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The
BLUES
Police Newspaper
“Guardian of the Badge and Keeper of the Pride”
Vol. 33, No. 2 * February 2015
“Justice will only be achieved when those who are not injured by crime feel as indignant as those who are”
King Solomon, 10th century B.C.
Police gun deaths up, still below average
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number
of law enforcement officers killed by
firearms jumped by 56 percent this year
and included 15 ambush deaths. But gunrelated police deaths still remain far below historic highs and lower than the
average annual figures in the past decade,
according to a report released Tuesday.
The annual report by the nonprofit
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund found that 50 officers were
killed by guns this year. That's higher
than the 32 such deaths last year but the
same as 2012 figures.
In 2011, 73 officers were killed in
gunfire, the most in any year in the past
decade. The average since 2004 is 55
police deaths annually.
In all, the report found that 126 federal, local, tribal and territorial officers
were killed in the line of duty in 2014.
That's a 24 percent jump from last year's
102 on-duty deaths, though below the
average annual figures since 2004 and the
all-time high of 156 in 1973, said Steve
Groeninger, a spokesman for the memorial fund.
Of the 126 officer deaths this year,
shootings were the leading cause, followed by traffic-related fatalities, at 49.
This year's increase in gun-related
deaths among officers followed a dramatic dip in 2013, when the figure fell to
levels not seen since the 19th century.
This year's uptick comes amid increased tension between police and the
public following the high-profile deaths
of unarmed black men by white police
officers, including those of Eric Garner in
New York and Mike Brown in Ferguson,
Missouri.
The states that saw the most officer
deaths were California, at 14; Texas, at
11; and New York, at nine. Florida followed with six deaths, and Georgia had
five, according to the report.
The 15 ambush assaults on police
officers this year compares to just five in
2013, but matched 2012 for the highest
total since 1995, the report said.
"We've been talking about this well
before the Michael Brown and Eric Garner incidents, and the protests over those
particular cases — that there has been a
very prevalent anti-government sentiment
in this country for some time now, and I
do believe that anti-government sentiment can influence weak-minded individuals to commit violent acts against law
-enforcement officers," said Craig Floyd,
chairman and CEO of the memorial fund.
"That's at least part of the reason
we're seeing this increase in ambush-style
attacks, officers being targeted simply
because they're cops in uniform," Floyd
said.
Among the ambush assaults were the
fatal attacks on two police officers in
New York City on Dec. 20. Officers
Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos were
gunned down in their patrol car by Ismaaiyl Brinsley, who then ran into a subway station and killed himself. Brinsley
had made threatening posts online and
references to the Garner and Brown
cases.
Floyd also pointed to the fatal shooting of two Las Vegas police officers ambushed in June as they were eating lunch
in a pizza shop, and a Pennsylvania state
trooper killed in an ambush in September
by a survivalist who then led police on a
48-day manhunt.
In this May 13, 2013 file photo, a rose is placed at the wall with the names of fallen
police officers at the National Law Enforcement Memorial in Washington during
National Police Week.
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Page 2
The BLUES Newspaper
Law enforcement wary of bill forcing recorded police interrogations
A renewed effort to require police to
record interrogations of people suspected
of serious crimes in Texas has some law
enforcement leaders again wary that it
will impede investigations.
But amid this year’s protests over the
killings of unarmed black men in Ferguson, Mo., and New York, others wonder
if heightened scrutiny of officers across
the country will give the legislation new
momentum.
“It’s clear there’s general distrust of
police administrators, of police officers
themselves,” said Wayne Vincent, president of the Austin Police Association.
“There’s a general push towards transparency.”
A bill filed in November by state Sen.
Rodney Ellis, a Democrat from Houston,
would generally require law enforcement
agencies to record interrogations of people accused of murder, kidnapping and
sexual assault, among other offenses.
Ellis said the legislation benefits both
defendants and police by preventing and
identifying false confessions and protecting officers from false accusations of
abuse.
“Officers would no longer have to
worry about suspects falsely alleging that
they were beaten or their confessions
were coerced,” Ellis said in an email.
“Recordings create a record of statements
made by the suspect, making it difficult
for a defendant to change the account of
events originally provided to law enforcement. Plus, it’d make good convictions
stick by removing any doubt of what the
accused said.”
The bill would make a suspect’s statements as a result of an interrogation inadmissible in court if the interrogation is
not recorded, with some exceptions.
Under the legislation, an unrecorded
statement would be admissible if an attorney introducing it could show a good
reason for the lack of a recording. That
includes:
If the accused would not answer questions or cooperate during a recorded interrogation, and police document that
refusal with a recording or in writing if
the suspect won’t allow his refusal to be
recorded.
If police tried to record the interrogation, but the equipment didn’t work.
If “exigent public safety concerns”
prevented police from recording the interrogation.
Vincent said the exceptions appear to
address the Austin police union’s biggest
fears, such as excluding a confession as
evidence because a recording device malfunctioned.
