V4 Issue 1 - Etowah County Sheriff`s Office

ECSO
Roll Call
V O L U M E
SPECIAL
POINTS OF
Wellness
You may have heard the name,
“Etowah Sheriff’s Charities”, but
what is it, what do they do and
how can you be involved?
Screening is
Mandatory

Employees’
photos on the
website will be
updated in Sept.

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1
A U G U S T
Holiday Meat
sale to benefit
Etowah Sheriff’s
Charities will
take place in
Nov. & Dec.
Place orders
now!
positive difference in our
Community.
The charity is designed for
Etowah Sheriff’s Charities was
officially formed in August of
2012 and is a non-profit, 501(c)3
organization.
members serve four year terms
and are eligible for re-election.
The current members are
Bradley Saylor, Brandi Fuller, Josh
Morgan, Keba Ecxford and
Natalie Barton.
Sheriff Entrekin, Chief
Jones and Chief Barton
help to buy bicycles!
operation by Sheriff’s Office
employees and overseen by a
board of directors. Five board
Children are nominated each
year for the program through
their local elementary school.
Applications are sent to each
school counselor, who is able to
help us identify those with the
greatest need. Each child receives
new clothing, shoes, personal
items and toys from their wish
list.
Continued on page 3
Open
Enrollment
2
3 Things to Make
3
Sheriff’s Star
4
by Sheriff Todd Entrekin
You a Success
Photos & Portal
Heart
Trouble
5
YMCA
6
Membership
Financial
House
6
Mocs on the
7
Rocks Trail Run
2 0 1 4
The current and primary goal of
the charity is to continue funding
Operation Christmas Cheer. To
date, more than 50 children have
received Christmas through the
program.
Although the idea for the charity
had been discussed for some
time, its ultimate formation was
completed as a result of the
efforts of many employees in
providing Christmas for children
in Etowah County.
Etowah Sheriff’s Charities is
organized exclusively for
charitable and educational
purposes, more specifically to
strengthen, support and enhance
citizens and organizations in
Etowah County by making a
INSIDE THIS
ISSUE:
Employees’
2 9 ,
Etowah Sheriff’s Charities
INTEREST:

