March 2014 - Harris County Deputies` Organization

Transcription

The Harris County Star
Official Publication of The Harris County Deputies’ Organization
March 2014
www.hcdo.com
The Voice of Harris County Law Enforcement
Vol. 26, No. 3
New World Trade Center
Memorial Gives University
Of Houston Special Honor
Pipers from the Houston Fire Department and members of Texas Task
Force 1, who deployed to New York
after the September 11th attacks, were
part of the dedication ceremony outside the newly renovated University
Center.
UH is the first and only university in
Texas that has a piece of the World
Trade Center on its campus.
Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia, who was part of the Task Force,
says it’s the right place for the 3,888pound steel beam.
“We should always work together to
ensure that nothing of this magnitude
ever happens here again. And for
young people who are coming to this
institution to build on their education
and on their vision for the future, I think
this is one of the most appropriate
places where such an artifact could be
at.”
The university applied for a piece of
the World Trade Center to the New
York and New Jersey Port Authority in
2009. A student brought up the idea to
the Student Government Association,
which then worked with UH Chancellor
Renu Khator on the application.
Kenneth Fomunung was the student body president at the time.
“That was kind of like the initial
seed that we planted and then it would
take three administrations of the Student Government Association of the
University of Houston to finally see that
come to birth.”
The beam piece arrived in Houston
in the fall of 2011 and was stored in
the UH Energy Research Park until a
location could be identified.
Chancellor Khator says placing the
memorial in front of the student center
made the most sense.
“Because this is the heart of the
campus here. More people walk from
here than any other part of the campus, and I just hope as they walk from
here, they’ll look at this piece and
they’ll remember, they’ll grieve, but at
the same time they will also double
their resolve that they will never, ever
allow this kind of act of terrorism to
take place in this country.”
Jene Malixi, a sports administration
major at UH, says 9/11 made a huge
impact on him and having the memorial here on campus means a lot. But
he says he’s worried about possible
vandalism of the dark gray nearly 6foot long beam.
“I doubt somebody is going to try
and steal it but I’m just worried that
somebody is going to spray-paint it
and say, that was an inside job or any
ridiculous thing like that.”
To avoid that eventuality, UH Police
will pay extra attention to the area. In
addition, cameras around the new University Center should serve as a deterrent for potential vandals.
KUHF
5 of 61 nabbed in Harris County prostitution sting had long criminal records
Undercover prostitution stings happening across
Harris County have netted 61 arrests.
The stings took place near Interstate 45 and FM
1960, Aldine Bender Road and U.S. 59, and Interstate 10 at Freeport, according to information from
the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.
In all, 48 men – including a Precinct 4 constable’s
deputy – and nine women were arrested on prostitu-
tion charges over the course of eight days.
The Harris County Sheriff’s Office released five
mugshots of arrested individuals who carried with
them extensive criminal records. Some had prior
charges of robbery, burglary, drunk driving, prostitution, evading arrest, and indecency with a child in
Harris County.
There was no word on whether or not they had
charges outside of Harris County.
Four other people encountered by deputies during
the sting were arrested on charges ranging from drug
possession to driving without a license, the department reported.
“News flash to those who think prostitution is a
victimless crime: It’s a greedy industry that thrives on
(Continued on page 12)
Call Us Anytime...
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please call:
EXECUTIVE BOARD MEMBERS
Robert Goerlitz, President
713-659-0005
[email protected]
Eric Batton, Vice President
281-387-9040
[email protected]
Stuart Campbell, Secretary/Treasurer
713-444-8178
[email protected]
Cathy Hill at 713-659-0005 ext. 1
Or e-mail inquiries or ad copy to
[email protected]
BOARD MEMBERS
Pos. 1 Jeremy Thomas [email protected]
Pos. 2 Curtis Brown [email protected]
Your Harris County Star
Any member of the Harris County Deputies’
Organization is allowed and encouraged to submit articles
for publication in this newspaper. Opinions, events,
family announcements, war stories...all are welcome and
enjoyed by all Deputies. Submissions will only be edited as
necessary to protect your organization from legal liability.
The Harris County Star is published by the Harris County Deputies’
Organization and is not copyrighted. Other police organizations are encouraged
to reprint material which originates with The Star. We require only that you
give credit to the author and this paper when reprinting. All articles are subject
to review by the editorial committee. Letters and/or guest articles appearing in
the editorial section of The Star are the sole opinion of the author, and do not
necessarily reflect the opinions or views of the Board of Directors or
membership of the Harris County Deputies’ Organization.
The Star encourages Organization members and other readers of the
publication to submit letters for publication on the editorial page. The HCDO
reserves the right to refuse to print any submission not deemed in the best
interest of the Organization.
Notice: All articles and photos for The Harris County Star must be submitted prior to the 5th of each month preceding deadline. Any articles submitted after this date will appear, space permitting, in the next issue of The
Star. Thank you for your cooperation. Articles can be submitted at the
HCDO offices or by e-mail. To submit articles directly to the editor, send
to: [email protected].
The Harris County Star is administered by Sgt. G.L. “Buddy” Williams,
Lone Star Publishing Co. under the direction of the Board of Directors of the
Harris County Deputies’ Organization.
281-960-6582
713-826-1831
YOUR REPRESENTATIVES
PATROL:
Stuart Campbell DIST.2 6A-2P
Daniel Wareham DIST.4 10P-6A
Frank Garcia
DIST. 1
Bryan Cross
DIST. 1 10P-6A
Sgt. Tim Fite
DIST. 1 2P-10P
Norman Fitts
DIST. 4 10P-6A
CONSTABLES:
James Grohman PCT. 4 7A-3P
Sgt. Matt Walker PCT. 4 10P-6A
DETECTIVE BUREAU:
Curtis Brown
HOMI. 1P-9P
David Cuevas
I.P.C.:
Open positions all shifts
COURTS:
TRANSPORTATION DIVISION:
Brian Merritt
10P-6A
1301 BAKER:
Arthur Ramirez
2P-10P
Carlos Arguelles 701
2P-10P
701 JAIL:
CHAPLAINS:
Shannon Bowdoin
Virginia Howell
COMMUNICATIONS:
Traci Mullins
6A-2P
Rosalyn Wiley
Kristin Chambers
Elizabeth Barber
2P-10P
COMMUNITY SERVICES BUREAU:
PARKS:
713-744-8178
281-814-3246
713-299-8026
281-830-9162
281-705-5380
281-658-3027
832-868-1714
281-734-4904
713-826-1831
832-250-1716
715-566-5074
832-483-9197
713-545-4341
936-776-6537
281-770-7607
713-816-8508
832-324-4335
281-914-6017
281-796-8926
Your Harris County Star Staff
YOUR OFFICE STAFF
Cathy Hill
Publisher………………..Buddy Williams
Composition Editor…..Shaun Harpstrite
Staff Writer.…………….Stephen Skinner
Distribution…………….Garrett Hardin
Organization Office:
1314 Texas Ave, Suite 2000, Houston, TX 77002
Main Office: 713-659-0005
Legal Dept.: 713-659-0017
Fax No.: 713-750-0070
The Harris County Deputies’ Organization
And We Are YOUR Board
www.hcdo.com
Page 2
www.hcdo.com
President’s
Corner
Do you know what your organization officers are
doing? Would you like to know with whom they are
meeting and the results of those meetings as they
happen? Would you like to be on a mailing list to
receive regular updates from the organization? If
so send Bob an email and he will put you on the list
to receive regular updates.
His email address is [email protected]
by Robert Goerlitz
President, HCDO
Harris County Law
Harris County has always been
unique in the application of state law,
not only on the criminal side, but also
on the civil side of things. Just the
mention of such things as probate and
other civil matters will make attorneys
who work in different jurisdictions
across the state cringe when they are
told the matter is in Harris County.
It is an understatement to say
things are done a little differently here
than anywhere else in Texas. Walk
into the District Attorney’s Intake section to file a charge, and if you don’t
have your probable cause already written out, you are looked at like a leper.
Let’s look at one particular interpretation of the law that not only affects us
but also how we should be doing our
jobs in serving the public. Over a year
ago, I filed a grievance pertaining to
Section 614.023 in that I never received a copy of the signed complaint,
as the law states, “shall be GIVEN to
the officer or employee within a reasonable time after the complaint is
filed.” The law goes on to say no disciplinary action can be taken against an
officer or employee unless a copy of
the signed complaint is given to the
officer or employee.
In the hearing we had in front of the
Civil Service Commission, I was told
the form our department fills out to begin the investigation is now considered
the signed complaint. Section 614.023
is a critical law for law enforcement
across the state, but it is not followed
as stated in Harris County. During this
same hearing, I was told an employee
can be shown the actual signed complaint but not allowed to retain it or a
copy to refer back to in the preparation
for the statement they are ORDERED
to give or face immediate termination.
I was told this was the interpretation
by the County Attorney’s Office, and
this is how the Sheriff’s Office proceeds with that interpretation of the
wording “shall give.” They show it to
you and take it back. Since the Sheriff’s Office is following this interpreta-
tion, then we should follow this interpretation in other matters also. In the
Code of Criminal Procedure under Title
1, Chapter 5, specifically Sec 5.04, it
states peace officers shall advise and
GIVE written notice to adult victims of
family violence. If we are following the
interpretation of the County Attorney’s
Office, as they have stated on the record, then we shall follow it in all matters.
What do you think would happen if
we gave them our statement in the
same manner, allowing them to read it
but not allowing them to retain it? I
doubt they would stand for it, and neither should we. That would go over
like a lead balloon. Be very cautious of
what paperwork you sign for if and
when you get called in to give a statement. One of the boxes asks for you
to initial that you have received a copy
of the complaint. In my case, I could
not initial that box since I was never
given a copy of the complaint and initialing that I did would be a lie on an
official document. These are the kinds
of things we put people in jail for.