But the mandate still worries Kevin
Lawrence, executive director of the Texas
Municipal Police Association.
Lawrence said the association supports recording interrogations but is trou-
bled by the word “shall” in the bill, preferring instead that the proposed law direct officers to “make every effort to”
record interrogations.
“A serial killer or some child molester
could go free by some technicality that
was not intended by the statute,” Lawrence said.
Shannon Edmonds, director of governmental relations at the Texas District
and County Attorneys Association, said
most prosecutors think recording interrogations is the best practice when possible
but are concerned about what happens
when a truthful confession is not recorded.
“Multiple bills have been filed in the
past — and will be again this session —
to mandate the recording of interrogations, but few (if any) of them have adequately addressed prosecutors’ fear that
an otherwise valid, truthful confession to
(Continued on page 3)
The BLUES Newspaper
Page 3
The
BLUES
5230 Woodleaf Dr.
the
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by
THE STAFF
Sgt. Buddy Williams
For the new guys...
I would like to
chat with the
younger officers
this month. If
you have been
wearing a badge
for more than a
couple
years,
you can listen
in, but try not to interrupt. I’ll get to you
next month.
Okay, now that we’ve got those old
heads out of the room, how do you like
the job so far? Has it been exciting?
Boring? Scary? Discipline unfair?
Anyone scrutinizing your every move
too closely? Does shift work suck? Are
you still proud to wear the uniform?
Have you committed a crime?
If you answered all those questions
with a ‘yes’, you are not only a typical
young officer, but an truthful one too.
And you will probably do well in this
job.
But, you say, you answered ‘no’ to
that last question about committing a
crime? If you did, then I take back what
I said about you being honest.
As a law enforcement professional, I
assume you know the laws…ALL of
them. And breaking any one of them
means you have ‘committed a crime’.
Hopefully the ones you broke are little
ones, like exceeding the speed limit
when not running hot, or some other
traffic violation. After all, you charge
people with committing THOSE crimes
every day don’t you? Are maybe you
committed the crime of perjury by answering a question on the witness stand
that you are sure is true, but actually
shouldn’t testify to. Like did you see the
suspect’s light was red or did you as-
Cumming, GA 30040
sume it was red because the other one
was green.
Or maybe you told the D.A. that the
witness positively picked out the suspect
from a photo array, when in reality the
witness was only ‘pretty sure’.
Doing the honest, honorable and
completely legal thing each and every
time is virtually impossible for each of
us. Trying to always do that is what
separates the good cop from the bad one.
Let me give you a little example.
One day, a teenager asked his father
for permission to go see an R-rated
movie. The father had always prohibited
his son from seeing movies with objectionable content, but the teenager had
prepared his argument. The son told his
father that he had surveyed his friends
who had seen the movie and was assured
it contained on three instances of profanity, two violent scenes and one scene of
sexual content. The movie starred popular actors and was projected to win several Academy Awards. His school counselor and said the movie was “not that
bad”, and that by seeing the movie he
could better interact with his peers and
be able to discuss the pros and cons of
the objectionable material.
The father told his son he would consider his request and let him know later.
The next day the father called his son
into the kitchen and presented him with
a platter of brownies.
“I have decided to allow you to go
see that R-rated movie, but only if you
will let me serve you one of these
brownies I baked for you. They are
made of the finest chocolate and pecans.
I used a world class recipe from a famous Swiss bakery. They are covered in
an imported chocolate sauce, and most
importantly, were made by the loving
(Continued on page 7)
Sgt. Buddy Williams, HPD, Ret……..Contributor
Shaun Harpstrite ............. …………….Publisher
Deputy Bill Wolfe, Llano SO…………..Chaplain
Atty. Gen. Greg Abbott…………AG contributor
E-Mail: [email protected]
Visit our website at
Police Newspaper
Office 1-936-827-4828
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INTERROGATIONS
(Continued from page 2)
a serious crime would be excluded from
trial because of a failure to comply with
the recording requirement,” Edmonds
said in an email.
A spokesman for the Combined Law
Enforcement Associations of Texas,
which opposed a similar bill during the
last legislative session, said the union
doesn’t have a position on this year’s
proposal.
“As we watch this bill go through the
process, we’re going to be really mindful
to protect work done by police officers,”
CLEAT spokesman John Moritz said.
“We wouldn’t want anything to happen
that would serve to undermine the work
that they do to solve crimes and to prosecute offenders.”
State law currently requires police to
record oral confessions, but it does not
direct law enforcement agencies to also
record the interrogation of a suspect lead-
ing up to that confession. Twenty-one
states have such laws, according to the
Innocence Project.
George Dix, a criminal law professor
at the University of Texas, said he didn’t
know how prevalent the recording of
interrogations already is across the state
but speculated that it has become common.
The Austin Police Department, for
example, requires officers to make audio
and/or video recordings of interviews and
interrogations whenever possible.
