UPDATE: Jan. 25, 3:39 p.m. - North Penn Now has learned that Suzanne Pedersen died on Dec. 13 after a brief stay on hospice. As such, all charges against Pedersen are being withdrawn.
It turns out those charges did little to resolve the issue, as only hours after her preliminary arraignment, police were again dispatched to Pedersen’s home for a report of a fully nude woman that was screaming obscenities. It was the 58th time police had been dispatched to the home since December 2020, according to North Wales Police Chief Michael Eves.
“I’m just very frustrated with the mental health system in this country right now,” said Eves. “They are way over capacity, and no one seems to know what to do with this type of case. You put them in the system for help, and they’re back out in a week.”
Police were dispatched to Pedersen’s home at 11:55 a.m. on July 6, less than three hours after she was released on unsecured bail, according to the criminal complaint. Arriving officers said they encountered Pedersen on her screened-in porch, describing her as naked from the waist down and being verbally aggressive towards police. Pedersen reportedly told police that she was fully nude in her hot tub, but put on a shirt because she knew that a neighbor had called police, the report states.
Police said they warned Pedersen that her actions were a nuisance to the community, however she continued to scream obscenities at the officers, the report states.
As a result of the incident, additional charges of felony stalking and misdemeanor open lewdness, disorderly conduct and harassment were filed against her. She fled to Maryland after the encounter and wasn’t taken into custody until July 28, police said.
Pedersen was given $5,000 unsecured bail by Judge Suzan Leonard, along with the stipulations that she have no police contact and no contact with her neighbors. Should Pedersen violate either of the orders, bail will be revoked, and Pedersen will be placed in the Montgomery County Correctional Facility, according to court documents.
Her preliminary hearings for both sets of charges have been merged together, and will be held on August 5 at 1 p.m. in front of Judge Leonard.
Previous Charges
Eves told North Penn Now in July that he and his officers had tried to resolve the issue on multiple occasions, but Pedersen would not relent in her alleged harassment of her neighbors.
“I’ve [had her involuntarily committed] three times, each time she’s out in a week and back at it,” said Eves at the time. “So here I am, charging a 78-year-old woman with violations of the crimes code. I’m out of options.”
Neighbors said that Pedersen had shouted obscenities and banged on their fence more than a dozen times due to their children playing in their backyard while Pedersen was tending to the garden in her own yard, according to the original criminal complaint. As a result of the ongoing incidents, the neighbors said they no longer permit their children to play in front of their home or in their adjoining back yards out of fear of “setting Pedersen off,” police said.
Pedersen has also been cited three times this year for her dog being off leash, according to court records. Eves explained that Pedersen frequently lets her dog off leash to use the neighbors' lawns to go to bathroom, which has furthered the ongoing dispute and led to the off leash citations.
The dog also allegedly bit a mail carrier, leading to the postal service refusing to deliver to her address.
As a result of the June incident and the previous issues, Pedersen was charged with stalking, open lewdness and harassment.
Ongoing Issues Compounded by Tragedy
Though the issues with neighbors date back for several years, the frequency of their occurrences has escalated almost exponentially since December 2020 — the same time that Pedersen’s son, Haakon Ross Pedersen, committed suicide, police said.
Haakon was Pedersen’s only child, and he served as her primary caregiver, according to Eves. Since Haakon’s death, the level of calls to Pedersen’s home — as well as the nature of the alleged disobedience — have increased dramatically, Eves said.
It’s unclear if anyone is providing care for Pedersen currently.
“She has no family in the area, and has pretty much alienated her neighbors, family and everyone else who wants to help her,” said Eves. “She’s also been thrown out of her primary care physician’s office, so there’s that…”
In the wake of the report in July, many commenters suggested Pedersen was suffering from a mental issue — likely dementia. When asked about the possibility that Pedersen may be suffering from dementia, Eves said he couldn’t rule it out and would seek to have an evaluation performed as a condition of bail.
He also added that it may be entirely possible that she’s an eccentric woman with a disregard for rules and laws.
“She’s pretty sharp mentally, [but it may be that] she just doesn’t believe the rules apply to her,” Eves said.
See also:
Elderly Woman Arrested After Baring Lower Half During Ongoing Dispute with Neighbors, Police Say
Hatfield Man Charged with Animal Cruelty After Police Find Dead Rottweilers In Vacant Office Space
School Bus Driver From North Wales Charged With Possession Of Child Pornography
Perkasie Man Arrested After Sexually Assaulting Teen Girl He Met Online, Police Say