4 ,
A lot has been going on in and
around the Sheriff’s Office. And
as you will see in this issue of
Roll Call, there’s a lot ahead of
us this year.
The Sheriff’s Charities will be
doing a lot trying to raise money
so, we all need to help. This
helps so many families with
Christmas. But, it takes money.
We need all to help! We don’t
need to leave it just to the Board
of Directors to raise the money
and do the work, the charity
belongs to everyone. So please
pitch in and help.
Our big fundraisers are coming
up soon, the holiday meat sale
and Mocs on the Rocks Trail
Run. There is a lot to do please
help out where you can, you may
be asked to volunteer, Any and
every contribution is important.
The election for the Office of
Sheriff is just about over for the
next four years. I would like to
thank each and everyone of you
for your support and all you have
done for me over the past four
years.
I have said every election that I
would not be elected without
great employees like you that
work at the Sheriff’s Office. So,
from me and my family, “THANK
YOU!”
Now let’s talk about some other
things going on around our country and with Law Enforcement.
Continued on page 3
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Wellness Screening
2
A MANDATORY wellness
screening will be held for all
employees September 10
and 11.
The screening will be
offered during the following
times:
September 10 - 5:00
p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
September 11 - 9:30
a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and
5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
If you are unable to attend
one of the scheduled
screenings please see your
doctor and have the
appropriate paperwork
filled out to turn into
personnel.
If you do not get screened
at all, you will pay $20.00 a
month more for your health
insurance beginning
January 1, 2015.
The Insurance Board Health
Screening Form can be
found on the employee
portal of the Sheriff’s Office
website.
Wellness Screenings can
also be completed at the
following pharmacies with
an appointment:
To view your previous
health screenings and
insurance information visit
the Alabama State
Employees’ Insurance Board
website at www.alseib.org.
Login or register for an
account to view your state
insurance information along
with a history of wellness
screening.
Walgreens,
107 East Meighan Blvd.,
256-547-4719
Gadsden City Pharmacy,
911 Rainbow Drive,
256-547-4479
Open Enrollment
Open Enrollment for health
insurance and additional
plans will take place in
October.
It is a mandatory meeting
that everyone must attend
and is tentatively scheduled
for the week of October 6.
During this time you will be
able to enroll for health and
dental insurance and flex
benefits.
To review your current
insurance plan visit the
Alabama State Employees’
Insurance Board LGHIP
information page at
www.alseib.org.
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You can login or register
for an account with your
specific information.
at
www.mywealthcareonline.c
om/murfeemeadows/.
Additional information
about your current
insurance plan can be found
on Blue Cross Blue Shield’s
website at www.bcbsal.org.
This website allows you to
keep track with your
expenses and the card
balance.
By visiting the website
above you can view your
policies and claim
statements made on your
behalf.
A decision about your flex
card will also be made
during the Open
Enrollment period.
Murfee Meadows, Inc. is
responsible for this benefit
Additional organizations/
companies will also be on
hand if you would like to
sign-up for additional life
insurance, gym membership, nutritional health
supplements, etc.
Please make sure to bring
all proper documentation
such as birth certificates,
social security cards, etc.
to Open Enrollment.
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Etowah Sheriff’s Charities cont.
If you know of a family in need or
would like to help shop for the
children please, contact Natalie
Barton at
[email protected] by
November 1.
Fundraising for the charity is a yearround endeavor!
Bed-n-Breakfast t-shirts have been
a big hit. Short sleeve shirts are
limited to
adult sizes
small and
medium.
However, all
sizes are currently available in long
sleeve shirts.
Children’s sizes in both short and
long sleeves are still available.
The largest fundraiser for the
charity is the Mocs on the Rocks
5K/10K Trail Run at Noccalula Falls
Park. The event will be held on
Saturday, November 15.
Volunteers will be needed for the
trail run...or if you
would like,
participate by
walking or running in
the event!
Additional
information can be
found on page 8.
With the holidays
quickly approaching, the charity is
seeking to help you with
Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner!
Boston butts, hams and turkeys will
be on sale beginning September 2.
All orders must be paid for in
advance.
Boston Butt - $25, Turkey - $30,
Ham - $35
Please help us spread the word
about the sale. Everyone is
encouraged to help sell meat.
Money and orders can be given to
any charity board member.
Additional information about the
holiday meat sale can be found on
page 8.
What worries me is that each one
of you could be put into the very
same situation today or tonight and
I don’t want you to hesitate to do
your job. The most important thing
is that each one of you go home
safe at the end of your ??? The truly
sad part about all of this is that I’ve
been in law enforcement for over
32 years and now you have to
worry even more that whatever
