Security officer assaulted by armed trespasser www.privateofficer.com

Cambridge MASS MAY 9 2008

By: Rick McCann

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com
Police responded to assist a private security officer and arrested a Boston man on Sunday after he allegedly assaulted the security officer in a Cambridgeport apartment building. Responding officers said that Claudwens Norelus, 28, of 312 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon, trespassing and witness intimidation around 11:40 a.m. on May 4.
According to police, Norelus had already been told he was not welcome at an apartment high-rise at 91 Sidney St. when he reappeared in the lobby of the building Sunday morning. Police said one of the building’s security officers spotted Norelus and confronted him and told him he would have to leave.
According to reports, Norelus snatched the guard’s phone away from him when he tried to call 911, and a scuffle ensued.
The security officer was able subdue him and let him go and at that time Norelus charged him again, this time while reaching for a steak knife he had in his back pocket.
A witness told police the apartment security officer was able to get the knife away from Norelus and subdued him again and kept him pinned to the ground until police arrived.
The security officer received minor injuries during the scuffle.

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Man opens fire in Fla. courtroom www.privateofficer.com

ST. PETERSBURG, Florida May 9 2008 A man who was supposed to be returning divorce papers at a courthouse pulled out a gun instead Wednesday, opening fire in the lobby before two bailiffs fatally shot him.
Several people were in the lobby at the time, but only one — a bailiff, who was shot in the shoulder — was injured. He was treated and released from a hospital.
Glen Lee Powell, 30, entered the courthouse wearing a backpack shortly after 1 p.m. and approached a security checkpoint. A deputy ordered him to remove the pack and place it on a conveyor belt, but instead, he threw it on the ground and opened fire with a semiautomatic handgun, Pinellas County Sheriff’s Sgt. Jim Bordner said.
Deputies B.J. Lyons and Marvin Glover returned fire, seriously wounding Powell, who later died at a St. Petersburg hospital. Lyons, a 58-year-old firearms instructor, was wounded.
A representative speaking for Powell’s family said he had been living with his parents after returning from duty in the Air Force in California.
Bishop David Scott of the Brandon ward of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which Powell attended, said Powell was returning divorce papers due at the courthouse Wednesday.
Detectives were working to determine a motive, Bordner said. He said Powell’s wife is safe and had been notified of his death.
Scott said the man’s parents did not know he had a gun and had no indication Powell was troubled.
“They weren’t aware that he was contemplating this,” Scott said. “We don’t really understand why it happened.”
He added that Powell hadn’t been upset about the divorce.
Scott said Powell had done a two-year stint as a Mormon missionary in Colombia at his own expense before joining the Air Force.
The gunfight unfolded as court staffers and a handful of others were in the lobby of the courthouse, which has about 70 employees.
Pinellas County Clerk of Court Ken Burke said one of his office windows was shattered by a bullet. None of the clerk’s staff was hurt.
The courthouse was closed after the shooting and is expected to resume normal business Thursday.
Court officials credited the bailiffs with averting a tragedy.
“It’s unfortunate that a life was lost, but the public, employees, judges and others in [the] courthouse were properly protected,” said Robert Morris, the chief judge of Florida’s Sixth Judicial Circuit.
Cassandra Grady, 40, and her 15-year-old daughter went to the courthouse Wednesday for a hearing and saw the man before the shooting. Grady told the St. Petersburg Times that the man asked her where he could file a petition, and that she saw a gun handle in his backpack.
“I told my daughter, ‘Run for your life.’ Then I started running. I was trying to run to warn them. He started shooting. I heard a round of shots: pop-pop-pop, pop-pop-pop.”
Grady was shaken but grateful. “I just want to say, ‘Thank you, God.’ It could have been us

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Sears security arrested for theft of TV www.privateofficer.com

Nassau NY May 9 2008
Police reported that an area security guard at a Valley Stream department store was arrested with an accomplice Tuesday night as they tried to steal a 40-inch LCD television valued at nearly $1,200 from the store, the Nassau police said.

According to a police report, the incident took place at Sears in the Green Acres Mall. Police say that security guard Darvine Vassell, 22, tried to scam his co-workers at the merchandise pickup room by giving his accomplice a duplicate sales receipt for a TV that had already been claimed by a customer several days ago, the police said.

