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OFFICER DOWN Evan Burns
Caruthersville Police Department, Missouri
End of Watch: Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Biographical Info
Age: 28
Tour of Duty: 2 years
Badge Number: Not available
Incident DetailsCause of Death: Vehicular assault
Date of Incident: August 16, 2011
Weapon Used: Automobile
Suspect Info: Charged with murder
Police Officer Evan Burns was struck and killed by a stolen vehicle while attempting to deploy spike strips during a pursuit shortly after 12:30 am.
Deputies from the Pemiscot County Sheriff’s Office had started pursuing a stolen SUV on I-55 that was being driven by a man wanted for an assault. The vehicle exited at Highway 84 and started driving towards Caruthersville.
Officer Burns and another officer began to setup spike strips on the roadway. When the stolen vehicle approached he struck the first police car, injuring the officer, and then rammed the SUV broadside into Officer Burns’ vehicle, killing him.
The driver was arrested and faces murder and assault charges.
Officer Burns had served with the Caruthersville Police Department for two years. He is survived by his 1-year-old son.
Agency Contact InformationCaruthersville Police Department
200 West Third Street
Caruthersville, MO 63830
Phone: (573) 333-0000
Former KY teacher held on sex related charges www.privateofficer.com
Hazard KY Aug 17 2011 State Police in Hazard have confirmed that a former Leslie County Middle School teacher has been arrested on sex-related charges with former student.
Police say Eduardo Ahumada Elenes was arrested Thursday by State Police. Police say the alleged victim is a former student of Elenes who is now a freshman at Leslie County High School.
Elenes was a 7th grade math teacher at Leslie County Middle School. He has since been fired from the school.
Elenes is charged with prohibited use of electronic equipment to lure a juvenile. Police say he used the internet and cell phones with an intent to induce her into sexual activity.
Elenes is being held on a $10,000 cash bond at the Leslie County Detention Center.
Fired auxiliary cop arrested for impersonation of police www.privateofficer.com
Guttenberg NJ Aug 17 2011 A North Bergen man recently fired as a New York auxiliary police officer has been charged with impersonating a cop in Guttenberg, authorities said.
Guttenberg police say Brian Dorador, 27, has been driving around town in a black Dodge Charger and had a police car light to pull over drivers, Capt. Magenheimer said today.
Dorador was charged with impersonating a police officer, weapons possession, unlawful possession of a weapon and unlawful possession of a police badge. He is free after posting $50,000 bail. He is also charged in New York with impersonating a cop, Magenheimer said.
“Our major concern is that he has been pulling people over” said Sergeant Juan Barrera.
Police said that Dorador was equipped with police lights, a Guttenberg PD gun holster and as well as a fraudulent police badge.
Barrera said Dorador was fired in March from his New York police job, citing only some criminal activity that is still under investigation.
Guttenberg police initiated the investigation on August 3 after Dorador was pulled over and identified himself as a New York City police officer and showed cops a “gold family card,” Barrera said.
Guttenberg cops called NYPD officials, who said Dorador was no longer employed by them, Barrera said.
Officers obtained a search warrant for Dorador’s home as well as his car. Dorador was spotted yesterday in his car, was pulled over by police and was arrested that day.
When asked why Dorador might impersonate a police office, Magenheimer said, “he’s just a wanna-be.”
Anyone who has been pulled over or has any information regarding Brian Dorador should contact the Guttenberg police by calling 201-868-2315 ext. 28.
Man nabbed by hotel security destroying kitchen www.privateofficer.com
Boston MA Aug 17 2011
A man was arrested Sunday night at the Boston Marriott Copley Place hotel in Boston after causing a scene in the kitchen of the establishment, police said.
At 2.20 a.m., police responded to a call of a man going crazy in the hotel kitchen, a police report said. The man, Daniel Ward, 30, had already been detained by hotel security when police arrived, and had a strong odor of alcohol on his body.