you do will be looked at by the
Department of Justice and who
ever else, but no one wants to pay
that each one of
you could be put
into the very same
situation today or
tonight and I don’t
want you to
Sheriff’s Star cont.
It is a sad day when anyone looses
their life, but its also a sad day
when our country responds the
way they have in Ferguson, MO. I’m
not going to make judgment on
what happened until we see all the
reports. But, I will say that a lot of
people have jumped to judgment
included the government and the
President of the U.S.
“What worries me is
hesitate to do your
job.”
you for the job you do and that’s
what's happening. I could say a lot
more, but I will stop about this
subject now because I will write
something that I should not.
- Sheriff Entrekin
So, moving on...just to give you all a
heads up, we will be fighting our
legislators again in 2015 as they tell
us that they are not happy with the
pistol permit law as it is.
Continued on page 11
3 Things To Make You A Success
POLICE
The Law Enforcement Magazine
As a longtime law enforcement
officer (LEO) starting my 27th year,
I have had plenty of time to reflect
on what it takes to be successful. I
have realized that being a LEO is a
lot simpler than I imagined; but
simple didn’t make it easy. I have
found there are three essential
characteristics that are common to
all outstanding LEOs: having curiosity, maintaining a sense of urgency,
and having a thirst for knowledge.
It’s easy to remember the three if
you use the acronym CUT.
CURIOSITY
Curiosity is one of those essential
characteristics for any LEO assignment. Curiosity means wondering
about how things happen and why.
It means questioning what you see,
hear, and more importantly what
people do.
For example, why is the suspect
adamant about his side of the story
and yet he can’t look you in the eye
while telling it? Maybe it means
something or maybe it doesn’t, but
you’ll never know for sure until you
find out. Curiosity is the art of
finding potential red flags and seeing
if they lead anywhere.
Continued on page 4
“Be a better
officer by
maintaining
curiosity, urgency,
and a thirst for
knowledge.”
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3 Things to Make You a Success cont.
If you are not curious you will miss
clues, hints, and suspicious coincidences.
Curiosity crosses over all levels of
investigations. Think about the way
a small child looks at the world.
Toddlers are seeing things for the
first time and trying to understand
not only what they are seeing buy
why. This is a useful way for officers to view the world. Ralph
Waldo Emerson said, “Curiosity is
lying in wait for every secret.”
That’s what we do...we unlock
answers so we can bring secrets
out into the open. Only an innate
curiosity will bring important questions to the forefront. If they are
never asked there will never be
answers.
I remember early in my career my
zone partner helped solve a murder
simply by being curious. It was late
at night and as we were leaving a
check on the well-being of a citizen,
he spotted a suspicious drop of
something on the driveway that
reflected off his flashlight. Someone
else might have just ignored it. It
could have been a drop of oil or
anything car-related and nothing
more. However, upon closer examination it looked like a drop of
dried blood.
That one clue led us to ask more
questions, to conduct an area canvass of the neighborhood, and then
to have our detectives come out to
the scene based on new information we developed. They ended up
solving the case a few hours later
complete with a murder confession.
If you have no sense of curiosity
then you really have no business
being in law enforcement. You
should always be asking why and
sometimes even why not. In order
to be curious you have to stop,
look, and listen. We are too quick
to throw out possibilities based on
our own bias. Just because you
don’t think it happened a certain
way doesn’t mean it didn’t. The
fictional character Sherlock Holmes
said it best:: “Once you eliminate
the impossible, whatever remains,
no matter how improbable, must
be the truth.”
URGENCY
One of the difference between
great officers and mediocre officers
is their sense of urgency. Urgency
means making every call important
no matter how small or large the
crime. By that I mean do what you
can do in a timely manner. I often
use the example of an 8-year-old
boy who gets his bike stolen. It may
not be tat big of deal to the officer
but it sure is to the boy. Your job is
to investigate the incident and try
to help him,
LEOs who seem indifferent to the
calls they handle have lost their
sense of urgency. These officers are
typically the ones who don’t turn in
their paperwork on time. You find
them saying things like, “What’s the
big deal? It’s just paperwork and the
case will be dropped anyway.” They
tend to establish their own hierarchy of effort. They establish their
own work ethic of “the less I have
to do the better.” We know them
very well; these are the ones who
spend more time trying to get out
Continued on page 10
ECSO Employees’ Photos & Portal
Employees’ photos located on the
Sheriff’s Office website will be updated beginning September 16.
appropriate, professional in
appearance and according to office
policy.
This update is necessary to include
new employees, uniforms and a
new background. Everyone must
have a new photo taken!
*If you wear a bullet-proof vest,
please wear it under your uniform
the day of your photo.
The following rules apply:
*Everyone must be in their own
uniform, no one will be allowed to
borrow a shirt.
*All shirts must be tucked in.
*If you wear an undershirt, it must
be white.
*All hair and makeup must be
*Enforcement deputies: photos will
be taken in long-sleeve, Class A,
uniforms.
*Investigators: photos will be taken in
suits.
Detention Deputies: September 16,
17 & 18, 3:00 - 5:30 p.m.
Clerks: September 18, 10:00 a.m.
Command: September 18, 10:30 a.m.
Investigators: September 18, 9:00 a.m.
Chaplains: October 1, 4:00 p.m.
Reserve Unit: October 2, 6:00 p.m.
Mounted Unit: October 7, 6:30 p.m.
Enforcement Deputies: TBA
*******
Please keep up-to-date on employee
information and Sheriff’s Office happenings by visiting the employee portal
regularly.
The link to the portal can be found at
the bottom of
www.etowahcountysheriff.com. A new
password will be emailed to all county
email accounts September 15.
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Heart Trouble
5
POLICE
The Law Enforcement Magazine
Two months ago Officer Marc
Uland Kelley of the Trinity
University Police Department
responded to a fire alarm in
one of the San Antonio
school’s residence halls. He
died later that week in a hospital.
“The good news
is officers are
probably not any
Kelley wasn’t shot. He wasn’t
stabbed. And there was no fire
so he didn’t suffer burns or
smoke inhalation. At 41, he
died of a heart attack.
more likely to
have a heart attack than other
Americans. The
The question medical researchers and officer fitness experts
are asking is if Kelley’s choice
of profession played a role in
his premature death. So far the
answer is maybe.
bad news is you
are just as likely
to have a heart
attack as others
HARD NUMBERS
Americans.”
You don’t have to look far to
find anecdotal evidence that
law enforcement officers seem
to be prone to cardio-vascular
disease (CVD). Last year alone
10 officers died on duty from
heart attacks, accounting for
roughly 15% of all nonfelonious line-of-duty deaths.
And that led to a number of
media reports about the threat
of CVD among law enforcement officers.
But just because 10 officers
died last year from heart disease does not mean that cops
are any more prone to CVD
than any other group of
Americans. Americans in general are not as heart healthy as
they could be. Centers for
Disease Control statistics
show that 800,000 Americans
died from CVD in 2010 and of
that number more than 25%
could have been prevented.
Even more alarming is the fact
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that 56% of the preventable
heart disease deaths in that
year involved people too
young to receive senior citizen
discounts at the movie theater.
Heart disease is rampant in
America and that makes it
difficult to draw conclusions
about the frequency of CVD
among law enforcement officers. Till, some doctors think
there could be a higher rate of
heart attacks among both male
and female officers than other
Americans of the same age, but
there is no definitive evidence
that this is true.
THIS JOB KILLS
What is certainly true, however, is that the lifestyle of
many working law enforcement officers amounts to a
recipe for heart disease,
whether the condition manifests while they are still on the
job or long after they have
retired. Smoking (exposure to
second-hand smoke), poor
diet, lack of exercise, too little
sleep, lengthy hours of sitting,
and stress are known factors in
the development of heart disease and other chronic and
potentially deadly health conditions. And many law enforcement officers are committing
these sins against their bodies
either voluntarily or as just
part of the job.
Many new officers leave the
academy so fit they can run for
miles over hills and take on the
world in hand-to-hand combat.
Then the job and the life start
to chip away at that fitness.
If cops in real life did what they
do on TV shows and in movies
-constantly running after criminals-then the job would be
much more active. But as any-
one who has worked in a patrol car know, the job is much
more sedentary than the public
thinks. “Sitting for eight hours
a day absolutely increases your
risk of heart disease and diabetes,” says Dr. Sarah Gamble,
who volunteers as a physician
for the Greenwich (Conn.)
Police Department.
“unfortunately, officers on
patrol don’t have stand-up cars
so it’s an occupation hazard.”
Gamble recommends that
officers visit www.juststand.org
to learn more about the hazards of sitting and strategies
for being less sedentary.
Sitting all day is bad for everyone, not just officers. And it’s
made worse when people
don’t exercise at all. But unlike
it was in the Academy, exercise is not part of the daily
duties of officers. Which
means they have to make time
for it, and that’s difficult, The
demands on the time of officers can be overwhelming.
They often commute long
distances to work in cities
where they can’t afford to live,
then upon arrive they start a
10-hour shift, and after that
they pick up departmentsanctioned overtime providing
security. That doesn’t leave
much time for sleep, much less
exercise.
Lack of sleep is another major
concern for law enforcement
officers. Shift work murders
sleep, according to many studies and according to the experiences of anyone who has
had the displeasure of working
the third watch. It’s bad
enough when officers are single
and trying to sleep in the day
when the rest of the world
Continued on page 9
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YMCA of the Coosa Valley Membership

