THE BALLS OF AN ALLEY CAT
On-duty Edison police officer
abandoned patrol to go home during Super Bowl, complaint says
By Mark Mueller
The marked patrol car sat in
the driveway of an Edison home for nearly three hours during Sunday’s Super
Bowl. The engine idled. The headlights remained on.
But there was no crime here. No
investigation or call for service.
As the Seattle Seahawks routed
the Denver Broncos, Edison police Sgt. Andrew Chupela sat inside his own house
when he should have been patrolling the streets, according to a complaint
lodged by a neighbor.
Chupela, a 29-year veteran who
makes more than $145,000 a year without overtime, is now the subject of an
internal affairs investigation, Chief Thomas Bryan confirmed.
The neighbor, Thomas DeRienzo,
said he has no ill will toward Chupela, 51, but he said he was angered the
officer so blatantly ignored his responsibility to ensure public safety.
DeRienzo called the action all the more bewildering given the intense scrutiny
of the Edison Police Department, which has been rocked by political infighting
and high-profile episodes of misconduct.
"We’ve got carjackings.
We’ve got graffiti all over town. I’ve got people speeding down my street all
the time," he said. "With all the negative publicity, these men have
the audacity to continue to laugh in the faces of New Jersey residents?"
DeRienzo, 62, said he first
noticed Chupela’s police car in the driveway around 7:30 p.m. The officer drove
away at 10:15 p.m. or 10:20 p.m., about the time the Super Bowl ended, he said.
DeRienzo and his girlfriend phoned in a complaint that night, then followed up
in an email to Bryan Monday afternoon.
"Whether he was actually
watching the Super Bowl or not is irrelevant," DeRienzo wrote in the
email, which he shared with The Star-Ledger. "The police vehicle was there
for an extended period of time, and that IS relevant. The taxpayers of Edison
are getting fleeced by guys like this who think they are above the law."
Bryan quickly wrote back,
saying he had listened to the tapes of the complaint DeRienzo and his
girlfriend phoned in and that the matter had been referred to internal affairs.
The chief added in his email
that he was working to "change the culture" of the department.
"I have made improvements,
but there has been much resistance by the unions and the former mayoral
administration," Bryan wrote to DeRienzo. "My commitment is to hold
our officers accountable and provide nothing but the most professional police
services. The citizens of Edison deserve nothing less."
Chupela has an unlisted number
and could not be reached for comment. Efforts to reach him through the
department were unsuccessful. The president of the Superior Officers
Association — the union that represents sergeants, lieutenants and captains —
declined to comment.
Chupela has not been suspended,
Bryan said. The chief declined to say what kind of discipline he might face if
the allegations is sustained by internal affairs.
"Any and all complaints
against a police officer are investigated to their logical conclusion, and if
sustained, the appropriate measure of discipline is administered," Bryan
said.
Officers who have been found
sleeping on the job or performing non-work activities while on the clock are
sometimes suspended and sometimes not, according to a review of news accounts.
In one case in October, a Belleville officer was suspended for falling asleep
in his cruiser while working an off-duty side job.
DeRienzo said that when his
girlfriend made the first complaint by phone Sunday night, a supervisor told
her a letter of reprimand would likely be placed in Chupela’s file.
Bryan confirmed the
department’s cruisers are equipped with GPS units, but he declined to say if
they are regularly checked by watch commanders.
The incident is one of several
episodes of alleged misconduct in the Edison Police Department this year. One
officer was charged with drunken driving after he was seen swilling beer in his
patrol car. Another was suspended for allegedly returning to the scene of an
emergency call to proposition a woman for sex. A third was charged with five
counts of attempted murder for allegedly setting fire to his captain’s home.
Allen County Sheriff’s officer suspended after arrest in Michigan
Jeff Wiehe
An Allen County Sheriff’s
officer has been suspended with pay following his arrest in Michigan.
Details are sparse, but Officer
Steven M. Perry was booked into Calhoun County Jail on a misdemeanor count of
domestic battery this past Sunday.
He was released shortly
thereafter, according to jail officials in Michigan.
The Journal Gazette does not
typically name people charged with misdemeanors, but is in this case is because
Perry is a sworn law enforcement officer, and his arrest is subject to review
by the sheriff’s department.
Calhoun County encompasses
Battle Creek, where Perry was arrested, which is about 100 miles from Fort
Wayne.
