War Story Wednesday - A Cold Winter's Night

One freezing winter's night during a midnight tour in the late 80s, I was checking the churches in my sector, as there had been a spate of break-ins. Near the entrance of a church on Vernon Valley Road, I noticed a figure tugging on a locked door. I was surprised to see it was an elderly woman.

I lowered the passenger side window and summoned her. "Hop in ~ it's five degrees outside!"

She got in, and I asked her what she was doing, and if she had any ID. She was trying to find someplace warm, she said. She opened a small purse, which contained three unusual items: a checkbook register from 1969, a knee-hi stocking, and a spoon, but no ID. I requested her name and date of birth (DOB). I imagined some family worrying about their missing loved one, yet I hadn't heard any local notifications recently. I asked where she lived. She cryptically replied, "Near the water." I assumed that meant Northport. I found her in East Northport, which is actually south of Northport (that's another story). I asked if she knew the name of the street or her house number, but she did not.

I drove to the nearest Dunkin' Donuts (24 hour places were limited at the time), so I could use a pay phone (no cell phones, or computers in the patrol cars). I brought her to the counter, gave the clerk money to buy a warm drink and a snack for the lady while I used the phone. I called the precinct and asked a desk officer to run a missing person's check. She was not an active missing person, but her name appeared in the computer -- with a DOB 20 years older than what she provided. He supplied her address on Vernon Valley Road, not far from the church where I found her. We returned to the car. After mentioning her address, she seemed to recognize it. As I drove along Vernon Valley Road, I asked her if she could point out her house; she could not. I tried looking for house numbers where you'd expect them ~ on mailboxes, curbs, houses or garages ~ and several in a row displayed no house numbers (one of my pet peeves in patrol work).

I had delivered mail in the Northport area one summer while waiting to join the police academy, and I learned that strange house numbering is the norm on Long Island. (House number image: L.A. Times blogs.)

I chose a house that I estimated to be near the woman's address. It was still dark out when I woke an occupant at some ungodly hour.

"Who is it?" the groggy voice answered, without opening the door.

"It's the police. What's the number of your house?"

"Oh, yeah, we don't have our number on our house."

"I know. Sorry to wake you. I'm trying to locate the home of a woman who wandered away." I mentioned her name, but the resident didn't know her. I apologized and tried the next unnumbered home.

It was the wrong house, too. This woman knew her, though. "You know what it is, right?" she asked. I nodded as she said, "Alzheimer's." She explained that when the wandering woman and her husband, now deceased, had moved in 30 years ago, their house was facing a side road that didn't exist yet. That's why I had such difficulty finding the house. The lack of numbers on the surrounding houses didn't help.

She said that her wandering neighbor, who had no family except one relative in Europe, lived alone. A social services worker visited weekly, and the house was boarded up from the inside to prevent her from wandering. Sounded like a fire hazard to me.
She offered to take the woman home. When I said that she had claimed to live near the water, the neighbor said she was referring to Battery Park in New York City ~ where she lived as a young girl. (photo: www.common/wikimedia.org.)

When I retrieved the woman from my patrol car, the wanderer said to her neighbor, "How's Charlie?"

The neighbor gently replied, "Oh, he died ~ twelve years ago."

It was heartbreaking.
**********

According to ProjectLifesaver.org, experts estimate the people age 65 and older in the U.S. is projected to double by the year 2030. By age 72, 1 in 8 Americans will have Alzheimer's Disease. Project Lifesaver International was established in 1999, to help families find missing loved ones who wander because of Alzheimer's, Downs Syndrome, dementia, and autism. It's headquartered in Chesapeake, VA., and they work with law enforcement agencies in 1000 communities in 46 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada.

A reminder for the new year: if your house number (or the house number of your loved one) isn't prominently displayed, make sure that it is. When emergency responders are trying to locate a sick or injured party, seconds count. It's frustrating when a house is difficult to find because it isn't numbered. At the very least, if you are in a home occupied with several people, and are awaiting an ambulance or cop to respond, have someone be on the lookout for the responders ~ and wave them on.

I'm impressed with the Fire Department of Franklin Township in Erie County, PA. They distribute free, highly reflective numbers for the mailboxes or driveways for residences and businesses. Cool idea!