This “complaint,” that I have yet to
see a signed copy of to this day, was
found to be inconclusive, but it is still a
sticking point in the manner in which
the process is clearly flawed and is a
flagrant abuse of the few rights we
have as employees at the Sheriff’s
Office.
Field Notes
The new policy regarding the retention of our field notes has been a hot
topic throughout the troops since it
came out. Hearing the concerns from
the membership, we set up a meeting
with the District Attorney herself to get
it straight from the source as to the
intent. After that meeting, it was clear
our department has made a misinterpretation of the intent of what was
asked.
The District Attorney’s Office sent
out an order to all of the law enforcement entities in Harris County for them
to come up with a system with their
respective departments to retain any
and all field notes taken in criminal
matters. The purpose for this was to
conform to the state law that allows for
the criminal defense representative to
ask for those notes in preparation of
their defense. After the District Attorney was informed these notes were
being made a part of the initial report,
she stated that was not the intent. The
intent was for them to be available
upon request and not given up front.
As attachments they are available up
front which is a direct contradiction.
The field notes are intended to be
made available for discovery motions.
As this article is being written at the
beginning of the month, it is still unknown if the Sheriff’s administration
will correct another one of their errors.
New Fleet Policy
A new fleet policy has been put into
effect, and it centers around the monetary costs of damages. This was
something we asked for many years
ago that has come to fruition. One part
that was not included, which we would
like to see, would be the mitigating
factor of if the employee involved has
some type of a “rider” policy to cover
the damage. The county is looking at
this from a monetary point of view, and
I can understand that. Everything revolves around the costs involved.
We contend that since the main
purpose seems to be the amount of
costs the department is at a loss for,
then the repayment of that cost should
be a factor, as well, if it is covered by a
supplemental policy the employee may
www.hcdo.com
have.
Another point to be made with the
estimate of these costs is what the
actual bill amount is rather than the
estimate. In the past, the estimate
would be far more than what the actual
cost was. For example, I had a person
kick out the window of my patrol car
many years ago. The estimate given
was in the range of $1200, but when I
picked up the vehicle, I happened to
speak with the glass company who
had just finished making the repair.
The actual cost was around $250. An
estimate is just that, an estimate and
not the actual cost.
Crime Victims
Compensation
Many of us don’t realize we can
also be victims of crime when those
actions result in some type of injury to
ourselves. For years, I didn’t realize
this, and it wasn’t something that had
ever been spoken about much. As an
added benefit to the membership, we
will now be helping with getting that
paperwork filed for those who qualify
under this act.
I am constantly looking for ways to
improve the things we can do for the
membership as a whole, and this is
just another step that has been long in
coming.
These are just a few of the things
we have been working on during this
last month. There is more to come in
the next month as we work towards the
upcoming legislature next year.
HCDO
Membership
Meetings
March 4 and April 1
Page 3
From the Chaplain’s Pen
DANIEL: Jurors may donate
jury pay to Crime Stoppers
Why a Critical
Incident Stress
Management (CISM)
Team?
Stafford Police Officer Ann Carrizales took two bullets, including one
through her cheek, during a routine
traffic stop Oct. 26.
The gutsy, courageous former Marine – and mom – nonetheless got
back into her cruiser and pursued the
suspects for 20 miles until the suspected shooter was arrested.
The two other men in the car escaped on foot. Crime Stoppers of
Houston offered a $10,000 reward for
information about the men.
Anonymous tips were called in to
Crime Stoppers, and five days after the
shooting, the pair that escaped were
arrested and charged with aggravated
assault on a peace officer.
In Crime Stoppers, we have the
best crime prevention-anonymous tipster operation in the U.S., and I am
proud that the organization is one of
eight non-profits to which people who
perform jury service may donate their
jury pay. During the coming months, I
will use these columns to describe the
mission and accomplishments of each
of these worthy non-profits.
Crime Stoppers has helped solve
so many crimes since its inception in
1981 that it has become the darling of
the local law enforcement officials.
Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia
said, “I cannot say enough how fortunate area law enforcement is to have
Houston Crime Stoppers as a key partner in the fight against crime. Its existence has helped us solve many
crimes that might have otherwise gone
unsolved. Without Houston Crime
Stoppers, our job of tracking down persons responsible for crime in our community would be much more difficult
than it already is.”
Since its launch, tips to Crime Stoppers have led to arrests of about
25,000 people suspected of committing nearly 32,000 crimes. In 2012,
arrests based on tips to Crime Stoppers totaled 750. Last year, it was 712,
including 16 suspects charged with
capital murder and 16 others charged
with murder, manslaughter or attempted murder.
Rania Mankarious, executive director of Crime Stoppers, said the organization has perfected its system of protecting tipsters’ identities. A police officer answers calls to Crime Stoppers’
number – 713-222-TIPS – and there is
no caller ID or tracking. The officer
gives a tipster an ID number, and
By Chaplain Virginia Howell
HCSO Employees are subjected to
many events outside of their control,
whether it is a traumatic event at work
or a crisis in our personal lives. Over
time, if we care to admit it, these
events can have an impact on us and
our families. We can feel dazed and
confused by what life throws at us.
Sometimes it’s a bit much!
Occupations requiring frequent exposure to critical incidents and highly
traumatic situations often create a
deep level of psychological debt. We
rush to someone else’s aid, but who
rushes to ours? We constantly serve
others but who comes alongside us to
prop us up?
We tell ourselves we’ll think about
it/talk about it with a friend or trusted
co-worker, but most often that day
never comes. Sometimes, even in careers recognized as dangerous, high
risk and stress-filled, many professionals find themselves dismayed, and can
use some encouragement to effectively deal with the mental byproduct of
their service. As an ex FBI employee
said “ we tend to compartmentalize our
issues. We have a box over here for
family things, another for a traumatic
event, another box for interpersonal
conflicts, etc. We stuff things down for
a long time…The only problem is
sometimes our boxes get really full…
then what do we do?” We all have
times we can be overwhelmed.
The HCSO CISM team is made up
of fellow law enforcement peers available at all times. Whether it’s a bad
accident, a severe illness, a family crisis or an on duty incident, the team
stands by willing to provide information, support, or referrals to those impacted by acute trauma or serious
loss. Active listening is critical, as well
as offering unconditional acceptance
and reassurance. Offering this kind of
nonjudgmental support during a crisis
can help reduce stress and improve
coping.
The HCSO CISM Team is recognized by the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation and includes
Sgt Don Savell, Sgt J. Brook Viningre,
and Chaplain Virginia Howell. Several
other peers, a professional counselor,
and law enforcement chaplains also
cooperate in lending a hand. We
stand ready to provide emergency assistance to all employees of HCSO
whenever it is deemed necessary.
iWatchHarrisCounty App users send
more than 60 to jail with 50 Tips
With over 50 tips, users of the
iWatchHarrisCounty mobile app have
led HCSO investigators to the arrest of
more than 60 suspects since its
launch in September 2011.
The latest tip was cleared on Friday, January 10, 2014, in the 3200
block of Candlepine Dr. in north Harris
County and resulted in the arrest of a
family of five.
The arrests bring to 65 the total
number of arrests made thanks to
iWatch tips since September 2011
when the free mobile phone app was
launched by Sheriff Adrian Garcia.
In April 2013 an iWatch tip led
deputies to a drug seizure worth over
$2 million and the arrest of two individuals at two marijuana growth
houses in northwest Harris County.
In July 2013 an iWatch tip led
Page 4
deputies to a 4-acres marijuana field
in south Harris County.
About 1,500 tips are received per
year through iWatchHarrisCounty from
the more than 12,000 current users.
Twenty-three percent of those tips
are drug related. The rest are about
suspicious persons/activity and quality
of life complaints such as loud music,
etc.
In October of last year, the HCSO
partnered with the Houston Independent School District to extend iWatchHarrisCounty to allow students, parents, and teachers to report crimes in
and around their campuses via the
app directly to the HISD Police Department. Similar partnerships are in
the works with various other area
school districts.
Bellaire Examiner
www.hcdo.com
Crime Stoppers and police never learn
their names – even after arrests are
made.
If Crime Stoppers’ board authorizes
a reward payment, tipsters are given
another number and the address of a
bank, Mankarious said. They go
through the drive-through and provide
a teller with their ID numbers. They are
then paid in cash.
Rewards can be for as much as
$5,000 except for tips that lead to the
arrests of suspects charged with
wounding or killing law enforcement
officers. Rewards then may rise to
$10,000. (The 100 Club helps boost
the rewards in cases of fallen officers.
It so happens that The 100 Club, which
provides financial help to the families
of fallen law enforcement officers and
firefighters, is one of the eight nonprofits to which people may donate jury
pay.)
Crime Stoppers has paid nearly
21,000 tipsters more than $10.4 million
in rewards since 1981.
State District Judge Katherine Cabaniss, former executive director of
Crime Stoppers, said, “It was a privilege to lead Crime Stoppers, the most
productive organization of its kind in
the country. The tip line is effective,
and it keeps people safe where they
live, work, and play.”
Mankarious said Crime Stoppers
shouldn’t win plaudits solely because it
helps solve crimes. The public needs
to know, she said, that tipster lines are
cost-effective crime fighting tools.
“It costs law enforcement about
$1,500 to solve a crime based on a
Crime Stoppers’ tip,” she said. “It costs
them $30,000 to $90,000 to solve
other crimes. We help save tax dollars.”
Crime Stoppers’ free app can be
found on Google apps. Tipsters can
text in a tip or send photos or video.
Crime Stoppers has broadened its
mission to include crime prevention.
More than one million area middle
and high school students have gone
through the group’s Safe School Program, learning how to handle issues of
bullying and guns on campus and how
to rely on Crime Stoppers’ tip line to
anonymously report suspected criminal
activity. As a result, authorities have
confiscated more than 200 guns in
schools since Crime Stoppers
launched the the program in 1997.