The Emmett Township Public
Safety Department took Perry into custody at some point during the early
morning hours of Sunday, according to officials.
What led to the arrest has not
been released.
Allen County Sheriff Ken Fries
said Perry, 42, will remain suspended pending the outcome of the charge against
him as well as an internal affairs investigation currently underway.
Perry has been an officer with
the department since 1998 and has one disciplinary action against him, which he
received earlier this year for failing to signal that he was on duty during a
security detail.
That disciplinary action,
though, is one the department deems as “temporary,” according to Fries, meaning
it will be wiped from Perry’s file at a later date.
Perry has spent time on the
department’s SWAT Team and has received several letters of commendation for his
service on the unit, Fries said.
If convicted of domestic
battery, Perry would lose his right to carry a firearm in Indiana and face
automatic termination from the police force.
Do you freak'n believe this?
LA cops involved in mistaken
Dorner shooting to return, get training
8 Los Angeles officers who
mistakenly shot at a pickup truck during a manhunt for cop-turned-killer
Christopher Dorner will be allowed to return to the field
By Tami Abdollah
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — Eight Los Angeles
police officers who mistakenly riddled a pickup truck with bullets during a
manhunt for cop-turned-killer Christopher Dorner last year will be allowed to
return to the field after they get additional training, Police Chief Charlie
Beck said.
"I have confidence in
their abilities as LAPD officers to continue to do their jobs in the same
capacity they had been assigned," Beck said in a department message to
officers obtained Wednesday night by The Associated Press. "In the end, we
as an organization can learn from this incident and from the individuals
involved." Both the chief and an independent commission found the 2013
shooting that injured two women violated department policy. The seven officers
and one sergeant could have faced penalties including being fired.
Other discipline not outlined
in the chief's message could be handed down, police Lt. Andrew Neiman said, but
department policy prevents him from discussing it.
Attorney Glen Jonas, who
represented the two women who won a $4.2 million settlement from the city, said
he was concerned by the chief's decision not to terminate any of the eight
officers.
"If either of the women
had been killed, you can bet your bottom dollar somebody would be fired and
maybe prosecuted," Jonas said. "A stroke of luck, firing more than
100 rounds and missing, should not mean the discipline is lighter."
The civilian Police Commission
that found the officers violated policy also faulted the department itself,
saying the officers were rotated in during the night to protect the home
because of overtime concerns. The sergeant wasn't trained to oversee such a
protection detail and there was no operational plan. The commission also cites
the officers' inadequate firepower.
"The ability to address
this threat was hindered to some degree due to the experience, training and
logistical deployment of the personnel assigned," the board's report says.
"On a larger scale, the planning conducted at the Bureau could have been
more effective, ensuring proper deployment, both personnel and logistics, at
the protected location."
Tyler Izen, president of the officers'
union, said that given those circumstances, the officers should have been
returned to work months ago.
"The involved officers are
all well-qualified and talented members of the department who happened to be
placed into a highly unreasonable and unusually difficult position," Izen
said.
The events unfolded after
Dorner, a fired Los Angeles police officer, claimed he was unfairly dismissed
and vowed revenge against law enforcement officers in a rambling online
manifesto.
He killed the daughter of a former
LAPD police official, along with her fiance, and two law enforcement officers
over 10 days before being cornered and killing himself in a burning mountain
cabin in San Bernardino County.
The mistaken shooting occurred
Feb. 7, 2013, as officers protected a Dorner target's Torrance home. When one
of the newspaper delivery women threw a paper onto the pavement in the early
morning hours, an officer believing the sound was a gunshot opened fire.
Officers unable to see clearly into the vehicle riddled the pickup truck with
103 rounds and hit seven nearby homes and nine other vehicles with gunshots and
shotgun pellets.
Margie Carranza, then 47,
suffered minor injuries, and her then-71-year-old mother, Emma Hernandez, was
shot in the back.
"I appreciate that the
officers involved in the incident took action with intent of protecting the
'target' and his family; however, the chain of events which unfolded and the
extent to which the use of lethal force occurred did not meet my expectations,
consequently there were innocent victims wounded," Beck said in the
message, which is mostly critical of the officers but ends with his vote of
confidence.