Group Fitness Classes

Year-Round Swimming

Basketball Court
$35 per month for FAMILY 2 adults, 4 dependents, no contract

Steam Room

Sauna
$25 per month for INDIVIDUAL no contract

Discounts for youth programs:
swim lessons, soccer &
gymnastics
FULL ACCESS TO ALL FITNESS
CLASSES & AMENITIES

Personal Training packages
Etowah County Sheriff’s Office
Group Rate
No Sign-Up Fee
Contact: LeRoy Falcon
or Heidi Darbo at 256547-4947
YMCA of the Coosa
Valley
100 Walnut Street
Gadsden, AL 35901
The Y is SO MUCH MORE
available
Getting Your Financial House in Order
www. Regions.com
Don’t wait until the start of a
news year to take stock of your
financial goals and objectives.
There’s no time like the present:
Explore how your savings and investments can help you get where
you want to be in the future, today.
Getting Organized
Gather all your financial records,
organize them, and consider the
following: What is your gross
monthly income? What are your
monthly expenses? What are your
goals and objectives in regard to
your savings? Once you have established this, you’ll know more about
what you’re able to accomplish
financially. For many, this is the
point where a financial advisor*
enters the picture to help ensure
you make the most of your savings
and investments as you start saving
money.
Financial Planning
If you don’t know where to start or if you want to know how to
make your savings work harder - a
financial advisor is an integral part
of the process.
Some financial advisors analyze
their client’s situation and create a
savings plan. Others make product
recommendations and select the
stocks and other investment vehicles best suited to the client’s
needs. Still others provide both
services.
Regardless, any financial planning
will begin with an analysis of your
financial concerns, and your short–
and long-term goals. After making
your savings plan, sit down with a
financial advisor, who can help you
build your portfolio and determine
the allocation of savings between
stocks, cash and other funds.
Rules Of Thumb
Whether in a laddered CD portfolio or money-market fund, during
your working years you also need
three to six months of living expenses in liquid assets for emergencies. Be sure to take advantage of
your employer’s 401(k) match.
Just a few years ago, the personal
savings rate made up less than two
percent of American’s disposable
income. In the current economic
climate, it’s now closer to six percent. Conventional wisdom says to
save 10 percent of your income.
Depending on your investment
goals, that percentage may vary.
Save For The Future
Now you’re ready to start plowing
any additional savings into a regular
investment plan. With your financial
advisor, look at all your investments
in one big pie, including savings,
cash, stocks and IRAs. Then divide
the pie into three categories:
stocks, bonds and cash.
How your financial advisor allocates
those three categories will depend
on your goals, your time horizon
(Are you retiring in 10 or 30 years?
Are you saving to buy a lake house
in five or 10 years?), and your tolerance for risk. Based on your answers, your advisor will find the
right combination to build out your
investment portfolio.
Reviewing And Monitoring
At regular intervals, you and your
financial advisor should review your
goals, considering any life or market
changes that might require adjustments to your portfolio or justify a
new analysis. As you measure the
progress of your savings and investments, you’ll look forward to another new year secure in the
knowledge that your money is performing to its best ability.
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Holiday Meat Sale
Etowah Sheriff’s Charities
will be selling Boston butts,
hams and turkeys for
Thanksgiving and
Christmas.
All proceeds will benefit
Operation Christmas
Cheer. Last year, more
than 20 children in Etowah
County received
Christmas because of the
program.
Your choice of meat will be
smoked and ready for pick-up
on Wednesday, November 26
and on Tuesday, December 23.
Orders must be placed and
paid for in advance by
Thursday, November 20 and
Thursday, December 18.
To order or for more information contact:
Natalie Barton,
[email protected]
Josh Morgan,
[email protected]
12/14 lb. Ham - $35
12 lb. Turkey - $30
6/8 lb. Boston Butt - $25
Keba Ecxford,
[email protected]
Bradley Saylor,
[email protected]
Brandi Fuller,
[email protected]
Mocs on the Rocks Trail Run
Etowah Sheriff’s Charities
and the YMCA of the
Coosa Valley will host the
3rd Annual Mocs on the
Rocks Trail Run on
November 15 at 9:00 a.m.
The scenic course winds
through the Noccalula
Falls Park property and
along the Black Creek Trail for
a 10K, 5K and 1 mile fun run.
All proceeds from this event
will support the Sheriff’s
Charities Operation Christmas
Cheer and the Y’s scholarship
program for children, families
and seniors.
The event is on the Gadsden
Runners Club Grand Prix
series.
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More than 300 runners
participated in the trail run last
year and enjoyed chip timing
and custom bibs, along with
food and live music.
This year’s event is set to be
larger with the addition of a
children’s area.
Last year, the Sheriff’s
Charities provided Christmas
for more than 20 children in
Etowah County with the
proceeds from this event.
Your help is needed selling
sponsorships and volunteering on race day or you can be
a participant in the trail run!
All volunteers receive a free
long sleeve t-shirt.
Please contact Natalie Barton
at [email protected]
if you are available to assist
with this event!
Registration: www.active.com
or visit
www.etowahcountysheriff.com
for a registration form.
Sheriff’s Office employees who
participate in the run will
receive a discount.
5K: $15
10K: $25
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Save the Date

September 1 - Gun Permit Office Closed, Labor Day Holiday

September 2 - Mounted Unit Meeting, 6:30 p.m.

September 3 - Chaplain Team Meeting, 4:00 p.m.

September 4 - Reserve Unit Meeting, 6:00 p.m.

