Girl tells court she helped cut off mother’s head www.privateofficer.com

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – May 29 2008
By: Rick McCann
Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers
www.privateofficer.com
A 12-year-old girl has testified in court that she saw her father kill her mother and that he then forced her to help dismember the body with a circular saw.
Police said after James Hawkins was finished cutting his girlfriend into pieces, he simply cleaned the saw and returned it to a store where he had obtained it.
The gruesome details came out during testimony Wednesday at a preliminary hearing for Hawkins, 30, who is charged with killing and dismembering his girlfriend, Charlene Gaither, on Feb. 9 in their apartment. His case was sent to a grand jury

During the testimony, the girl testified that her father made her help cut off her mother’s head, and that she helped cut off Gaither’s hands and feet.
The girl said that she had been forced to help.
The testimony of the teenage girl was emotional, intense and gruesome as a picture of the alleged murder and subsequent dismemberment was drawn by the teenager.

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MEMPHIS, Tenn. – May 29 2008

A 12-year-old girl has testified in court that she saw her father kill her mother and that he then forced her to help dismember the body with a circular saw.

Police said after James Hawkins was finished cutting his girlfriend into pieces, he simply cleaned the saw and returned it to a store where he had obtained it.

The gruesome details came out during testimony Wednesday at a preliminary hearing for Hawkins, 30, who is charged with killing and dismembering his girlfriend, Charlene Gaither, on Feb. 9 in their apartment. His case was sent to a grand jury

 

During the testimony, the girl testified that her father made her help cut off her mother’s head, and that she helped cut off Gaither’s hands and feet.

The girl said that she had been forced to help.

The testimony of the teenage girl was emotional, intense and gruesome as a picture of the alleged murder and subsequent dismemberment was drawn by the teenager.

 

 

 

 

Doctor arrested for sexual abuse www.privateofficer.com

Shelby County Al May 29 2008

By: Rick McCann

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

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Authorities in this county just south of Birmingham announced that they have arrested a Shelby County doctor who now faces charges of sexual abuse.

John Pavlakovic who is a resident of Shelby County and has a local office off Narrows Parkway off U.S. 280, where the alleged offense was reported to have occurred has been under investigation for several weeks.

Sheriff’s deputies began investigating the case April 15, when the adult victim filed a report. After reviewing the case, deputies issued the arrest warrant May 22.

Dr. David John Pavlakovic, 55, turned himself in Wednesday morning at the Shelby County Jail on an outstanding warrant.
Pavlakovic was released the same day on $15,000 bond. He was booked on one count of first-degree sexual abuse.

The sheriff’s office didn’t release any more details.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office at 669-4181 or by going online to www.shelbyso.com and clicking the “Report Criminal Activity” link.

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Suspect in security officer assault arrested www.privateofficer.com

Suspect arrested in security officer assault www.privateofficer.com

Martins Perry Ohio May 29 2008

By: Bryan Hill

Ntl. Assoc. Private officers

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A brazen shoplifting turned assault on a security officer was all caught on tape, and local TV news station has learned the suspect may be behind bars, but because of a different crime.
Wheeling police said they arrested 19-year-old Jonathan Murphy for stealing money from an attendant’s booth at a Wheeling parking garage.
Martins Perry police said they think Murphy is the same man who was caught on tape stealing food and assaulting a security officer at the Kroger store last week.
Murphy is currently in jail on obstructing and entering without breaking charges from Wheeling police, but Martins Ferry police said more charges are pending.
Martins Ferry police said they’re waiting to hear back from Belmont County Prosecutor Chris Berhalter to find out whether Murphy will be facing felony charges in connection with the incident at the Kroger grocery store.
It’s likely that Murphey could face robbery charges and be brought back to Ohio to face those felony charges.

The security officer who was assaulted received only minor injuries and is doing fine but police have not released his name.

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Man arrested at Macy’s with sword www.privateofficer.com

NEW YORK City NY May 29 2008 A man who was carrying a rusted pirate’s sword while at Macy’s flagship store in Manhattan was apprehended by security agents and police and is facing charges of criminal possession of a weapon.

Police say 29-year-old Lawrence Jackson was brandishing the curved sword while visiting Macy’s Herald Square store Sunday with his girlfriend.

He told police that he was carrying the sword because he is a member of a kickball team who often wear pirate-themed costumes.

He maintains he was on his way to a game when he was arrested. Police Officer Richard Perrone says Jackson may consider the sword a toy, but he says it is not
Police say that when they approached Jackson about 4 p.m., he dropped his sword. It struck the ground with a clanking noise.