Beck goes on to say that he
"found it to be very concerning that officers fired before adequately
identifying a threat; fired without adequately identifying a target and not
adequately evaluating cross fire situations."
Steve Soboroff, president of
the civilian Police Commission, said Wednesday night that while discipline is
the chief's decision and the circumstances were extreme, he "would have
expected a more significant level of discipline for the actions of most of the
officers in this incident."
"I trust that the training
will be extensive and the department and officers will move forward from this
tragic incident stronger and wiser from the lessons learned," Soboroff
said
Again, why we need standard IQ testing for cops
Cop said snowball was deadly
Bronx men get $60,000 each in
lawsuit over arrests for throwing snowball at cop
The five plaintiffs filed a $10
million suit against New York City after a cop arrested them in February 2010
for throwing a snowball. The criminal charges were later dropped after video
surfaced that contradicted the cop's tale. A city official confirmed the suit's
settlement.
BY MICHAEL J. FEENEY AND TINA
MOORE / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Five young men in the Bronx who
filed a $10 million false arrest suit against New York City after a cop
mistakenly claimed they bombarded him with snowballs settled their case
Thursday for $60,000 each, a city official said.“I’m just happy that we got
justice,” said plaintiff Anthony Aquino, 19, regarding the settlement in the Bronx
Supreme Court case. Nick Paolucci, deputy press secretary for the city’s law
department, confirmed each plaintiff got $60,000 in the deal. Sgt. Adonis
Ramirez, who pulled his gun on the group after one snowball struck him in
February 2010, had the group arrested. The charges were later dropped by the
Bronx district attorney's office after video surfaced contradicting Ramirez’
account.
Former Hardy police officer, wife could face fraud charges
HARDY, AR (KAIT) – A former
officer with the Hardy Police Department could face charges after admitting to
misusing the city's credit card.
According to a news release
from the Hardy Police Department, Officer Gary D. Henry was fired from the
department on Wednesday. He was terminated pending formal charges of fraud and
theft.
Police state Henry admitted to
using the City of Hardy's credit card to fuel his personal vehicle. An
investigation began when an unreasonable amount of fuel usage appeared on the
city's credit card statement.
Hardy Police Chief Ernest Rose
has turned the investigation over to Arkansas State Police.
Henry and his wife could face
possible charges of fraudulent use of a city credit card and theft, according
to Officer Jines with Arkansas State Police.
Police brutality probe makes 'progress,' manager says
By Nick B. Reid
SEABROOK — The New Hampshire
attorney general's office is "still in the early stages" of its
investigation into alleged police brutality at the Seabrook Police Department.
After a YouTube video started
making its way around the Web showing an officer slamming a seemingly
non-threatening suspect into the wall of the police station's cell block, and
another officer laughing and pepper spraying the teenager while he's on the
ground, the attorney general's office quickly took over the investigation on
Jan. 8.
Three officers — Keith
Dietenhofer, Mark Richardson and Adam Laurent — were suspended with pay while
the incident is probed.
More than three weeks later,
lead investigator and Senior Assistant Attorney General Jane Young said it's
too early to give an accurate prediction of when the investigation will come to
a close.
"The investigation is
active and ongoing at this time. Given that status, I cannot provide any
further detail at this time," she wrote in an e-mail Friday morning.
Seabrook Town Manager Bill
Manzi said "progress" was being made in the case. Asked to elaborate
on what that means, he said only, "There has been progress in that
area."
In the meantime, Manzi
confirmed that the three suspended officers are still being paid while on leave
from their usual roles as patrolmen with the department.
Deputy Seabrook Police Chief
Mike Gallagher said in a press conference Jan. 8 that he will conduct his own
investigation of the department, but only after the conclusion of the attorney
general's investigation. The U.S. attorney's office and the FBI also joined the
investigation.
In Troy, a loud call for dialogue
Allegations of police brutality
during bar fight open old wounds
By Kenneth C. Crowe II
Tensions regarding racial
discrimination and police brutality received a public hearing Tuesday night, 11
days after a bar fight forced them to the surface.
Some demands, such as
suspending police officers without pay and an external investigation, were
repeated, while in other cases suggestions for reforming police department
operations were new.
The City Council Public Safety
Committee hearing grew from the melee on Jan. 25 at Kokopellis, 124 Fourth St.,
that was captured by surveillance and cellphone cameras and showed a police
officer striking a bar patron several times on the head with a baton.
