CLEAR LAKE – A Clear Lake man who once nearly drowned in Mason City got violent with a person and then two squad cars Sunday night and now finds himself in the lockup.
On March 26 2017, at 7:20 PM, Clear Lake Police Officers were dispatched to the 600 Block of 12th Avenue North in on a report of a domestic assault. Upon arrival, they located the victim and conducted an investigation. The suspect, Rusty Lee Thorngren, age 28, out of Clear Lake, was alleged to have assaulted the victim after an argument. Thorngren was also reported to have armed himself with an edged weapon after the initial assault and damaged the victim’s vehicle.
Officers arrested Thorngren on domestic abuse. Once in custody, Thorngren became resistive and damaged two CLPD squad cars. One squad car’s window (rear driver’s side) was shattered out from Thorngren kicking it while in handcuffs. Damage to this car was estimated around $500. The other police vehicle sustained minor damage.
Thorngren was charged with Domestic Abuse Assault, Going Armed with Intent and two counts of Criminal Mischief. Thorngren was transported to the Cerro Gordo County Jail. There were no reported injuries to Thorngren or officers during the arrest. The incident remains under investigation.
A criminal charge is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
Thorngren and another man, Mark Ciska, were arrested back in April of 2015 for public intoxication after a citizen reported the two men stuck in the undertow of a dam south of the 12th Street NE bridge in Mason City. Officers arrived to find the two men in the water clinging to a raft, unable to paddle free of the churning current created by the dam. Officers had throw ropes in their cars and used these to pull the men and their boat to shore before taking them to jail.