If you notice your street sign has been stolen or knocked down, contact your local village or town to have it replaced. According to the Cape Cod Times, a missing street sign delayed the rescue response for a woman who was choking, and it resulted in tragic consequences.

One more thing ~ if you have an elderly neighbor who lives alone, if you don't already know him or her, why not introduce yourself sometime? Check out these suggestions.

Rookie Cop Killed in Arlington, Texas

A rookie cop, who had just completed her field training two weeks ago, was shot and killed during a domestic incident on Tuesday, December 28, 2010, while shielding an 11-year-old girl from gunfire. The child's mother was killed just before the suspect took his own life.

Officer Jillian Smith, age 24, responded alone to take a report from 29-year-old Kimberly Deshay Carter, who lived with her daughter at an apartment complex. Arlington Police Chief Theron Bowman referred to the taking of this report as a "low-priority" call, one that they would expect only one officer to handle.

Who is making the decision on the priority of the calls?

As a retired 21-year veteran police officer who handled domestic violence calls while working in the patrol division, I cannot imagine sending only one officer to a domestic incident call. Last I checked, no one has a crystal ball that can predict the volatility of a domestic incident. The department's priorities should be adjusted; this shouldn't have been categorized simply as "taking a report," but remained as a high-priority call of a domestic assault.

Especially when the suspect is a registered sex offender with a criminal record.

Especially when the suspect, 38-year-old Barnes Samuel Nettles (photo) threatened Kimberly's step-mother, Leah Richardson, and Kimberly's sister, in September -- that he'd kill the entire family, according to Leah's story in The Dallas Morning News.

According to Carter's father, Willie Richardson, his daughter called him shortly after the assault, and that she was afraid to leave, as she thought he was still outside. He advised her to wait for the police, and he was on his way. By the time Richardson arrived, three people were dead in the apartment.

It's very sad that the question, "Is he still there?" turned this high-priority call into the "low-priority" response. The nature of the call should determine the response. If the department has the crystal ball on whether a violent man is lying in wait, I wish they'd lend it out.

As Gerald W. Garner, a police veteran and author of several books concerning police safety, pointed out in his 2005 article, "Fatal Errors: Surviving Domestic Violence Calls," on www.policemag.com:

"A domestic violence assignment is never to be handled solo."

Read Garner's sage advice here ~ which should become required reading for the Arlington Police Department:

The scene of a domestic violence crime contains great potential for continuing or additional violence. A new attack could be instigated from virtually any quarter. As you already know, people besides the initial offender could launch it. Or the attacker could re-escalate into more violence even after the police are on-scene. If he sees he’s headed for jail, he may attack to avoid custody. Violence could even erupt on a scene where the attacker has fled before you arrived. The batterer may return unexpectedly to finish the job or attack the meddling cop who dared interfere in his private affairs and mess with his marital “property.”

Information on Officer Smith's wake and funeral can be found here, as well as details concerning donations for her family.

Kimberly Carter's family spoke with NBC-DFW. Information about her funeral arrangements and how to donate for the cost of the funeral can be found at the end of this article.

I hope these women did not die in vain; may the Arlington Police Department review their policies concerning the prioritization of domestic incidents and make some wise decisions.

May Kimberly Deshay Carter and hero Officer Jillian Smith rest in peace. My thoughts and prayers go out to their grieving families, friends, and colleagues.

"Keep A Cop Bored" video

Check out this light-hearted video "Keep a Cop Bored" to encourage drivers to stay home to drink.

Thanks to videographer Frank Vespe, the East Hampton Police Department, and all the parties involved who supported this project. Check out Erin Geismar's story of the video in Newsday. The video stars East Hampton Police Officer Matt Rodriguez, and the voice over is provided by WKJY "KJOY" radio DJ Steve Harper.

Twitter fans: Don't forget, Thursdays are "Thank-a-Cop-Thursday," using the hashtag #tacop.

May everyone have a safe New Year's!

Keeping Kids Safe in Cars

Did you know that on the average, five children a day are killed in car crashes? That's a tragic statistic, and one that could be reduced through the proper use of child safety seats.

Car crashes are the leading cause of death for children, ages 3-14, in the U.S. Statistics show that nearly 80 percent were unrestrained or were in adult seat belts.

