Archive
Christmas day burglar hits Virginia Beach Walmart store www.privateofficer.com
Virginia Beach VA Dec 28 2011 A Christmas day burglar hit a closed Walmart store but police report that they have arrested the man.
On December 25, 2011, at approximately 1:44 a.m., the suspect gained entry into the Walmart store located at 657 Phoenix Drive.
Police say the suspect gained entry through the garden center and then forced his way into the store. The suspect made his way to the electronic section and broke into several glass cases.
There, police say that the suspect loaded up on electronics and games.
The burglary was not discovered until employees returned to work later in the evening.
Walmart personnel checked their video surveillance video and recoginized the man and notified police.
The suspect identified as 28-year-old Fred Johnson, Jr., of the 700 block of Wiley Drive in Norfolk was arrested at his residence and has been charged with Burglary and Grand Larceny.
Johnson is currently being held at the Virginia Beach Correctional Center without bond.
Ada Oklahoma teacher arrested on drug charges www.privateofficer.com
ADA, OKLAHOMA Nov 17 2011 – A growing number of parents in Ada said they are concerned after an Ada Middle School teacher was arrested on drug charges.
Ada Police said detectives have been watching 42-year-old Deborah Morrison for a while now but said they got their break during a sting operation Thursday and arrested the Ada Middle School teacher as she was buying methamphetamine.
Residents near Ada public schools said they were shocked to find out about Morrison’s arrest.
Ada Public School grandparent Chad Hamilton said, “It’s really a concern for all parents now, this is just turning up too much.”
Police said they organized a sting operation Thursday where they caught Morrison red-handed trying to buy meth.
“They were basically able to set up a meeting between the suspect and informant and Ada police detectives were able to participate in that and that is how they were able to identify the suspect and make the arrest,” Ada police officer Mark Bratcher said.
“Ms. Morrison was someone we have looked at in the past and she got caught up in the operation and got arrested,” Ada police chief Mike Miller said.
Police said Morrison was booked into the Pontotoc County Justice Center and was charged with endeavoring to purchase methamphetamine within 1000 feet of a park.
“Its my understanding that once she was questioned she admitted to being involved,” Bratcher said.
According to an affidavit obtained by KXII, Morrison did admit to using the drug, but only for recreational purposes.
Morrison is currently out on bail but Ada Middle School principal Bryan Harwell would not comment on whether Morrison would be allowed to continue teaching.
“I think she should be fired,” Hamilton said.
“She worked in the school system and that’s a pretty big deal if you are using drugs,” Chief Miller said. “We are happy we finally caught her.”
Parents said they expect a teacher to be a role model for their kids and situations like this are cause for concern.
“He’s a precious little fellow to me and I certainly dont want someone to try to entice him to use drugs,” Hamilton said.
Source:KX11.com
Tire thieves steal patrol car tires in NC www.privateofficer.com
Between Oct. 26 and Nov. 9, someone stole $2,355 in tires and wheels off of newly purchased Ford Crown Victoria patrol cars. The vehicles were slated to be marked and put into service with the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office.
Seven wheels and tires were stolen from the cars while they were parked at the Lincoln County Transportation fenced in property at 1323 Gaston St. in Lincolnton.
The thief or thieves jacked up the vehicles, placed them on cement blocks and removed the wheels and tires. The criminals likely got into the lot through areas damaged by fallen trees, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Anyone with information about the theft is asked to call the Lincolnton Police at 704-736-8900, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office at 704-732-9050 or Crime Stoppers at 704-736-8909.
Source:www.gastongazette.com
Washington DC police report 6 Halloween night shootings www.privateofficer.com
Washington DC Nov 2 2011 At least six people were shot Monday night in the District, including one in Georgetown near the scene of the traditional Halloween revelry, according to accounts from police and witnesses.
The Georgetown shooting occurred just before 11 p.m. on M Street, one of the neighborhood’s main arteries, which is traditionally filled with people in and out of costume, drawn to a celebration that has become a Washington custom.
The victim, who appeared to be a teenager, was lying on the sidewalk in the 2800 block after the shooting, said a restaurant owner in the area.
According to the Associated Press, the victim was taken to the hospital in critical condition.
Sofiene Ben Mansour, owner of George’s falafel restaurant at 28th and M streets, said he heard three gunshots about 10:50 p.m.
The shots set off a scramble amid the throng in the street, he said, with people “just going all over.”
According to the accounts he heard from witnesses, Ben Mansour said, an automobile passed between two groups of people, and shots were apparently fired from it.
It threw a fright into the crowd, he said, leaving people talking rapidly and “just scared.” He said they were “saying ‘like, a car just shot somebody.’ ”
Earlier, two people who were described in one account as teenagers were shot and wounded in the Petworth area of Northwest Washington.
That shooting occurred about 9 p.m. at Georgia Avenue and Decatur Street NW.
About an hour later, another shooting occurred a few blocks away at Ninth and Crittenden streets NW. Police said they had no immediate indications that the two incidents were linked. It appeared that none of the three Petworth victims suffered a life-threatening wound.