But Vassell’s co-workers became suspicious and told a manager, who called the police.Vassell, of 126th Avenue, Rosedale, had worked for more than a year as a “loss prevention officer” at the Sears in the Green Acres Mall. He faces charges of identity theft, possession of a forged instrument and grand larceny.
The security guard’s alleged accomplice, Odane Beale, 22, of Craft Avenue, Rosedale, was also arrested at the store and was charged with grand larceny and falsifying business records., police said.

Both face arraignment Wednesday in First District Court, Hempstead.

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Woman fined $310.00 for killing police officer www.privateofficer.com

ELLICOTT CITY, MD May 9 2008 The case against the Columbia woman who was speeding when her car struck and killed a Howard County police officer last year has been dismissed after she paid the traffic fines resulting from the accident, the county state’s attorney’s office said yesterday.

Prosecutors said Stephanie Latoya Grissom paid two traffic citations Friday rather than appear in District Court to contest the case, which was scheduled for today.

Grissom received three points on her driving record and paid $310 in fines for negligent driving and speeding, investigators said.On June 16, 2007, Grissom was traveling on Route 32 near Interstate 95 when Officer Scott Wheeler, who was working a speed enforcement detail, stepped out into the road to flag her down and the car struck him.

Police said Grissom was driving 71 mph in a 55-mph zone

In March, a Howard County grand jury declined to indict Grissom on automobile manslaughter charges.

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Shoplifter rams off-duty officer’s vehicle www.privateofficer.com

Beaufort County SC May 9 2008

By: Bryan Hill

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com

Authorities say that a 47-year-old Burton man is accused of ramming an off-duty sheriff’s deputy with his vehicle after being confronted about a shoplifting allegation, according to a Beaufort County Sheriff’s report Wednesday.
The incident occurred just before 1 p.m. May 1 when the Beaufort County sergeant was shopping at Home Depot in Bluffton.
The deputy noticed a salesperson talking to a man who apparently had stolen a builder’s level worth $300 from the store.
The suspect became aggressive and that’s when the deputy walked over to offer assistance, the report stated. When the deputy walked to the man’s car so he could get his identification, the suspect closed the door and hit the gas, backing into the deputy, who was narrowly able to escape, the report stated.
The deputy did not suffer serious injury because of his “evasive maneuvers,” the report said.
Deputies later found Stanley L. Robinson, 47, of Burton in a portable toilet at a construction site near a car dealership on William Hilton Parkway.
After getting his identification, deputies arrested him and charged him with high-and-aggravated assault and battery, shoplifting and driving under suspension for the seventh time.
It was the 21st time Robinson has been arrested, according to the Beaufort County Detention Center’s online prisoner log.
He remains in the jail on a $28,188 bond.

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B.O.L.O. Georgia Escapee www.privateofficer.com

B.O.L.O.–Escapee Georgia www.privateofficer.com

SAVANNAH, Ga. May 9 2008 The FBI has issued an alert for an armed robbery suspect who escaped from a Georgia jail and is deemed armed and dangerous.

The FBI said 18-year-old Kiri Datron Lovett fled on Tuesday from the Wheeler County Jail, about 80 miles east of Savannah.

Local authorities did not release any details about the escape.
A federal warrant was issued Wednesday in Savannah charging Lovett with conspiracy to use, carry and brandish a firearm during a crime of violence.

If you see this man, call your local police immediately!

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Ga. teacher arrested for relationship with student www.privateofficer.com

WALTON COUNTY, Ga. May 9 2008

By: Rick McCann

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com Authorities in Walton County say that a local teacher has been arrested for alleged inappropriate contact with a middle school student.
Police say that they have charged Noelle Pannell, 31, with sexual exploitation and child molestation of a male student at Carver Middle School in Monroe.
Pannell is a teacher at Carver Middle.
“It’s difficult to understand for anybody,” said Capt. Chris Cannon with the Walton County Sheriff’s Office.
Walton County investigators said the parents of a seventh-grade boy discovered something was going on between their son and Pannell on the Internet.
“Most of the communication was via MySpace according to the police report. However, there was some face-to-face physical contact,” said Cannon.
“School is supposed to be a safe zone,” said parent Amanda Parker. “It’s a child. A child can’t make a grown-up decision, you know what I mean? He just can’t.”
Cannon said there was no sex between the boy and Pannell.
“At this time in the investigation, we’re not going to say it’s an isolated incident because we’ve not completed our investigation,” said Cannon.
Pannell had no comment when reached by Atlanta reporters.
Authorities said her preliminary hearing is in three weeks.
There was no word on the teacher’s status at the school.

