Police officer arrested for stealing drugs www.privateofficer.com

DURANT, Okla. May 12 2008 A long-time Durant police officer is accused of breaking into a pharmacy in an attempt to steal prescription drugs.
Lieutenant Johnny Rutherford is charged with felony second-degree burglary.
Police Chief Durward Cook says Rutherford was on personal leave for an unrelated matter and is now on administrative leave until the case is settled.
An affidavit filed by an Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation agent says Rutherford admitted he is the person show in a surveillance video from the pharmacy. The document says Rutherford told agents he used a lug wrench to break the pharmacy door but didn’t take anything.
Rutherford is a nearly 20-year veteran of the Durant police force and was due to retire later this year.

Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com

Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews

Be part of our social community! www.privateofficer.com

Georgia outlaws marijuana flavored candy www.privateofficer.com

ATLANTA Ga. May 12 2008 Georgia retailers soon will be banned from selling candy flavored to taste like marijuana to children.
Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue signed a measure into law Wednesday that bans the sale of “marijuana flavored products” to minors — anyone under 18 — and calls for a fine of up to $500 for each offense.
The measure takes effect July 1st.
It targets businesses that sell the candies with drug-inspired names such as “Kronic Kandy” and “Pot Suckers.”
The law says the candies promote drug use.
Senator Doug Stoner pushed the bill in the senate. “I don’t think that folks are aware this is going on,” Stoner told Channel 2 in April. “It’s mainly, from what I can tell, particularly targeted to minority communities.”
State Representative Judy Manning said she was shocked to receive death threats over the bill to ban the candy. “Some people think their rights are their rights,” she said.
Manning said the Georgia Bureau of Investigation traced her e-mail threat to Great Britain. “You just deal with those kinds of folks and do the best you can. But it sends the wrong kind of message to kids.”
Vote Hemp, a national organization that promotes the use of hemp products and tracks legislation, says the measure would make Georgia the first state to ban the sale of the candy to minors.

Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com

Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews

Be part of our social community! www.privateofficer.com

Florida mayor charged with grand theft www.privateofficer.com

Jackson County Fla. May 12 2008

Agents with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) arrested City of Jacob Mayor David Samuel Pittman in Jackson County today pursuant to a warrant for his arrest.

Pittman, 66, was charged with grand theft, official misconduct, and tampering with a witness, all third-degree felonies.

FDLE agents began investigating Pittman after receiving allegations that Pittman used his personally-owned equipment to do work for the City of Jacob and then received reimbursement from the city to pay off a personal debt.

On multiple occasions, Pittman allegedly engaged second parties to falsify receipts in order to obtain reimbursement from the City of Jacob.

Pittman, in turn, received financial benefit as a result of the falsification of receipts.

Pittman also allegedly met with a witness in this case in order to cause the witness to testify untruthfully.

David Pittman was elected Mayor of the City of Jacob in 2006.

Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com

Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews

Be part of our social community! www.privateofficer.com

Alabama sheriff deputy shoots self, claims it was burglar www.privateofficer.com

Pelham AL. May 12 2008

By: Rick McCann

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com
Authorities investigating the shooting of a Jefferson County sheriff’s deputy, who lives in Pelham, now say that the deputy admits to shooting himself in the shoulder.

According to investigators from the city of Pelham police department which is located in Shelby County just south of Birmingham, the deputy, whose name has not been released, previously told police that a burglar broke into his home and shot him May 3.

Police from numerous law enforcement agencies in Jefferson and Shelby counties, as well as K-9 units and a Jefferson County sheriff’s office helicopter, searched the area for the non-existent suspect for several hours Saturday

Now police say that he has recanted his story Wednesday, according to Pelham police.

The off-duty deputy originally said a home intruder shot him around midnight last Saturday as he arrived home .

The deputy called for emergency assistance which triggered a major response and manhunt for the shooting suspect. He was transported to UAB Hospital, where he was treated for the shoulder wound.

While being questioned by detectives from Pelham police, the deputy admitted to making the story up. But that confession doesn’t put an end to the case as the deputy could face criminal charges for falsely reporting .

Police say that possibility is under review.The deputy had worked for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office less than two years.

Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com

Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews

Be part of our social community! www.privateofficer.com

Therapist arrested for fondling patients www.privateofficer.com

FORT WALTON BEACH Fla. May 12 2008

By: Bryan Hill

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

http://www.privateofficer.com/

A physical therapist is accused of fondling one of his patients and a private investigator says he has footage from the woman’s hidden camera.

Authorities say that they were notified of the assault and conducted an investigation into the allegations.

Investigators say that have arrested Steven David Bourque, 50, of Gulf Breeze and he is charged with misdemeanor battery, according to the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office.