About 8:40 p.m. in Northeast Washington, a teenager was shot near the New York Avenue station on Metro’s Red Line. He was grazed by a bullet, police said.
About 10:30 p.m., a man was reported shot in the 4400 block of Seventh Street SE, police said.
Source:Washington Post
Mall security finds missing woman’s ashes www.privateofficer.com
A Woodland Hills family told police that a thief stole the ashes when they broke into a sport utility vehicle at a mall near Owensmouth Avenue and Erwin Street on the evening of Oct. 24 and grabbed some luggage, detectives with the LAPD’s Topanga area station said.
Security guards at the mall found the duffel bag lying in the parking lot about 7:30 a.m. Sunday, police said. The guards checked the bag, immediately recognized what it contained and called authorities.
The bag contained “many of the items” taken from the SUV, including a brown box which had a white plastic bag inside that held the remains of 88-year-old Betty Weikert, who passed away in February, police said.
Weikert’s grandson, Matt Powell, says her dying request was to unite her ashes with her husband’s.
“First when we realized what had happened, we were just shocked. We couldn’t believe the car had been broken into,” Powell told KTLA.
“Then we realized that the ashes were taken,” he said. “We just couldn’t believe what happened.”
Powell says he is happy the thieves apparently had a heart.
“We’re definitely glad to have them back, so we certainly appreciate it,” he said.
TN State Senator arrested for DUI-gun charges www.privateofficer.com
NASHVILLE, Tenn. Oct 13 2011 – The sponsor of the law that made it legal to carry a gun into bars in Tennessee is facing charges of possession of a handgun while under the influence and drunken driving.
Rep. Curry Todd, a Collierville Republican, was pulled over in Nashville late Tuesday, according to court documents.
Police said he was swerving in-and-out of lanes in the Green Hills area of Nashville and going 60 mph in a 40 mph zone. The arrest occurred on 21st Avenue South at Blair Boulevard at 10:55 p.m.
Police said he failed a roadside sobriety test and refused to take a Breathalyzer test. A loaded .38-caliber gun was found in a holster stuffed between the driver’s seat and center console.
A police affidavit said Todd was unsteady on his feet, “almost falling down at times.” Officers concluded that Todd was “obviously very impaired and not in any condition to be carrying a
loaded handgun.”
Todd posted bail of $3,000 and was released from jail Wednesday morning. He didn’t return a message left on his cellphone, and no lawyer was listed in his arrest records.
Todd told officers that he had consumed two drinks when he was pulled over, according to the affidavit.
As a former Memphis police officer, Todd isn’t required to have to have a permit to carry a gun in public, but state records show he has one anyway.
State law makes it a misdemeanor for anyone to consume alcohol while carrying a firearm in public, and those who violate that law are subject to losing their permits for three years.
House Majority Leader Gerald McCormick, R-Chattanooga, said it’s too soon to say whether Todd will be stripped of his chairmanship of the House State and Local Government Committee.
McCormick said in a press conference that he had spoken briefly with Todd to tell his colleague he was “praying for him and being supportive of him on a personal basis.”
McCormick said the arrest doesn’t change his views about the guns in bars law.
“It’s a bad idea to drink and carry a gun, obviously,” he said. “I don’t know the details of what happened with Rep. Todd last night, but I think he would agree me.”
Court documents don’t indicate whether Todd had been drinking at a bar.
Todd sponsored a 2009 bill to let people with handgun carry permits take their weapons into businesses that serve alcohol, provided they don’t drink. Although police and prosecutors spoke out against it, the measure passed and easily survived a veto from former Democratic Gov. Phil Bredesen.
A judge later declared the law unconstitutionally vague but the Legislature addressed those issues in a new version that became a law last year.
During debate over the bill in 2009, Todd assured lawmakers that gun permit holders would be careful about not violating the ban on drinking in bars or restaurants while carrying a gun.
“The burden is not going to be on the restaurant owner, it’s going to be on the individual, because he’s going to know that he has a chance there if he’s caught to lose his gun permit forever,” Todd said.
Todd is known for occasional flashes of a temper. After Bredesen vetoed the original version of the guns in bars bill, Todd said: “I want to tell you what the governor can do with that piece of
paper he just sent.”
Todd also drew national attention last year for saying in a committee hearing that illegal immigrants can “go out there like rats and multiply” after hearing that federal law requires the
state to extend prenatal care to women regardless of their citizenship status because all children born in the U.S. are citizens.
Todd initially acknowledged that he used the wrong words and that he meant to say “anchor babies” — itself a term many consider offensive — but refused to apologize for the original
remark.
Todd later changed course and said he would “apologize if the comment offended anyone.”
Source:WSMV.com
California DMV heads to TV with a reality show www.privateofficer.com
Sacramento CA Aug 16 2011 Move into the slow lane, “Ice Road Truckers.” Head for shore, “Deadliest Catch.” The California Department of Motor Vehicles is getting its own reality TV show.
Entertainment Weekly has reported that TruTV has ordered up four episodes of “California DMV: Field Offices.” The show, co-produced by actor Ashton Kutcher and veteran reality TV exec Jason Goldberg, will look at what it’s like to work at one of the few state departments that touches nearly every Californian.