Child Passenger Safety is addressed today at NPR.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will hold a forum today and is open to all, and is free to attend ~ no registration required. The forum, "Child Passenger Safety in the Air and Automobile" will take place at NTSB's Board Room and Conference Center, 439 L'Enfant Plaza, S.W., Washington D.C. (On Twitter, follow #NTSB today).

The event will be webcast live.

One of my former partners in the police department is a certified technician who assists motoring parents to ensure the safety seat for their infant or child is positioned properly.

For today's #TACOP (Thank-a-Cop-Thursday), I'd like to thank him and all certified technicians ~ law enforcement officers, health officials, and other concerned parties ~ who spend their time making sure our future citizens are prevented from becoming one of those five unfortunate losses on the roadways.

For a safety seat check in your area, visit http://www.seatcheck.org or call 1-866-SEAT-CHECK.

Here are ten tips to keep a child safe while riding in a vehicle. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also offers information on keeping children safe in vehicles. Don't forget to register your car seat so you can be notified in the event of a recall.

On Twitter: @NHTSAgov, @childseatsafety @NTSB

On Facebook: Child Seat Safety NHTSA

For those on Twitter, don't forget to #TACOP!

"Courage to Serve" Exhibit

An exhibit honoring police officers killed or injured in the line of duty by drunk drivers is on display at the Roosevelt Field mall in Garden City, Long Island, until November 21, 2010 (*update: See the video below of the news conference and display).

According to Newsday, the relatives and supporters of Nassau police officer Kenneth Baribault and Suffolk police officer Glen Ciano gathered at the mall in Nassau County this past Monday to unveil the memorial, which is intended to remind drivers during the holiday season that driving under the influence can ruin many lives -- including those of police officers, such as Baribault and Ciano, whose patrol cars were struck while on duty. The photos below depict the mangled patrol vehicles of Officers Baribault and Ciano (photos via NY Daily News).

The memorial was unveiled less than 12 hours after a DWI arrest of a Brooklyn man who struck and killed an off-duty NYPD officer on the Northern State Parkway.

Suffolk Police Officer Glen Ciano, a 22-year veteran, was struck by a suspected drunk driver and killed on February 22, 2009. Nassau County officer Ken Baribault was severely injured on May 18, 2008, after his patrol unit was struck by an accused drunk driver on the Long Island Expressway during a traffic stop of a suspected drunk driver.

The exhibit was made possible through the efforts of Baribault's sister, Danielle Rella; Nassau County Police Commissioner Lawrence Mulvey, and Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

*****

On Twitter, today is "Thank-a-Cop Thursday." I thank Officers Ciano, Baribault, and all law enforcement officers in New York for their devoted service and sacrifices to make Long Island a safer place to live. As a Suffolk County Police Officer for 21 years, I had the privilege of working with Glen Ciano in the Second Precinct; he is sorely missed by his friends, family, and colleagues.

If you are an active user of Twitter, you can participate in "Thank-a-Cop Thursday" by using the hashtag #tacop. Follow Mike Ellis of Emergency Communications Network, the man behind #tacop, at @EmergCommNetwrk. You can also follow Mothers Against Drunk Driving @MADDOnline.

Facebook Renews Interest in Missing Person Case

The past few days in Newsday, Long Island's daily newspaper, and the New York Daily News, articles have appeared about a 1984 missing person's case, that of Kelly Morrissey -- who was 15 years old when she disappeared. Her story has re-surfaced because of chatter on Facebook; people were reminiscing about their roller skating days at Hot Skates Rink in Lynbrook. In doing so, the topic of the disappearance of Kelly surfaced, since it was from that vicinity of Nassau County she was last seen. In addition, however, people were discussing the case of two women who went missing within months of Kelly's disappearance -- but their bodies were found, raped and strangled. One of the victims was a friend of Kelly's. Those murders have gone unsolved, and police have not made a connection between the three cases.

Kelly's parents, Iris and Paul Olmstead, are thankful for the new interest and would of course appreciate any information about Kelly's whereabouts.

As a former police officer who worked for many years in Crime Stoppers, I know that the police and the missing person's family would be extremely grateful to receive information about the mystery surrounding Kelly Morrissey. If you or someone you know has information about Kelly, please contact the Nassau County Police Crime Stoppers tips line at 1-800-244-TIPS.