September 8-11 - Firearms Training

September 10 - Wellness Screening

September 11 - Wellness Screening

September 12 - Ropes Course Familiarization Class

September 19 - ECSO Warrant Round-Up

September 22-26 - Leadership Development Course

September 27 - National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day, 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

October 1 - Chaplain Team Meeting, 4:00 p.m.

October 2 - Reserve Unit Meeting, 6:00 p.m.

October 6 (week of) - Open Enrollment

October 7 - Mounted Unit Meeting, 6:30 p.m.

October 20-23 - Red Ribbon Drug Awareness Week

October 28 - Citizens’ Firearms Safety Course, 6:00 p.m.

November 1 - Range Day, Owls Hollow Shooting Range, 8:00 a.m.

November 4 - General Election Day

November 4 - Mounted Unit Meeting, 6:30 p.m.

November 5 - Chaplain Team Meeting, 4:00 p.m.

November 6 - Veteran’s Day Parade

November 6 - Reserve Unit Meeting, 6:00 p.m.

November 11 - Gun Permit Office Closed, Veteran’s Day

November 15 - Mocs on the Rocks Trail Run, Noccalula Falls Park, 9:00 a.m.

November 27-28 - Gun Permit Office Closed, Thanksgiving

December 1-4 - Low Light Visibility Class

December 2 - Mounted Unit Meeting, 6:30 p.m.

December 3 - Chaplain Team Meeting, 4:00 p.m.

December 4 - Reserve Unit Meeting, 6:00 p.m.