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Light rail to use private security officers www.privateofficer.com

Phoenix AZ. May 9 2008
A plan to staff the Valley’s 20-mile light-rail line with police personnel has fallen apart, with Tempe and Mesa deciding to use security guards instead.
The move, which Tempe officials said would save money and make it easier to plan for special events, was blasted by Phoenix officials, who said it would lead to a less secure system. Phoenix will staff its portion of the line with police personnel.
“For some reason, their leadership has decided it’s more important to be frugal than to ensure the safety of our ridership,” said Tom Simplot, chairman of Metro light rail and a Phoenix city councilman
Officials in Phoenix, which hoped to staff the entire line with its own police personnel, said putting multiple agencies in charge of fare inspections would lead to inconsistent enforcement.
That could jeopardize the systemwide goal of getting 97 percent of riders to pay for their trip, an important financial target for Metro light rail.
Phoenix also worries that security guards will be less effective in educating the public about how to use the new system when it opens Dec. 27.
“You get better customer service, better consistency” with a municipal force, said Maria Hyatt, Phoenix’s light-rail coordinator. “That’s important to us.”
Light-rail systems around the country differ in how they provide security.
Portland, Ore., uses a combination of police officers and hired guards.
Atlanta has its own police force. Denver uses private security.
Tempe City Manager Charlie Meyer said he is confident that security guards will be as effective as Phoenix police in enforcing fare collection and coordinating with Tempe police in the event of an incident on the trains. He noted that the city uses a private firm to provide security at Tempe City Hall.
“Our Police Department is responsible for security on the light-rail system and takes that very seriously,” Meyer said. “We will be integrating Police Department personnel with security personnel so we always know what’s going on.”
Mesa officials said that once Tempe decided to use security guards, they followed suit. Because Phoenix personnel will disembark from the trains at the Tempe line, there would be no way for them to provide security once the trains reach Mesa.
The security issue has created a new point of friction among the cities that share governing authority over the $1.4 billion system.
For the past year and a half, Phoenix developed a plan to staff the rail system with six full-time officers and 18 “police assistants” who would inspect fares and provide security on the trains and at stations.
Phoenix would pay two-thirds of the cost, with Tempe and Mesa contributing the rest.
Negotiations collapsed on April 30, when Tempe officials balked at the cost. Tempe officials also thought using a private firm would make it easier to add temporary staff during special events.
Going private will save Tempe about $350,000 a year, Meyer said.
The move has angered light-rail officials in Phoenix, who characterized the Tempe-Mesa approach as more appropriate for a shopping mall than a transit system.
“It is unfortunate we could not agree on a uniform, comprehensive approach for all three cities,” Phoenix City Manager Frank Fairbanks wrote in a letter this week to Meyer. “We do not agree this is the best solution for providing a consistent level of security, customer service and enforcement.”
The decision to use different security forces in each city also poses challenges for Metro light rail, whose staff will be charged with hiring the contractors, monitoring their performance and coordinating their efforts with Phoenix.
Metro light rail CEO Rick Simonetta said the Valley’s light-rail system differs from others around the country because power is shared among the cities, rather than entrusted to a regional transit authority.

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Store owner captures fleeing shoplifter www.privateofficer.com

MOUNT VERNON NY May 9 2008

Kyle T. Greene

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com A speedy store owner with martial arts training caught up with a shoplifter trying to get away with some merchandise Friday.
Karim R. Abdoul said he and his brother pleaded with Kevin Sherald not to leave their Mount Vernon family store, Majestic Gifts, without paying for the merchandise he had stuffed under his coat.

