Archive
Man sent to prison in attack on security officer www.privateofficer.com
Marquise Deangelo Loftis, 20, pleaded guilty to attempted murder and other charges.
Prosecutors said Loftis stole a gun from a security guard on July 15, 2009, at the Encanto Station and used it to shoot another guard, David Reynoso, three nights later at the Grossmont Center Station.
The defendant also stole the gun belonging to Reynoso, authorities said.
Two nights after the shooting, Loftis punched another security guard who questioned him about loitering at the Encanto Station.
Several witnesses identified Loftis as the assailant in the various incidents.
Police watching an Oak Park house saw him get into a car and drive away, but he was pulled over and surrendered peacefully a week after the shooting.
Source:10news.com
Shoplifters use 5 yr old to steal www.privateofficer.com
Police have arrested 27-year-old Monique Clark.
According to Omaha television station KETV, security video from the upscale Von Maur store at Westroads Mall shows two women with the kids as they take the bags.
Police spokesman Michael Pecha (PEK’-uh) says the children may have been 4 or 5 years old. It’s unclear whether they are related to the two women. The other woman is still being sought.
Clark had pleaded not guilty in another shoplifting case.
There is no phone listing for Clark. Her lawyer in the other case did not immediately return a call from The Associated Press on Wednesday.
OFFICER DOWN-Trooper First Class Chadwick T. LeCroy
OFFICER DOWN-Trooper First Class Chadwick T. LeCroy
Georgia
End of Watch: Monday, December 27, 2010
Biographical Info
Age: 38
Tour of Duty: 2 years
Badge Number: 744
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Monday, December 27, 2010
Weapon Used: Gun; Unknown type
Suspect Info: Apprehended
Trooper Chadwick LeCroy was shot and killed in Atlanta after a short vehicle pursuit.
He had attempted to stop a vehicle with a broken headlight on Bolton Road near James Jackson Parkway. The vehicle fled until it crashed at the intersection of St. Paul Avenue and Hightower Road.
As Trooper LeCroy approached the vehicle the suspect opened fire on him, striking him twice. The subject then stole Trooper LeCroy’s patrol car and fled the scene. He was arrested a short distance away by members of the Atlanta Police Department and Cobb County Police Department.
Trooper LeCroy had served with the Georgia State Patrol for two years. He is survived by his wife and two sons.
Agency Contact Information
Georgia State Patrol
Public Information Office
PO Box 1456
Atlanta, GA 30371
Phone: (404) 624-7597
Please contact the Georgia State Patrol for funeral arrangements or for survivor benefit fund information.
Racial profiling is allowed-court rules www.privateofficer.com
BOSTON MA DEC 30 2010 Racial profiling meets war on terror: The highest federal court in New England has said it’s okay for government officials single out dark-skinned people for searches, as long as they can concoct some cover rationale, ginned up with vague allusions to terrorism.
Leaping through one legal hoop after another, the First Circuit Court of Appeals found that an MBTA security officer had “probable cause” to search, and eventually arrest, occupants of a van parked near the Sullivan Square MBTA Station back in 2004. Officer Patricia Pitts was fresh from a one-day MBTA training seminar on “identifying potential terrorist threats,” according to the court’s decision, and her suspicion was piqued by the fact that the van’s drivers and passengers “looked Middle Eastern.”
Pitts, who is black, explained to the court: “Like myself, they [were] darker in the skin. Their skin was darker.”
She called MBTA cops, who opened the van’s doors, ordered the occupants out, and subsequently arrested them. But they were not Middle Eastern terrorists, or Middle Eastern anything. The driver was of Mexican descent, and the van was full of illegal Brazilian immigrants.
Federal courts have long held that racial and ethnic “profiling” are not adequate grounds, in and of themselves, on which to conduct a search. You can’t blithely order someone out of a car just for looking Middle Eastern. But the First Circuit, while conceding racial profiling to be constitutionally “impermissible,” ripped the heart out of that protection.
“This is not a case in which the only basis for suspicion was . . . appearance,” the court wrote. Yet the list of rather ordinary things the court views as “corroborating grounds” for suspicion is so absurd as to add up to intellectual dishonesty:
• The van was large enough to “hold a significant amount of explosives.”
• The van had “tinted rear and rear side windows” and a “temporary paper [license] plate.”
• The van “was parked in the farthest corner of the parking lot.”
• Occupants had “remained in the van for at least twenty minutes.”
• One passenger got out and took notes, which signaled to the MBTA officer that he “could be planning where to plant explosives.”
The collection of these details, said the three-judge panel in an opinion authored by the court’s chief judge, Sandra Lynch, made the search reasonable. But this list of “suspicious” activity appears to describe quite normal occurrences that have been amplified to the level of probable cause, at least to the First Circuit’s satisfaction.
In other words, race and ethnicity need not be just one factor among several in assessing reasonable suspicion, but it may be the sole factor if padded with quite ordinary activities.