The Harris County
The Helfman
Family
Of Fine
Automobiles
WE SALUTE
TEXAS
PEACE
OFFICERS
Capt. Alan Helfman
River Oaks
Chrysler Jeep Dodge
713-524-3801
The Helfman
Family Of Fine
Automobiles
WE SALUTE
TEXAS
PEACE
OFFICERS
Harris County Sheriff’s
Mounted Patrol delivers
rodeo invitation to capitol
HOCKLEY, TX – For the past 65
years, the Governor and Lieutenant
Governor of Texas get invited to the
Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.
No, not by phone, and not in an email.
In true Texas fashion, the Harris
County Sheriff’s Mounted Patrol delivers the invitation personally on a pony
express style ride from Houston to
Austin.
Forty horses and riders participated
on this 112-mile ride, and this year
Seargent Chris Adolph was the first.
They headed out of Hockley at 8 a.m.
and arrived at their destination around
5 p.m.
Eleven different governors have
received this invitation over 65 years,
but that’s about all that’s changed.
This year’s invitation goes to of
course Governor Rick Perry and Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst. But
both will surely be dawning their ten
gallon hats for the Houston livestock
show and rodeo that starts March 4th
and runs through the 23rd. Giddy-up
y’all!
NewsFix.com
Steven Wolf, Helfman Dodge Chrysler Jeep
713-533-6100
The Helfman
Family Of Fine
Automobiles
WE SALUTE
TEXAS PEACE
OFFICERS
Jeff Smith
Helfman Ford
281-240-3673
www.hcdo.com
Page 5
Dispatchers: Unsung heroes
and a 'lifeline' for LEOs
There is a special connection between police dispatchers and police
officers
By Karen L. Bune,
PoliceOne.com
Those who work in the public safety
and law enforcement realm are committed, dedicated and usually passionate about what they do. They work in a
reality-based environment comprised
of situations and events that most in
the civilian world have never been exposed to.
There is a special connection between police dispatchers and police
officers. Strong bonds evolve from
partnerships and the allegiance that
develops as a result of the interconnected working relationships.
The radio is a cop’s steadfast companion. It is a vital connection to the
dispatcher who plays a critical role in
keeping the officers on the street safe.
Dispatchers can provide the necessary
information to all units and to those
responding to the scene of a specific
call and incident.
Dispatcher’s Ear
The dispatcher’s job is highly
stressful. Dispatchers have to possess
keen listening skills and be excellent
communicators. They must have a
“dispatcher’s ear” — listening to what
is going on in the background. Moreover, dispatchers must be able to do
several things at once. Due to the
stressful nature of the job, dispatchers
must possess effective coping skills to
be able to handle the pressure.
Dispatchers have a close link to
police officers and often they feel responsible for them. Padty MayhewDavis has served as a dispatcher for
15 years and is a Communications
Training Officer for the Alexandria
(Va.) Police Department. She always
wanted to be a cop but due to a knee
injury was unable to pursue that career
path. She became a dispatcher instead.
“This is one way I can still help people,” Mayhew said. She recognizes the
importance of maintaining her emotional equilibrium while working.
“You can’t let your emotions affect
or cloud what you’re doing in your job
because it could impede the outcome
to citizens or officers,” Mayhew said.
Mayhew is known to be very concerned about all the officers she works
with. If an officer is injured on duty during her shift, she remains on high alert.
Page 6
“I deal with the situation until it is over,”
she said. After the incident is over,
Mayhew insists she must talk to the
officers involved. “I have to know for
myself they are OK. I get teased for
being over-protective,” she said.
Mayhew has frequently been out on
the street. “I used to do a lot of
ridealongs, and I loved it. You get to
see what they (the officers) are doing,”
she said.
Keeping Officers Safe
Jill Price, currently a Communications Facility Coordinator for the Department of Public Works in Milwaukee
and a former Telecommunications
Specialist and Dispatcher for the Milwaukee Police Department, agrees
with Mayhew. Her motivation was fueled by knowing that her actions assisted in keeping officers safe, and she
liked helping them. “I was able to provide the resources. I was a lifeline for
the officers on the street,” she said.
“Some officers don’t realize how
important they are to dispatchers. It is
a big deal to us,” said Celeste Anne
Smelser Baldino, a supervisor in Public
Safety Communications for the UVAAlbemarle County Emergency Communications Center in Charlottesville,
VA. She serves as a working supervisor and rotates through all the posts
within the center.
Stacy Starkloff, a police dispatcher
for the Baltimore, MD 911 Center, recalled a time when an officer did not
answer the radio, and his car was
abandoned. No one knew where he
was, and the helicopter was dispatched to search for him. “It was
really scary for a while — not knowing
where he was at,” Starkloff said.
It was subsequently discovered that
he experienced a medical emergency
and was in the back of an ambulance
being treated.
Starkloff acknowledged that dispatchers hear a lot of things that would
be difficult for most to hear.
“You have to have a backbone,”
she said.
Michael Slater, a State Police Dispatcher II and Supervisor of the Dispatch Center for the Massachusetts
State Police, has been a dispatcher for
30 years. Well versed in his specialty,
he is keenly attuned to the challenges
law enforcement officers face daily.
When he was a line dispatcher from
1986-1999, he particularly enjoyed the
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Crime Stoppers
(Continued from page 4)
Crime Stoppers’ Safe Community
Program and its Mothers Against
Crime program focus on ways to prevent crime in communities.
Still, Crime Stoppers remains best
known for its tip line – and with good
reason: The results just keep coming.
In part based on a Crime Stoppers’ tip,
www.hcdo.com
a woman was charged Feb. 6 as the
driver who hit and killed Chelsea Norman, 24, as she was bicycling home
on Waugh Dec. 1.
Harris County District Clerk Chris
Daniel staffs 76 courts with clerks,
maintains records for these courts and
oversees jury service.
Friendswood Journal
Highlands: 500 Citizens seek Crime answers, Sheriff questioned
After experiencing a high number of
murders in this community last year,
the citizens of Highlands decided that
something more had to be done to put
a stop to the killings. Five killings have
happened since last January 2013,
and two remain unsolved.
As a first step, they asked their local law enforcement officers to meet
with the public, and this forum, organized by Highlands resident Mike
James, was the result. James is
deeply involved because one of the
victims of murder this year was his
father.
Otis James was murdered in his
house on 4th Street, allegedly by a
neighbor, Randy Segura, who has
been charged with the crime. Otis
James pickup truck was stolen after
the murder.
The meeting, billed as a “Crime
Watch” session, was held at the First
Baptist Church on Magnolia Street.
The sanctuary of the church was filled
to capacity, with at least 500 persons
in attendance.
Also attending were Sheriff Adrian
Garcia, and from his staff Major
Stephen Marino and Capt. Joel Inocencio. Pct. 3 Constable Ken Jones
was present, and from his staff were
Chief Deputy David Franklin, and Capt.
Jasen Rabalais. Throughout the audience were other officers, including
Capt. John Moore and Lt. T. J. Gainey.
The evening started with welcoming
remarks from pastor Tim Edwards, and
then moderator Mike James introduced
the speakers from the Sheriff’s office
and the Constable’s office. He also
asked that everyone present sign registration cards, so that they could be
included in future meetings and crime
fighting actions.
Sheriff Garcia spoke first, and outlined the history of his governance of
the department since 2009. He mentioned budgets and staffing, pointing
out that until 2011 the county had a
hiring freeze, and he lost many deputies. Now he is able to hire, and has
added over 100 deputies through cadet classes and transferring jailers to
patrol and other duties. Also he said
there are over 83 new deputies in
training at the present time.
In response to questions and criticisms about the effectiveness of his
department, he pointed out that due to
a large number of calls for service, the
HCSO must prioritize incoming calls,
and answer the most serious and life
threatening calls first. He suggested
that many burglary calls and similar
crimes could be reported online on the
website, without the need for an onsite
deputy’s call.
The Sheriff also pointed out that he
has a youth program, the Explorers,
that is introducing young boys and girls
age 14 to 21 to the procedures of a
sheriff’s department. The goal is to
help them avoid criminal activities, and
to hire some of them as deputies in the
future.
Constable Jones reported that his
department, in conjunction with the
Sheriff’s office, had formed a “Task
Force” to proactively respond and investigate crimes. It is staffed by 3 constables and 8 sheriff’s deputies, he
said. In Highlands alone, he pointed
out that in the last 45 days they have
made 18 felony arrests, suggesting
that this would seriously reduce the
incident of crime. He suggested the
importance of the public informing authorities through tips, including using
Facebook.
At this point, the floor was opened
for questions or comments from the
public.
Several persons asked how to set
up a Crime Watch program. It was
noted that this meeting was promoted
as a learning session for this purpose,
but instead it consisted mainly of comments from both sides of the crime
subject. However, the authorities offered to help set up small Crime Watch
groups in any neighborhood that was
interested, and said that the Constable’s office, through Lt. T.J. Gainey,
would come out to instruct citizens on
the process.
A question was whether Highlands
could get a sheriff’s substation back,
as it had several years ago. The Sheriff was somewhat evasive on the answer, noting legal problems that no
one seemed to want to resolve. However, a location in Woodforest Bank
was mentioned. The Sheriff said one of
the benefits of a storefront would be a
visible sign on Main Street, as a deterrent to criminals.
A citizen complained about a recent
burglary, where the two juveniles had
been identified, but not prosecuted.
Deputy Rabalais stated that Texas law
made it more difficult to prosecute juveniles than adults, and that the district
attorney’s office sometimes advised
against it.
Pastor Phillip Morris said that the
power of prayer would help the crime
situation in the community, and urged
the community to embrace that idea.
His church, Restoration Church on
Jones Road, will hold prayer sessions
with that goal.
The question was asked how many
deputies are staffed to watch the Highlands area. Captain Inocencio explained that this is District 3, Section B
(not A or C), and that it covers Highl a n ds , C r os b y, B a yt o wn , a nd
Lynchburg. For those areas, there are
usually 2 to 4 patrol deputies assigned
at any one time. However, there are
other Sheriff’s specialized deputies
working the area at the same time,
including task force, crime control unit,
high risk officers, undercover, and others.