When The State Worker heard about the show, we thought we were being “Punk’d” (one of Goldberg’s shows on MTV), so we double checked with DMV spokesman Mike Marando.
“It’s true,” Marando said. “We’ve been working toward this for a while.”
Last year the National Geographic channel hit pay dirt with “Wild Justice,” a reality show that followed California game wardens. That show’s debut reached about 2 million viewers.
The DMV show will shoot from several offices, EW reports. There’s no premier broadcast date yet.
Source:sacbee.com
Macy’s security agent arrested for theft www.privateofficer.com
A man working security for Macy’s at the WestFarms Mall was charged last week with stealing from the store.
Reinaldo Viera was employed as a loss prevention agent for Macy’s when he was caught taking items from the West Hartford store after hours, police said.
Viera is facing charges of larceny and possession of a shoplifting device. His status with the store was not immediately available.
Two security officers stabbed at Pocono Raceway www.privateofficer.com
LONG POND, Pa.Aug 10 2011 — A suburban Philadelphia is behind bars accused of stabbing two Pocono Raceway security guards.
Pocono Mountain Regional Police say 20-year-old Daniel Kupper stabbed two security guards early Sunday morning at the track in Long Pond, Monroe County. The track was hosting NASCAR events during the weekend.
Investigators say Kupper was riding in vehicle that disobeyed traffic directions. The Melrose Park man allegedly stabbed a 50-year-old security guard in the neck, shoulder and back. A 55-year-old guard was also stabbed in the back and collarbone. Both men were hospitalized.
Kupper is being held on $100,000 bail on charges including aggravated assault and reckless endangerment. Another man, Louis Kupper, also faces charges related to the altercation. The relationship between the two men was not immediately clear
Serial shoplifter leads police on pursuit www.privateofficer.com
Bridgeport CT Aug 7 2011A 42-year-old Bridgeport woman was arrested Friday on charges she nearly struck a police car after being approached about stealing several items from a Kohl’s Department Store, police said.
Diana L. Eldredge, of 106 Harborview Ave., was charged with reckless driving, interfering with an officer, engaging in pursuit, no insurance and theft of plate, among other crimes.
About 2:30 p.m. members of the Kohl’s Department Store Loss Prevention team said they saw Eldredge selecting multiple men’s wear items, taking them into the woman’s fitting room and leaving the woman’s fitting room without the items visible.
When Loss Prevention checked the fitting room, there were no items inside, police said. Eldredge passed all the cash registers and exited the store.
Police said Eldredge was approached by a Kohl’s employee who asked her to return to the store. The employee told her that police had arrived, to which she replied, “I don’t give a [expletive].” Police said Eldredge jumped into her car and drove away, almost striking a cruiser.
Officers followed her car into Bridgeport and onto I-95 South. Eldredge was eventually stopped after she left the highway, taking exit 22, police said.
Eldredge has a history of 54 prior arrests, police said, and she is suspected of stealing items from a Marshall’s Department Store on Friday and a Kohl’s Department Store last Saturday. Police said she was released from custody around 8:30 p.m. on Friday
North GA daycare worker arrested for assault www.privateofficer.com
HIRAM, Ga.Aug 6 2011 – A daycare worker in Paulding County is charged with battery.
Angeles Westmoreland, 47 was arrested Thursday.
April Nations is upset about what she says happened to her 5-year old son at a Hiram daycare last week.
“Everywhere there were bruises and scratches and blood blisters,” said April nations.
Police have arrested daycare worker 47-year old Angeles Westmoreland. She’s been charged with battery.
“When we got to the school, the teacher told us he had a bad day and spent 20 minutes telling this story of how awful he was,” said Nations.
But Nations says her son told her and the police a different story.
“The child had taken a toy from him, so he hit him. So then the teacher told the other boys to hit him back and watched while they stepped on him,” said Nations.
Because of the investigation, she says she can’t go into detail about the daycare worker’s alleged actions.
“After she hurt him she took him and gave him cookies and said ‘don’t worry, we won’t tell your mom so you don’t get in trouble.’”
No one would comment at Greenfield Academy where Nations’ son was a student for just three days.
“He has his moments, he’s five. But why be a daycare teacher if you’re not prepared to have your moments?”
According to state records, Greenfield Academy has been under investigation by the state two times before — once for not having a criminal records check on an employee and another time for not notifying a parent of a child’s busted lip.
Source:myfoxatlanta.com
Loaded gun found at Norfolk International Airport www.privateofficer.com
Police wrote a Richmond man a summons after he brought a loaded handgun into Norfolk International Airport.
A U.S. Transportation Security Administration employee saw the handgun in a carry-on bag while working at an X-ray machine on Monday, the TSA said.
Airport police charged Joseph Timothy Bass, 51, with unlawfully carrying a gun into an airport terminal, a misdemeanor, the airport’s executive director said.
