Village Community Outreach Specialists Florence Randolph and Danny Steck struck a pose by their “cotton candy-colored” cruiser earlier this fall. (Photo by Reilly Dixon)
2025 In Review | Crime & Law Enforcement
- Published: February 12, 2026
• Two burglaries occurred at Unfinished Creations and Miguel’s Tacos food truck at the turn of the year, between the evening of Dec. 31, 2024, and the morning of Jan. 1, 2025. Items taken from Unfinished Creations included small change and decorative stones; $150 was taken from Miguel’s.
• Yellow Springs reeled Jan. 11 upon learning it had lost a beloved member of its community suddenly and violently: Frederick Peterson, Psy.D., known as “Doc Pete” for his work as a clinical psychologist and his friendly presence, was shot and killed by his son, Frederick Dane Muenchau-Peterson, who pleaded guilty in November to aggravated murder and tampering with evidence.
• In February, former Yellow Springs physician Donald Gronbeck pleaded no contest in two separate criminal cases regarding patient abuse and neglect; the first case involved one misdemeanor count of gross patient neglect and one felony count of attempted patient abuse, and the second case involved 12 felony counts of gross patient neglect.
As a result of the plea agreement, the state of Ohio has dismissed all charges in an indictment against Gronbeck in a criminal rape case initiated in 2022.
Gronbeck was arrested in October 2022 and indicted on 50 criminal charges in connection with sex crimes allegedly committed between 2018 and 2021 when he worked at the now defunct Yellow Springs Primary Care, Inc., and Kettering Health’s Soin Medical Center in Beavercreek.
In March, Gronbeck was sentenced to five years of probation.
• At a special meeting on March 31, Village Council approved two resolutions for the YS Police Department to provide advocacy services to victims of misdemeanor crimes of violence committed not just in Yellow Springs, but also in Jamestown and Cedarville.
The Xenia Law Department ceased providing victim advocacy services to those three municipalities April 1.
• At the April 21 Village Council meeting, the group approved a resolution that allows the Village to charge for public records requests of video footage from the YS Police Department’s body-worn camera and police cruiser dash cameras. Following the passage of the legislation, the Village has charged $75 per hour of video produced, not exceeding a total of $750 for each recorded video.
• Several downtown storefronts were burgled overnight June 15 — Tibet Bazaar, the Village Herb Shoppe, Wander & Wonder and Bentino’s Pizza. Three more break-ins — apparently in connection with the previous few — occurred about a month later at Little Fairy Garden, Glen Garden Gifts and Heaven on Earth Emporium.
On July 15, police arrested Matthew Bricker, 21, on a second-degree felony charge of robbery and fifth-degree felony charges of breaking and entering and possessing criminal tools.
• In September, lifelong villager Danny Steck joined Florence Randolph as the police department’s second community outreach specialist. Together, Steck and Randolph function as the village’s social workers by connecting Yellow Springs residents and visitors to mental health and material resources.
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