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Sailors arrested for car theft, arson www.privateofficer.com

Chicago Il May 29 2008

Kyle T. Greene

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

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Two sailors ended a Memorial Day visit to Chicago by stealing, then torching the cab returning them to Great Lakes Naval Training Center, Lake County authorities said Tuesday.
The sailors were nabbed Monday night — less than a mile from the burning taxi. Both now face felony charges that include vehicle theft and criminal damage to property, police said.
After they were arrested, the sailors claimed they were drunk when they allegedly forced the driver to turn over his cab, police said.
”It is a shame at the time of year when we honor those who have given their lives for our country that two members of our military would act in such an unlawful manner,” Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran said in a statement.
Charged were Terry E. Gappa, 20, of Plymouth, Mass., and Aaron L. Couch, 21, of Monroe, La., both stationed at the Great Lakes facility near North Chicago, Lake County officials said. Both were released on $50,000 recognizance bonds that required no cash deposit, officials said.
The sailors hailed a cab Monday evening in Chicago near Union Station to return to Great Lakes, police said.
As they neared the base, they threatened to kill the driver unless he let them take over the taxi, said Kevin Parker, Lake County sheriff’s police deputy chief. Gappa allegedly took the wheel and drove, including a stop to buy beer. The cabbie eventually jumped out.

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Firefighter fired for emergency call delay www.privateofficer.com

Firefighter fired for delaying response to call www.privateofficer.com

Austin TX May 29 2008
Acting Austin Fire Chief Jim Evans has fired a firefighter who delayed the response to a respiratory distress call for two minutes while he went to a restaurant to get something to eat, according to a disciplinary memo.
The actions of Lt. Michael Pooler demonstrated “a shocking neglect of duty,” Evans said in the memo.
“Immediate response to 911 calls is the very essence of what it means to be an Austin firefighter. . . . Because of his selfish and highly unprofessional actions, he has no right to remain an Austin firefighter,” the memo said.
Fire department spokeswoman Michelle DeCrane said paramedics from Travis County Emergency Medical Services reached the patient before firefighters and canceled the firefighters’ response.
The patient’s condition is not known.
According to the three-page document, Pooler was assigned to the department’s Station 21 on Spicewood Springs Road in Northwest Austin when its crew was dispatched to the Jan. 4 call.
Pooler, who was the on-duty supervisor, then walked away from the fire station to place an order at an adjacent restaurant, the memo said.
Evans wrote that for a person in respiratory distress, two minutes can mean the difference between life and death or permanent brain injury.
Pooler could not immediately be reached for comment.

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Airport has scare with fake bomb www.privateofficer.com

McALLEN TX May 29 2008

Kyle T. Greene

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

http://www.privateofficer.com/

Authorities discovered a fake grenade inside a piece of checked baggage Tuesday morning at McAllen-Miller International Airport.
Transportation Security Administration officials were alerted to a suspicious object inside a red and black suitcase about 9:15 a.m. as it passed through regular security screenings.
Following airport protocol, the McAllen Police Department’s Bomb Response Unit inspected the bag outside of the terminal and found a novelty grenade attached to a wooden plaque. The bag was bound for Houston on a Continental Airlines flight. No flights were disrupted.
TSA officials continue to investigate the incident and will decide whether the passenger – whose identity was not revealed – will face any sanctions.
McAllen Police Chief Victor Rodriguez said the investigation revealed that it “wasn’t a matter of concern.”
And TSA spokeswoman Andrea McCauley said the airport “highly encourages” people to not travel with weapon replicas.
“When it comes to our technology, we don’t know if it’s real or a novelty item,” McCauley said.
Tuesday’s incident was the first bomb scare at the McAllen airport in 2008, but it was not only the incident at the airport in recent years.
Between August and September 2007, a series of bomb scares involved Juan Rodrigo Rodriguez, a 19-year-old U.S citizen living in Reynosa, who pleaded guilty in December to having caused four bomb scares at the airport during one month.
And in October 2005, Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, D-Mission, was arrested after security screeners discovered a 9 mm handgun in his briefcase as he attempted to board a plane at the airport. Hidalgo County District Attorney Rene Guerra did not pursue criminal charges against Hinojosa, saying in November 2005 that he could not prove any criminal intent by the state senator during the incident.

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Security agent seriously injured stopping shoplifter www.privateofficer.com

Toledo OH May 29 2008

By: Rick McCann

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

http://www.privateofficer.com/

Police say that they were called to a local store after the security officer, from the Elder Beerman on Secor, suffered serious injuries as he tried to detain a shoplifter.
Police say that the security agent was trying to stop a shoplifting suspect who stole a DVD recorder from Elder Beerman.

