richard Lambert reported $300 worth of tools and a $2,300 industrial embroidery machine stolen from his storage unit at 952 Ind. 149.

PORTER TOWNSHIP

WEDNESDAY

Vehicle theft. A home under construction on Bergamo Court in Porter Township, which is owned by Homewood, Ill. resident Bruce Rackouski, was burglarized. A $4,000 golf cart was stolen.

SOUTH HAVEN

TUESDAY

Theft. Prescott Road resident Eugene Clarida reported the theft of a $700 truck tailgate.

WEDNESDAY

Theft. Oxbow Road resident Cynthia Antecki reported someone stole two checks and cashed them for $1,300. She also reported two guitars worth $1,200 stolen.

ARRESTS

Feb. 16-22

Battery | Robbie Darnell, 28, 2786 Edgewood, Portage; William Dudash, 48, 289 Robbie Lane, Valparaiso

Battery, intimidation, drug paraphernalia | Marcel Young, 27, 2386 Dixie, Portage

Check fraud | John Filewich, 23, 306 N. Morgan, Valparaiso

Contributing to the delinquency of a minor | Dane Klakoski, 21, 2931 Brown St., Portage

Deception, hold | Johnathan Thomas, 20, Gary

Disorderly conduct | Susan Barker, 29, 3194 Oakwood St., Portage

Driving while suspended | Gregg Roache, 45, Crown Point; Anthony Williams, 26, 6435 Evergreen, Portage; Anthony Wright, 27, Lake Station; Stacy Gross, 34, Hobart; Bruce Leek, 54, Gary; Chad Schultz, 27, 790 S. 375 West, Hebron; Bruce Leek, 54, Gary

Driving while suspended, drunken driving | Dimitrius Figueroa, 24, Lake Station

Driving while suspended, false reporting | Brett Borgia, 21, 2291 Swanson Road, Portage

Drug paraphernalia | Lisa Bach, 38, 3012 Winchester Drive, Valparaiso

Drug paraphernalia, possession of marijuana, drunken driving | Robert McHenry, 23, 142 Goldfinch Drive, Kouts

Drunken driving | Brandon Earls, 24, 2905 Village Lane, Valparaiso; Christopher Schutter, 40, Crown Point; James Beam, 47, 454 S. Locust, Valparaiso; Brandon Miller, 28, Hobart; Jonathan Appel, 21, 709 N. 200 East, Valparaiso; Robert Keray, 24, 2134 Texas St., Chesterton; Daniel Lapine, 23, Hanna; Jessica Young, 25, 17 S. 600 West, Hebron; Leslie Smock, 37, 1018 S. 22nd St., Chesterton; Dara Baran, 48, 5478-B Aspen Ave., Portage; Jeremy King, 29, 4301 Campbell St., Valparaiso; Dale Cole, 62, 206 N. College St., Valparaiso; Christopher Hoeppner, 21, 2255 Sager Road, Valparaiso; Joshua Joswick, 28, Rhinelander, Wis.; Keith Foor II, 34, 15135 Hancock St., Hebron

Drunken driving, alcohol charge | Sean Hobzek, 20, North Judson

Drunken driving, leaving the scene of an accident | Amanda Siuda, 21, 2312-204 Chicago St., Valparaiso

Failure to appear | Mahogany Bryant, 27, Indianapolis; Christopher Wright, 27, 13 Gaslight Park, Hebron; Stephen Peckham, 22, LaPorte; Christopher Vorice, 18, Gary; Edward Jarchow, 50, 907 McCord, Valparaiso; Matthew Bush, 25, Michigan City; Charles Deal Jr., 30, South Bend; Paul VanHorn, 36, Newburg; Jonathan Stonecipher, 47, 369 LaHonda Drive, Valparaiso

Failure to appear, driving while suspended | Michael Taylor, 40, 2200 Glendale Blvd., Valparaiso

Failure to appear, possession of cocaine, driving while suspended, drug paraphernalia | Jonas Miller, 23, Westville

Failure to appear, hold | Dan Griggs, 28, Gary; Timothy Gajdik, 27, 412 S. 15th St., Chesterton

Failure to comply | Sandra Grant, 19, 2454 Marshall Dr., Valparaiso; Aaron Caylor, 24, Hobart; Nolen Damron, 33, Lake Station; Jessica Feitshans, 21, 2140 Dogwood Lane, Chesterton

Failure to return, failure to comply | Crystal Jackson, 26, Crown Point

Habitual traffic offender | Steven Shelton Jr., 24, 703 Imperial Road, Valparaiso

Hold | James Dugan, 41, 1286 Lake Charles Road, Porter; Joseph Powell, 41, Gary; Melissa Phillips, 25, Westville

Intimidation | David Zell, 48, 51 Canterbury Circle, Chesterton

Invasion of privacy | George Mihalich, 61, Calumet City, Ill.; Joseph Kabelis, 31, 486 Meadow Wood Dr., Valparaiso; Travis Shupe, 32, Westville

Never obtaining a license | Mattie Carter, 18, 5103 Sunrise, Portage

Parole violation | Chad Lewis, 31, 1047 Scarbrough Court, Chesterton

Possession of cocaine, drug paraphernalia | Zachary Wright, 23, 709 Parkside Ave., Valparaiso

Possession of marijuana | Robert Jefferson, 28, Cedar Lake

Possession of marijuana, drug paraphernalia, failure to appear | Jerry Dedic Sr., 21, Oak Forest, Ill.

Possession of stolen property, probation violation | Robert Morris, 19, 1907 W. Porter Ave., Chesterton

Public intoxication | Charles Nau II, 58, 3022 Wabash Ave., Porter

Public intoxication, alcohol charge | Carl Hipelius Jr., 18, 5556 Harmony St., Portage; James Zion, 19, 5790 Lute Road, Portage

Public intoxication, resisting law enforcement | Susan Richards, 48, 686 Wabash Ave., Chesterton

Resisting law enforcement, alcohol charge | David Murchek, 20, 1319 Camelot Manor, Portage

Resisting law enforcement, drunken driving | William Fingar, 45, 1807 Woodmere Drive, Valparaiso

Resisting law enforcement, alcohol charge, public intoxication | Kristopher Enstrom, 20, Hobart; Zachary Zygowicz, 19, 2419 Norman St., Portage

Strangulation, battery | Rodney Lovejoy, 28, Knox

Theft | Joseph Collins, 42, Hobart; David Strenkoski, 41, Ann Arbor, Mich.

Theft, check fraud | Sonia Martinez, 33, Merrillville

Visiting a common nuisance | Brandon Bennett, 19, 2461 Woodward St., Portage