Instead, Sherald, a 5-foot-10 man who weighs 210 pounds, disregarded Abdoul, who is 5-foot-3 and 140 pounds, and bolted from the 49 S. Fourth Ave. store with more than $100 in stolen merchandise, Abdoul said.
“I ran down the street and he started throwing stuff on the street,” said Abdoul. “He still had more stuff on him.”
Abdoul said he caught up with Sherald on Fifth Avenue. As Abdoul tried to hold Sherald, he tried to squirm out of his coat to get away, then punched the store owner in the eye. But Abdoul, who knows martial arts, soon had Sherald subdued, he said.
Abdoul’s 38-year-old younger brother, Karim I. Abdoul, showed up with a 3-foot long piece of wood, but the older Abdoul prevented his brother from hitting Sherald because there were nails sticking out of the wood, Karim R. Abdoul said.
The older Abdoul said they constantly get people stealing from the store and said more police protection was needed in the area.
“It’s a very small store and my whole family depends on this business,” he said. “We go through this every single day. We have to make a stop somewhere.”
After the older Abdoul subdued Sherald, police took Sherald into custod and charged him with second-degree robbery, a felony.

He also is wanted by New York City police on a parole warrant.
Mount Vernon Police Commissioner David Chong said Karim R. Abdoul’s actions were commendable but he worries about other merchants getting hurt doing something similar.
“Although I understand they have a right to protect their property, please call us,” Chong said.
Karim R. Abdoul was treated at Mount Vernon Hospital for eye and nose injuries.

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K-9 officer shoots suspect who shot his dog www.privateofficer.com

K-9 officer kills suspect who shot police dog www.privateofficer.com

PITTSBURGH PA MAY 9 2008

By: Rick McCann

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com

A Pittsburgh police dog was shot and killed Tuesday before the dog’s handler returned fire and shot and killed the armed man.
According to the police Chief Nate Harper, the shooting is “an unfortunate” but justifiable action.
Harper said the dog’s handler ordered the canine — a 6-year-old German shepherd named Aulf — to attack after Jackson pulled a gun from under his shirt.

Both the officer, an eight-year-veteran Harper did not identify, and Jackson fired several shots, the chief said.
Harper said the dog’s handler and another officer, both in uniform, were driving on Arlington Avenue in a marked police car to respond to a report of shots fired when they spotted Justin Jackson.

They stopped because they believed he was carrying a gun, the chief said.
“The suspect had his hand under his shirt. When the officer told him to show his hand, (Jackson) pulled out a gun,” Harper said.
“The officer then released his dog, and the dog did what it was trained to do. The dog was fatally wounded by the subject, and the officer fatally wounded the subject.”
The dog’s handler was placed on paid administrative leave, which is normal procedure, while investigators from Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr.’s office and county police investigate, Harper said. .
Aulf, who was shot in the front legs and chest, was pronounced dead on arrival at a veterinary hospital.
Police dogs are protected under state law that makes it a felony to even taunt them.
“Preliminary indications are that the officer acted appropriately,” said Harper, who spoke briefly to Donald Jackson near the shooting scene.
Some people who were in the area say that it was a senseless killing of a good man over a dog. some yelled, “they’re not going to get away with this”.
Others saw the shooting as a tragic reminder of the general decline in the neighborhood.
City police called for officers from the Port Authority of Allegheny County to help control the crowd and secure the scene.

Officers patted down at least one young man overheard saying that he had a gun, but they found no weapon and did not detain him.

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Dog found with fish hook collar www.privateofficer.com

BULLSKIN TOWNSHIP, Pa. May 9 2008 — A dog found wandering the streets of a Pittsburgh suburb was wearing a collar made of fish hooks.
The cruel collar forced the dog to undergo surgery to remove at least one of the hooks from his neck.
Humane officers at the SPCA in North Union told WPXI-TV, a sister station of WSB-TV Channel 2, this was an unusual case of animal cruelty and they have no idea who is responsible or why someone would do something so terrible.
The dog is recovering from surgery to remove the fish hook from his neck — one of 15 that someone had attached to the inside of his collar.
SPCA Humane Officer Elizabeth Davidson said a resident found the dog wandering along Englishman Hill Road in Bullskin Township.
“When we found the collar it was extremely tight on the dog,” Davidson said.
No one knows for sure how just how long the dog, which rescuers named Hooks, had been walking around with the collar full of fish hooks. But humane officers want to get to the bottom of this and soon.
“Very sad story, but if anyone has information on owner of dog or knows how dog may have ended up in that condition,” Davidson said to let animal officials know.
Hooks is on antibiotics to prevent an infection.
Humane officers said that if the dog had not gotten treatment when he did, he probably would have died within a few days.

