3rd arrest in 3 months, SJ man nabbed again after drunken gun scare
BEAUMONT — An allegedly intoxicated man causing a disturbance and seen waving what was believed to be a handgun was arrested after causing a scare outside a Beaumont business yesterday afternoon, Wednesday, Feb 13. The incident, which sent area shoppers scrambling for safety, happened in the 1600 block of E. 6th St., near N. Highland Springs Ave., according to Beaumont PD.
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Beaumont police officers were dispatched to the business shortly before 11 a.m., after receiving multiple reports of a man who was seen “waving a gun outside of a store,” BPD later reported in a social media release after the man’s arrest.
When officers arrived at the scene the man, later identified as Shane Michael Ballew, 58, of San Jacinto, “was observed placing a gun on the ground,” according to BPD. “The subject complied with officer’s commands and was taken into custody without incident.”
After officers secured the suspected firearm Ballew had been seen waving around, they determined it was a realistic-looking BB gun.
Ballew was subsequently booked into Smith Correctional Facility in Banning on suspicion of brandishing a replica firearm and public intoxication.
Officials have not specified what, if anything, led to the disturbance and Ballew’s arrest.
Jail records indicate Ballew has been arrested at least three times in the last three months in Riverside County; including a December, 2018 arrest in Beaumont for drunk and disorderly and being under the influence of drugs, and another January arrest in Indio for public intoxication. He remains in custody, held on $5,000 bail.
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Trevor Montgomery, 47, moved last year to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, The Valley Chronicle, and Anza Valley Outlook; as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and Mountain Echo in Shasta County.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 28 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 15 – but soon to be 16 – grandchildren.