The Troy African American
Pastoral Alliance has pushed the city government to respond growing criticisms
of police brutality, particularly in the city's minority community.
"I warned you this was
going to happen," Pastor Willie Bacote of the Missing Link A.M.E. Zion
Church told the committee.
Bacote said the city has to
change the way police act and that everyone has to take responsibility for
changing the community.
Anger and passion could be
heard from many of the 300 people in the audience at Christ Church United
Methodist Church as they reacted to comments about the police department and
actions of some officers.
"What we heard tonight is
telling of people's feelings. The issue is real. It can't be ignored
anymore," said the Rev. Eric Shaw, pastor of Bethel Baptist Church.
The hearing followed a march of
100 people led by the Troy African American Pastoral Alliance from Bethel
Baptist Church down Fifth Avenue to police headquarters and then to Christ
Church United Methodist.
Alice Green of the Center for
Law and Justice in Albany urged the committee to adopt true community policing
similar to what has been done in Albany.
Barry Glick, co-owner of
Kokopellis, blamed the police for the fight at the club.
"The police entered my
building looking for a fight," Glick stated.
Ben Brucato of the Community
Alliance Against Police Violence demanded the police drop changes against
anyone arrested that night, suspend without pay any police officer with a baton
and have an external investigation of the incident.
Officer Robert Fitzgerald,
president of the Troy Police Benevolent Association, said some recommendations
had merits, but that the demands were outlandish. Mayor Lou Rosamilia said his
administration and the police department have opened a dialogue with the
pastors but that it is in its early stages.
Shaw added that race is a
component of ongoing discussions and that it must be dealt with and not
ignored.
Councilman Robert Doherty, the
committee chairman, said the meeting was a good start, but that more
information has to be gathered to decide what actions to take.
Chief John Tedesco will speak
to the committee when it reconvenes at 6 p.m. Feb. 12 at Christ Church United
Methodist.
Police 'brutality' video emerges
Accusations of police brutality
have been leveled against a police officer in the US after hidden camera
footage which appears to him dragging a woman across the floor.
In the video, Tampa Police
Officer Scott Van Treese is seen walking over to the victim as she lay sprawled
beside his car.
Desperate to get her inside,
the officer attempts to pick the woman up by her shoulders but she flops back
down.
The officer then appears to
grab the woman and drags her along the floor into the police station.
Several times the woman can be
seen attempting to stand up but fails.
The suspect was arrested in
October last year for trespassing and cocaine possession.
After seeing the video, Tampa
Police launched an internal investigation into the incident with Mr Van Treese
copping a reprimand for his behavior but no other disciplinary action.
Morrogh finds cop he doesn’t love. In other news, hell freezes.
Probe of fatal police shooting
goes to federal authorities
By Justin Jouvenal
The Fairfax County prosecutor
has turned over the investigation of a fatal police shooting of an unarmed
Springfield man to federal authorities, citing complications with the
five-month-old case.
Commonwealth’s Attorney Ray
Morrogh said the U.S. attorney’s office for the Eastern District of Virginia
has agreed to continue the probe into the death of 46-year-old John Geer, who
was shot during a standoff with Fairfax County police in August. No one has
been charged in the incident.
“There is a conflict of interest that has
arisen in the case,” Morrogh said Thursday. “And there is a second potential
conflict of interest that has arisen out of my office. . . . This
is the prudent thing to do.”
Morrogh declined to describe
the nature of the conflicts because the investigation is ongoing. The U.S.
attorney’s office said Thursday that it could not confirm or deny any
investigation or comment on pending investigations.
Police went to Geer’s Pebble
Brook Court home on Aug. 29 because of a report of a domestic disturbance.
Geer’s father, Don Geer, said his son was upset because his girlfriend, the
mother of his two children, had decided to leave him.
John Geer had thrown his
girlfriend’s belongings in the front yard. She called police and told them that
Geer had a firearm. Police said they tried for about 50 minutes to persuade
Geer to leave the home, but he refused.
Don Geer said he watched the
climax of the encounter. He said that he could not hear what officers were
saying to his son but that he saw him standing with empty hands resting on top
of a screen door at the home’s entrance.