The court also took pains to note the context of the incident: only a few months after the train bombings in Madrid. That recent attack, the court wrote, “meant it was material for the officers to consider, among other facts . . . that the persons they were investigating had a Middle Eastern appearance.”
Through this tortured logic, racial profiling is essentially okay in the war against terrorism — even if the suspect is not doing anything a reasonable person would deem suspicious.
In the never-ending “war on terror,” our government — taking a page from its ceaseless “war on drugs” and “war on organized crime” — is stripping privacy and dignity in the name of illusory safety. We’d do well to pay attention.
SOURCE:thephoenix.com
Witchita approves settlement in death of man killed in police crash www.privateofficer.com
The Wichita city council has approved a $300,000 settlement with the family of a man who died last year in a collision with a police car.
The council approved the settlement Tuesday to end a lawsuit filed by the family of 30-year-old Christopher Perkins. He died on Dec. 13, 2009, after his car collided with a police car responding to a disturbance call at a Wichita nightclub.
The officer involved in the crash, 25-year-old Garrett Shaddix of Wellington, is charged with misdemeanor vehicular homicide, and is scheduled for trial in January.
The payment will have to be approved in court.
Utah police chief in trouble over Wal-Mart disturbance www.privateofficer.com
HARRISVILLE UTAH Dec 30 2010- A shopping trip turned into a belligerent shouting match between a Northern Utah Chief of Police and Walmart employees. The chief involved is now on paid administrative leave after the incident.
Investigating officers say they don’t know exactly what made the chief so angry, but they say he shouted profanity at both Walmart employees, and their officers.
Surveillance photo of Perry’s encounter with WalMart employee. On December 12th, Perry City’s Chief of Police, Mike Jones, was doing some shopping at the Harrisville Walmart.
Surveillance video shows him checking out, loading several items into his cart– some that were bags, but many that were not. He paid the clerk and then pushed his cart toward the exit, but that’s when Harrisville Police say the Chief’s trip to the store took a turn for the worse.
“One of the door greeters approached him, and just asked for the receipt because of some of the unbagged items,” said Lt. Keith Wheelright of the Harrisville Police department.
The 70-year-old Walmart door greeter approached Jones because she was following a new store procedure. Employees are now supposed to ask to see a receipt for items not in store bags, but apparently Jones didn’t want to give it to her.
“He allegedly swore at the door greeter, walked past her without showing her the receipt,” said Wheelright.
Jones allegedly shouted extreme profanity at both the elderly woman and the male employee standing in the entrance. Police say he also threatened to injure one of the loss prevention employees, and once Harrisville officers arrived, he became even more aggravated– and continued to yell and swear at them. He also refused to tell the officers who he was.
“Just a lot of stuff about if you’ve got a reason, go ahead and arrest me,” Wheelright said about Jones’ comments. “A lot of things like that. I don’t have to show you an ID, I’ve got rights and I know what they are. I don’t have to tell you who I am.”
Several security employees followed Jones into the parking lot and again attempted to talk to him. At that point, no one knew who Jones was and he did not identify himself as a law enforcer, Wheelwright said.
“The male then told us to (expletive) off and that he just spent over $400 and now he was being accused of stealing,” according to the police report.
Witness Kelly East said Jones was “very confrontational, hostile, and I felt threatened because of his actions.” Jones then threatened East not to point at anything in his shopping cart.
“Point at anything again and I will whoop your (expletive) (expletive),” East claimed Jones said.
Only after the Harrisville Chief of Police arrived on the scene did Jones calm down. Jones is now on paid administrative leave while Harrisville Police and the Weber County Sheriff’s Office investigate the incident.
Harrisville Police are currently filing charges against Jones of Disorderly Conduct and Failing to Identify to a Police Officer.
The Perry Police Department currently has another officer on paid administrative leave for an internal investigation, so this takes their normally 7 officer squad down to 5. They are working with surrounding cities to help them out during both investigations.
source:ksl.com
Security patrol car collides with Nashville pedestrian
Nashville TN Dec 30 2010 A south Nashville man crossing the street early Wednesday morning was hit by a patrol car driven by a security guard.
The incident happened around 1:30 a.m. on Linbar Drive. Police said the victim lives in the area and was on the street when he was hit.
Police had to close down the street for hours while they investigated the accident.
The guard stopped to help the victim and called 911.
Police don’t expect the driver to face any charges who was employed by Hayes Security.
Armed shoplifter attacks store security www.privateofficer.com
“When confronted by loss prevention, [Michael J. McGowan, 30] allegedly pushed the loss prevention officer twice and a struggle ensued,” Deputy Police Chief Russell Jenkins said in a press release. “During the struggle, a glass door was smashed. Responding police officers took McGowan into custody and discovered he was in possession of a knife, two Leatherman tools and a pair of brass knuckles.”