Florida city votes to disband police force www.privateofficer.com
Deltona, FL August 4, 2011 The City of Oak Hill may soon be following in the footsteps of other Volusia County municipalities and agencies that contract with the Volusia County Sheriff for law enforcement services. Currently the cities of Deltona and DeBary, the Town of Pierson, Daytona Beach International Airport and Volusia County Schools have service contracts with the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office.
The City Commission of Oak Hill voted, 3-2, on Monday, to immediately disband its’ Police Department which consisted of six paid Police Officers and operated under a public safety budget of $496,258.00 for the current fiscal year.
Oak Hill has an entire city budget of $1,134,442.00 for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2011.
The salary of the now former Chief of Police of the city of less than 2,000 residents was $40,706.00.
The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office began immediate patrols within the city and responded to any citizen calls, but now the city must look to a permanent fix to the policing situation.
Commissioner Kathy Bittle stated that now that the Police Department has been cleaned out, she would have no problem re-instating the agency, if intense background checks were done before hiring personnel.
The other alternative would be to contract with the Volusia County Sheriff to provide law enforcement services full time on a contract basis.
One estimate given for Oak Hill to have Volusia Sheriffs’ service was an annual cost of $463,000.00 to include four deputies.
One deputy would be on patrol during each shift for 24-hour coverage.
According to Wendell Bradford, a Candidate for Volusia County Sheriff in 2012, the cost of service contracts varies widely among Volusia County municipalities and agencies that contract with the Sheriff.
During an interview on Daytona Beach radio station, WPUL 1590 Am, Bradford briefly addressed the Oak Hill situation and questioned the different amounts of money being charged municipalities, and feels they are being “over-charged and the money should go back to the taxpayers.” “Why is Deltona paying $8,729,714.00, or $124,000.00 each, for 72 deputies and DeBary the same for 23, while the Daytona Beach Airport pays $599,391.00 for eight deputies, $75,000.00 each.” “Volusia County Schools pays $1,153,275.00 for 14 deputies and has another $35,000.00 contract to do background checks on volunteers.”
During the interview, Bradford also questioned the transparency of the Volusia Sheriff’s budget submitted to the Volusia County Council for the 2011-2012 fiscal year, and the ability of the City of Oak Hill to pay what the Sheriffs’ Office may demand for protection.
New Jersey Dunkin’ Donuts employee charged with prostitution www.privateofficer.com
Cops hit Melissa Redmond, 29, with a prostitution rap after the Mine Hill, N.J. woman hawked sexual services to thirsty customers at a Rockaway Boro Dunkin’ Donuts, the Asbury Park Press reports.
“I had gotten an anonymous tip,” Detective Sgt. Kyle Schwarzmann told The Press. “She was a night-time employee, supposedly a very good one.”
Redmond’s arrest came after a six-week sting, aptly called: “Operation Extra Sugar.” During the investigation, cops posed as johns and solicited sexual liaisons from the donut dealer.
The investigation began with Schwarzmann staking out the Dunkin’ Donuts on Route 46 in Rockaway Boro – about a 20-minute ride from the city. He witnessed Redmond making lengthy trips to and from the shop’s parking lot.
“Sometimes I’d even see money changing hands,” Schwarzmann told The Press.
Two other police officers then went in street-clothes to the Dunkin’ Donuts’ drive-thru window and tried to solicit sex from Redmond.
“She said if he wanted a good time to call her and she gave him her phone number,” Schwarzmann said.
The officer then parked in the parking lot and waited for Redmond, who came out a short time later and offered a menu that had nothing to do with bagels and coffee.
Schwarzmann told The Press that the officer returned on another night and repeated the scenario – and Redmond even offered to lower her prices.
The cop told Redmond that he had to go to a bank machine to get out some cash, Schwarzmann said.
When he returned, he parked in the parking lot and arrested Redmond when she came out. Redmond could not be reached for comment.
Grand jury indicts man in security officer murder www.privateofficer.com
The victim listed in the murder indictment is Steve Orange, a former Roanoke city police officer who went into the private security field and later opened his own firm with two business partners.
Tom Starke, one of Orange’s partners at the security firm called Pro-Techt, said he was familiar with name Gene Brown, and that Orange was too, but declined to go into further detail for fear he might hurt the investigation.
Search warrants on file in Roanoke circuit court show police got the break in the case they needed after speaking with an eyewitness who claimed to spot Brown with a gun.
The search warrants show the interview with the eyewitness was six days after the July 13th murder.
Police picked up Brown at the Econo Lodge across the street from the Roanoke Civic Center on July 20th, according to the court records.
As a convicted felon, Brown is not allowed to be anywhere near a gun.
Brown’s trial is set to begin on November 15th.
Records provided by the Virginia Department of Corrections show, from 1993 to 2009, Brown spent a total of seven and a half years in prison after convictions on various crimes.
He was released from a Virginia Department of Corrections prison in February 2009 and was on supervised probation until last April.
Heavily armed former Fla prison guard kills neighbor-commits suicide www.privateofficer.com
PANAMA CITY Fla Aug 1 2011 — He had a bigger and better gun than most SWAT team members, a formidable bulletproof vest and more than 2,000 rounds of ammunition, officials said last week
And if the man believed to be behind a recent murder-suicide had turned his eye toward the public, the consequences would have been uncalculable.
