Law roundup: HIPAA doesn't cover crime

Kalispell Police officers poked around a medical facility after a nurse reported overhearing a conversation between a patient and a visitor that seemed to be about a stolen Cadillac. Officers were unable to find any Cadillacs in the area.  

The manager of a store called the police looking to pass along information about a suspect in a theft case.  

A parent asked officers to step up patrols in one city neighborhood owing to the speeding drivers. He said that he routinely sees "overwhelming high speed habits" on his way to drop his child off at school and reported narrowly avoiding an accident that day.  

The owner of a Ford F-150 told authorities that a vandal slashed one of its tires the week prior. The tire shop deemed it unrepairable, and the owner was forced to pay $250 for a replacement.  

An employee asked the police to help track down a customer who left a purchase behind at the store. While the customer had the money for the sale, they acted "sketchy" throughout the purchase, the employee said. Officers unsuccessfully tried to locate the customer.  

Another customer at a different store was allegedly harassing an employee, following them around and peppering them with personal questions. He finally left, but not before letting the employee know that he planned on seeing her after work.  

Checking in on his property remotely via exterior cameras, a homeowner noted that a vandal destroyed his vinyl fencing. He told investigators that the cameras failed to catch the suspect in the act, but said he could provide an estimate of damages for the eventual police report.  

Dispatchers gave a man a talking to about the appropriate uses of 911 when he called the emergency line to report a vehicle left in a parking lot overnight. Officers later headed to the area to see about the vehicle, which the caller claimed was "stolen or something." It turned out the vehicle had broken down.  

Someone apparently ran into trouble trying to get their vehicle back from the mechanic's shop and turned to the police for help.  

Officers stickered a pair of reportedly abandoned vehicles.  

A motorist who needed to go for a ride in the middle of a paint job called to inquire as to whether it was legal to drive their set of wheels around town without a front or rear bumper.  

Another motorist's license plates reportedly disappeared. She ended up canceling them and getting new plates.