McGowan was charged with larceny over $250, assault and battery, possession of a dangerous weapon, malicious destruction to property and possession of burglarious tools.
Source:Patch.com
Police – security nab two at GA. Wal-Mart with bogus money www.privateofficer.com
BARTOW COUNTY, Ga. Dec 30 2010– Bartow County Sheriff’s Office investigators said they arrested two metro Atlanta men accused of passing counterfeit money at a Walmart store.
According to Sheriff Clark Millsap, the two were arrested in Walmart on Monday just after 1 p.m. after passing counterfeit bills. Further investigation revealed that the two had also passed false money on Friday, Millsap said. The total counterfeit money recovered was $5,800, police said.
Millsap said that his office contacted the U.S. Secret Service in Atlanta and that it is assisting in the local investigation and recovery of counterfeit funds.
Derrick Lakeith Lee, 27, of Stone Mountain, and Vincent Sulay Boyd, 29, of Atlanta, were arrested. Both were charged with two counts each of forgery upon arrest.
Both were later released after posting $5,000 bond for the charges and are awaiting a court date in Bartow County Superior Court.
Eight homeless persons perish in warehouse fire www.privateofficer.com
NEW ORLEANS LA Dec 30 2010
A blaze in a small, abandoned warehouse in New Orleans killed eight homeless people who were burning wood in a barrel to stay warm, the fire department said Tuesday.
A man who lives nearby said the homeless often seek refuge from the cold in the neighborhood’s many boarded-up buildings. Temperatures were unusually low – just below freezing – when the fire was reported around 2 a.m.
The building was fully ablaze when the first fire truck arrived, said New Orleans Fire Department spokesman Greg Davis. Firefighters could not tell the ages or genders of the bodies pulled from the rubble. The fire also killed two dogs.
Two survivors told firefighters that at least some of the people inside were unconscious when the building went up in flames. Davis said they might have been knocked out by carbon monoxide.
“When you burn something in a closed area, you’re going to build up carbon monoxide,” he said.
The average low for New Orleans in late December is around 44 degrees, but freezing temperatures aren’t unheard of, said National Weather Service meteorologist Tim Destri.
The survivors were a man who escaped during the fire and a woman who had left the building before it was engulfed, Red Cross worker Tom Butler said. He said both were put up at a hotel.
The man told Butler that he heard someone screaming and trying to get out. The survivor said he tried to run back into the building, but there was too much smoke. Butler said the man didn’t want to be identified.
The wood and corrugated metal building burned to the foundation. It was among several ramshackle metal, brick and wooden buildings along railroad tracks where graffiti-scrawled freight cars stood.
Many of the houses nearby appeared abandoned, but at least a few were occupied.
Ricky Gordon, who lives in the working-class neighborhood in the Upper 9th Ward, said he does volunteer work with the homeless, and they often take refuge in the buildings when it gets cold.
“I took one guy in last night myself,” he said.
Man fires gun at Florida security officer www.privateofficer.com
Lakeland Fla Dec 30 2010 A 25-year-old man was arrested after he fired a gun during a confrontation Sunday night with a security guard at a restaurant, Lakeland police said.
Angel Miguel Molina, of 616 N. Grady Ave., brought the gun to the Agave Restaurant and Bar at 229 N. Wabash Ave. about 9:30 p.m., according to police.
A security guard confronted Molina about the gun and the gun was fired during the altercation that ensued, police said.
Molina fired more shots as the guard chased him and another man through the parking lot, police said.
A Polk County deputy arrested Molina in a traffic stop after matching him to a description sent over police radio.
He was charged with aggravated assault with a firearm and discharging a firearm in public.
He remained at Polk County Jail on Tuesday night in lieu of $40,000 bail.
Barricaded hotel guest commits suicide www.privateofficer.com
OKLAHOMA CITY OKL Dec 30 2010 — OKC police confirmed early Thursday that a man who barricaded himself inside a hotel room at the Clarion Hotel at NW 63rd Street and Robinson Avenue died and the standoff has ended.
The standoff ended just after 12 a.m., when Oklahoma City police said a third hostage was released. That hostage was being questioned by investigators.
The man’s identity has not yet been released.
Police said the man was making violent threats toward police and others inside the hotel. Officers said the man inside the room told them that he had a weapon and that at least two other people were in the room with him, who were eventually released.
Police called in a tactical team to negotiate. They were being tight-lipped about the ongoing negotiations, as the suspect mentioned several times that he was watching the live news coverage, police said.
Officers assured the public that the guests at the hotel are safe and are not anywhere near where the standoff is taking place.
Officers said they went to the hotel originally to serve a warrant to a man they believed was staying at the hotel. Police said they later learned that man, identified as Justin Tyner, had already been arrested.
Meanwhile, the two people that were with the suspect inside the hotel room were allowed to leave but were taken into police custody for further investigation, authorities said.
The third person from inside the room was released between 11 p.m. and 12 a.m., police said.
