A homeless woman accused of trespassing at the Port of Vancouver by swimming in from the Columbia River and then stealing a demolition truck appeared in Clark County Superior Court on Friday.
Michele Milligan, 45, reported that she was despondent when she jumped into the river and swam to the port, according to court documents. She has been homeless for two years and has possible mental health issues, court documents say.
She faces charges of second-degree burglary, theft of a motor vehicle, second-degree malicious mischief and illegal camping.
Pretrial release Officer Tim Stearns said Milligan had received some mental health resources in Longview and had been seeking temporary housing in Portland just before her arrest.
Judge Scott Collier held Milligan in lieu of $5,000 bail and appointed Vancouver attorney Sean Downs to defend her.
She is scheduled to appear Tuesday in front of Judge John Nichols who will review any additional information on possible temporary housing for her in Portland. If Stearns can confirm an address where she can stay, Nichols may agree to release her through the court’s supervised release program without posting a bond.
She also has a pending fourth-degree assault charge and has been cited in the past for illegal camping in Clark County, according to court records.
Vancouver police responded to a 911 call at 7:15 a.m. from a port employee who reported he saw Milligan swimming. She emerged from the water and stole a Rhine demolition truck, according to a court affidavit by Vancouver police Officer Tim Thomson.
She drove the vehicle through one of the port’s gates, which caused about $3,000 to $5,000 in damage, Thomson wrote.
The woman continued driving, and the vehicle got stuck near the railroad tracks, where she got out of the truck, police said.
Police apprehended her near West Eighth Street and Lincoln Avenue.