Police found broken glass, plates, saucers, and coffee cups on the floor in the kitchen, and Ward was detained. He said he was not a guest at the hotel, and he had become angry with a group of people he was with.
Hotel staff estimated about $10,000 worth of damage was done to glassware, police said.
He pleaded not guilty today in Suffolk Superior Court. He was released on his own recognizance and will return to court on Oct. 24.
TX. man accused of assaulting security officers www.privateofficer.com
San Antonio TX Aug 17 2011 A man accused of assaulting security guards, striking two cars and fighting with arresting officers at a Southwest Side flea market and a park Sunday afternoon is being held in Bexar County jail in lieu of $330,000 bail.
Victor Friday, 28, is charged with three counts of aggravated assault against a public servant, two counts of failure to stop and render aid and one count of evading arrest or detention in a vehicle.
Around 3:30 p.m. Sunday, an off-duty VIA Metropolitan Transit officer working as a security guard spotted Friday reportedly burglarizing cars at Traders Village, a flea market on FM 2536 at Loop 410. The officer reached for the man’s car, officials said, and Friday reportedly accelerated and dragged the officer until he broke free. Friday then sped through the parking lot, struck a car, then drove toward an off-duty Bexar County deputy who tried to stop the car and fired two shots at the vehicle. Friday continued driving and struck another car at the Loop 410 turnaround.
He then pulled into Miller’s Pond Park, at 6175 Old Pearsall Road, where he fought with two arresting officers before being detained.
Source:www.mysanantonio.com
Al high school charged with DUI www.privateofficer.com
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama Aug 17 2011 – Keith Henderson, the head football coach at Grissom High School, blew a .12 on the Breathalyzer when he was arrested Saturday night on a DUI charge, school officials said. The legal limit in Alabama is .08.
Police arrested Henderson after a neighbor called police Saturday regarding a noise from the practice field. Huntsville police on Monday declined to release whether Henderson took a field sobriety test, a Breathalyzer test or a blood test, citing it as part of the investigation. Huntsville police spokesman Harry Hobbs said he could not release information about Henderson’s blood alcohol level because it could be “used by the defense during the investigation.”
But Huntsville City Schools Superintendent Casey Wardynski confirmed Tuesday morning Henderson blew a .12 Saturday night. Wardynski said Henderson had been cutting the grass on the practice field using his personal lawnmower and his personal trailer, but it was attached to the school district’s truck.
Wardynski said there were several large tractor tires on the track and Henderson was trying to remove them when his truck got stuck. Residents in the area called police from the noise of Henderson trying to get the truck unstuck.
Joe Dasaro, the assistant football coach at Grissom High School, said he’s simply acting as “caretaker” of the school’s program while Michael Keith Henderson is on administrative leave.
“It’s his football team,” said Dasaro, who was named acting head coach after Henderson’s arrest on charges of driving under the influence.
“He’s a good man and a good role model. It’s unfortunate it happened.”
Huntsville City Schools spokesman Keith Ward said Henderson had been using the school district’s truck. Hobbs, the police spokesman, said in an email that Henderson “was arrested while driving” a Chevy Silverado on school grounds.
Dasaro said he talked with Henderson, a single father of five, and the coach deeply regrets the incident. He told Dasaro he had stopped by the school Saturday to do some work around the field, including moving the big tractor tires from the track so they wouldn’t interfere with people who walk or run on it.
Henderson, 45, was released from the Madison County Jail Sunday on a $500 bond.
As word circulated about the arrest, former players began calling Dasaro and asking, “What can I do?”
Dasaro said someone suggested sending emails to Wardynski and asking that the coach’s character be taken into consideration when deciding on any punishment.
Wrestling team boosters have reportedly started a petition on Henderson’s behalf. He assists Dasaro in that sport. Ronald Sykstus, an attorney and football booster, was among those who wrote a letter to Wardynski on Monday supporting Henderson.