Major Marino added that 5 new
deputies are being added to those assigned to this area. Also, a helicopter
has just become available, he said.
Capt. Rabalais said that since February of last year, his Task Force has
made 300 arrests.
Speakers from the audience, and
from the platform, differed on the facts
on whether crime was down, or increased.
Jones and Garcia argued that a
large number of arrests are being
made, indicating effective policing.
Citizens, including Jutta Mayfield of
Pig Supply, differed vehemently. She
noted that her business had been burglarized 3 times in the last year, with-
out arrests.
Carl Cooper and Calvin Hobbs
complained about known drug activities and derelict houses occupied by
non-tenants, in the Clear Lake and
San Jacinto Street neighborhoods, and
no police action on these. The Sheriff
said “tell us the details and we will act,”
so these two cited addresses of the
problem houses.
It has been announced by Mike
James that there will be a follow-up
meeting scheduled in the near future,
to further deal with these problems but
also to help neighbors set up the
Crime Watch programs near them.
It was noted that Crosby’s Newport
subdivision would also be having a
crime watch meeting in the near future.
This meeting will introduce the use of
Nextdoor.com, a social networking
program on the internet, as a means to
implement neighborhood crime watch
programs in an effective method. See
the article above on this page.
Interviews in the days after the
meeting with Highlands residents indicated to the Star-Courier that they
were not satisfied with the results of
this meeting, believing that authorities
did not listen and did not have the motivation to act to reduce crime.
Highlands Star-Courier
ATTENTION HCDO MEMBERS:
WE NEED YOUR STORIES!
We want to hear from you. The Harris County
Star is setting aside pages for you to let us
know what is going on in your workplace. We
will be looking for someone from every district,
every jail, and each Constable Precinct, along
with Baytown and the Port, to write a few lines.
You can let us know about major arrests,
benefits for fellow officers or send out an "Atta
-Boy" for one of your fellow deputies or
supervisors. Just make sure we hear from
you.
Send your articles to
[email protected] or you can contact
HCDO office at 713-659-0005 ext. 1
www.hcdo.com
Page 7
National News Beat
Dorner, one year later:
7 lessons learned
from a murderer
The next Chris Dorner may already
be out there plotting — what are you
doing to prepare?
By Lt. Dan Marcou,
PoliceOne.com
It’s been a year since Christopher
Dorner killed two police officers and
wounded three more. He also deliberately ambushed and killed the beloved
daughter of a retired police captain,
whose only offense was to serve as
counsel to Dorner.
Hard lessons can be (and should
be) learned from this terrible tragedy.
1.) Your Potential Adversaries
Are Training Hard and Often — Are
You?
Dorner had been highly trained in
the use of firearms and tactics during
his service in the United States Navy,
as well as during his brief tenure on
the Los Angeles Police Department.
He arrogantly predicted success in his
impending killing spree when he wrote,
“I know your TTP’s (Tactics, techniques and procedures.).”
Too many police officers are satisfied to train at entry level and then only
follow up on that training when their
department pays them to do so. Your
goal at training should not be to qualify
on the range, but to prepare to prevail
in the real world against threats like
Christopher Dorner.
Make an investment in your personal survival. Supplement your departmental training by training on your
own dime and on your own time.
2.) There is a Need for Courageous Supervision
A field training officer told Dorner in
advance that he would be receiving a
substandard performance evaluation
from the FTO. The evaluation identified
areas he needed to improve upon. Instead of look ing toward self improvement, Dorner filed a retaliatory
complaint against his field training officer.
The investigation triggered by
Dorner’s complaint revealed he had
lied about his field training officer in the
complaint, and this lie ultimately resulted in Dorner’s termination. The
investigation after Dorner’s appeal on
Page 8
his termination sustained his firing. An
independent investigation after
Dorner’s killing spree reaffirmed
Dorner’s firing.
Using 20/20 hindsight, a reasonable person would have to conclude
that Dorner’s killing spree sustained
the concerns of the field training officer.
The majority of officers in this profession honor the badge they are
wearing. There are a few who possess
a flawed character, and yet they manage to successfully navigate through a
maze of background checks and written, physical, and psychological tests
to infiltrate the profession of law enforcement.
The Dorner case shows that every
member of this profession needs to be
vigilant of those within our ranks who
would dishonor law enforcement. All
officers need to be aggressive caretakers of our shared professional honor.
All must have the courage and perseverance to come forward and identify
those among us that are unworthy of
the badge they are wearing, as did
Dorner’s courageous field training officer.
Proceed with caution in doing this,
however, for as we saw in the case of
Dorner, there exist a very few among
us who are wolves in sheepdogs’
clothing.
3.) Hate + Lack of Empathy =
Dangerous
Mass killers often have something
in common. They possess an unreasonable hate coupled with a lack of
empathy, which allows them to kill in
large numbers.
Hate is the motive in many a homicide and suicide. Learn to recognize
unreasonable hate as the major danger sign that it is, and use extreme
caution during any investigation of
someone who possesses such a hatred of a person or persons.
4.) Train for the Ambush
Most officers train for an anticipated
confrontation 180 degrees to their
front. Few mentally and physically prepare for the unexpected ambush from
the 360-degree world. Christopher
Dorner demonstrated that the tactic of
choice of the criminal who sets out to
kill police officers will probably be the
ambush.
Here are few general guidelines for
ambush survival:
1.) Strive to constantly scan and
process.
2.) Always be aware of the cover
availability in the environment you inhabit.
3.) Wear your vest no matter your
assignment.
4.) Train your sudden movement
skills. Have the ability to move laterally, forward, backward, up and down
quickly. Movement makes you a
harder target to hit.
5.) Train in quickly exiting your
squad.
6.) Train in exiting kill zones with
your squad.
7.) Train in quickly accessing and
firing all weapons systems.
8.) Train in self-treating wounds,
and carry a treatment option with you
at all times.
9.) Train in officer and citizen rescues as well as emergency care.
10.) Physically train. Strive to be in
better condition when you retire than
when you were hired.
11.) Believe that an ambush can
happen to you.
12.) I say it again: believe that an
ambush can happen to you!
5.) Look for and Believe “The
Manifesto”
When you are in the evidencegathering mode, remember to look for
the written evidence of homicidal intent. Even though that writing may take
a variety of forms, it often is documented by those who intend to kill in a
rambling “manifesto.” This was true in
the case of Christopher Dorner.
In Dorner’s manifesto, he not only
explained why he intended on killing
black, white, Asian and Hispanic police
officers, he also took the time to give a
shout-out to Charlie Sheen. He actually wrote, “Charlie Sheen. You’re effin
awesome.”
Manifestos have become a common road map through the twisted
minds of mass killers. Remember,
however, a map is more effective when
utilized before the journey starts, rather
than at its end. Lives can be saved by
finding the manifesto before the event
and, when you do, by proceeding as if
you believe it.
6.) Have a Tactical Option for the
www.hcdo.com
Barricaded Gunman
Every officer in the nation should
have the capability of calling out a fully
equipped tactical team, including negotiators, to deal with the barricaded gunman.
7.) Prepare, Prepare, Prepare!
Abraham Lincoln once said, “Give
me six hours to chop a tree and I will
spend the first four sharpening the
axe.”
Are you sharp enough to face the
likes of a Christopher Dorner?
Prepare, prepare, prepare!
It's Now A Federal
Crime For You to
Attend a Dog Fight
By Dain Fitzgerald,
Politix.Topix.com
In news that's slipped beneath the
radar but deserving of praise, it is now
illegal to attend a dog fight, cock fight,
or any other cruel pitting of beast
against beast in the United States. It
was of course already against the law
to host such "games." Opposing Views
reports on one important component of
the recently passed federal farm bill:
President Obama signed the Farm
Bill into law, [which] includes a provision making it a federal crime to attend
or bring a child under the age of 16 to
any animal fighting event.
U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (DWash.) is credited with successfully
working to pass this important legislation. It will also now be a federal crime
to be a spectator at an animal-fighting
event.
"Cantwell's legislation will fortify the
federal law and help law enforcement,
quash illegal dog fighting and cockfighting, and forbid adults from bringing
children to these spectacles of violence," said Mark Makarian of the Humane Society. "The spectator admission fees and gambling dollars finance
these criminal operations and make
dog fighting and cockfighting profitable."
Cantwell's been honored by the
Humane Society before. In 2012 she
received the organization's "Legislative
Leader" award for her work in helping
to protect endangered apes.
National News
"We thank Sen. Cantwell for her
outstanding work to ensure that our
federal laws reflect the core humane
values and attitudes of American society," said Makarian at the time.
Brotherly bond united
deputies in Dorner
manhunt
Ryan and Alex Collins are brothers
and San Bernardino County sheriff's
deputies; Alex was wounded by Dorner
By Tami Abdollah,
Associated Press
Alex Collins. Photo courtesy San
Bernardino Co. Sheriff's Department
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — Det.
Alex Collins was speeding down a
mountain road, closing in on ex-copturned-killer Christopher Dorner and
his phone was buzzing.
In rapid succession, his two brothers — also San Bernardino County
sheriff's deputies — called to warn the
baby of the family to be careful.
Dorner, a former Los Angeles policeman, vowed to kill as many officers as
possible to avenge his firing from the
department.
A few nights earlier, the brothers
discussed Dorner's chilling online
manifesto and the risk of encountering
him. "We had no delusions," Sgt. Ryan
Collins said. "It was not going to end
well for whatever deputy it was who
found him."
When Ryan heard a dispatch last
Feb. 12 that officers had been shot, he
frantically tried calling Alex again and
again. The phone was dead.
For the swarms of police who
hunted Dorner last year, the manhunt
was more than just a matter of public
safety — it was personal; he was targeting their brethren. For the Collins
brothers, however, it was even more
so.
Dorner, 33, was wanted in the Feb.