As the security officer chased him out the door, the suspect allegedly slammed the glass door in the security officer’s face and that the glass shattered and cut the 28-year-old man on his face and hands.
Ken Leslie was in the parking lot when it all went down. “When I came across this corner, I saw a guy running along, and at first I thought I might have been one of the security guards chasing somebody.” It was the suspect trying to get away. Leslie says he made a quick u-turn and chased the suspect. “Followed him across the store to the Home Depot in my car, and then he went through the shopping center, and I got out of my car to chase him, and that’s when I lost him in the shopping center,” says Leslie

Police say that they did recovered the stolen property, but are still looking for the suspect. Police say the suspect is in his late 20’s or 30’s, 5′11″ to 6′, and muscular with light brown spiky hair. He was wearing a black dress shirt with a white t-shirt underneath, blue jeans, and white sneakers. If you recognize him, call Crimestopper at 419-255-1111.
Police say the security officer was taken to an area hospital by paramedics and that he was hurt so bad, he may be scarred for life.

Once caught, the shoplifter faces aggravated assault and robbery charges an officer said.

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Retired LAPD cops living good working security www.privateofficer.com

from Daily News Los Angeles
by Rachel Uranga, Staff Writer
Los Angeles Ca. May 29 2008

For years, more than 100 retired Los Angeles police officers have worked as in-uniform security on movie and TV sets throughout the Southland, making good money as independent contractors with law enforcement credibility.
Now, Los Angeles Police Department officials are examining the cozy relationship between its retirees and Hollywood, saying they’re simply trying to improve standards for retired cops while maintaining a good relationship with the studios.
“The issue we have with the job they have is that they are representing the film industry but they are wearing LAPD uniforms,” said Cmdr. Bill Fierro, executive officer of the LAPD’s Support Services Division. “You can see the liability if we had a huge car accident where we are filming.”
Unlike most other departments in the country, including the New York City Police Department and the California Highway Patrol, the LAPD allows retired officers to wear their uniforms and badges and even carry their guns for post-retirement jobs. But there is little oversight or supervision, and they look so legitimate, many observers don’t know they’re retired.
Hollywood opposes any move to do away with using retired officers, and the officers themselves, who can make $50 an hour, are on the defensive.
In February, LAPD Chief William Bratton ordered all retired officers to undergo biannual firearms testing and demanded that they strip arm patches denoting rank from their uniform.
LAPD officials say they also have assigned an officer to check that retired officers are properly carrying out movie permits and directing traffic.
“It’s a power grab,” said Al Ruvalcaba, a board member of the Motion Picture Officer Association that represents more than 100 retired cops.
Ruvalcaba fears that the LAPD will eventually take over the informal system of contractors who directly deal with studios to find retired officers and replace it with a contract service bureau similar to the CHP’s setup, which he estimates will cost $1.5 million.
Under that setup, off-duty officers sign up to work on sets for overtime. But the Motion Picture Association complains that off-duty LAPD officers can’t work 12-hour-plus shifts on sets as retired officers can. The industry estimates that forcing off-duty officers to replace retired ones could double or triple their costs.
“We think that the retired officers serve our industry well; if it’s not broken, don’t fix it,” said Melissa Patack, vice president of state governmental affairs for the association. “Anything that makes it less efficient or potentially could add cost could negatively impact production.”
Councilman Bill Rosendahl, who oversees the Public Works Committee, which took up the issue a few weeks ago, said he plans to gather industry heads, cops and retirees to settle the issue.
But even Councilman Dennis Zine, himself a retired officer, said uniformed retired officers pose a substantial liability to the city.
“The public can’t tell the difference between them and the real thing,” he said. “There has to be qualification standards, grooming standards. I have deep respect for retired officers but they don’t have to comply with the standards that active officers had.”

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Shoplifter arrested 61 times www.privateofficer.com

NEW HARTFORD NY May 29 2008 – On Friday, the New Hartford Police Department was called to Hannaford located on Commercial Drive regarding a shoplifter that was running from store loss prevention officers.
The man later identified as Stanley J. Ruszala, 47, was observed stealing over $250 worth of razor blades from the store. A short time later, Ruszala, who gave police a New York Mills address was arrested by the New Hartford Police after police found him operating a vehicle on Elizabeth Street in the City of Utica.
Ruszala was charged with petit larceny and trespass for this incident at Hannaford.
A check of Ruszala’s criminal history revealed that he has been arrested sixty times prior to May 23, stemming back to 1987. Most of the arrests resulted in charges such as petit larceny, grand larceny, forgery, issuing bad checks, as well as several drug possession arrests, and a DWI arrest .
Ruszala was arraigned in the Town of New Hartford Court and remanded to the Oneida County Jail on $2,000 bail.

