A 59-year-old Vancouver man has been arrested on suspicion of assault and property damage for allegedly getting into a fight with three people at Vancouver’s Burnt Bridge Creek Trail over a “Pokémon Go” battle.
Stephen P. Jolly faces charges of second- and fourth-degree assault and third-degree malicious mischief, according to a probable cause affidavit. Jolly made an initial appearance in Clark County Superior Court on Wednesday. His arraignment is set for Thursday.
On March 12, Vancouver police were dispatched to North Devine Road and 18th Street for a report of an assault with a weapon, according to court documents.
Before officers arrived, a man driving a gray Ford Explorer left the park. Police checked the vehicle’s license plate, which showed Jolly as the registered owner.
Police spoke with three people at the park: two victims and one witness.
Grayson P. Hagstrom told police Jolly became upset because Hagstrom had beaten the older man in a “Pokémon Go” battle.
“Pokémon Go” is a mobile phone application that was an instant hit when it debuted in July 2016. More than 500 million people worldwide downloaded the app in just two months. The innovative game uses augmented reality and allows people to catch fictitious creatures at random public spots using a phone’s camera.
Since then, the popularity of the game has cooled, but it hasn’t completely disappeared. Niantic, the maker of the app, said in April 2017 that 65 million people were playing every month.
There were numerous incidents involving the game and its players during its first year on the market, some of which were not so light-hearted as its content would suggest. Crowds stampeded after a Vaporeon in Central Park and people fell off cliffs playing it in California, according to The Associated Press.
Within the first month of the game’s release, Vancouver businesses grappled with increased traffic due to PokeStops, landmarks chosen by the game’s developer where players can get items and attract Pokémon.
And the Clark County Sheriff’s Office reported in July 2016 that two brothers playing the game in a field off of Highway 99 in Hazel Dell found a loaded handgun. Deputies retrieved the gun. Fortunately, the city appears to have avoided “Pokémon Go”-related mayhem.
Last week’s alleged assault spoils the city’s apparent good record with the game.
According to police, Jolly yelled at his video game opponents from his vehicle before getting out and striking a park table they were sitting at with a tire iron.
Hagstrom said he grabbed Jolly so he and two friends wouldn’t get hurt, but Jolly allegedly retaliated by punching the 20-year-old in the stomach; the two wrestled to the ground, according to documents.
Two other young men involved in the scuffle told police they believed Jolly would have struck them with the tire iron if Hagstrom hadn’t intervened.
The court documents allege Jolly’s strikes to the table with the tire iron caused its top to crack all the way through, which served as the basis for the malicious mischief charge. Police estimated the table will need to be replaced at a cost of $400.
Officers later located and arrested Jolly, who admitted to police that he was in the park playing the game and got angry, according to the documents. Jolly said, “I came at them in an aggressive manner” with a tire iron, the records say. He denied hitting any of the men.
According to a release affidavit, Jolly told authorities he does not have a problem with alcohol or drugs, but he does take medication for mental health issues.