3 murder of the daughter of a retired
Los Angeles Police Department captain and her fiance in Orange County.
Dorner said the former captain had
poorly represented him before the discipline board that recommended his
firing.
In a rambling rant on Facebook,
Dorner, who was black, also complained about racism at the LAPD, and
vowed to unleash "unconventional and
asymmetrical warfare" against those
who wronged him and their families.
On Feb. 7, he opened fire on an
LAPD cruiser, grazing an officer sent
to guard one of his targets. Later, he
ambushed a Riverside patrol car, killing one officer and seriously wounding
another, police said. Then, he disappeared.
Ryan Collins, now 39, had briefed
officers in Big Bear Lake, in the snowy
San Bernardino Mountains east of Los
Angeles, to be on the lookout for
Dorner. It seemed trouble elsewhere
had a way of rippling into the ski resort
town.
Sure enough, hours later Collins
went to investigate a report of a car
fire, and discovered Dorner's smoldering pickup. Collins said he and another
deputy eyed each other, faces white as
ghosts. Dorner was on their mountain.
"We knew there was probably a
good chance we were in somebody's
crosshairs," he said.
As Ryan helped coordinate the
manhunt, Det. Matt Collins, now 37,
hiked through a snowstorm with other
SWAT members to search hundreds of
cabins looking for footsteps or anything
suspicious.
Their little brother, Alex, joined in
the search, too, coming back early
from leave after his wife, Lila, gave
birth to their first child, Benjamin, some
three weeks earlier.
Everyone figured it was only a matter of time before Dorner emerged.
The call came after noon on the
sixth day of the mountain search:
"We've been tied up by Dorner," a
woman told the 911 dispatcher. "He's
taken off with our Nissan Rogue."
Karen Reynolds and her husband
Jim had gone to check on the condo
they rent to guests and were surprised
by the hulking Dorner who bound,
blindfolded and gagged them.
Alex Collins and his partner Det.
Jeremy King followed a hunch he
would take the back road off the mountain. As they sped there, they got word
that Dorner had carjacked a white
pickup, had shot at game wardens and
was headed down a side road near
boarded-up summer cabins.
Matt was racing to the scene a few
minutes behind Alex while Ryan
helped the Reynoldses. Both brothers
called Alex, knowing he was nearest to
Dorner.
Be careful. Don't go in alone. Wait
for us, for SWAT, to get there.
"But that's Alex," Matt said, his
voice choked with emotion as he relived the conversation for the first time.
"He's a go-getter."
Dorner had ditched the pickup
down an embankment behind some
bushes and had broken into a nearby
cabin. His tire tracks seemed to just
disappear into the snow. Alex, armed
with a rifle, began sidestepping along
the road, thinking it was impossible for
a truck to just vanish.
Tink. Tink. Tink.
The sound of a silenced high-power
rifle was followed by a burning wallop
as a bullet entered his left nostril,
pierced the roof of his mouth, split his
tongue and burst through his jaw.
Shots to his chest and forearm
knocked the rifle from his hands. His
leg was hit.
Bullets skipped along the road as
he ducked behind an SUV's rear
wheel. He was showered by glass as
the back windows were blown out.
Starting to choke on blood and
teeth and in terrible pain, he tried to
call his wife to say he loved her and
was sorry; he didn't think he'd be coming home. He reached in his chest
pocket and found his phone shattered
by a bullet. He tossed it in disgust.
He thought he was going to die.
"OK, God, I'm ready," he thought as
he closed his eyes.
He remembered from the police
academy that he needed to muster the
will to survive. It was up to him.
Minutes later, Det. Jeremiah MacKay was fatally shot nearby.
"Two deputies down," the radio
blared. "Automatic fire inbound ...
deputies still down in the kill zone."
Matt Collins was drawn into the
chaotic firefight when he arrived. He
could see deputies on the ground a
couple dozen yards away, but couldn't
tell if one was his brother. He had a
bad feeling and tried to call Alex. It
went straight to voicemail.
Ryan Collins heard the dispatch,
and he started calling Alex. He called
at least 10 times.
As Ryan sped to the firefight, he got
a call from Matt.
"Is it Alex?" Ryan asked.
"I don't know, I don't know, but I
don't see him down here," Matt said.
Under a smoke screen as officers
fired at the cabin, two SWAT officers
dragged MacKay and Alex to safety.
King, who'd taken cover nearby to return fire, told Ryan by phone that his
brother was shot, but that Alex had
given the thumbs-up sign as he was
carried away.
Alex, now 27, spent a month in the
hospital, returning for roughly 20 surgeries, including multiple bone grafts.
He'd regain color, become more mobile, then undergo another surgery and
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Page 9
Snapshots
National News
A snap-shot is a unique phenomenon. It freezes in time what people
see at the moment. Sometimes snapshots capture good things, good
deeds, or excellent leadership. Sometimes snapshots capture ugliness,
retaliation, and bad management. These are the snapshots our members reported to us this month.
Snapshot #1
It took the administration a year to
decide where to move all their captains, and boy did they screw that up.
They told Captain Warren, a man who
has spent nearly his entire career in
Patrol and Traffic, he was returning to
Traffic. No problem, he would have
been an excellent choice there. But at
the last minute they realized he is 66
years old and sent him to IPC instead,
a place he has never worked. Some
folks think the administration is trying
to force him into retirement. That tactic
worked on Sergeant Gorby recently.
He retired rather than transfer to District 3. That tactic works on some people, too, but it did not work on Captain
Wrobleski or Radabaugh. Then they
sent Captain Coons to District 1. It
looks like they are done punishing him
for reporting his subordinate’s misconduct to IAD. And they sent Captain
Ricks to Traffic. Never mind he has
never worked in Traffic. Captain Coleman, who has worked Traffic, went to
District 4. The question of the day is
whether retaliatory transfers violate the
Sheriff’s own ethics rule. We believe it
does: “I will never act officiously or permit personal feelings, prejudices, animosities or friendships to influence my
decisions.” This obviously does not
apply to non-civil service administrators. We welcome and will print their
response.
Snapshot #2
Thinking about promoting? Take a
good look at snap-shot #1 and see if
you really want to be treated like a
chess pawn.
Snapshot #3
Kudos to the Sheriff for using seizure funds for new-hire training. Reopening our own training would be better, but this is better than nothing.
Snapshot #4
Lesson of the month: “While it
seems that change is slowly beginning
to occur, undoubtedly, it will not come
soon enough for some. Until that day,
Transgendered prisoners’ position behind bars, underneath the weight of so
much oppression, makes their everyday survival of a series of heroic acts,
a heroism that defines the transgender
movement.” (Source: LGBTI mandatory HCSO training) “Heroism?”
Really?
No murder charge for man
who fatally shot Texas deputy
Deputy was shot after entering a
home with other officers looking for
guns and marijuana
By Nomaan Merchant,
Associated Press
DALLAS — A Central Texas man
who shot and killed a sheriff's deputy
entering his home will not be charged
with capital murder, attorneys said.
A local grand jury declined to indict
Henry Goedrich Magee for the Dec.
19 death of Burleson County Sgt.
Adam Sowders, who was part of a
Page 10
group of investigators executing a
search warrant for Magee's rural
home.
Sowders and other officers entered
the home about 90 miles northwest of
Houston without knocking just before
6 a.m. Authorities were looking for
guns and marijuana.
Magee's attorney, Dick DeGuerin,
said his client thought he was being
burglarized, reached for a gun and
opened fire.
be back in a wheelchair, sallow with
dark circles around his eyes.
Several months after the shooting,
Alex took his wife and infant son to the
evergreen forest where he was shot
and where Dorner killed himself as the
cabin burned to the ground.
It wasn't an emotional visit. He
wasn't ready to relive the experience.
He pointed to where he lay on the
road, the place where he had tried to
call home as he thought he wouldn't
make it. The destroyed phone, doctors
told him, had saved his life.
He returned to full duty eight
months after the shooting. Today, he
has an almost indiscernible limp, a
slight heaviness to his speech when
he pronounces a hard "T'' sound, a
dimple-like scar near his nose, and
scars on his chest, forearm and leg.
Alex and his brothers still talk daily
and have dinner together with their
parents every Sunday. They don't discuss the shootout, but each says it's
always in the back of their minds.
"I couldn't even imagine if something happened to them," Alex said.
"And for them, they've been kind of
looking out for me my entire life. And
they still do."
TSA rejects arming
officers after LAX
shooting
The head of the TSA said his
agency has officially rejected arming
officers in response to a November
attack at LAX
LOS ANGELES — The head of the
Transportation Security Administration
said his agency has officially rejected
arming officers in response to a November attack at Los Angeles International Airport.
John Pistole made the comments
after a news conference to announce
the opening of a "pre-check" application site for expedited screening at
LAX.
TSA union officials have called for
creating armed officers from the
agency to ensure safety at screening
checkpoints. But Pistole said virtually
every issue is on the table except for
arming officers. Introducing more guns
is not the solution, he said.
J. David Cox Sr., national president
of the American Federation of Government Employees representing 45,000
TSA employees, expressed disappointment, calling Pistole's statement
www.hcdo.com
premature given ongoing investigations.
The agency is conducting a review
of the shooting that left one officer
dead. Authorities say Paul Ciancia
opened fire with an assault rifle in an
attack targeting the TSA that also
wounded two officers and a passenger.
The TSA review is separate from
an ongoing investigation into the
shooting.
Pistole said the agency's review will
focus on changes to improve communication between the TSA and local
law enforcement. It will also look at the
response time of airport police, the
placement and effectiveness of panic
alarms, and whether there are good
communication protocols and equipment in place for emergencies.
The Associated Press has reported
that as terrified travelers dived for
cover, TSA officers — who are unarmed — fled the screening area without hitting a panic button or using a
landline to call for help. Meanwhile, the
two armed airport police officers assigned to protect the terminal had left
for breaks minutes before the gunfire
and so were unaware of the shooting.