“Keith is the one individual that I know that will take a visible mistake that he made and turn it into a positive lesson for both the students and athletes at Grissom,” wrote Sykstus. “For me personally, it would both be very depressing and a personal tragedy if Keith was lost as both a teacher and the head football coach at Grissom High School.”
Dasaro said the Tigers’ staff met with the team before Monday’s afternoon practice and instructed them not to listen to rumors. “We told them, ‘You know the man and what kind of man he is.’
“He’s loved, not only by the kids but the community,” Dasaro said. “He brings a very positive atmosphere and works with all the other sports. That’s refreshing.”
Ward, the school system spokesman, said Henderson was placed on administrative leave with pay Monday morning pending further investigation. Ward said Henderson’s arrest could result in dismissal depending on the details learned from the district’s investigation.
“We may see something come down by the end of the week,” Ward said.
If Wardynski recommends dismissal and the board concurs, Henderson could appeal his firing to an independent arbiter, Ward said. If the arbiter reverses the dismissal, Henderson would be reinstated and receive back pay for the time he missed.
“If he’s recommended for termination and the board upholds it, his pay stops,” Ward said.
Ward said it is common for coaches, especially a football coach, to be on school property after hours and on weekends.
Henderson was named head football coach in June 2010 after serving as interim coach. He has also coached wrestling at Grissom and teaches several classes. Before moving to Grissom, Henderson was head coach at Sparkman High School from 1999-2002.
Source:AL.com
Teenaged gang member pulls gun on mall security officer www.privateofficer.com
SANTA FE, N.M.Aug 17 2011 – Santa Fe police said a teen threatened a mall security guard with a gun over the weekend, and now the teen is behind bars.
When a security guard at Santa Fe Place told a misbehaving teenager to leave, he expected him to walk out the front door. Instead, police said Joseph Gallegos, 16, told the guard he was in a gang and threatened him with a gun.
“I don’t think the mall is safe at all because people carrying guns and you wouldn’t even know it. People carrying, who knows what else, and you wouldn’t see it,” mall shopper Rhiannon Doughman said.
Gallegos ran away, but was caught and arrested at a nearby store, according to police.
“He is a definite risk to society. This is a case where the judicial system needs to step in and take some sort of correction action on this young man,” Santa Fe police Lt. Louis Carlos said.
Gallegos admitted that he’d been drinking, according to police.
“It makes me sad, and it kind of makes me angry because people like us can’t even come to the malls to be safe, at all,” mall shopper Diane Zapata said.
Gallegos was arrested and he faces five charges, including underage drinking and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Mall management and security refused to comment on the incident.
Source:.koat.com
Woman claimed 19 non-existent kids on tax refund www.privateofficer.com
Norma Coronel was indicted on 35 counts earlier this year in Los Angeles. She was arrested July 12 in Livermore and made her initial court appearance in Los Angeles on Monday.
The IRS says Coronel claimed that all the children had been born to her at a Los Angeles hospital on Dec. 11, 2002, then obtained fraudulent Social Security numbers for them and claimed them as dependents. Hospital records show she gave birth to one child, a boy, on that date.
Coronel faces up to 143 years in prison and $5.6 million in fines if convicted of all charges.
Bear claws stops mans red eye flight plans www.privateofficer.com
As it turned out, Sunday morning’s grisly discovery inside a 39-year-old Vancouver man’s carry-on luggage was actually three black bear paws and part of a bear’s leg, wrapped in tin foil and a plastic bag.
Sgt. Dave Jevons, a provincial conservation officer, said his office was contacted about 2 a.m. Sunday to deal with a passenger flying out of Vancouver International Airport.
The man was pulled aside after screeners noted something unusual in his bag, and a search unveiled the bear paws. The man was arrested and charges have been laid under the B.C. Wildlife Act and the federal Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act.
He faces a maximum fine of $250,000 for a first offence and/or six months in prison.
Jevons said the skeletal structure of a bear’s paws is similar to a human’s.
Bear paws are desired for both their medicinal qualities and as a food delicacy.