“We’re talking Norway or Fort Hood,” Maj. Tommy Ford said. “The capability was there to cause catastrophic death.”
Investigators said 50-year-old Galen Scott Suppes, a former prison guard, shot and killed his neighbor, 19-year-old Christopher James Ballard, shortly before killing himself July 23. Deputies were called out to the scene July 24 after Suppes’ family informed them that something was amiss.
When deputies searched his apartment, they found several items of concern, Ford said. They found a Springfield MIA SOCOM .308 with 36 magazines and a scope that could grant a decent shooter the ability to hit someone from 350 to 400 yards away.
“They would have stopping power out past that, but the accuracy wouldn’t be there,” Ford added.
The equipment allowed a shooter the ability to hang dozens of magazines on the vest and in their pockets. The magazines each hold 20 rounds, Ford said. That would mean regular law enforcement officers and SWAT team members would have a hard time taking a suspect down while he or she was trying to reload, Ford said.
“We would have been at a severe disadvantage had we interrupted the events of that evening,” Ford said.
Deputies also found Suppes had an embroidered black and white hat labeled “sheriff.” And while he was once a prison guard and, according to his family, served in the military, there is no indication Suppes ever worked at a sheriff’s office, Ford said.
“You can buy them at the mall,” Ford said of the hat.
Several times over the past few years local law enforcement officers have arrested imposters. It’s something they take seriously, Ford said.
“I guess anytime we see it happen it erodes the safety factor people should feel when they are dealing with law enforcement,” Ford said.
Then there was the body armor; it was thick enough to defeat rifle rounds, Ford said.
Ford and Sheriff Frank McKeithen stressed they wanted the public to know what law enforcement officers may face while on the job but do not support any change to the right of American citizens to bear arms.
“The sheriff is a big believer in the right to keep and bear arms and gun ownership,” Ford said. “It’s not the gun; it’s the people we may face.”
However, Ford did note that it is hard to get someone declared mentally incompetent and unable to purchase a gun. The court proceedings usually happen long after law enforcement and family members become aware of the problem, Ford said.
Ford suggested that members of the public should call law enforcement if they have a problem with their neighbor but only in the right circumstances.
“If they have a concern about a neighbor’s actions,” they should call, Ford said. “It’s his right to have a rifle.”
Source:walton sun
Seymour police officer arrested for on-duty DUI www.privateofficer.com
“The Seymour Tribune” reports 38 year-old Officer John C. Newcomb, of Salem was arrested after the 1992 Ford Ranger he was driving north on Indiana 135 in Salem sideswiped a 1994 Pontiac Firebird and left the road, hitting a tree, late Wednesday.
Newcomb was pulling a DARE trailer owned by the Seymour Police Department at the time of the wreck, which was reported at 10:20 p.m. Wednesday. The report said that Newcomb was using the trailer to move personal belongings from his Salem home to a new address in Seymour.
Newcomb, who is Seymour Police Department’s school resource officer, was booked into Washington County Jail in Salem at 12:55 a.m. Thursday on a charge of operating while intoxicated. According to the report, Newcomb had a blood alcohol content of 0.14. The legal limit in Indiana is .08.
Newcomb was released from the jail at 8:47 a.m. Thursday after posting a $300 cash bond. Seymour Police Chief Bill Abbott said he is awaiting a report from the Indiana State Police and a chance to speak with Newcomb before making any recommendation about the matter or Newcomb’s future with police department to the Seymour Board of Public Works.
Mount Rainier police officer indicted for attempted murder www.privateofficer.com
A 12-count indictment alleges that Gene Gillette, 27, shot a man in the 700 block of Glacier Avenue after assaulting him, touching his genitals and trying to sexually assault him, officials said in a statement.
Two law enforcement sources said that the altercation happened over an attempted sexual encounter in Gillette’s house and that the officer shot the victim as he tried to flee in Gillette’s car. The sources said Gillette lured the victim to the home with a promise of making a pornographic movie with women, but no women were at the house.
Gillette turned himself in to Prince George’s police Tuesday night. Gillette was placed on suspension without pay, and his police powers were revoked, Mount Rainier Police Chief Michael Scott said.
Gillette won top honors from the department. He was named Rookie of the Year in 2008 and Officer of the Year in 2009 and 2010, according to reports by Scott. Gillette also led the department in making criminal arrests and issuing traffic citations in 2010.
The condition of the shooting victim was not immediately clear.
Source:Washington Post
Mountaire Farms security manager arrested for 14 sexual assaults www.privateofficer.com
MILLSBORO, DEL.July 28 2011 — A 53-year-old Lincoln man has been arrested on 14 charges of rape in what state police described as a two-week investigation into sexual assaults at Mountaire Farms, in Millsboro.
Cpl. Bruce Harris said four female Mountaire employees made allegations of “unwanted, continuous sexual advances and encounters” by Ronald F. Tate, 53, of Lincoln, the company’s security and facilities manager.