It took a call from an airline contractor to a police dispatcher, who then
alerted officers over the radio, nearly a
minute and a half after the shooting
first started.
Pistole praised the swift police response, which he said came within two
minutes of the radio call to officers.
Police officers then took the shooter
into custody within 2 1/2 minutes, he
said.
Pistole also said he wanted to
"make sure that the police are actively
engaged in terms of patrols, that they
are a visible show at and around
checkpoints." No final decisions have
been made on how working with LAX
police may be changed, he said.
LAX Executive Director Gina Marie
Lindsey said there have been some
adjustments to the airport's security,
but she would not comment further on
officer deployment.
More than 30 groups, including law
enforcement, airlines and airport operators, have met twice since the
shooting to discuss and provide recommendations, Pistole said. The review will be submitted to Congress
within 90 days. It's unclear if it will be
made public.
Associated Press
Researchers want ER docs to focus more on "excessive" force claims
By Force Science Institute
A newly published study that calls
for ER doctors to give more attention
to complaints from injured suspects
about “excessive force” and “police
brutality” has been published in a
prominent medical journal.
The authors, citing concerns by the
ACLU and the World Health Organization about unnecessarily violent police
behavior, argue that prisoners’ injuries
should be analyzed along guidelines
similar to those used to assess child
abuse and domestic violence, in an
effort to identify cases of unwarranted
use of force.
Critics with a law enforcement perspective, however, warn that what
seems like a reasonable and impartial
improvement in reporting protocol may,
in fact, lead to inappropriate judgment
calls that will harm officers and their
agencies.
Authors of the study are Jared
Strote, MD, associate professor in the
Division of Emergency Medicine at the
University of Washington Medical
School; Erik Verzemnieks, MD, with
the Emergency Medicine Dept. at
Johns Hopkins University Medical
School; and Mimi Walsh, PhD, a strategic advisor in the Office of the Chief
of Staff of the Seattle PD.
Their study, “Emergency Department Documentation of Alleged Excessive Use of Force,” with Strote as the
lead researcher, appears in the American Journal of Forensic Medicine &
Pathology. An abstract is accessible
free by clicking here. If you’re interested in the full study, it can be
downloaded for a fee there as well.
Training Vacuum
Strote, with various support teams,
has argued for years that ER physicians should play a more aggressive
role in pursuing and documenting allegations of police abuse. His studies
and editorials in medical journals have
been reported since 2009 by Force
Science News — along with sometimes fervent criticism of his research
methods and conclusions by use-offorce and emergency-care experts.
Strote points out that while
“patients’ complaints of excessive use
of force by police occur frequently in
emergency departments,” little if any
education or guidance is given to ER
physicians on how to document these
allegations. This, despite the fact that
doctors receive “extensive instruction”
related to evaluating and reporting
“other forms of potential abuse or as-
sault,” such as child abuse, elder
abuse, and domestic violence.
To determine a sampling of current
ER documentation of police-related
injuries, Strote and his team analyzed
a year’s worth of excessive force complaints made to emergency personnel
at the public hospital serving police
cases in one major U.S. city, Seattle.
Complainant Pool
Searching 12 months of police and
medical records, the researchers identified 187 individuals who were brought
to or came to an
emergency department within
24 hours after a
force encounter
with
Seattle
cops.
After
eliminating
those who were
unable or unwilling to provide a “history”
of their injuries
and those who
had
only
“psychiatric or
nontraumatic
medical
complaints,”
135
injured suspects were left.
The researchers then scoured police and medical records for one or
more of the following cues in these
patients’ descriptions of their force encounters: “ ‘assaulted,’ ‘beaten,’
‘excessive force,’ ‘police brutality,’ an
intent to pursue legal action, a complaint that the force used was inappropriate for the patient’s behavior, or reference to an action that is clearly not
within common use-of-force guidelines
(e.g., ‘strangulation’).”
In all, the team found a “patient
complaint of inappropriate force” recorded in only 13 medical charts,
roughly 10 percent of the final pool of
subjects.
Devil in the Details
The researchers found that important specifics were often missing in the
physicians’ documentation of the suspects’ complaints, while certain components that the team thought “should
be absent” were not.
“Notably,” Strote writes, “no charts
discussed” whether the doctor’s physical findings were consistent with the
subject’s version of events. Nearly 40
percent failed to give a “complete description” of how the injury occurred,
and more than 20 percent did not even
give a “complete description of the injury” itself. True to the doctor stereotype, over 1 in 5 written descriptions
was not entirely legible.
In reviewing police records, the researchers found 11 more subjects who
had complained of inappropriate force
but did not surface at all from medical
records. These subjects evidently either failed to beef about their treatment
in the ER, or attending doctors failed to
record it.
By contrast, certain elements that
the researchers
considered nonos were rife in
the
complainants’ charts. In
more than half,
Strote reports,
“subjective terminology (e.g.,
‘drunk’
rather
than ‘altered’)”
was
used.
Nearly 40 percent of the attending
physicians assigned
“guilt” to the
complaining patient, and nearly
54 percent accepted the “police description [of events] as fact” in their
documentation.
Physicians, Strote writes, “cannot
and should not assign guilt or innocence [to] the alleged offender.” Yet
“[p]atients brought in after law enforcement encounters are often altered and
frequently disruptive” and doctors may
“show intentional or unintentional bias
against this population.”
In s um m ar y, Strote writes ,
“documentation for patients complaining of EUOF [excessive use of force]
did not meet standards for other forms
of alleged or suspected assault or
abuse.” Yet ER reports “may be the
only objective evidence available in
alleged EUOF incidents...if a formal
complaint is later filed.”
He acknowledges that “legally defined excessive force is rare,” but it
“clearly does occur, and patients with
complaints...have been shown to have
injuries consistent with their complaints....”
However, there currently are “no
legal or professional guidelines on how
to document complaints of EUOF in
the emergency department.”
Corrective Suggestions
“Many authors have argued that
www.hcdo.com
incarcerated patients com prise
a...vulnerable population” similar to
abused and/or assaulted children,
spouses, and elders, for whom
“emergency physicians [can] play a
critically important role,” Strote writes.
“[S]imple educational interventions
can dramatically improve documentation in such cases,” he believes, citing
“a notable absence” of instruction on
“care for prisoners” in current medical
education.
He believes “it may be useful to
develop documentation guidelines
similar to those for other alleged abuse
presentations.” These would include
“complete and objective” descriptions
of injuries, “use [of] the patient’s own
words,” and an identification of
“potential inconsistencies.”
Drafting these guidelines, he advises, “should be undertaken jointly by
emergency medicine and law enforcement professional organizations to ensure consistent documentation that
objectively and accurately describes
histories and physical findings while
not assigning guilt or innocence or
other subjective judgments to either
patients or police officers.”
Police Concerns
Although Strote insists that better
documentation will help to “protect”
both the police and injured suspects,
some law enforcement sources express concern about where his crusade may be headed. Thorough description of a subject’s injuries and an
accurate recording of his or her story
may be a desirable goal, these
sources say, but their concern is that in
time this focus will morph into conclusions by physicians that injuries they
see equate with evidence of inappropriate force.
“Things will be far worse if the
rhetoric about better documentation
transitions to a hospital or legal mandate requiring medical personnel to
report suspected excessive use of
force, as has been the case with child
abuse, elder abuse, and domestic violence,” attorney Michael Brave, a UOF
instructor and litigator, told Force Science News.
“LEO force simply is not the same
as child abuse or domestic assault,
where injuries are not expected and
may in fact be revealing in and of
themselves. LEOs are entitled to use
force within appropriately applied legal
standards.
This includes a sniper bullet to the
Page 11
Excessive Force
Dispatchers
interaction with the troopers on the
road.
On the day of the Boston Marathon
bombings, Slater was getting ready to
leave for the day at the end of his shift.
When the incident broke, he rapidly
engaged. There was a call-out for explosive and bomb detection duties by
K-9, the Feds came in from Rhode
Island, and the Boston Police, the
State Police and the FBI set up a joint
command post at Logan Airport where
dispatchers were also needed. All
these efforts had to be coordinated
through his communications center.
“I had dispatchers everywhere. The
whole week seemed like one long
day,” Slater said.
Lasting Impact
Heather Hanson — a Communications Technician I for the Tampa Police Department — has worked there
since 2009. She has also served as a
trainer at the dispatch academy. In
2010 when two Tampa police officers
were killed in the line of duty, she
worked at the command post, obtaining tips from callers.
Page 12
“It made me feel good to do something connected to it — to feel we were
helping. It was crucial, I think,” Hanson
said. She explained it was the first
time that she had a genuine understanding of the thin blue line.
“It just blew my mind. Something
changed in me,” Hanson said. The
lasting impact on her was so profound
that she is now making a career transition. She has converted from a fulltime dispatcher to part-time to allow
her the opportunity to go through the
police academy to become a Tampa
police officer.
Many dispatchers associate with
colleagues in the field during their off
time and, consequently develop solid
friendships with police officers. The
camaraderie solidifies both the professional as well as the personal relationships they share. Dispatchers recognize their crucial role in serving as the
lifeline for officer safety specifically, as
well as public safety generally. In their
joint endeavors, dispatchers and law
enforcement officers serve as unsung
heroes in the public safety arena.
eye. When weapons are used, they
almost always cause injury whether
misused or not. And ER doctors are
rarely if ever present at the application
of force to see the context in which it is
provoked.
“When a medical doctor reports an
alleged EUOF, it often has an undeserved aura of authority. Since the
doctor has a medical degree, some
people, including some prosecutors,
judges, and juries take the doctor’s
statement as authoritative fact when,
in reality, it should not carry that
weight.
“I have deposed several ER docs in
the past couple of years who put a
statement of excessive force in the
medical records, prompting litigation to
commence, in part, based on that conclusion. At deposition so far, every
such doctor has completely backed off
of their statements. Part of the fun is
asking them to define EUOF. Another
fun part is asking them to relate the
‘facts’ of the incident.”
