Editor’s note: This is a social media post from the Novato Police Department.
Yesterday, at about 11:30 am, officers responded to a disturbance on the 7000 block of Redwood Blvd. A patrol officer was checking the area and speaking to a witness when he heard what sounded like a vehicle collision at the Islamic Center of North Marin. The officer ran to investigate and saw a man getting out of the driver’s seat of a vehicle that had impacted an outbuilding on the property. The man forcefully opened the building door, made incoherent statements, and immediately began physically attacking a mosque member. The officer quickly intervened, stopped the attack, and detained the suspect. The adult male victim, who suffered minor injuries, was transported to a local hospital for treatment.
The suspect, 33-year-old David Slattery, a Novato resident, was arrested and booked at the Marin County Jail for felony assault, burglary, and vandalism. Officers were unable to establish that this incident was hate-motivated.
Thank you to the concerned community member who called the police department about the disturbance, enabling our officer to be in the right place at the right time to intervene and prevent further harm.
Like schools and community centers, we regularly provide high-visibility extra patrols to our faith-based community organizations, including this location.
If you see or hear something that doesn’t seem right, we encourage you to call us and have officers check it out. Call 911 if you believe an emergency is occurring. To report concerning behavior, call our non-emergency line, 415-897-4361.
Together, we create a safer Novato!
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