At some point, John Geer began
to slowly lower his hands and an officer opened fire, hitting Geer in the
chest, his father said. Geer retreated inside and closed the door. A SWAT team
eventually entered the home and found Geer dead.
Don Geer said detectives later
told him that his son did not have a gun on him at the time of the shooting but
that there was a holstered handgun a couple of steps from the front door.
Don Geer said it appeared to
him that the shooting was unjustified, but he was unsure what to make of the
probe being turned over to federal authorities.
“I don’t know whether that’s
good or bad — if I had a better idea of why they are doing it, I could form an
opinion,” he said.
Geer and friends of his son
have been critical of how long the investigation has taken, but Morrogh said
police and prosecutors were working to explore all the evidence. He did not
think federal prosecutors would have to start from scratch.
“No one wants these things to
linger on,” Morrogh said.
Meth Police Chief: Top Cop in Texas Town Arrested in Meth Ring
By Clyde Hughes
Authorities arrested a police
chief from a small town in East Texas on Tuesday, along with two residents, in
connection to a methamphetamine ring.
Joseph "Jody"
Navarro, 40, a police chief of Normangee, was taken into federal custody after
he was arrested for allegedly using a law enforcement computer system to aid in
meth trafficking, the Bryan Eagle reported on Thursday.
Navarro was charged with
intentionally exceeding authorized access to a protected computer to run a
background check on a name supplied to him by a suspected meth dealer,
Normangee resident Brenda Antanette Evans, 45. If convicted, Navarro faces up
to five years in federal prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
Evans and Joshua Troy Thomas,
25, both of Normangee, were charged with one count of possession with intent to
distribute methamphetamine. The complaint alleged that Evans purchased close to
an ounce of meth from Thomas for $1,200.
Thomas was arrested during an
early morning raid at his home, and Navarro was cuffed by law enforcement as he
pulled up to the scene while on duty, KBTX-TV reported.
The Eagle reported Evans surrendered to
authorities at the McLennan County Jail in Waco on Wednesday.
"I've worked (with) and
known Jody for about five or six years now," Normangee Police Sgt. Steve
Milligan told KBTX-TV. "Knowing Jody personally, it was quite a surprise
to me."
Normangee Mayor Ronnie Meadors
told KBTX-TV that Navarro's arrest left the town in shock.
"This is something that we
never expected out of him," Meadors said. "Jody was a good police
officer. Jody knows the laws and he was good at interpreting the laws, but in
the same token, just with him working and knowing the law does not put him
above the law."
Milligan told KBTX-TV he is now
the only officer left on the police force.
"Sure, it’s a lot to take
on," Milligan said. "But it's also being able to start off with a
clean slate with everything. You know? Now there shouldn’t be absolutely any
questions about our integrity."
Pines Cop Accused Of Stealing Pricey Watch After Jewelry Store Heist
PEMBROKE PINES (CBSMiami) –
Security cameras at a Pembroke Pines jewelry store captured not one but two
burglaries this week, the second one caught a police officer stealing a
expensive watch during the investigation of the first burglary, according to
police.
During the investigation of a
burglary at Jared the Galleria of Jewelry at 11077 Pines Boulevard, the
Pembroke Pines Police Department learned that Officer Kevin Burgs, 36, took a
movado watch valued at $795.00 from the store, according to new arrest
affidavit from the department.
The reported theft was captured
by two of the store’s surveillance video cameras. The report says a store
employe who was reviewing footage from the burglary spotted the officer
stealing the watch.
Burg’s arrest report states
that detectives discovered the stolen watch inside the officer’s police
vehicle. The report said the store wants to prosecute the officer.
Pembroke Pines Police Captain
Carlos Bermudez told CBS4′s Peter D’Oench that he did not know if that
suirveillance tape would be released.
“That will be up to the Broward
State Attorney’s Office and prosecutors will have to review that tape,” said
Bermudez.
That surveillance tape will be
part of the internal affairs investigation of Burgs.
Pembroke Pines Mayor Frank
Ortis told D’Oench that he could not comment yet about this case.
“It’s just too early in the
investigation for me to say anything right now,” said Ortiz.
“That’s crazy, like isn’t it
serve and protect,” said Pembroke Pines resident Penelope Garcia. “What was he
thinking?”
Burgs was arrested Thursday
morning and charged with Grand Theft. Bond was set at $1,000. After posting
bail, he was released.
