A Morristown man who has had previous run-ins with local police allegedly threatened the owner of a boarding house with a wooden stake when he was told to leave the property.
Robert Washington, 33, of Speedwell Avenue, was arrested and charged with possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and unlawful possession of a weapon on June 7. Shortly before midnight, Officer Brian LaBarre responded to a Phoenix Avenue boarding house where the owner claimed an intoxicated man–later identified as Washington–had been wandering the halls, according to the report. The owner told him to leave the house, which Washington eventually did through a second floor exit, according to the report. He then circled back to the front porch and continued to yell obscenities into the house, according to the report.
At this point, the boarding house owner said Washington had what he described as a wooden club–also described in the report as a wooden plank–which he then began to swing in the direction of the owner, threatening to attack him with it were he to come outside, according to the report. That's when the owner called police.
While en route to the Phoenix Avenue boarding house, Officer Robert Iozzia saw a man matching the description of a black male wearing a red t-shirt and silver shorts, who could be seen tossing a wooden stick as the officer approached, according to the report.
When Washington–who police said appeared to be highly intoxicated–was asked why he had entered the boarding house, he said he was looking for a friend. When asked for the name of this friend, Washington couldn't remember, according to the report. When asked if he had encountered another man at the boarding house, Washington said, "Yeah, I'll knock that mother------'s head off," according to the report. When asked if he had intended to strike that man with the piece of wood he had been swinging, Washington said "yeah" and was subsequently arrested, according to the report.
Washington was later released of his own recognizance, pending a courtdate.
This is not the first time Washington has been in trouble with the law in Morristown. In May, he was arrested on the Green and charged with disorderly conduct, drinking in public and littering after allegedly picking a fight with someone. In that incident, Washington screamed and waved his arms at police saying that he was "a Washington" and "that's what we do," according to reports.
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