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Police nab armed shoplifters www.privateofficer.com

QUEENSBURY NY May 9 2008

Kyle T. Greene

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com

A complaint of shoplifting from the Target store in Aviation Mall on Tuesday led to the seizure of a loaded handgun and arrest of four people, police said.

The four were apparently involved in the theft of CDs from the store to re-sell to support heroin habits, according to the Warren County Sheriff’s Office.

They fled the store parking lot in a car that sheriff’s officers pulled over minutes after the complaint on Route 9, police said.Inside they found Kendra G. Morelli, 20 and Douglas L. Manney, 32, of Glens Falls; Ashley M. Poulos, 23, of Lake George and Robert L. Holcomb, 56, of Chestertown, police said.
All four were charged with fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, a misdemeanor, in connection with stolen CDs found in the car, police said. Morelli was also charged with petit larceny for allegedly stealing them, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

Holcomb was charged with felony criminal possession of a weapon in connection with the handgun and seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance for allegedly having the painkiller Darvocet without a prescription.

All four were being held in the Sheriff’s Office lockup pending arraignment.Poulos, Morelli and Holcomb all have extensive criminal records.

This year alone, Poulos has been arrested on charges she possessed crack cocaine and cashed forged checks, while Holcomb was arrested in New Jersey in January on felony heroin possession charges, police said.

Patrol Officers Jason Palmer and Ron Williams made the arrest.

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Gangs impersonate police, rob and torture www.privateofficer.com

Gangs impersonate police, torture, rob 100 people www.privateofficer.com

New York City NY May 9 2008

By: Bryan Hill

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com

Federal drug enforcement agents have arrested eight members of a Queens-based gang suspected of kidnapping and torturing more than 100 people.
The men impersonated the police, by way of fake sirens and lights on cars and handcuffs, and managed to steal close to $4 million in cash and cocaine with a street value of $20 million.
An assistant U.S. Attorney explained their M.O., “Once the crew finished gathering intelligence on an intended victim, the robbers then impersonated police officers to kidnap the intended victim either in a police-style car stop or in a home invasion.”
If the victim didn’t have drugs or cash on hand, the gang would torture the victim, like simulating drowning, holding other relatives at gunpoint, or applying “a pair of pliers to the victim’s testicles, threatening to squeeze the pliers if the victim did not talk” (Daily News).
Another U.S. Attorney called the level of crime and violence “breathtaking.”
Authorities from several agencies were involved in the investigation and take down of these people police said.
Most of the crimes took place in NYC, but the gang also preyed out-of-state in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Florida, between 2003 and 2007. The suspects face a minimum of 40 years in jail if convicted.

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Why do the police abuse the public? www.privateofficer.com

Atlanta Ga. May 9 2008

By: Rick McCann

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com

Why do the police abuse the public?
This question was asked of me today by a family who live in a very small community in northern Georgia where the grass is greener and the skies are bluer and crime usually consists of two drunks fighting at the local bar, kids throwing eggs on Halloween and an occasional break-in.
When you watch the news headlines from the comfort of your home and live a pretty sheltered life, it’s hard to imagine why it seems like the police are always shooting and kicking and punching the public that they are sworn to serve.

I don’t know if I’ll really be able to fully paint the real picture for you, the general public, without taking you first to the streets of east LA, or Atlanta or hells kitchen New york City or the streets of Philly or any other crime ridden, drug infested, gang controlled area that is the true battlefield in America today.
Despite rosy pictures and crime stats that look low and politicians who smile and promise that they’re making your city or town a better, safer place to live, the hardcore truth is that we live in a very dangerous world. I’m sure that you hear and see the horrible things that people do to each other everyday. The robberies and rapes and carjackings, murder and mayhem in every corner of our nation. I’m sure that you’ve been someplace at one time or the other when the hair on the back of your neck stood up and your alarm bell went off and you realized that you were not in a safe area.
Now just imagine for a moment that you stand there, put on a police uniform, pin on a badge and take an oath to protect and serve and go into the deepest baddest part of the community no matter what and you’ll rid it of crime. Don’t you think that you might become a target of that areas criminals and that your safety is in serious jeopardy?