D’Oench stopped at Burgs’ home
in Davie to try to speak with the officer. But no one came to the door when he
knocked.
“He blew his whole reputation,
his whole career, for a watch, a piece of jewelry, that’s ridiculous, why would
you even chance that,” wondered Darcee Mixon, an employee of Second Cup coffee
shop near the jewelry store. “That’s insane. Cops come in here all the time,
you expect them to be above and beyond all of that, so for them to stoop to
such a small level, it’s really, I can’t imagine.”
Burgs, a nine year veteran of
the Pembroke Pines Police Department, has been placed on suspension with pay
pending the outcome of an internal investigation.
“It’s kind of embarrassing to
have an officer of the law be so irresponsible or maybe it’s a hint to the
government to pay your officers more,” said Garcia.
Police were called to the store
Wednesday morning after a couple of cat burglars broke into the store overnight
and got away with $75-thousand worth of jewelry.
The two burglars got into the
store by cutting a hole in the roof. Once inside, they smashed the glass cases
and grabbed the high-priced goods.
A roofer who patched the hole
said this was not a haphazard job.
”They had to bring a battery
powered saw up there. They knew there was going to be corrugated metal, they
knew how to cut it, like they cut it perfectly square,” explained roofer
William Natale.
Police said the crooks were
dressed in all black and wore masks. In surveillance video taken inside the
store during the crime, one burglar can be seen using what appears to be a pick
ax to smash the glass cases.
Below is the surveillance video
of the burglary in progress:
The jewel thieves stuffed all
the loot into a back pack, placed a step stool on a counter and pulled
themselves up through the hole in the ceiling in order to make their escape by leaving
the same way they came in.
In addition to the theft of
$75-thousand worth of merchandise, the burglars left behind $10-thousand in
damage to the glass cases and the roof.
Last month, there was a similar
type of burglary at the Westfield Broward Mall in Plantation. Two men cut a
hole in the roof to break into the Gordon’s Jewelers store. Surveillance video
shows them descending into the store using a rope. Once inside they stole more
than $100,000 in merchandise in about 20 minutes. They then exited through the
roof.
Police have not said if they
suspect the two burglaries were related.
Firefighter Arrested by CHP Officer During Rescue at Crash Site
By Michael Mullins
A firefighter was arrested by
the California Highway Patrol (CHP) after he refused to move his emergency
vehicle from a lane after being ordered to do so by police. The firefighter was
assisting a crash victim at the time of this arrest.
The dispute and arrest were
caught on camera by a CBS 8 News crew which was at the scene covering the
accident on Wednesday.
In a video, 36-year-old
firefighter Jacob Gregoire, a 12 year member of the Chula Vista Fire
Department, is handcuffed and led away by an unidentified highway patrolman.
"It's unbelievable you
have to do this," the cop says as he slaps the cuffs on Gregoire.
"It's unbelievable that
you guys have to treat us like this," Gregoire responded to the cop in the
video. "We are on the road trying to help people."
"We asked you. We asked
you to clear the road and you said no, and you are getting arrested for not
moving it," the cop snapped back before leading the firefighter away from
the camera.
During the exchange, Gregoire's
fellow firefighters are seen assisting victims at the scene from the rollover
accident. The crash victims were taken to an area hospital, but their
conditions were not reported.
In addition to not providing
the police officer's name, CHP would not say whether the officer was
reprimanded for his decision to handcuff and detain a first responder while he
was attending to victims at the scene, CBS 8 noted.
The CHP and Chula Vista Fire
Department met Wednesday afternoon, after which they released a joint statement
to the media.
"Last night there was an
unfortunate incident at the scene of a traffic collision on I-805," the
statement read. "Both the CHP and the Chula Vista Fire Department share a
common goal of protecting the public and. . . have the utmost respect for each
other and our respective missions. This was an isolated incident and not
representative of the manner in which our agencies normally work together
toward our common goal."
Though there have been
disagreements between the two departments in the past, this is reportedly the
first time a patrolman has arrested a firefighter for a disagreement at the
scene of an accident.
Why we need standard IQ testing for cops....................
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) - A
rookie Oakland police officer was arrested last weekend for allegedly
brandishing a gun in a San Francisco restaurant to impress a woman, San
Francisco police said Friday.
Police were called to the 2200
block of Lombard Street at 2:40 a.m. Sunday, Officer Albie Esparza said.