For a photo of Kelly (above) and this age-progressed photo, visit Help Find the Missing.

*****

The Criminal Justice Degrees Guide has prepared a list of the Top Ten Unsolved Missing Person Cases.

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children maintains an extensive web site with information concerning missing children.

Thank-a-Cop-Thursday: US Marshals Locate Sex Offender

Today is "Thank-a-Cop-Thursday" on Twitter. The hashtag is #tacop. For the origin of #tacop, read here.

I'd like to thank the U.S. Marshals for locating a sex offender wanted by the Southampton Town Police, who was living in a storage facility in Islandia, New York. He had failed to register a new address since May. Read the Newsday coverage here. The sex offender had a bed, space heater, DVD player and television, and was drawing electricity from the storage facility.

If you're active on Twitter, don't forget to thank your favorite cops!

War Story Wednesday - A Good Night's Sleep

I'm on my way to San Francisco to attend Bouchercon 2010 ~ my very first one.

Today is Wednesday, which means another war story coming your way. As always, if you have one to share, feel free to write it in the comments below or provide a link to your blog.

This is a sad one.

I can't remember if this was the end of a midnight tour or the beginning of an 8x4 tour. One of my coworkers got a call of a baby not breathing. The reason the baby wasn't breathing was because the parents, in a desperate attempt to get a good night's sleep, taped a pacifier to the baby's mouth. You can guess what happened; the baby choked on its own vomit.

Despite CPR attempts by officers, racing lights & siren to the hospital, with officers blocking major intersections to get the PD to the hospital even quicker, the poor baby died.

The distraught and grieving parents were not charged in the tragedy.

National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day

Did you know that prescription drug abuse in the U.S. is on the rise, and that accidental poisonings and overdoses are due to drugs languishing in home medicine cabinets? The majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, and from the home medicine cabinet. Many Americans do not know how to safely dispose of them. Throwing them out or flushing them down a toilet can create potential safety and health hazards.

Saturday, September 25, 2010 is National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day. You can turn in your unused, unneeded, or expired medication for safe disposal, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. at various locations. The service is free and anonymous; no questions asked.

For a collection site near you, enter your zip code on this page. More than 3,400 sites, mainly fire, police, and medical facilities, have been designated as drop-off points for this program.

Cyber Creeps

Via: The Steel Method

I think this is a great poster. I wish it could be posted in every school.

For more information on Internet Crimes Against Children, check here.

The Location Craze - a Burglar's Dream

Be careful when disclosing your location on social media sites ~ it may be nice to discuss where you are ~ but it tells burglars where you're not: at home.

PleaseRobMe.com was developed for this reason, to point out the danger of publicly broadcasting your movements. They launched their site in February 2010, but have since taken it down, saying their point had been made. Their web page has several blog posts listed which discuss this issue of "over-sharing."

Posting photos can give away your location, too.

ICanStalkU.com is another site meant to raise awareness about inadvertent information sharing.

You may not realize it, but if you are posting photos taken from a smart phone, you may be giving away your location due to geotagging. If you'd like to know more about geotagging, and how to disable it on your smart phone, check out these directions.

ICanStalkU.com makes its point by asking, "What are people really saying in their tweets?" and posting the location where the tweeter's smart phone took the photo and even providing a map -- information they were able to glean from the smart phone photo. If they can do it, so can the bad guys.

Ever since the launch of Foursquare and its subsequent popularity, Facebook and Twitter begain letting people include a location as part of their tweets.

Read the post on Mashable about the popularity of Foursquare, a location-based social network.

This reminds me of how some burglars have chosen their victims the old-fashioned way -- by reading the obituaries and the wedding announcements in the newspaper.

Man Charged in Cop Death Sentenced for DWI

A 24-year-old Plainview man, Jose Borbon, who has been accused of driving drunk and crashing into Suffolk County Police Officer Glen Ciano on February 22, 2009, and killing him, was sentenced to a year in jail for an unrelated DWI and weapons possession after pleading guilty.

On January 4, 2009, Nassau County police arrested Borbon for DWI and for possessing a gravity knife. He was released on bail and issued a conditional driver's license. Six weeks later, while driving drunk (over twice the legal limit, 0.19 percent blood alcohol level) and talking on a cell phone, he crashed into Officer Ciano. Glen died after his vehicle struck a pole and burst into flames.