Dr. David McArdle, a SWAT doc
and emergency department physician
in Colorado, told Force Science News:
“There has been a great deal of discussion in our specialty concerning
complaints from patients about possible misconduct by the police. However, emergency physicians do not
know the circumstances surrounding
the use of force sufficiently to label any
injury as due to excessive force.
“In the heat of a trauma resuscitation, it has been shown that many physicians cannot even correctly identify a
gunshot exit wound from an entrance
wound. Much better forensic training is
needed.” (Although McArdle is chairman of the Physicians Section of the
International Assn. of Chiefs of Police,
he made clear that he was expressing
his personal views and not speaking
as a representative of the IACP or its
Physicians Section.)
FSI’s Position
At the Force Science Institute, executive director Dr. Bill Lewinski says:
“We encourage doctors to be thorough
in documenting UOF injuries. But their
scrutiny should not extend to forming
judgments about whether the force
used by police was excessive.
“In officer-involved shootings where
an offender is killed, we advise coroners and medical examiner, ‘Don’t
take the body off the table.’ That
means report what you find at autopsy
but don’t try to reconstruct what happened to determine whether the shooting was justified. The same applies
when an arrestee is being treated in
the ER.”
As a small but telling example of
how things can be distorted in the
“minefield” of medical interpretation,
Lewinski notes Strote’s characterizing
a suspect’s report of “strangulation” as
something “clearly not within common
use-of-force guidelines.” Lewinski
says: “What the patient describes as
‘strangulation’ may in fact have been
an entirely proper application of LVNR
[lateral vascular neck restraint], which
can be a trained and legitimate use of
force not at all outside of proper guidelines.
“Documentation of injuries, if it’s
accurate, objective, and thorough, may
in the long run help an officer by supporting his account of resistance,”
Lewinski says. “But doctors need to
resist stepping out of their domain of
expertise to pass judgment on an encounter they know nothing about firsthand.”
Interesting Factoid
In their study, the Strote group cites
a United States DOJ special report
from 2005 that found that among those
who experience force in police encounters, “83 percent consider it excessive.”
Prostitution Sting
forced labor, drug addiction and sometimes even illegal imprisonment,”
Sheriff Adrian Garcia said in a prepared statement. “Many of the reformed prostitutes who came through
the Harris County Jail tell us that working the streets led them to using illegal
drugs; others tell us they used illegal
drugs and turned to prostitution to fi-
www.hcdo.com
nance their illicit addictions.
“So stopping prostitution stops
other crimes and emancipates victims.
It also fights back against sex slavery
and other forms of human trafficking.”
The identities of the 61 suspect
arrested are not available at this time.
Houston Chronicle
Pay the IRS first!
Dear Dave,
My husband has his own business
installing windows. As a result, we now
have IRS and state tax debt. We’re
managing the payments, but where
should these debts be placed in the
debt snowball plan?
Olivia
Dear Olivia,
I don’t usually cheat on the smallest
to largest progression of the debt
snowball, but I’d recommend moving
these debts to the top of the list.
Both state and federal taxes come
with ridiculous penalties and interest
rates, and the authorities at either level
have virtually unlimited power at their
disposal to screw with your life if something bad happens. The IRS can actually take your money without suing
you. So, you don’t want to become a
blip on their radar screen by being late
with payments.
Get it cleaned up as quickly as possible, Olivia. You don’t want to mess
around with these guys!
—Dave
Check on the checking account
Dear Dave,
My husband died eight years ago,
and I never closed his bank accounts
that were opened when we lived in
another state. We lived in Florida before moving to Oregon. I didn’t probate
the estate, and he did not have a will.
I’m trying to work with the banks to get
this settled, but they’re giving me the
runaround. Do you have any advice?
Melinda
Dear Melinda,
The first thing you need to do is
contact an attorney who handles estate planning. If the accounts were
opened in Florida, but you both lived in
Oregon at the time of his death, technically the estate would be probated in
Oregon. That may be what has to happen. If so, a judge would appoint you
as executor. As executor, you can
close the accounts and disperse any
money to the rightful heir—which is
you.
Be prepared, though. It may take
somewhere between $250 and $500 in
attorney fees and court costs to make
this happen. If you’re lucky, you might
get a simple motion from the court that
would cost you next to nothing. But
find a good estate planning attorney
who knows Oregon law inside and out.
Estate laws and probate laws differ
from state to state, and Florida and
Oregon both have some weird laws in
these areas.
This probably seems like a lot of
trouble, but you have to remember the
banks are simply trying to protect
themselves and follow the law. Anyone
could walk in with a death certificate
(they’re public record), and claim to be
an heir. So, they have to have a court
document in order to avoid any potential liability.
I’m sorry for your loss, Melinda. I
know it still hurts after all this time, but
you need to address this as soon as
possible. I’m sure it’s what your husband would have wanted.
—Dave
Protect yourself
Dear Dave,
I’ve heard you say to never give
collectors access to your checking account. Does that include payments
with a debit card too?
Susan
Dear Susan,
Absolutely! If you’re doing something like scheduling utility payments to
come through your debit card or out of
your personal checking account, that’s
perfectly fine. But collectors are looking to get as much as they can on a
bad, late debt. Never, under any circumstances, give them electronic access to your account.
I’ve been doing financial counseling
for a long time now, and I’ve seen numerous situations where collectors
have taken more than the agreed-upon
amount from someone’s account once
they gained access. This sleazy move
left people without the money to pay
their rent, the electric bill or even groceries. In fairness, the collection business does have a few good people in
it, but it also has a high percentage of
people who are scum—especially on
the credit card side of collections.
Some of them will lie and even make
threats. It’s a huge problem.
There are other, much safer ways
to handle these kinds of situations.
Send a money order overnight or wire
the cash to them. You can also send a
cashier’s check. Some folks have even
used a pre-paid debit card that isn’t
attached to any of your accounts. This
isn’t my favorite way to handle things,
but it’s better than giving them the opportunity to clean you out and mess
you over!
—Dave
Diversification and risk
Dear Dave,
I’m a little worried about investing in
the market due to volatility. Are there
safer investments?
Matt
Dear Matt,
You’re right; the market is volatile.
It’s not a volatile as some things, but
you have to remember that anywhere
there’s money to be made—including
long-term investing—there are ups and
downs.
For instance, I like real estate. It’s
not as volatile as the stock market, but
there are no guarantees. We experienced that big dip over the last few
years, and it was probably one of largest dips ever in the real estate market,
except for the Great Depression.
Aside from real estate, I also like
mutual funds. When it comes to these,
one way to smooth out the volatility of
the market is through diversification.
That means you spread your money
around instead of investing in one or
two things. That’s how I handle my
mutual funds, and I recommend others
do the same. Spread your investments
across these four types of mutual
funds: growth, growth and income,
aggressive growth and international.
I can’t say it enough, Matt. There
are no guarantees when it comes to
long-term investing. But diversification
can help make the ride a little bit
smoother!
—Dave
What's so special about $1
million?
Dear Dave,
I’ve heard you say many times you
shouldn’t buy a brand-new car unless
you have a net worth of $1 million.
What’s so special about a million dollars?
Angela
Dear Angela,
In all honesty, there’s nothing par-
www.hcdo.com
ticularly special about a million dollars.
A brand-new car will lose about 60
percent of its value in the first four
years. So, if you’re going to turn a
$30,000 investment into $12,000,
you’ve got to have a bunch of money.
You’ve got to be in pretty great financial shape in order to absorb the blow.
If your entire net worth is $100,000,
and you put $30,000 of it into a vehicle
that will lose 60 percent of its value,
you’re just being financially and mathematically stupid. Your income is your
largest and most powerful wealthbuilding tool. If you’re buying things
that go the wrong way in terms of
value, you’re not gaining wealth; you’re
losing wealth.
There’s really nothing special about
$1 million. I could have said $2 million
or $900,000, but $1 million is easy to
remember. Plus, it’s nothing to sneeze
at in terms of an individual’s net worth.
When you lose a lot, and it’s a small
percentage of a lot, you don’t have to
worry so much. But when you lose a
lot and you didn’t have much to begin
with, that’s a recipe for financial disaster!
—Dave
Do fewer dumb things
Dear Dave,
My parents co-signed on government loans so I could go to college.
Would my forbearance or non-payment
affect their credit if I don’t pay?
Tiffany
Dear Tiffany,
Yes, it would. I’m not trying to lay a
guilt trip on you, kiddo, but you’ll be
trashing your mom and dad’s credit if
you don’t pay the bills on time. If they
co-signed for you, they’ll start getting
phone calls, too, if you don’t do the
right thing and pay back these loans.
The truth is, your mom and dad
shouldn’t have co-signed for you in the
first place. There’s only one reason
lenders want a co-signer, and that’s
because they’re afraid the person taking out the loan won’t be able to pay
back what’s owed.
My goal here isn’t to beat you up,
Tiffany. It’s to give you information that
you—and your parents—need in order
to make different, smarter decisions in
the future. We all do dumb things
sometimes. In the past, I did some
Page 13
TRAINING
Harris County
Sheriff’s
Academy
The Harris County Sheriff's Academy is certified by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Standards
and Education and abides by its rules.
Training certificates are provided to all
students who satisfactorily complete
Academy courses, and all training is
reported to TCLEOSE. Certain courses
require prerequisites (as indicated in
the course descriptions) which must be
met prior to acceptance for admission.
The Academy charges a nominal
fee for individuals sponsored by agencies not funded by Harris County:
Basic Law Enforcement - $550.00
Advanced Training Classes - $1.00
per contact hour with a minimum
charge of $10.00 per course
The fee must be paid on the first
day of class by cash, cashiers check,
agency check or money order made
payable to "HARRIS COUNTY". We
cannot accept personal checks.
Some courses taught by outside
vendors require an additional fee. This
fee applies to all students, and should
be paid according to the instructions
listed in the course description.