A market for them still exists in both North America and Asia, but Jevons believes it’s mostly among the older generation that they are coveted for their status as well.
Asked how much money the bear paws might fetch overseas, Jevons said he wasn’t sure, but said gall bladders go for between $100 and several hundred dollars.
According to an article in The New York Times last year, bears paws are a ritual dish for the Chinese, and are “the most common commodities in this underground market” with thousands smuggled annually.
The investigation is continuing, as officers will be looking for how the Vancouver man obtained the paws, and what happened to the other parts of the bear.
This is the first time, Jevons said, that he or any of his veteran colleagues with two decades under their belt, have seen somebody try to smuggle bear paws in their carry-on luggage.
He said they’ve been found in homes, vehicles and shipping containers, to name a few.
Stefanie Wudel, spokesperson for Canada Border Services, said stopping the smuggling of protected and/or endangered species is important to ensure their very survival and existence.
“The illegal importation or exportation of prohibited or endangered plants and animals is an ongoing concern for (the agency),” she said.
Nebraska teacher charged with setting fire that destroyed school headquarters www.privateofficer.com
LINCOLN NE Aug 17 2011 — Fire inspectors suspect a former Lincoln teacher used a cigarette lighter to set fire to a pile of papers on her supervisor’s desk.
The May 30 fire grew quickly out of control and destroyed the Lincoln Public Schools district headquarters before it could be extinguished. School officials have estimated the loss at $20 million.
Sharon E. Brewster, 44, a gifted-education coordinator and reading recovery teacher, was arrested Monday on suspicion of first-degree arson. She remains in jail awaiting the filing of formal charges.
Although LPS officials on Monday pointed to Brewster’s employee badge and electronic key-card as evidence that she had been in the building that day, Lincoln Chief Fire Inspector Bill Moody said it was old-fashioned shoe leather that identified Brewster as a suspect.
A witness had reported seeing someone matching Brewster’s description on the scene, he said. Investigator Ken Hilger’s detective work and interviews of school employees helped him develop a hypothesis that pointed to Brewster.
“We worked 2 1/2 weeks at the fire scene, and we couldn’t come up with anything remotely accidental for a cause,” Moody said. “Then we started looking at the people who had come and gone, and Ken developed her as a person of interest. . . . He did an outstanding job.”
Moody declined to offer possible motives for setting the fire, saying more information would be available later in court documents.
Moody said Kirk Langer, the school district’s chief information officer, probably came upon the fire within minutes of it being set. Langer reported the fire shortly after 11 p.m., after he’d finished work on a project in his office and started for home. Langer, however, did not see Brewster.
“It wasn’t a huge fire when he first saw it ,” Moody said. “But it was the end of the school year and there was a huge pile of papers on the desk. There was a huge fuel load in the building.”
Lincoln Police spokeswoman Katie Flood said Brewster came into the police station voluntarily Monday morning and was arrested on suspicion of first-degree arson, a Class I felony that carries a penalty of up to 50 years in prison.
Lancaster County Attorney Joe Kelly said Brewster probably would be formally charged Wednesday.
Brewster’s arrest came just one day before Tuesday’s start of the new school year for the Lincoln Public Schools.
During Monday’s press conference announcing the arrest, Superintendent Steve Joel repeatedly said how shocked and dismayed he was to learn that a school employee has been accused of starting the fire.
“I don’t understand why somebody would deliberately set fire to a cubicle or a hallway or any place,” he said. “People could have been hurt. We had people working in that building.”
Citing the ongoing investigation, Joel declined to say exactly when the fire was alleged to have been set, only that it appeared not to have been long before the fire was discovered.
He also declined to speculate about what may have motivated the person who did it, although he acknowledged that “employees do get disgruntled.”
Brewster, who submitted her resignation Monday, had worked for the school district about five years, Joel said.
She was assigned to work at Saratoga Elementary School, but her status as an itinerant teacher also meant she had a desk in the headquarters building.