December 5 - Altoona Christmas Parade

December 6 - Hokes Bluff Christmas Parade

December 8 - Gadsden Christmas Parade

December 13 - Sardis City Christmas Parade

December 24-26 - Gun Permit Office Closed, Christmas

January 1, 2015 - Gun Permit Office Closed, New Year Day
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Heart Trouble cont.
doesn’t. It’s even more difficult
when you are married with
kids. Which can really make
home life stressful.
“They (medical
experts) argue
that Americans,
with all of the
advantages,
should be
among the
healthiest
people in the
world. But
instead we are
literally killing
ourselves with
our stressful,
sedentary
lifestyles.”
And cops don’t need any more
stress. In any list of most
stressful occupations, police
officer is usually near the top.
The stress officers experience
on the job is both readily apparent to them and insidious.
An officer involved in a violent
confrontation is obviously
under a lot of stress. But so is
an officer responding to some
terrible accident or incident.
And even an officer back at the
station writing up reports is
under stress, deadline stress,
blank page stress.
People under stress react in a
lot of heart harmful ways.
Some smoke. (Roughly 16% of
American officers till puff
away.) Some hit the bars. Many
others ingest too much caffeine through coffee, energy
drinks, and carbonated sodas.
Others eat when they aren’t
hungry. And what they eat is
only loosely defined as “food.”
For a variety of reasons, most
police officers eat as badly as
just about everyone else in this
country. Tight schedules lead
to officers picking up something at the fast food place or
even the convenience store,
wolfing it down and hitting the
streets. Even in their private
lives, many officers rarely have
time for a proper and healthy
meal.
The body’s response to poor
nutrition (too much fat, too
much sugar, and too much
sodium) can be devastating.
“Weight gain from eating fat
laden and salty foods leads to
high cholesterol, high blood
NEWSLET T ER
TIT LE
pressure, and obesity,” Gamble
explains. “Drinking sugary
sodas and sugar-laden coffees
combined with the inactivity of
the job can cause diabetes.
And a combination of high
cholesterol, high blood pressure, obesity, inactivity, and
diabetes makes any LEO a
frontrunner fro a heart attack,
stroke, and even early death.”
MAKE SOME CHANGES
Medical experts say officers
who are worried about heart
attacks need to dump some
bad habits that are quite literally killing them and start living
healthier.
It’s hard to believe but half a
century after the 1964 Surgeon
General’s report on the hazards of smoking many American officers till smoke. If you
are one of these smoking officers, you probably think cancer is your primary health
concern. That may not be the
case. “Many smokers develop
heart disease long before they
develop cancer,” Gamble says.
Her advice to smokers is to
find a way to quit. She recommends you follow the START
plan. The acronym stands for:
Set a quit date; Tell family or
friends that you are quitting;
Anticipate and plan for difficulty; Remove tobacco completely from your environment; and Talk to your doctor
about meds that can help.
“LEOs who are trying to quit
should stay away from smokers and places they associate
with smoking,” Gamble says.
“If people close to you smoke,
ask them to quit too. Keep
gum or candy handy for cravings. And don’t give up, even if
you start (smoking) again.”
Even if you don’t smoke, you
may have other habits that are
nearly as bad, especially when
it comes to food. Many officers, like many Americans, eat
badly for a variety of reasons
such as perceived lack of time,
limited access to wholesome
food while working, and irresistible cravings for the taste of
fast food, which features just
the right combination of fat,
sugar and, salt to set off pleasure chemicals in the brain.
Gamble’s solution to this problem is the brown bag. “Bring
your own health food to work.
Substitute healthy snacks like
nuts, carrot sticks, fruit, and
water for candy, chips, and
soda. And if you forget your
brown bag and your healthy
snacks, remember that even
the most sketchy of gas stations has a few pieces of fruit
on the counter.”
Agencies can also help their
officers eat better, according
to Gamble. “Departments can
inexpensively establish an appealing kitchen area with a
mini-fridge, microwave, and
toaster oven to support the
LEOs with the brown bag
habit,” she says.
Gamble also believes agencies
should take steps to make it
easier for officers to exercise
before and after their shifts.
She realizes budgets are tight
and many departments can’t
afford to buy brand new gym
equipment, but she says these
agencies should consider the
cost of officer disability.
Also, she says agencies can
seek alternative means of providing fitness center equipment
for their officers. She
Continued on page 10
V OLUME
1,
ISSUE
1
P AGE
3 Things to Make You a Success cont.
of work than actually doing work.
When I was on the road as a supervisor, I used to see it all the time. If
the LEO had just taken the report
instead of trying to talk the victim
out of it, they would have finished a
lot sooner.
Urgency also means maintaining the
attitude that all calls are worthy of
your 100% attention. The only real
difference between any call for
service is that some are completed
faster than others. Sometimes you
can do a great deal and sometimes
you can’t. The amount of time
spent investigating the call is determined by the evidence at hand and
not in having a poor attitude. If it’s
not important to you, everyone
around you will feel that vibe. That
usually translates later into some
type of complaint.
THIRST FOR KNOWLEDGE
Let’s face it, if you think that all you
will ever have to know is what you
learned at the police academy,
you’re destined for failure. Law
enforcement operates in ebbs and
flows. What was relevant today will
change tomorrow. You need to
stay up on things by constantly
studying and actively working to
stay on point.
to stay current on skills essential to
the job.
For example, legal updates are
enough to keep anyone busy. Reviewing your administrative code
and policy and procedure is another area that will keep you busy.
In other words, there is always
something to review. There is always something new to learn as
well.
With the advent of the Internet,
the world is at everyone’s fingertips. There is a great deal of information waiting to be found. For
example, there are many online
courses and webinars you can take,
as well as articles and blog posts
written by other professionals you
can read. At the basic operator
level, you can find most if not all of
what you need to get up to speed
on new tactics and techniques for
free.
Tactics are another area of great
concern. I remember a time that if