Last year there was almost a record number of law enforcement and private security officer deaths in the U.S. Officers, both sworn and private who went to work to do a job, make a paycheck so that they could pay their bills and support their family and live a normal life like everyone else, lost their life just doing their job.
A combined 309 police and security officers never made it back home from work last year. Their families are devastated and their worlds torn apart. Children don’t have fathers and mothers to take care of them and read to them and be parents to them.
They were only doing their job, no different than a baker or a sales clerk or you doing whatever your job is and yet they were killed because of what their job was and what they stood for and because they were standing between the criminal and the honest, hardworking public.

This past week-end a Philadelphia police officer was killed as he pulled up to a bank robbery in progress. Three gunman took his life just because he chose to protect the good people of the city. In it’s aftermath, officers have been on edge and a local TV camerman caught 8 officers beating a man during a traffic stop. We don’t know why and we don’t know if he was armed. From the video, it looked like it was excessive force. But I’m sure in the back of those officers mind , they were still thinking about the cop who had just been shot, never having the chance to defend himself and never making it home to say good-bye to his wife and children.
We don’t excuse or except or sugarcoat true police brutality, unreasonable force or cops who are criminals in a uniform but sometimes, having been on both sides of the fence, I can understand and feel what they are thinking and feeling at the moment.

Another police involved shooting took place last night in Pittsburg where a police officer shot and killed a man who had shot his K-9 partner. The man pulled a gun, the officer released his dog and after the suspect shot and killed it, the officer killed the suspect. His family is outraged. Why? The man who had been pulled over for a violation of the law, instead of cooperating with police, taking a ticket and going on his way, pulled a handgun, shot and killed a police dog, and posed a great danger to the officer. It was justified force and yet the public is screaming abuse, murder and police brutality.

Law enforcement officers are trained to use force in degrees and levels. They don’t use force just because they’re having a bad day. If a person refuses to cooperate or resists arrest, they will use the levels of force necessary to subdue and put that person in custody. Chemical weapons such as pepper sprays, impact weapons such as batons and Tasers are used first unless the situation calls for lethal force, meaning their gun.

Police and security officers face dangers that they don’t even see. Walking around the corner of a building the officer checks the security of the school after a burglar alarm went off, the officer is stabbed 19 times in the back,neck and arms. In Kansas
City an officer made a routine traffic stop and before he could exit his vehicle the driver of the car jumps out and fires a dozen bullets at the officer still in his patrol car.
The general public escalates the force that the officer uses many times by not cooperating, not listening to commands and resisting arrest. The officer must assume at that point that you are a threat to his safety and he must determine the level of force to use to get that person under control.
If you watch COPS or any police TV show, you’ll see what I mean.

The bottom line is yes, police sometimes go overboard in the amount of force that they use and yes sometimes they themselves are guilty of crossing the line but remember they want to go home at the end of their shift and they must protect themselves from anyone or anything that is out to stop that from happening.

If you get pulled over by the police, put your hands on the steering wheel, don’t reach into your glovebox or anywhere’s else in the car until the officer tells you to. don’t argue, you’ll get your day in court! Even if you think that you’re right, it’s the officer’s job to enforce the law and in America everyone gets to go before a judge and a jury if you don’t think that you’re guilty of the crime.

It’s hard to explain why officers sometimes use excessive force and there’s no excusing it if it is truly unreasonable force.

Next time you see a police officer or even a security officer, thank them for the job that they do and for putting themselves out there on the line, for going places we would never think of going, for standing toe to toe with the bad guy and for giving their life if necessary to protect us, John Q public.

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Employee charged with theft over $100,000 www.privateofficer.com

City employee charged with theft over $100,000 www.privateofficer.com

FAIRHAVEN Ma. May 9 200

Kyle T. Greene

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com A town employee was charged with a felony count of larceny today after a lengthy police investigation revealed more than $100,000 in losses from the corner store where she also worked.Deborah Davis, a senior clerk in the tax collector’s office, was charged with larceny over $250 in connection with a series of thefts that occurred over a 15-month period at Paula P’s variety store on Sconticut Neck Road, according to court records.