Oakland police Officer Kevin
Kelly, 24, had been talking to another patron having breakfast at a restaurant
there and told her he was a police officer, but she didn’t believe him, Esparza
said.
To prove it, Kelly, who had
been drinking, allegedly pulled out a handgun, pointed it at the woman and at
the restaurant’s ceiling, Esparza said.
The woman told the restaurant’s
staff that Kelly had a gun and the police were called. Kelly was arrested and
cited for misdemeanor brandishing a firearm, Esparza said.
His weapon, which was not
department-issued, was booked into evidence, according to Esparza.
Oakland police have launched an
internal affairs investigation into the incident, Oakland police spokeswoman
Officer Johnna Watson said.
Kelly graduated from the
Oakland Police Academy last March and had his badge pinned by his father, San
Francisco police Inspector Jim Kelly, during his graduation ceremony, according
to Oakland police.
San Diego police officer investigated on suspicion of on-duty assaults on women
By Tony Perry
SAN DIEGO — A decorated police
officer has been suspended while the district attorney reviews allegations that
he sexually assaulted four women while on duty, officials said Thursday.
The officer was identified as
Chris Hays, 30, who received a lifesaving medal in 2012 for dashing into a
burning building to save a woman trapped on the second floor. He also served
with the Marines in Iraq as a lance corporal.
Four women have accused the
officer of touching them improperly while they were being searched, according
to Chief Bill Lansdowne.
One of the four incidents was
from a domestic violence call. Others involved a shoplifting suspect, a
homeless woman and a women interviewed during a street patrol.
The Police Department's
investigation into the accusations,
first reported by KGTV-TV Channel 10, has been forwarded to the district
attorney's office for a determination on whether to file criminal charges
against Hays.
Separate from the district
attorney's review is an investigation by the Police Department into whether the
officer violated procedures, Lansdowne said.
That investigation is nearing
completion, and the department is close to terminating the officer, Lansdowne
said.
The first allegation was made
in December, when a woman came to the Police Department. Investigation then
revealed three similar incidents, Lansdowne said.
Hays is married and the father
of two. His father-in-law, Mark Jones, is an assistant chief with the San Diego
department.
Nothing in the investigation
revealed any "red flags" that should have indicated to superiors that
the officer's on-duty behavior was inappropriate, Lansdowne said.
In 2011, former Officer Anthony
Arevalos was convicted of demanding sexual favors from women after making
traffic stops. He was sentenced to eight years and eight months in prison; he
had been fired after the accusations were made.
The City Council has approved a
total of $2.3 million in payments to women assaulted by Arevalos. One case has
gone to trial.
Reservoir police officer suspended after ticket-fixing accusation
A Reservoir Patrol police
officer is suspended after he was accused of receiving favors for fixing a
ticket, WAPT reported.
Christopher Rast allegedly
received sexual favors from a woman for his help with citations.
"We have been notified and
are cooperating with the investigation," said Reservoir Police Chief Perry
Waggoner.
Attorney General Jim Hood's
office would not confirm the details of the investigation.
Rast has not been charged.
Questions remain on how Atlantic City will enact police oversight board to review complaints
Lynda Cohen
As Atlantic City leaders
finally move on filling a civilian board to review police complaints, how it
will work is still a question.
"We need to move on (the
board) in the correct way," City Councilman Steve Moore said during a news
conference in which the local chapter of the National Action Network called for
immediate implementation of the board, which was first passed in 2012.
Accusations of excessive force
went national late last year, after a lawsuit made public a video allegedly
showing a suspect being beaten and attacked by a police dog.
Such boards are good for
helping strained police-community relations, said Brian Buchner, president of
the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement, or NACOLE.
"Civilian oversight has
proven to be a bridge builder between the public and the police by helping to
foster the public's trust and notion of police legitimacy," Buchner said.
But how that bridge will work
in Atlantic City has not been determined.
City Council tabled the second
reading of the revised ordinance Jan. 15, after the police union voiced concerns
about some of the wording.
That stems from references to
public hearings, because there could be issues with the contract and how the
department handles disciplinary hearings and interviews, PBA President Paul
Barbere explained.
Buchner said it's important to
know the specific laws governing internal police misconduct investigations and
disciplinary matters.