Dozens of Suffolk County Police officers and supporters of the Ciano family were in attendance at Borbon's sentencing.

Borbon is due back in court for the Ciano case on September 20, 2010.

The Suffolk County PBA has posted a You Tube video about the Borbon sentencing and the loss of Officer Ciano.

I had the privilege of working with Officer Glen Ciano when I was assigned to the Second Precinct. He is greatly missed. Glen, age 45, was a 22 year veteran of the department. He is survived by his wife and two children. An "In Memory of Glen Ciano" page appears on Facebook.

Photos from the Suffolk County Police Department.

Walmart Trampling Case

The New York Times recently reported that WalMart has spent millions to avoid paying a $7,000 fine in the tragic trampling death of one its employees on "Black Friday," the day after Thanksgiving in 2008, on Long Island.

It has also been widely reported that the frenzied crowd, estimated at 2,000, was anxious to shop for their bargains.

I have a different view on what might have happened that day.

A year earlier, my sister and I set our alarm clocks very early on Thanksgiving day so that we could wait on line at a K-Mart on Long Island to try to buy certain items (my treasure hunt was for a Nintendo Wii, my sister wanted to buy a GPS unit on sale). We knew that we had a slim chance of even getting the items, but while we were there, we'd do other shopping anyway.

By the time we arrived, about an hour before the store opening, there was already a line of about 200 people lining the sidewalk of the strip mall, leading from doors on the northern side of the store front. The crowd was fairly quiet, and the bagel store was doing good business that morning.

When the time came to open all of the store doors, the crowd was calmly moving forward.

Then I saw it happen.

People emerged from their cars in the parking lot, just several feet from K-Mart, and walked right in the front doors (which faced east). The crowd began pushing and yelling. "Don't let them in!" "They're cutting!" It was quite terrifying, and it's amazing that no one was hurt.

That's where the problem existed; there was no one in the store or security to make sure that only one entrance remained open until the line disappeared. They simply unlocked all the doors, and it was every man (or woman) for himself. It made no difference if you waited in line for hours, or you just pulled up to the parking lot and walked in the east or south entrance.

I knew that morning that I would never attend a "Black Friday" early store opening ever again. I will shop during regular store operating hours or online.

My heart breaks for the family of Jdimytai Damour, and the tremendous loss they have suffered.

When Moments Count

While at Long Island's MacArthur Airport in Islip, New York, moments before boarding began on a Southwest flight, an elderly female passenger in a wheelchair lost consciousness. Her head slumped back. A man noticed and began shouting at her "Ma'am, what's your name?" to see if she would wake up. His repeated questions went unanswered. He wasted no time and others came to his aid. They lifted her up out of her wheelchair and placed her on the ground and checked for breathing and a pulse. The man began CPR. The airport personnel called for help, someone obtained a defibrillator, an off-duty nurse ran over to the woman, someone asked the people who were waiting to board to move back. An airport worker obtained a privacy screen. I was impressed by the group effort of total strangers and the professionalism of the airport personnel in an emergency situation.

My daughter and I realized we had just seen the woman in the ladies' room just moments earlier; she was pushing her wheelchair, walking slowly towards the gate. She seemed okay at the time. We learned she was traveling alone. They were checking her purse for ID and information on next of kin.

The boarding was delayed by about twenty minutes. Before we boarded, we could see that she was breathing, so hopefully she continued to improve.

When we found our seats on the plane, my kids and I held hands and said a prayer for the lady. We hope she is okay.

It was a harrowing start to our trip, but it reminds me how every moment counts in a situation like this, and how important it is to have identification and information on next of kin in your purse or wallet if you are traveling alone. Paramedics will usually check cell phones for an "ICE" listing (In Case of Emergency). Think about adding an ICE listing on your cell phone and the cell phones of your loved ones, especially children and teens who carry cell phones.

I found a great site that gives CPR instructions and includes mobile training apps for the iPhone and Android phones. The American Heart Association also offers Pocket First Aid and CPR Guide for the iPhone. They also offer information on where to find local CPR classes in your area by entering your zip code.