Nancy Biggs, associate director of human resources, said “health problems” prevented Brewster from reporting for work when other teachers returned to school last week. She declined to provide specifics.
Even though the fire now appears to be the result of arson, Joel stressed that the district is “fully insured.”
He said district administrators continue to be housed in two privately owned office buildings. The district is six to eight weeks away from a decision on how to replace the headquarters building.
A smaller building — 75,000 square feet, compared with the old building’s 100,000 square feet — is under discussion.
School board President Kathy Danek and Joel also said the district is reviewing its security procedures to ensure that students and staff are as safe as possible, considering that employees often need to come into the office after hours to complete their work.
Source:omaha.com
Man sues after police K-9 almost severes penis www.privateofficer.com
Gretna LA Aug 17 2011 A 25-year-old man filed a suit against the Gretna, Louisiana, police department on Tuesday alleging his civil right had been violated by a police officer who unleashed his police dog on the man without provocation, resulting in a dog bite to the groin area and a severe injury to his penis, The Times-Picayune reports.
Cody Melancon said the attack left him sexually dysfunctional. He is scheduled to have surgery in hopes of restoring use of his penis, which was almost severed by the police dog’s bite.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in New Orleans, alleges the police falsified reports to cover up their actions and violated Melancon’s constitutional rights to due process and to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures. Melancon seeks a jury trial and $31 million for medical and other expenses, and for punitive damages.
Georgia parent pepper sprayed by police www.privateofficer.com
Deputies told Channel 2’s Tom Jones that Betty Anne Richardson, 44, threw a punch at a Sequoyah Middle School resource officer who tried to stop her from entering the school.
Deputies said when they tried to remove Richardson from the school, she started a confrontation.
Richardson was then arrested by Clayton County sheriff’s deputies.
“I seen a lady in the back of the police car,” said parent Angela Hall, who witnessed the aftermath of Richardson’s arrest.
Richardson now faces simple battery, disruption of a public school and obstruction charges.
“Apparently she swung on our officer. The officer defended themselves and used proper use of force,” said Shawn Southerland with the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies also said Richardson drove against the flow of traffic as parents dropped off their children.
“Well, anytime you got somebody unauthorized inside a school, we consider that a big deal,” said Southerland.
One parent who learned about the confrontation said signing in is for the children’s protection.
“When I pick my grandchildren up at school, if their mom’s not here to do it, I have to show them my ID and sign a book,” said Vickie Craig.
SOURCE:WSBTV.com
Security agency makes pitch to patrol Florida town www.privateofficer.com
Gainesville Fla Aug 17 2011 A private security company is expected to make a pitch Tuesday night to the Hawthorne City Commission to provide uniformed patrols within the city.
Sloan’s Security Services already has a contract to provide evening patrols in the Majestic Oaks apartment complex west of Gainesvillle’s city limits on Southwest 20th Avenue. The company now is seeking to contract with Hawthorne to patrol the city in marked vehicles with two security officers.
The company is scheduled to make a presentation at tonight’s City Commission meeting, which begins at 6:30 p.m.
Currently, the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office patrols the city of Hawthorne. A short-lived police department was disbanded in 2009 because it was a financial drain on the city.
Phillip Cathlino, an administrator with Sloan’s, said the company’s uniformed security patrols would augment law enforcement patrols, and not replace them. He said most security officers with Sloan are former law enforcement officers or military personnel. They are licensed to carry weapons and Tasers and may detain people but not arrest them.
While Sloan has contracts to provide uniformed patrols in multiple apartment complexes, Cathlino said Hawthorne “would be our first city to cover.” The patrols would target high-crime areas, he said.
It remains to be seen what interest Hawthorne officials will have. The city entered the current fiscal year with financial woes and without a balanced budget, so any associated cost could be a complication.
“We’re in no position to be able to hire anyone for anything like that,” Mayor Matthew Surrency said Monday.
He added that he was satisfied with the job the Sheriff’s Office was doing in the city.