"It just has to be drafted
properly," Barbere said of the ordinance.
"We would hope that,
instead of reinventing the wheel, let's model this after something that's
already been in place," he said.
The PBA has reached out to New
York City, where its Civilian Complaint Review Board marked 20 years in July.
Moore said the council may visit Hartford, Conn., to talk to its Civilian
Police Review Board.
Currently, the board would have
two tiers.
The first would have 11
members: one nominee from each of the nine council members and two from the
mayor. If that board finds in favor of a hearing, that would go to the second
tier, comprising City Council members. It does not specify the number of
council members.
The first three nominations for
the main board were made Jan. 15: Texas Avenue School Principal Rosetta
Johnson, retired Philadelphia police Sgt. Michael Mander and Jacqueline Sharpe,
who has served on several boards in the city.
"We're not saying the
Police Department is all bad," said Councilman Sporty Randolph, who
nominated Sharpe. "We just want to be able to nip things in the bud if
there's a problem that can be solved."
Once brought to the second
tier, witnesses may be subpoenaed, under the current ordinance.
Many civilian entities have
that power through statute, Buchner said.
"Some can issue subpoenas
directly, while others can issue them through their local city attorney or city
council/commission," he explained.
At his swearing-in last month,
police Chief Henry White said he welcomed the transparency the board would
bring, confident that it would reveal the city's department is a good one.
"There's nothing we want
more than to show the community that we're doing exactly what we're supposed to
be doing and how difficult our job is," Barbere said. "It just needs
to be set up in a way where it produces the best result."
But who would make up the board
is also of concern.
"You can't have someone with
preconceived notions looking to exact some type of revenge," Barbere said.
In San Diego, board members
attend training classes on all aspects of law enforcement and go on
ride-alongs, while officers are given training on the board's role and its
relationship with the city's Police Department.
San Diego began its board after
a police-involved shooting in the mid-1980s. It was to last just a year, but
the success caused it to become permanent, according to the board's website. In
1988, residents voted in favor of a city charter for a board under the
authority of the city manager.
Last year, residents of New
Haven, Conn., voted on a similar charter for their board. Until then, the
12-year-old board was running only by mayoral executive order.
Buchner said what they have
come to see is that what may be more important than a degree or a law
background is knowledge and understanding of the principles and good practices
of civilian oversight.
"Oversight is a bit of a
niche field, which really depends on interaction and learning from agency to
agency and municipality to municipality," he said. "Gaining exposure
to those ideas, practices and other professionals in the field through national
conferences and training opportunities, like those put on by NACOLE, can make a
difference in how prepared someone is to work and be effective in
oversight."
Mayor Don Guardian has said he
wants to make sure the concerns over excessive force allegations against the
Police Department are looked into and addressed fairly while allowing police to
do their jobs and keep residents and visitors safe.
"There are a lot of other
cities that have had these issues before, and I think we need to learn how they
progressed," he has said. "It might be cameras; it might be policy
and procedures change; it may be a better matching of experienced officers with
young officers; it may be the body cams or cameras in the cars, (or) a civilian
review board. All of these are issues we want to deal with, and it's
tough."
Civilian oversight can help,
Buchner said: "Ultimately, strong and independent oversight can be a
critical link between the police and the community and make policing more
effective in the process."
Police oversight commission faces overhaul
By: Erica Zucco, KOB Eyewitness
News 4
Recommendations from a task
force to overhaul the Police Oversight Commission will be introduced at the
Albuquerque City Council meeting on Monday.
The 217 page document details
the process for making recommendations and gives suggestions for the council to
approve.
One of them is that the APD
chief must respond in writing if he or she does not follow the commission's
recommendations for discipline. There is also a recommendation that the
commission should be able to suggest changes to APD training and policies, and
a condition that the commission should get more access to APD documents and
data.
The Albuquerque Police Officers
Association says the proposal goes too far.
"A lot of the changes that
they're trying to make wouldn't be something that we'd expect in the judicial
system for the regular citizens," APOA President Stephanie Lopez said.
But there is a change the union
and citizen advocates agree on – making commission members go through more
training on what it's like to be an officer. In the past, members got very
little.
"How can you judge
somebody in their job when you don't even know what the details or what the
regiments of going through that process is? It's like me being on a panel and
deciding whether an attorney did his job or not," Lopez said.