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MIPD officers, resident free raccoon stuck in fence

Published 1:00 pm Wednesday, July 29, 2026

By Reporter Staff

Pictured are, from left: Mercer Island Police Department (MIPD) officer Ty McDowell, resident Larry Sarchin and MIPD officer Chase Font after freeing a raccoon who was stuck in a fence. Photo courtesy of the Mercer Island Police Department

Pictured are, from left: Mercer Island Police Department (MIPD) officer Ty McDowell, resident Larry Sarchin and MIPD officer Chase Font after freeing a raccoon who was stuck in a fence. Photo courtesy of the Mercer Island Police Department

Seattle has Jimothy the odd-shaped iconic raccoon and Mercer Island has its own animal bandit that has “squeezed into our hearts,” according to the Mercer Island Police Department.

After recently responding to an Islander’s call regarding a raccoon stuck head first in a residential fence, officers Ty McDowell and Chase Font helped free the uninjured critter “who immediately scrambled up the nearest tree,” police said in a social media post.

A pair of residents jumped into action when they spotted the trapped raccoon. Incident reporter Carrie Simmons initially tried to rescue the raccoon donning oven mitts, to no avail. Next up, Larry Sarchin walked to a nearby hardware store and purchased wire cutters in order to snip the fence and help provide the raccoon a way out of the tight spot. The officers then untwisted the wire to safely complete the job.

“A huge thanks to the thoughtful neighbors who called it in and helped out, and great job to officers McDowell and Font,” the police department said.

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