Harris said that detectives discovered that between October, 2010, and July, 2011, Tate allegedly “at least 14 times sexually assaulted two of the four victims inside his office located on the Mountaire Farms complex.”
“The two other victims reported that on several occasions Tate inappropriately touched parts of their bodies, which made them feel uncomfortable, while inside his office or while acting in his official capacity as the plant security manager,” Harris said.
Tate was charged with 14 counts of second-degree rape, two counts of sexual extortion, three counts of third-degree unlawful sexual conduct and sexual harassment. He was committed to Sussex Correctional Institution in lieu of $415,000 secured bond, and the police investigation into the accusations continues.
Sorce:MilfordBeacon
Woman sexually assaulted at Gresham Station Shopping Center www.privateofficer.com
The assault took place sometime between 1 and 4 p.m. behind the Borders bookstore, according to Sgt. Claudio Grandjean.
The woman said she was getting into her blue minivan on the west side of Border’s, on Sleret between 12th and 13th streets, when the men grabbed her and pulled her to a secluded area.
She said she had been shopping alone at the retail complex and had just come from Borders before walking to the van.
The only description of the attackers was that they were adult men.
Anyone with information was asked to call the Gresham Police Tip Line at (503) 618-2719.
Source:kgw
Hamilton County TN corresctions officer arrested www.privateofficer.com
A corrections officer with the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office was arrested over the weekend and charged with sexual battery.
Police received a call around 2 a.m. on Saturday and responded to the Palms Club at 6925 Shallowford Road where they spoke with the victim. She advised that while dancing on the dance floor, she was approached by the suspect, Jerry Melbert.
At some point during their brief conversation, the victim said Melbert zipped up her top and stuck his hand into her blouse. The victim and her husband immediately alerted security who escorted Melbert from the club.
The victim contacted police to report the incident, but Melbert was not on the scene when they arrived. After speaking with the victim and other witnesses on the scene, police obtained warrants in the case.
Melbert was subsequently charged on the warrant.
VA woman accused of killing man she met on Craigslist www.privateofficer.com
A 24-year-old Culpeper woman has been accused in the stabbing death of a 53-year-old Florida man police say she met on Craigslist.
Latoya Korren Jordan faces a first-degree murder charge after being taken into custody Thursday at a home in Fountain, Fla., in connection with the death of Daniel Stuart Somerson.
Deputies found Somerson’s decomposed body in his Fruit Cove, Fla., home this month, according to the St. John and Bay County sheriff’s offices.
Investigators said Jordan admitted fatally stabbing Somerson. At the time of her arrest, she was staying with another man in his 50s she met on Craigslist.
The victim had been deceased for a period of time when deputies responded to his home to check on him July 8. Dental records were needed to identify Somerson. The cause of his death was multiple stab wounds, Florida authorities said.
Somerson met Jordan at the end of May, picked her up and returned with her to his home, police said. According to news reports, deputies said the two were living together when an argument led to the killing.
Authorities said Jordan stayed at the victim’s home for an undetermined period after his death, when she met the second man.
Authorities said that as detectives tracked her movements, it was learned Jordan used many names when communicating online with men. The investigation further revealed the suspect had used Craigslist to seek other men with whom to live before Somerson’s death and at least four others since she left his home. Investigators said the arrangements were platonic.
sorce-rtd.com
Virginia psychiatrist shot-killed by patient www.privateofficer.com
Fairfax VA July 23 2011 A 71-year-old psychiatrist was shot and killed Friday by a 62-year-old patient who then killed herself in the doctor’s home in an upscale section of Fairfax County, according to preliminary investigation, county police said.
Police said they found the bodies in the home on Tebbs Lane in McLean after gunshots were reported there about 4:15 p.m.
Police said they would withhold the man’s name pending an autopsy, and the woman’s until her relatives were notified.
Most neighbors interviewed Friday declined to discuss the matter, citing their respect for the privacy of the wife of the male victim, whom they did not name.
While not naming the man, police said he was “preliminarily identified” as a 71-year-old resident of the home, where they said he lived and worked as a psychiatrist.
Source:washington post
Mobile woman arrested for counterfeiting while on probation www.privateofficer.com
MOBILE, Alabama July 22 2011— Police here today released the name of the woman they accuse of making hundreds of dollars’ worth of counterfeit money.
Officer Chris Levy, a police spokesman, said authorities arrested Jennifer Sanders, 23, on Tuesday at her home on a probation violation. They seized $752 in fake bills, a HP printer and several ink cartridges. Sanders had been on probation for an offense she committed as a youthful offender, giving her probation officer the right to go into her home.
“They don’t have to have a warrant to enter into a house,” Levy said.
Police have said they began searching for the person or people who make fake currency after some $1,600 in funny money turned up at area businesses in the last few weeks. They said they identified Sanders as a suspect after a Quality Inn motel received fake bills.
Authorities said fast-food restaurants and convenience stores got other phony bills.
Investigators said Thursday that the quality of the some of the bills was fairly high, although they lacked certain security features that are difficult for counterfeiters to mimic.