Ms. Davis was employed at the store on a part-time basis until mid-April, court records stated.In total, the charge was based on $105,113.88 in losses: $96,311.82 of household goods, food, cash and lottery tickets was alleged stolen in 2007, and $8,802.06 in 2008, according to court records.Ms. Davis did not answer calls for comment today.The roots of the police investigation go back to February, when Paula Pires, owner of Paula P’s, sought police advice on installing surveillance cameras. Her primary concern, she told police at the time, was employee theft, court records stated.On April 4, Ms. Pires came to police headquarters and reported that she suspected one of her employees — Ms. Davis — was stealing from the store, according to court records.At the time, Ms. Davis was working at the store one day a week from 3:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., court records stated.

Ms. Pires was first alerted to the alleged theft by her bookkeeper, she told police. During 2007, the store had receipts of $455,462.62 and a gross profit of $76,272.87.Once Ms. Pires had paid all of her expenses, her net income from the store was $1,996.45, according to court records.However, if the amount alleged stolen in 2007 — $96,311.82 — is added to the equation, the net profit from the store is $96,308.27, court records stated.After reviewing surveillance videos, Ms. Pires believed Ms. Davis was stealing from the store in a variety of ways, including stealing scratch Lottery tickets and groceries, court records stated.Ms. Pires told police the surveillance camera had captured more than 800 incidents of Ms. Davis allegedly stealing, according to court records.Ms. Davis was interviewed by Fairhaven police on April 15.

During that interview, Ms. Davis told the detective she did not know surveillance cameras had been installed at the store, according to court records. Confronted with the videos’ existence, Ms. Davis admitted that she had been stealing from the store since Ms. Pires took over in January 2007, court records stated.She told police it was not like her to steal — that she had never stolen from the tax collector’s office — but she was having financial troubles at home, according to court records. She had refinanced her home for college tuition and was trying to borrow from her life insurance policy, court records stated.Ms. Davis told police she plays the Lottery hoping to hit it big and thus solve some of her financial issues, according to court records.

Later in the interview, when asked by police officers if she realized she may have a gambling problem, Ms. Davis replied she had a problem when she was at the store, court records said.According to court records, Ms. Davis told police she never took cash or cigarettes from the store.Ms. Davis told police she didn’t want to go to jail and would pay back whatever she owed, court records stated.“How much money do I owe?” she asked police, according to court records, while taking a piece of paper and a pen from her pocketbook and preparing to write it down.When presented with a spreadsheet that showed losses of $96,311.82 in items and cash from 2007, Ms. Davis said she did not agree with the figure, court records stated.There were two cash registers in the store: the regular cash register and the Lottery register, which was used specifically for Lottery purchases.According to court records, Ms. Davis would track the totals in the Lottery register using a calculator and a pad; she would then use money that came in to the regular register for groceries to balance the Lottery register.There was never a shift that Ms. Davis did not scratch tickets, Detective Glenn Souza wrote in his report after reviewing more than 50 incidents on surveillance videos.“On video marked Paula P(s) 3-9-08, the amount of scratch tickets taken by Deborah was incredible to watch,” he wrote, according to court records.

Each shift, Ms. Davis would take a plastic grocery bag and go through the store placing items in it, according to court records.She was very deliberate in her manner and would check outside through the store’s windows before taking or manipulating anything within the store, according to court records.After investigating the case for a month, Fairhaven police submitted an application for a criminal complaint to the clerk magistrate’s office this week.The complaint was signed today, and Ms. Davis will be summonsed for an arraignment in New Bedford District Court on June 2, court records stated.“We could have arrested her, but this was a long, drawn-out investigation,” Police Chief Gary Souza said today.

Given the length of the investigation and the amount of evidence being presented in the form of surveillance videos, it bolsters the case to have a clerk magistrate finding that probable cause does exist, according to Chief Souza.Although the police investigation was unrelated to Ms. Davis’ work in the collector’s office, the records of that office have been reviewed, according to Selectman Brian Bowcock.“At this point, we’ve found nothing that she’s done wrong while working in the collector’s office,” he said.

The Board of Selectmen voted Monday night to place Ms. Davis on administrative leave without pay pending the case’s resolution, according to Selectmen Michael Silvia.Ms. Davis is involved in many town associations and committees, including the Conservation Commission and the North Fairhaven Improvement Association.

Mr. Silvia, who is the improvement association’s president, said he would not comment on how the case would affect Ms. Davis’ involvement with the group until after the next member meeting.

