A West Des Moines man was arrested for harassment after allegedly threatening to shoot hospital staff and police officers Sunday morning.
Richard Dale Moore III, 21, of 1316 Locust St., West Des Moines, was charged with two counts of first-degree harassment.
The incident began about 1:30 a.m. Sunday in the 1600 block of 60th Street in West Des Moines, where officers of the West Des Moines Police Department responded to a report of a combative patient in the Methodist Medical Center West emergency room.
The officers made contact with Moore, who “was visibly intoxicated and belligerent,” according to court records.
The victim, a public safety officer with Methodist West, told the officers that Moore told the victim “that he was going to shoot him because he didn’t have a bulletproof vest,” according to court records.
Moore allegedly made similar threats to shoot multiple hospital staff members prior to the arrival of law enforcement.
After he was taken into custody, Moore allegedly told an officer of the West Des Moines Police Department that he was going to “shoot him up,” according to court records.
Moore is held in the Dallas County Jail on a $2,000 cash or surety bond. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing Sept. 21 in Dallas County District Court.
Moore was convicted of disorderly conduct and public intoxication in August in Polk County District Court. He was convicted of second-degree harassment in February in Polk County District Court.
*A criminal charge is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