Cathlino said Sloan’s officials are looking into the possibility of whether Department of Homeland Security grant funding could be available to pay for the patrols.
Source:Gainesville Sun
After school program director sentenced to prison for sex offenses www.privateofficer.com
Alachua County Fla Aug 17 2-11 A former program leader at Hidden Oak Elementary School has been sent to prison for 10 years for sex offenses against a 12-year-old girl.
Jeffrey Samuel Banks, 25, of 5722 S.W. Eighth Place, was arrested by the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office nearly a year ago on two counts of lewd and lascivious battery on a child between the ages of 12 and 16.
This week Banks signed off on a plea deal that allowed him to avoid going to trial. He was sentenced to 10 years in the Florida Department of Corrections to be followed by 15 years of sex offender probation. He was also designated a sex offender.
At the time of the alleged incidents, Banks was employed as an Extended Day Enrichment Program Activity Leader for the Alachua County School District’s extended day program. Banks resigned from the job during the spring of 2010.
Court records show Banks’ roommate was a female after-school counselor in the same program who would baby-sit the 12-year-old victim.
The girl’s mother became suspicious about Banks’ relationship with her daughter when she received a 130-page cell phone bill for April that showed the girl had exchanged more than 12,000 text messages and a similar bill for May. Deputy Drew Moore determined that most of the texts were to or from Banks’ cell phone number.
Sheriff’s spokesman Art Forgey said his agency got involved in the criminal case after being notified by the Department of Children and Families about an apparent sexual relationship between the girl and Banks. Investigators said the girl told them she and Banks were sexually involved, probably in February, and that she did not want her mother to know about the relationship.
Moore said he went to Banks’ house on Aug. 18 to execute a search warrant. While at the home, Moore said Banks admitted having two sexual encounters with the girl — the first time at his home and the second time in his vehicle while it was parked on a graded road in the Jonesville area.
Moore said Banks denied being sexually involved with anyone else around the victim’s age.
source:gainesville sun
Nightclub security attacked in Tampa www.privateofficer.com
TAMPA Fla Aug 17 2011
Police arrested a man who they said attacked three security guards, then ran from officers outside a Tampa nightclub.
Francisco Rios, 23, was arrested early Monday morning outside of the Palladium on Armenia Avenue in Tampa.
According to reports, Rios was being escorted out of the nightclub when he hit the security guard. Rios then hit two more security guards while still inside the club, police said.
Once the guards had him outside, Rios then ran from officers who were waiting outside, the report said.
Rios ran two blocks before an officer deployed an electronic control device to an attempt to subdue him, the report said.
The probes missed Rios, and so the officer tackled him, police said.
Rios was taken into custody and charged with three counts of battery on a licensed security officer and opposing an officer without violence.
source:baynews9
MS teacher threatens to sue after arrest for sexual battery www.privateofficer.com
HATTIESBURG, MS Aug 17 2011- Attorneys for a suspended Hattiesburg High school math teacher have put the Hattiesburg school board on notice….either pay up or face a multi-million dollar lawsuit.
Leo Pollard was arrested by school resource officers in May on charges of sexual battery. The allegations reportedly involved having sex with a female student off campus.
A city judge later dismissed the charges ruling the resource officers had no jurisdiction to arrest Pollard off campus. According to state law, a school resource officers jurisdiction stops 500 feet from a school campus.
According to the notice of claim, Pollard is seeking 2.5 million dollars in compensatory damages, a formal hearing on his employment suspension, and the reinstatement of his teaching certificate. The notice of claim names the school district, the three resource officers, the superintendent, and each school board member individually as possible defendants any potential lawsuit.
Although the charges were dismissed in July, District Attorney Patricia Burchell said the Hattiesburg police department could investigate the claims and charges could be brought up again.
A police department spokesman told us today that no active investigation is underway…nor has there been a request from the school or the D.A. to initiate an investigation…nor has a victim come forward.
Meanwhile, the school district will only acknowledge it has received the notice of claim.
Source:WDAM