He was arrested last week at the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office.
Bourgue could face additional charges an investigator said and they are still investigating this complaint and looking into the possibility that there might be more victims.

A woman called the private investigative company Advanced Investigations on March 19 after she said Bourque touched her exposed breast without her consent at three separate March appointments. She also said he once told her to take twice her prescribed amount of pain medication before her next appointment.

Bourque at the time was an employee of Premier Rehab Management. He was contracted to perform physical therapy at Orthopaedic Associates on Mar-Walt Drive, employees confirmed Thursday.
Private investigator Chris Lahr said he equipped the woman with a covert video camera for her next appointment. Afterwards, she said Bourque fondled her again, but the video was corrupted. At a final appointment March 31, the woman again took the secret video camera, which lawmen say captured Bourque putting his hands and mouth on her breasts “several different times during the session.” She said her blouse was removed and replaced with a hospital gown with Bourque’s help.

Lahr said the video was unmistakable. He declined to specify where the camera was hidden but did say it wasn’t on her body.

The woman ended treatment and left the facility after each alleged fondling, lawmen say. Bourque has denied “any allegation of seeing, touching, or placing his mouth on the victim’s breast or nipples at any time,” according to his arrest report.

He declined further comment when reached Thursday by area reporters.

Lahr said he hadn’t spoken with him.

Investigators contend Bourque touched the woman on five separate occasions.

Bourque has denied all charges. He is scheduled to appear in court May 20.

Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com

Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews

Be part of our social community! www.privateofficer.com

Security, police capture burglars www.privateofficer.com

AKRON OH. May 12 2008

By: Bryan Hill

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com A Springfield Township man and an Akron man were arrested Friday night as they attempted to remove catalytic converters from cars in a fenced-in area at LKQ Triplett ASAP Inc., police said.
Richard R. Baumberger, 40, of Edith Avenue in Springfield Township, and Kenneth D. Coole III, 25, of Daniels Street in Akron, were reportedly seen using a bolt cutter to cut through a security fence and enter the car parts business at 1430 E. Archwood Ave.
Akron police responded to the call from security at 11:30 p.m. Friday. One suspect was apprehended under a car with bolt cutters, and a second suspect was apprehended by a security officer and a responding police officer.
Baumberger and Coole were charged with breaking and entering and possession of criminal tools.
They were booked into the Summit County Jail on an undisclosed amount of bond.

Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com

Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews

Be part of our social community! www.privateofficer.com

Armored truck robbed in Va. www.privateofficer.com

CHESAPEAKE VA May 12 2008

By: Bryan Hill

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com Police responded to an armored car robbery this morning and are investigating the crime.

Police said that two men robbed the armored truck outside a Chesapeake bank this morning.

Officer Justin Tindall said two black men wearing masks, hats and sunglasses robbed a Loomis armored truck outside the Bank of America on Greenbrier Parkway around 9 a.m.

One of the men was carrying “a rifle-style weapon,” Tindall said.

The men fled the scene in a dark-colored sport utility vehicle, headed north on Greenbrier Parkway. Officers responding to the area searched for the men but to no avail.

Police said that there was no injuries reported and that the men got away with an undisclosed amount of money.

No other information has been released at this time.

Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com

Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews

Be part of our social community! www.privateofficer.com

Officer is assaulted with candy www.privateofficer.com

Officer assaulted with candy www.privateofficer.com

Des Moines Ia. May 12 2008

By: Bryan Hill

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com
Police investigating a hit and run accident was assaulted by a man throwing M&M candy at them during their investigation according to officers on the scene.

The twenty year old was arrested on a charge of assaulting a police officer.

Sean McGuire, a Drake student living in Des Moines, was arrested at about 2:30 a.m. at the Kum & Go at 3104 University Ave. after McGuire allegedly threw several M & M candies at Officer Theodore Lister Stroope, according to a police report.

Stroope was conducting an investigation with an intoxicated hit-and-run suspect at the convenience store when the incident occurred.
The report said Drake security officers were also on the scene noticed multiple M & Ms falling on the ground near Stroope.

Stroope then turned around as one candy hit him on the left shoulder.

McGuire admitted to officers that he threw the candy because he was “sticking up for his friend,” the man suspected of the hit and run. S

troope took McGuire to the Polk County Jail, but not before McGuire urinated all over the back seat of Stroope’s patrol car.
There was no word on the original investigation or if that driver was charged with DUI.
The amount of bond for McGuire was not immediately known.

Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com

Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews

Be part of our social community! www.privateofficer.com

Actor arrested for having gun at airport www.privateofficer.com

Los Angeles CA. May 12 2008

By: Rick McCann

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com
He has carried a handgun often as a real life Chicago police officer and as he played a NYPD detective on Law & Order and arrested a lot of real bad guys and fake ones on the TV show, but now Dennis Farina has been arrested himself.
The actor and ex-Chicago Police officer told the authorities he had ”forgotten” he was carrying a loaded, .22-caliber, semiautomatic pistol in his carry-on bag — caught while Farina was going through security at 8 a.m. before his scheduled United Airlines flight back home to Chicago

Authorities charged Farina with a misdemeanor, but when they found out that the weapon was not registered, authorities upgraded it to a felony, according to LAX Police spokesman Sgt. Jim Holcomb.
Farina was apologetic and told the arresting officers he was a retired Chicago cop with 19 years on the force but forgot the gun was in his briefcase as he drove from his Arizona home to Los Angeles, Holcomb said.
Farina was booked on suspicion of carrying a concealed weapon and for carrying a loaded firearm in a public place. Bail was set at $35,000.
The 64-year-old former “Law & Order” star was also interviewed by FBI officials, but they declined to prosecute him since local police handled the case.
Prosecutors could reduce the charges to misdemeanors, Holcomb said.
Farina has starred in several films, including “Get Shorty,” “Out of Sight” and “Saving Private Ryan.”

There was no immediate word on whether or not he had immediately made bail.

Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com

Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews

Be part of our social community! www.privateofficer.com

Officer working security shoots, kills man www.privateofficer.com

from CrimeNewsNetwork
Omeha Ne. May 12 2008

About 60 people had gathered outside a north Omaha gas station when things went horribly wrong early Sunday morning.In the well-lit parking lot of Newman’s BP Amoco, a fight between two small groups escalated with gunfire just after 2:30 a.m.

By the time the sun came up, it was a Mother’s Day nightmare.One man was dead, another was in the hospital, and Omaha’s 2007 Officer of the Year was on administrative leave for his role in the shootings.

A grand jury investigation is pending.LeRoy Goodwin, 21, died early Sunday morning after being shot by Omaha Police Officer Jarvis Duncan.

Michael Moss, 29, also was shot. He is being treated at the Nebraska Medical Center for injuries that were not believed to be life-threatening.Newman’s BP Amoco, near 30th Street and Ames Avenue, is just a football toss from the northeast police precinct.

Owner Brian Newman said the business draws a cross-section of customers, like State Sen. Ernie Chambers and former Omaha Police Chief Thomas Warren, for fill-ups.
At night, he said, the well-lit station, the only business in the area open 24 hours a day, becomes a hangout for young people. Newman said he’s seen crowds of 50 to 100 gather and said the large numbers occasionally bring “trouble,” but not the kind of violence seen early Sunday morning.Hours later, Omaha’s interim police chief, Eric Buske, gave this account at a press conference:
A couple of hours after midnight Sunday, Duncan, along with Officer Randy Szemplenski, were working their regular off-duty job as weekend security guards at the gas station, a popular hangout, when the brawl erupted.

The officers, in their police uniforms, tried to break up the crowd and used Mace. Most people left, but two small groups of about five people began to fight.Goodwin allegedly pulled a gun, shooting Moss.Duncan drew his service weapon and shot Goodwin.Goodwin was taken to Creighton University Medical Center, where he later died.His death triggers a grand jury investigation. Under Nebraska law, any time a person dies in police custody or while police are trying to apprehend someone, a grand jury must investigate.Buske shared his sorrow and defended officers’ actions on Sunday.

“We wish to express our sincere condolences to the family of LeRoy Goodwin,” Buske said.A handgun was found near Goodwin.

Police believe both Duncan and Goodwin fired more than one shot, Buske said.Both Duncan, an 11-year veteran of the police department, and Szemplenski, a 19-year veteran, have been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of police investigations by both the homicide unit and internal affairs unit.

“The officers were acting to defend life. They saw an individual shooting, and they responded accordingly,” Buske said.Goodwin had some minor brushes with the law; the most recent was a shoplifting conviction in January.Moss has been shot before. In January 2006, Moss was seriously injured when he was shot during a fight at the Nowhere Bar in the 2600 block of South 120th Street.Duncan recently was honored as one of the Omaha Police Department’s officers of the year for 2007.

He was one of two officers who helped to save the owner of an Omaha car dealership who had been beaten, robbed and locked in the truck of a car. He also was honored as officer of the month in July 2006.Gas station owner Newman called Duncan and Szemplenski “very good officers” and said that sympathy should go to Duncan as well as the Goodwin family.”

We need to feel for Jarvis because he’s got a heart and a family too,” Newman said. “There’s no way he wanted to be shooting somebody’s son on Mother’s Day.”

Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com

Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews

Be part of our social community! www.privateofficer.com