Levy said the U.S. Secret Service has agreed to take the case to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for prosecution in federal court. He also said further arrests are possible.
Court records show that Sanders has been arrested several times on worthless check and traffic charges, but most of those have been dismissed.
Source:AL.com
Bell County ISD teacher arrested for having sex with 14yr old www.privateofficer.com
Troy TX July 23 2011 Shocked and saddened. That is what the tightly-knit Troy community is saying Thursday night after a middle school teacher was arrested for allegedly having sex with a 14-year-old student.
The teacher in Bell County custody is 31-year-old Kaci Pomerenke. Her teacher web page for Raymond Mays Middle School shows that she taught 6th and 8th grade social studies and also coached cheerleaders.
The arrest affidavit states that Pomerenke resigned Tuesday from the Troy Independent School District after meeting with Superintendent Neil Jeter earlier in the day. According to the affidavit, Pomerenke admitted to the questionable sexual encounters from January 2011 involving a 14-year-old student.
The affidavit goes on to say that Pomerenke admitted to having sex with the student in her car three times during the month of January 2011.
After watching an interview from the child advocacy center with the victim, Bell County Sheriff’s investigators issued the arrest warrant that is shaking this community. Mother of two, Chasity Blackwell says, “I have substitute taught in the elementary schools and I’ve never seen anything like this.”
Tanya Fuchs lives just a couple of blocks away from the middle school. “It’s shocking,” she says, “you wouldn’t expect anything like this to happen in our community, because it’s such a small community and everybody knows everybody.”
Daniel Ames graduated from Troy High School. He says, “I’m just surprised that it has happened here.”
One excerpt of the arrest affidavit says that the victim was told by Pomerenke not to tell anyone about the sexual encounters.
Pomerenke’s formal charge is “improper relationship between an educator and student.”
Source:kcentv.com
Charlotte police pull Tasers off streets after second death www.privateofficer.com
Charlotte NC July 23 2011 The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department is taking all of its Tasers off the streets for as many as 45 days, after a suspect died when he was shocked by an officer’s X26 Taser at a Lynx light rail station.
Police say Lareko Williams, 21, was beating and choking a woman when confronted by Officer Michael Forbes at the station on Woodlawn Road around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday. Williams was pronounced dead about an hour later.
The death came just a day after a federal jury in Charlotte awarded $10 million to the family of 17-year-old Darryl Wayne Turner, who died in 2008 after a CMPD officer shocked him with a Taser.
In response to the jury’s award against the company that makes Tasers, Charlotte City Attorney Mac McCarley said police officers would continue to use the weapons.
“It is still a very effective, nonlethal force to control a situation,” he told the Observer Wednesday, just hours before the confrontation at the light rail station.
But the $10 million verdict and Wednesday’s death are certain to revive debate over the weapons. Tasers can deliver a 50,000-volt shock that temporarily paralyzes suspects, and have been linked to hundreds of deaths across the country.
Earlier this year, the Union County town of Stallings stopped using Tasers because of liability issues.
CMPD on Thursday suspended use of its roughly 1,200 Tasers for 30 to 45 days as the weapons are tested to make sure they’re working properly. The Taser used on Williams will be sent to an independent laboratory to be tested, police said.
The department will also review its Taser policies and procedures to ensure they’re in line with established national standards.
Foxx supports chief’s action
Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx said Thursday that he wants to see the results of the CMPD review before taking any further action.
“I have spoken with Police Chief Rodney Monroe several times in the last 24 hours and he has assured me that all aspects of this incident will be reviewed thoroughly,” Foxx said in a statement. “I also support his effort to inspect all Taser devices and protocols related to their use.”
Police didn’t respond to questions about Officer Forbes’ training with the Taser. They also didn’t respond to questions about where Williams was struck with the Taser prongs or how long he was shocked.
On Thursday, McCarley stood by his statements about Tasers being effective in helping officers control situations.
“In the vast majority of cases, fewer officers and fewer suspects sustain any sort of physical or permanent injuries,” he said, speaking of Tasers. “But the other steps available are usually hard physical contact, something like a baton. And that is much more likely to cause some type of immediate or lasting physical harm.”
But Ken Harris, who has represented Turner’s family since the teen’s death three years ago, said Williams’ death may illustrate the Taser’s dangers.
“This incident is just another example of why we have been so persistent in arguing that the Taser is a lethal weapon,” Harris said.
“We wanted Darryl’s legacy to be a reduction in the number of deaths related to the use of Tasers. This is just another tragedy.”
At Woodlawn Lynx station
On Wednesday night, Williams and a female friend were riding the Lynx line home after watching a movie at the AMC movie theater on South Boulevard, said Ariel Terry, a friend of Williams who says she dated him for a year. At some point, he got into an argument with the woman, Terry said.
At 10:39 p.m., someone called police reporting that man was beating a woman at the Woodlawn Lynx station, a raised platform along the 4700 block of Old Pineville Road, according to a police statement.
Forbes was the first officer to respond.
Monroe told reporters Forbes fired his department-issued Taser as Williams was about to strike the woman again. Forbes used the Taser “in an attempt to gain compliance,” according to a police statement.