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Teacher arrested for underage relationship www.privateofficer.com

DALLAS, Ga. May 29 2008

By: Rick McCann

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

http://www.privateofficer.com/ In a small rural county just north of the Atlanta metro, a local high school teacher in Paulding County is accused of having “inappropriate sexual contact” with a 17-year-old female student according to sheriff investigators.
The sheriff’s office say that they first received a complaint against Darrel Johnson on May 16, 2008. Investigators began looking into the allegations and were able to secure an arrest warrant for the teacher based on the original complaint.
Johnson was arrested Tuesday and charged with one count of sexual assault.
Johnson has since resigned from the Paulding County School System citing unrelated issues before his arrest, officials said.
“We ask any other students or persons that may have had inappropriate contact with Mr. Johnson to please contact the Paulding County Sheriff’s Office Crimes Against Children Unit,” said Sgt. Brent Miller. “We will handle each allegation in a thorough manner to ensure that appropriate action is taken.”
The phone number to the Paulding County Sheriff’s Office Crimes Against Children unit is 770-445-6105.

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Four arrested for theft of designer purses valued at $23,000 www.privateofficer.com

ATLANTA GA May 29 2008

By: Rick McCann

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

http://www.privateofficer.com/ Four men are in police custody after a shoplifting at an area mall, a chase by security and a shopper and a traffic stop conducted by Atlanta police.
Atlanta police were notified that the four had been involved in a theft of handbags and soon located and caught them in a stolen car full of $23,000 worth of designer bags.
Police say the four men entered the Saks Fifth Avenue at Phipps Plaza just before 5:00 Tuesday night.

They went straight for the designer bags. Investigators say the men filled their arms with the pricey bags then ran for the door.
Someone on scene spotted the license plate of the get-away vehicle and gave it to authorities.
Atlanta police radioed that information and quickly cornered the car.

Inside, they found four men and more than a dozen Prada and Louis Vuitton handbags.
Atlanta police say the four men will appear in line-ups for witnesses of other smash-and-grabs in the area.
Investigators did not release the mens names because the investigation is on-going and the four could face more charges.

Police will also study surveillance video of previous theft crimes to see if the men are connected to any other crimes.

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Security officer injured chasing shoplifter www.privateofficer.com

REHOBOTH DEL May 29 2008

Bryan Hill

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com A Rehoboth Beach man was taken into custody after he injured a Rehoboth Mall Wal-Mart employee after attempted to flee from the store, Delaware State Police said today.
James R. Moore, 41, was charged with second-degree robbery and disorderly conduct after he allegedly had taken consumable goods from the store without paying and concealed them in a backpack Monday, police said.
As Moore was getting on his bicycle, mall personnel outside the Wal-mart confronted him. As they were attempting to question him about the property in the book bag, Moore allegedly began to flee on the bicycle. Moore was involved in a minor physical altercation with store personnel, resulting in one of the security officers receiving a minor arm injury, police said. All items stolen were recovered and Moore was remanded to the Sussex Correctional Institute in lieu of secured bail.

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Armored car employee charged with theft www.privateofficer.com

FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP NJ May 29 2008

Kyle T. Greene

Ntl. Assoc. Private Officers

www.privateofficer.com An armored car company worker swiped $10,000 in cash from Wal-Mart last year after he realized the money had not been properly counted, police said.
Authorities said they used video surveillance footage from the store to link the Newark man to the theft, and township police arrested him at an Essex County courthouse, where he appeared on a charge that he stole $2,300 from another business while working for the armored car company.
Abrahim Kamara, 38, of Lake Street, Newark, was charged May 16 with the theft from the Wal-Mart on West Main Street in Freehold Township after an exhaustive investigation, Capt. James Lasky said.
The theft occurred on Aug. 25 but went undetected until someone noticed a discrepancy in a bank statement, police said.
The missing money was reported to police Sept. 24, and Detective William Rette began an investigation.
Rette said he checked video surveillance footage from Wal-Mart, where two employees are required to count the cash before it is turned over to the armored car company worker.
The video showed that one bag of cash was not double-counted, and Kamara picked up that bag of money and shoved it underneath other bags, police said.
The Newark man then took all of the money to the armored car, but one bundle of cash was never deposited in Wal-Mart’s bank account, the detective said.
Rette began searching for Kamara, but the Newark man was no longer working for the armored car company, and police could not find him at several addresses in Newark, authorities said.
The Freehold Township detective tracked down the 38-year-old man on May 16, when he appeared in state Superior Court in Essex County on his application to enter the pretrial intervention program.
In that case, Kamara was charged with the theft of $2,300 from a store in Newark, authorities said.
At that court hearing, his application for the pretrial intervention program was revoked, and Freehold Township police took him into custody, authorities said.

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