On Duty

After the morning managers meeting at City Hall yesterday I walked to my work car that was parked on 4th Avenue West and noticed a new large crease up the side door.  The damage was very fresh and probably will total over $2,000.   I take good care of my assigned car and watch it closely.  There wasn't a note left on the car and no one was around waiting to tell me they are the culprits.  I kicked into cop mode and began investigating.  It appeared a vehicle was backing from the loading docks at City Hall and backed across 4th Avenue West into my car. 

I began asking City Hall maintenance staff if they had seen any vehicles leave the loading area recently.  They hadn't.  There is a camera at the old police desk that covers the entry door off of the Avenue.  I had I.T. pull the video for me to watch.  I checked with contractors working in City Hall.  Other than a UPS and coffee delivery there was a local supply company that had been there.  And then the golden key of information.  Our parking desk had a good thinking St. Louis County employee stop and gives his card saying he had witnessed the accident, but the witness only saw that it was a white delivery van.  The witness didn’t catch the plate or name of the company on the truck.  He described the truck and explained the driver stopped after he hit my car, parked and walked into the 4th Avenue doors.  The witness thought he came back inside reported the accident.  So I would have him on video! 

On a chance I called the delivery company's office and asked for the name and number of the person doing the deliveries to City Hall.   They provided me his name and cell number.  I called him and identified myself and asked what happened on the avenue.  He immediately confessed and said he was in a hurry and was going to return to the woman's car he hit later.  Keep in mind this was more than an hour after he hit my car. 

I don't believe he was going to return......My sincere gratitude goes to a witness who cared enough to stop in and provide valuable information to help me solve the hit and run.

 Use of Force

After the hit and run investigation I drove down to Michigan Street and at 1st Avenue West where I saw a drug deal go down.  In full uniform, I jumped out of my car and three of the miscreants quickly left and I dealt with the guy with the pipe and drugs.  He was obviously high and did not want to give me his pipe or drugs he was holding.  He began backing away from me and as I grabbed on to him he took a swipe at me that I was able to avoid.  I pulled out my pepper spray and ordered him to stop pulling away at which time he took another swipe at me.  I gave him a quick shot of pepper spray to his eyes and I was able to get him under control and cuff him up.  He had a fair amount of drugs on him and they were obviously affecting his ability to make good decisions. 

As I was writing out a ticket for him I realized he and I were born a few days apart.  It was obvious to me his lifestyle had taken a toll on his appearance.  I would have put him at about 8 years older than he was.  He was transported home and released with his ticket to appear in court.

This incident was a good reminder for me of how quickly situations can escalate and the need for the use of force in some situations.  Even though I was well within our policies and procedures, I realized what our officers are likely feeling because of our recent excessive force case.  As I was struggling with this guy I remember thinking, “I wonder what the people around me are thinking I am doing?"   Keeping our community safe is tough and complicated job.   I have tremendous respect for the job our police officers have. 

Back from Vacation

I was gone on vacation for the last two weeks.  It was the first time I have been gone that long since 2004 and the first time I was disconnected from a Blackberry since 2006.  Going from being on call and connected 24/7 for six years to floating around in a boat in the middle of no where with out phone, email and Internet took a few days of adjustment.  Needless to say with all that transpired while I was gone my time has been consumed with work since returning Friday.
My vacation is a very distant memory.

Austin, Texas Police Chief "Move the Shelters out of Downtown."

Problems and increased crime in downtown Austin have caused the police chief to suggest homeless shelters be moved out of downtown.  Here is the story:   http://www.kxan.com/dpp/news/local/austin/chief-wants-austin-shelters-moved

What are your thoughts?

Award

We recently learned we have been awarded the 2012 Community Policing Award from the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP). This award is given out annually and recognizes outstanding community policing initiatives by law enforcement agencies worldwide. 

Prosecution of sexual assault cases involving Native American women victims has a historically low prosecution rate. With that in mind, “Mending the Sacred Hoop” and the Program for Aid to Victims of Sexual partnered with the Duluth Police Department and began a Safety and Accountability Audit; a collaborative process of examining the system's response to reported rapes of Native women.

 The Safely Audit identified the gaps between the experiences and needs of Native women who reported a sexual assault to the police and what the institution of law enforcement is organized to offer them as a result. This project was to be "victim centered" identifying whether a woman's safety is compromised or ways in which the offender can escape accountability. The gaps uncovered in the Safety Audit would forever change the Duluth Police and community based agencies' response to sexual assault. Because of the Audit, the ground work has been established to move forward as a department committed to "victim centered" responses, transparency with partner agencies, and honest and heartfelt critical evaluation of our responses to victims of sexual assault. Another outcome of the Audit is a sexual assault advocate is now embedded in the Sex Crimes Unit to ensure we are doing all we can to have a successful outcome in sexual assault investigations.

This ground breaking work has caught the attention of police departments throughout the country who want to improve their response to victims of sexual assault. Duluth Police Deputy Chief Mike Tusken will travel to San Diego where he will accept the award during the 119^th Annual IACP Conference on October 1^st. The trip is being paid for by the IACP.

Here is the IACP link for more information on this award:

http://theiacpblog.org/2012/08/31/2012-community-policing-award-winners-finalists-announced/

Elementary Thought

I attended a mandatory parent meeting for my daughter's new kindergarten class last night.  After covering all of the basics they talked about a major character building focus for the year; being kind.  This seems to be a character trait that is of the utmost of importance, but seems to have been forgotten in today's world.  I left the school feeling good about the education my daughter will be receiving.

From Wikipedia
Kindness is the act or the state of being kind, being marked by good and charitable behavior, pleasant disposition, and concern for others. It is known as a virtue, and recognized as a value in many cultures and religions (see ethics in religion).

Commendation

Once or twice a month I sign off on commendations for staff.  These are often cases no one ever hears about.  After watching the video of this one, I was pretty impressed by the Clean and Safe Team member and our officers.  Because you could potentially identify the person who was trying to jump, we are prohibited from releasing it.  This is an example of the work our folks do everyday.....

Here is the shift commander's write up of the incident:

Squads responded to the Fon-du-Duluth Casino parking ramp on the report of a female attempting to jump off the top floor of the structure. Comments of the call stated a Clean and Safe Team member was currently holding on to the suicidal female to prevent her from jumping. Officers Neitzel and Hopps arrived quickly on the scene and assisted Pfuhl. The officers and Pfuhl grabbed the distressed female by the arms and legs and pulled her back over the ledge of the building to safety of the parking ramp.  The quick thinking and cooperation of these three individuals most certainly prevented a tragedy and saved the ladies’ life. The dramatic rescue was caught on videotape by a nearby witness.

Auto Theft Investigator and Stats

A resolution is heading to City Council next week to accept money from the State Department of Commerce for continued auto theft investigator funding.  We have received this funding for at least 8 years and it has helped us reduced auto thefts in our City.  Last year there were attempts by some legislators to take money from this dedicated fund to help reduce the State's deficit.  The concern many of us had with the raiding of this funding is that it comes from a dedicated surcharge on insurance premiums-strictly intended to cover auto theft investigation and prosecution.  Fortunately due to a united effort among law enforcement agencies and county prosecutors we were able to keep the surcharge going toward what it was meant for.  Here is a historical, year by year chart of our auto theft statistics going back to 1960.  The numbers may surprise you.