Forbes soon realized the suspect was unresponsive and radioed for paramedics.
Terry said Williams treated her well when they dated. But she did acknowledge that Williams had been previously charged with assault on a female and other crimes.
She said Williams has a 1-year-old child and two children on the way. He was attending classes at Central Piedmont Community College, she said, trying to get his graduate equivalent diploma.
Monroe told reporters that investigators are analyzing video that apparently showed what happened during the confrontation.
“A host of cameras (are) in and around the area,” Monroe said. “We’re going through a very methodical process analyzing the data from those cameras.”
Williams’ family declined to comment. The Observer’s news partner, WCNC-TV, reported that they had hired a lawyer.
Largest award against maker
A day before Williams died, Darryl Turner’s family was awarded $10 million after a jury found that Taser International failed to warn that the weapon could cause cardiac arrest. The award was the largest ever against the makers of the Taser. The company said it will appeal.
The city of Charlotte paid $625,000 to Turner’s family in 2009, though it denied wrongdoing.
Turner died in March 2008 after Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Officer Jerry Dawson Jr. shocked him at a Food Lion grocery store in northeast Charlotte.
Turner, who worked at the store, died from cardiac arrest. The autopsy showed the teenager’s heart was pumping so fast and chaotically from the Taser shot and stress from the confrontation that it stopped pumping blood properly. The autopsy found no pre-existing heart problems.
Dawson was not charged with any crime. Prosecutors said the officer was justified in using the Taser during the confrontation with Turner, who was found with three small bags of marijuana in his socks after the incident. He was also “agitated” and threw something at a manager, police said.
Dawson was suspended for five days without pay and required to undergo additional training. After Turner’s death, all officers were required to undergo more training with Tasers.
Police didn’t respond to questions about Forbes’ training Thursday, but under the department’s training regimen, he would have completed the additional training at least twice
Source:www.charlotteobserver.com
Newly hired Virginia football coach arrested for child porn www.privateofficer.com
ROANOKE, Va.July 21 2011 (AP) – A western Virginia man faces child-pornography charges less than a month after he was hired as Parry McCluer High School’s head football coach.
The Roanoke Times reports that Matthew Wheeler was identified during a detention hearing Monday in U.S. District Court in Roanoke.
Wheeler is being held without bond in a local jail pending transfer to Lafayette, La., where he will stand trial.
Federal authorities in Louisiana allege that the 31-year-old Wheeler was among at least 22 members of an online bulletin board on which participants posted links to child pornography.
Buena Vista City Schools Superintendent Rebecca Gates said Tuesday in a statement that a teacher had been suspended following his arrest by federal authorities. She didn’t identify the teacher or the charges.
Four arrested in major theft caper at K-Mart www.privateofficer.com
FAIRHAVEN MA July 20 2011— More than $10,000 in stolen merchandise was recovered and three men and a woman were arrested Thursday night after an alleged shoplifting spree at Kmart and a subsequent chase, police said.
Facing various charges in connection with the incident are Eshone Williams, 31, Ryan Persue, 28, and Justin Blake, 28, all of Worcester, and Cheyanne Skelton, 20, of Las Vegas, police said.
According to a news release, at approximately 6:15 p.m. Thursday, police responded to Kmart after receiving a report that a male was fleeing from the store after shoplifting some merchandise.
The suspect, later identified as Williams, ran across Route 6 and entered a red Nissan Altima in the 7-Eleven parking lot, police said, adding that the vehicle was driven by a woman, later identified as Skelton.
Officer Stephen Gwozdz spotted the car at the intersection of Alden Road and Bridge Street. He activated his emergency lights and the vehicle stopped in front of the Southern Mass Credit Union, before abruptly taking off, continuing north on Alden Road for about a quarter of a mile, police said.
At one point, the car slowed and the man ran from the vehicle, fleeing into the wooded area behind the former Massachusetts Lottery building, police said. Gwozdz pursued and eventually captured the man, identified as Williams, without incident, police said.
While Gwozdz was pursuing Williams, the car he jumped out of turned and fled south on Alden Road, where Officer Marc Darmofal saw it near the intersection of Alden Road and Bridge Street. He stopped the vehicle and placed the driver, subsequently identified as Skelton, under arrest.
In conducting an inventory of the contents of the vehicle, officers found more than $10,000 worth of merchandise in the trunk. Items included cellular telephones, gift cards, MP3 players, high-end cameras, glucose test strips, jewelry, clothing and other assorted electronic and medical supplies, police said.
Williams — who police said has 19 different aliases — was charged with shoplifting, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, receiving stolen property valued at over $250 and furnishing a false name to police. Skelton was charged with receiving stolen property valued at over $250, failing to stop for police, marked lanes violations and operating a motor vehicle so as to endanger.
Officers David Correia and Daniel Dorgan later arrested two other men in connection with the case. Persue and Blake were charged with shoplifting, police said.
All four suspects were scheduled to be arraigned Friday in Third District Court. Additional information was not available.
Source:SouthCoastToday.com