you were dealing with an Active
Shooter, you held what you had,
formed a perimeter, and called for
SWAT. You’d be relieved of duty if
you tried that now. Things change
and if you don’t change with them
you become obsolete, irrelevant,
and of no use to anyone. You will
be that person the chain of command only remembers when they a
uniform to do buy work.
Some LEOs use the excuse that
their agency won’t pay for training
so they can’t possibly keep up or
learn anything new. That’s ridiculous. Though an agency may not
foot the bill, this doesn’t relieve any
officer of his or her responsibility
Medical experts stress that one of
the primary reasons why so many
Americans are so unhealthy is that
they don’t take advantage of the
medical care available to them and
they don’t think enough about their
cardio-vascular health. They argue
that Americans, with all of the advantages, should be among the
healthiest people in the world. But
instead we are literally killing ourselves with our stressful, sedentary
lifestyles.
“The greatest advance in the understanding of heart disease was the
discovery that it can be virtually
eliminated by controlling three
factors: cholesterol, smoking, and
blood pressure. More effort needs
to go into helping LEOS change
long-standing smoking and poor
agency may not
foot the bill, this
Keeping abreast of current events
is also important. Watching or
reading about local and national
news helps keep you in the loop,
and you need to be aware of what’s
bleeding over into your areas of
responsibility.
doesn’t relieve
When it comes to expanding your
skill-set, one of the best ways to
learn something new is to job
shadow. Do you want to become
better at conducting your own
investigations? Ask your chain of
command if you can job shadow
with an investigator.
skills essential
Continued on page 11
Heart Trouble cont.
recommends that departments look
into acquiring fitness equipment
from the Department of Defense
Excess Property Program (1033
Program). Departments can also
seek private contributions to fund
fitness facilities.
“Though an
dietary habits,” Gamble says. “It’s a
tragedy if we lose anyone-much less
a police officer-to a heart attack in
this country.”
*********************
Dr. Sarah Gamble can be reached at
[email protected]. She
has offered to help officers and agencies contact local physicians who participate in the International Association
of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Police Physicians program.
any officer of
his or her
responsibility to
stay current on
to the job.”
10
National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day
The Etowah County Sheriff’s Office and
Drug Enforcement Unit are asking
Etowah County citizens to participate in
National Prescription Drug Take-Back
Day.
The event will take place on
Saturday, September 27, 2014,
from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the
East Gadsden Wal-Mart.
“This is a great opportunity for
individuals who have accumulated unwanted, unused prescription drugs, to
safely dispose of those medications,”
says Sheriff Todd Entrekin. “People can
also bring their outdated over-thecounter medications to be disposed
properly.”
A law enforcement officer will remain
with the drug disposal box at all times,
and the drugs that are turned in will be
treated as evidence and properly
disposed of.
The Take Back initiative is designed so
there is no cost for those who wish to
turn drugs in.
Sheriff Entrekin adds, “Those wishing to
dispose of drugs can bring the original
containers, but any identifying
information should be removed.”
According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement
Administration website, “In the seven
previous Take-Back events, DEA in
conjunction with our state, local, and
tribal law enforcement partners have
collected over 3.4 million pounds (1,733
tons) of prescription medications were
removed from circulation.”
In Alabama, 24,739.50 pounds of unused,
expired or unwanted prescription drugs
have been collected since the beginning
of the Take-Back Initiative.
The website, http://
www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/
drug_disposal/takeback/, also says the
National Prescription Drug Take-Back
Day aims to provide a safe, convenient,
and responsible means of disposal, while
also educating the general public about
the potential for abuse of these
medications.
Sheriff Entrekin states, “This event is one
way Etowah County citizens can help our
narcotic agents
keep the illegal
use of prescription medications out of the
wrong hands
and off our
streets. I
encourage everyone to clean
out their medicine cabinets
and get rid of
unused
medications.”
3 Things to Make You a Success cont.
Since first responders concentrate on
the initial investigation, job shadowing
the people who do the second half only
makes sense. I learned a great deal
about handling complaints when I asked
for some help from my agency’s internal
affairs division.
emy, while training rookies in the FTO
program, and in developing supervisors
under my command. Some took heed
and have had fantastic careers. Others
didn’t care and are complaining about
why they didn’t get the position they
applied for.
SEIZE THE OPPORTUNITY
I have never understood those who
maintain a laissez-faire attitude with
regard to their jobs. They worked so
hard to become LEOs and then once
there, they did absolutely nothing with
the opportunity they were given. If you
If you want to be a successful LEO then
I would take a look at CUT and see
how it applies to you. I have tried my
best to stress these points to my recruits while teaching at the police acad-
are not going to try to excel at what
you do then why do it at all? I think we
should focus on being a CUT above the
rest and continue to move forward
within our own careers.
***********************
Amaury Murgado is a special operations
lieutenant with the Osceola County (FL)
Sheriff’s Office. He is a retired master
sergeant from the Army Reserve, has more
than 27 years of law enforcement experience, and has been a lifelong student of
martial arts.
Sheriff’s Star cont.
You will hear a lot of stuff, but the bottom line is that is all about officer safety.
I don’t think that everyone should be
able to have a gun in their car without a
permit.
It’s about your safety and the citizens
safety that we protect. We (sheriffs)
have given all we can give on this bill. If
we lose this fight then there is no telling
what they will come up with after that.
Would this hurt us financially if it were
the other way, yes! But we will survive.
I will keep you all up on this and other
issues as the session gets closer.
Ok, I know I have said a lot in this issue
but I have a lot more to say...but I will
stop for now.
Again, thanks for what you do! Please
be safe and go home to your family
safely!
Todd