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Shoplifters steal police cruiser www.privateofficer.com

Anderson County SC May 9 2008

By: Bryan Hill

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com

The Anderson County Sheriff’s Office says two women have been caught after being accused of stealing one of their cruisers Wednesday night.
The incident started police say at the Dollar Tree on the 28 Bypass. Deputies arrived on a shoplifting call. There were two suspects being sought according to store employees and deputies soon had both in custody.
They were handcuffed, and put both of them into a patrol car.

At that time the deputy then took them back to the Dollar Tree and was outside the vehicle talking with the manager when one of the women kicked in the cage, got into the front seat, and drove off.
They sped off but soon abandoned the car near Monitor and Auburn Drive. Police say that they then went to a local home and asked” for a ride”, but deputies soon arrived and they took off.
Deputies surrounded the area and both women were caught around 10:30pm Wednesday night in the Monitor Road near the Hwy 28 Bypass.
The Anderson Sheriff’s Office says the deputy did not violate policy.

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Police raid X-Rated theater www.privateofficer.com

from Channel 2 News
ATLANTA GA. May 9 2008 — Channel 2 cameras were there as the DeKalb Vice Squad made six new arrests as part of an investigation into public indecency within sight of nearby homes.
The owners of the Belvedere Theater have recently been accused of violating codes and allowing sexual activity.
Neighbors who live near the Belvedere Theater contacted Channel 2 earlier this year to recruit our help in documenting what goes on inside. And just as they suspected, our undercover camera found the sex wasn’t limited to the screen.
A Channel 2 photographer went inside the Belvedere Theater undercover and witnessed things better known for happening under the covers.
Lt. Gary Dickerson heads the Vice Squad for DeKalb County police. The X-rated movies playing on the two screens are the least of his concerns, he said. He said the sexual encounter between the three men that was caught on tape is not uncommon.
“Before it appeared to be oral sex, but now the second person is now completely undressed or appears to be,” said Dickerson. “What adults do at home behind closed doors is their business, but when you bring it out into public then it becomes everybody’s business.”
Sarah Helen Kilgore’s back yard faces the front of the theater. “Well, I think it’s a nuisance to the neighborhood and it brings in the wrong kind of traffic to the neighborhood,” she said.
Sarah Helen and her neighbor, Frank Burnette, have lived in the neighborhood for more than 50 years. They said they remembered when the Belvedere was family-friendly.
“When my kids were young, they went to it. Then when it closed, a church was in there for a while,” said Burnette.
But, for at least 20 years or so, it’s been an adult theater complete with free paper towels in the lobby. The neighbors signed petitions, called police and code enforcement citations have been tied up in court for years. The theater said it’s been grandfathered in as and therefore doesn’t have to adhere to DeKalb County’s adult business ordinance that prohibits an adult business from being within 1,000 feet of a residential area.
“It’s been going on so darn long, the grandfather, hell, I’ve turned grandfather myself watching it,” said Burnette.
Within hours, officers walked six men out of the theater for public indecency and Channel 2 cameras were there.
When Channel 2’s Jodie Fleischer asked one of the men what he was doing in the theater, he responded, “I was doing nothing.”
Not so said DeKalb County police and our own Channel 2 photographer who was propositioned several times within minutes.
“They can get real pushy. They’ll sit behind you and go, ‘Hey want to get together?’” said photographer Rick Nelson.
On the day Channel 2 was there, the business owner was not charged with anything. But she has been arrested at least four other times for distributing obscene material and obstructing officers. Her attorney, Tammi Long, declined comment for this story but in February said, “The people in charge of the police and code enforcement need to stop persecuting my clients and recognize that they have a legal right to exist.”
Neighbors said a cash business like the Belvedere leads to other crimes. Just last month, a gunman stole the owner’s purse in the parking lot and shot and killed her son as he tried to defend her.
“We’re trying to change the face of that area and it’s a challenge because it was one way for so long,” said Dickerson.
A challenge, neighbors said, they’ve been waiting for.
“It could be a start, if it gets around to enough people that it’s dangerous to go in there, maybe it’ll close it up,” said Burnette.
Within the coming months, a judge will decide whether the Belvedere Theater violates DeKalb County’s adult business ordinance. It does have a business license but if it isn’t grandfathered in, it can be shut down. The Vice Squad said it will continue its operations as well.

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