Available February Classes as of February 15, 2013. Please check Academy
website for updates:
Expandable Baton Re-Certification
(2 hours / 9 a.m. – 11 a.m.) – Thursday,
March 6, 2014. Class hours 8 hrs and less
will be $10.00 and classes above 8 hrs will
be $1.00 added to the $10.00 example 16
hour course is $16.00. We except cash or
agency check to pay for the class.
NCIC/TCIC For Less Than Full Access Operators (8 hours) – Friday, March
7, 2014. Class hours 8 hrs and less will be
$10.00 and classes above 8 hrs will be
$1.00 added to the $10.00 example 16
Integrity Centered Leadership (20
Page 14
Hours) – Monday – Wednesday, March
10-12, 2014. Class hours 8 hrs and less
Turbo-Charge Your Time for Increased Productivity & Satisfaction (8
hours) – Tuesday, March 11, 2014. Class
hours 8 hrs and less will be $10.00 and
classes above 8 hrs will be $1.00 added to
the $10.00 example 16 hour course is
$16.00. We except cash or agency check to
pay for the class.
Animal Law 101-From Pit Bulls to
Rabies (8 hours) – Tuesday, March 11,
2014. Class hours 8 hrs and less will be
Sexual Assault Family Violence Instructor’s Course (SAFVIC) (24 hours)
– Tuesday – Thursday, March 11-13,
2014. Class hours 8 hrs and less will be
Public Speaking for the FaintHearted (8 hours) – Wednesday, March
Cultural Diversity (8 hours) – Thursday, March 13, 2014. Class hours 8 hrs
and less will be $10.00 and classes above 8
hrs will be $1.00 added to the $10.00 example 16 hour course is $16.00. We except
cash or agency check to pay for the class.
Crisis Intervention Update (8 hours)
– Tuesday, March 18, 2014. Class hours 8
hrs and less will be $10.00 and classes
above 8 hrs will be $1.00 added to the
$10.00 example 16 hour course is $16.00.
We except cash or agency check to pay for
the class.
Law Enforcement & the Occult (24
hours) – Wednesday – Friday, March 19-
Basic Sign Language (40 hours) –
Monday – Friday, March 24-28, 2014.
Class hours 8 hrs and less will be $10.00
and classes above 8 hrs will be $1.00
added to the $10.00 example 16 hour
course is $16.00. We except cash or
2105-Investigation of Child Abuse
(24 hours) – Tuesday – Thursday, March
25-27, 2014. Class hours 8 hrs and less
Police Search & Recovery Diver
Course / Certification (44 hours) - Monday – Friday, May 12-16, 2014.
This is a TCOLE recognized certification course for Underwater Recovery –
Persons. The course is 44 hours. The classroom portion is the first two days and will
be held at the Harris County Sheriff’s
Academy. Days 3 thru 5 are held off-site.
The off-site location will be given to the
students during the classroom portion.
Location:
2316 Atascocita Rd.
Cost:
$65 if funded by Harris County; $109
all others
Course requirements: The student must
hold a nationally recognized diver certification, advanced diver or higher level
(NAUI, YMCA, PADI, SSI, or NASDS).
A dive Logbook must be provided showing minimum of 25 open water dives, 12
of which were made in the last 12 months
(minimum of 5 of the 25 dives in low visibility water or at night). A current Physical
Exam for Diving from a Medical Doctor
within past 12 months. The student must
be Commissioned Peace Officer (Regular
or Reserve) sponsored by a Law Enforcement Agency (EMT’s and/or firefighting
personnel also will be accepted with a letter on department letterhead from their
supervisor authorizing their participation).
Students not holding a peace officer commission must have set of finger prints on
file and clear criminal history (CCH). Preferred but not required registered CPR and
Multimedia First Aid Technician.
Need Extra Cash?
HCDO members can earn big commissions by
selling or referring advertisers to the Harris
County Star. Any business that wants to have
Harris County Deputies as customers would
love to advertise in The Star so it is as easy as
asking them. You can earn hundreds of
dollars a month, every month, and help your
union out at the same time. Call us for more
information or visit the HCDO website at
www.hcdo.com
Phone: 713-659-0005 Fax: 713-750-0070
www.hcdo.com
Dave Says
What to do if you are involved in a
shooting or any other critical
incident
1. Call for medical assistance for yourself, other
deputies/officers, other citizens and even the
suspect if necessary.
2. Call the H.C.D.O. Emergency Assistance number,
713-659-0017 ext. 2. Stay on the line and you will be
connected directly to an attorney.
3. Speak to NO ONE until the attorney arrives at the
scene, usually only 20-30 minutes.
4. Relax, you joined the H.C.D.O. You’re in great
hands and you are protected by a force of
thousands.
5. The H.C.D.O. attorney(s) will assist our members
in giving any statements and in preparation for any
“walk through” at the scene.
6. The attorneys will accompany the member to the
appropriate investigating agency where a sworn
affidavit will be prepared pertaining to the events
giving rise to the shooting.
7. The H.C.D.O. attorney(s) will accompany the
member at their Grand Jury appearance.
Murder Charge
DeGuerin has acknowledged his
client had a small number of marijuana
plants and seedlings, as well as guns
he owned legally. The grand jury did
indict Magee for possession of marijuana while in possession of a deadly
weapon, a third-degree felony.
"This was a terrible tragedy that a
deputy sheriff was killed, but Hank
Magee believed that he and his pregnant girlfriend were being robbed,"
DeGuerin said in an interview.
"He did what a lot of people would
have done," DeGuerin added. "He defended himself and his girlfriend and
his home."
The longtime defense attorney said
he could not immediately remember
another example of a Texas grand jury
declining to indict a defendant in the
death of a law enforcement officer.
Julie Renken, the district attorney
really dumb things with very large
numbers attached. The goal is to grow,
learn, and try to use what we learn in
order to do fewer dumb things in the
future.
—Dave
Where to save?
Dear Dave,
I’m 26, and I just started a new job
making $50,000. I’ve also been offered
a 401(k) with no match. Should I put
money into the 401(k) or open a highyield CD?
Crystal
Dear Crystal,
I’ve got another idea. I’d open a
Roth IRA with good growth stock mutual funds inside and fund it up to
$5,500 a year. Make sure these mutual
funds have been open at least five
years—preferably 10 years or more—
and have performed well. Mathematically, this investment, growing tax-free,
will be superior to a non-matching 401
(k).
Then, if you want to invest more
than $5,500, you could put some additional money into the 401(k) offered by
your company. Again, make sure
you’re invested in good growth stock
mutual funds with long, successful
track records.
Congratulations, Crystal. And good
luck!
—Dave
Getting them to stop
for Burleson County, said in a statement she thought the sheriff's office
acted correctly during events that
"occurred in a matter of seconds
amongst chaos."
"I believe the evidence also shows
that an announcement was made,"
Renken said. "However, there is not
enough evidence that Mr. Magee knew
that day that Peace Officers were entering his home."
Magee is still in custody in
neighboring Washington County, but
should be soon released on bond
since he only faces a marijuana possession charge, DeGuerin said.
Renken said her office would "fully
prosecute" that case.
The 31-year-old Sowders was a
native of Somerville who had recently
been promoted to a sergeantinvestigator position.
Dear Dave,
How can I get credit card companies to stop sending us preapproved
offers? My wife continues to sign up for
these, and now we have $40,000 in
credit card debt.
Dan
Dear Dan,
Chances are you’ll never get credit
card companies to stop sending stuff,
but there a few things you can do that
might help slow things down. Access
your credit bureau report, and opt out
of marketing offers. You can also
freeze your credit report, and send
direct requests to the credit card companies to take you off their mailing
lists.
I’ve been telling people not to use
credit cards for 20 years and, believe it
or not, even I get offers in the mail.
The more mailing lists you get on, the
more your mailbox will fill up with junk
mail. If you have magazine subscrip-
www.hcdo.com
tions and things like that, your contact
information is circulating all over the
place.
The next thing I’m going to say may
sound cruel, but I really don’t mean it
that way. You don’t have a junk mail
problem, Dan. You have a relationship
problem. You two are not on the same
page about money. Either she doesn’t
feel like you two have enough money,
and she’s resorting to credit cards for
this reason, or she does this because
she’s a spoiled brat who thinks she
should always have what she wants
when she wants it. Her behavior is destroying your financial lives and driving
a wedge between you.
My advice would be to sit down and
have a gentle, loving talk with her
about all this. Try to find out why she
feels the need to have all these credit
cards, and explain that you’re worried
about what it’s doing to your marriage
and your finances. That may mean
having to spend some time with a marriage counselor, but that’s okay, too.
There’s no reason to be ashamed of
something like that. The truth is, most
of us who have been married more
than 20 minutes could use a little help
in that area of our lives!
—Dave
Balance transfers don't do
much
Dear Dave,
I’m trying to pay off my credit card
and get out of debt. Do you think I
should transfer the balance to one with
a lower interest rate while I do this?
Kelsey
Dear Kelsey,
I’m not against this idea, as long as
you understand that you’re not really
accomplishing much. All you’re doing
is moving money around, and maybe
saving a tiny bit on interest. If you were
planning on keeping the debt around
for 30 years it would become a big
deal. But if you’re talking about a few
months, just until you get it paid off, it’s
not that much money.
The problem with balance transfers
is that you feel like you took a big step
forward when you really didn’t. Lots of
times this causes people to lose focus
on other things they can do to get out
of debt, like picking up an extra job or
selling a bunch a crap they don’t want
or need. That kind of stuff, along with
living on rice and beans and a strict
written budget, is 98 percent of the
battle when it comes to getting out of
debt!
—Dave
Page 15
River Oaks
Chrysler Jeep
Dodge
Call Capt. Alan Helfman
713-524-3801
Captain Alan Helfman
Page 16
www.riveroakscars.com
www.hcdo.com

March 2014 - Harris County Deputies` Organization

Transcription

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