A spokeswoman for the department
said officials were reviewing the proposed bill and were unable to comment.
But Vincent said Ellis’ bill largely
mirrors what Austin officers do today.
“I would think most reasonable people would want interrogations on audio
anyway,” he said when asked if the legislation has a better chance of passing in
the upcoming session. “I’d be surprised if
there wasn’t a real push to get this
through.”
Austin American Statesman
The BLUES Newspaper
Page 4
Midland Police: Murder-suicide occurs at Texas officer's home
A murder-suicide involving a Midland police officer rattled a north Midland
neighborhood last month.
Midland Police Department Chief
Price Robinson confirmed a male officer
was found dead in his home in the 400
block of Crenshaw Drive near Lamesa
Road. A woman suffering life-threatening
gunshot injuries died at the hospital, Robinson said at the scene.
Authorities didn’t officially release
any names as of presstime, but a neighbor
confirmed the house belonged to Midland
Police Department officer Chad Simpson.
Midland Central Appraisal District records confirm a house in the 400 block of
Crenshaw Drive belongs to Chad D.
Simpson.
Jerry Gonzales, who has lived in his
home on Crenshaw Drive for the past 15
years, told the Reporter-Telegram that
Simpson lived in the home with his wife
and two young children. The family was
regularly seen walking around the
neighborhood with their dogs, he said,
noting Simpson had lived there for about
five years.
Gonzales said a handful of police cars
responded to Simpson’s home and he saw
two kids were escorted immediately out
to a police vehicle.
Gonzales never expected something
like this to happen in the neighborhood
that is home to several police officers, he
said. He could not recall any other incidents to happen in the neighborhood for
the 15 years he has lived in it.
“There’s really nothing that goes on
here,” Gonzales said. “He (Simpson) is
always the one that’s protecting our
streets because he’s always patrolling it.
This is shocking.”
Police cars with their lights flashing
blocked off streets while onlookers
stayed in the southwest corner of
Crenshaw Drive and Trevino Street.
Multiple agencies, including the
Texas Rangers and Odessa Police Department crime scene unit, assisted in the
investigation, Robinson said in a statement.
He declined to answer further questions and didn’t offer additional details on
the murder-suicide as of presstime. Sara
Bustilloz, city public information officer,
said more information will be released
once next of kin has been notified.
“A lot of questions need to be answered, but we’re still conducting the
investigation,” a teary-eyed Robinson
said. “This is a very tough time for us and
the employees, but we’ll get through.”
In April, a Midland firefighter died
following a shooting that led to a fivehour-long armed standoff and suicide in
south Midland, according to a previous
Reporter-Telegram report.
Public safety officials had found
Henry “Trey” Rodriquez III, 35, with life
-threatening gunshot wounds when they
arrived at a residence in the 2200 block of
South Baird Street. He was transported to
Midland Memorial Hospital, where he
died shortly after.
The armed suspect, Nestor Castro Jr.,
35, barricaded himself in the house. Police officers later found Castro’s body
inside the home.
Back on Crenshaw Drive, police were
still investigating well after media and
neighbors dispersed at 10 p.m. By that
point, a police vehicle and another vehicle were towed out of the Simpson home
driveway, and German shepherds that
neighbors say are the Simpsons’ kept
barking through the night.
“I think this was crazy,” said Crystal
Alexander, one of the final onlookers.
mysanantonio.com
The BLUES Newspaper
Page 5
ABBOTT CALLS BODY CAMERAS ON
POLICE A 'STEP IN RIGHT DIRECTION'
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Texas Gov.-elect Greg Abbott, left, speaks as Rep. Royce West listens during a
roundtable discussion with local lawmakers at the Arlington Chamber of
Commerce in Arlington, Texas on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2014. (AP Photo)
Idealism still prevails
among police recruits
Gov.-elect Greg Abbott called the
equipping of police officers with body
cameras as a "step in the right direction,"
but said more needed to be done to improve relationships between law enforcement and the communities they serve.
Following a meeting with 25 Houston
-area lawmakers, Abbott told reporters
that the technology, which Houston and
Harris County lawmen soon will wear on
patrol, could reduce the potential for civil
unrest.
"We've seen the aftermath of Ferguson," Abbott said. "I don't want anything
like that to happen in the state of Texas."
Calls to equip police officers with
body cameras have reverberated around
the country in the wake of a muchpublicized shooting of an unarmed black
teen by a police officer in Missouri.
The next Republican governor compared the devices to dashboard cameras
installed in police cars. The body cameras
alone, however, would not resolve the
lack of trust that some have in law enforcement, he added.
Last month, Harris County Commissioners Court formally approved $1.9
million to equip some Houston police
officers and Harris County sheriff's deputies with the device.
Commissioners are looking into funding them for some constables' deputies, as
INDIANAPOLIS — Robert Chamberlain served in the Army's 101st Airborne Division — even doing a tour in
Afghanistan — before deciding to trade
in the life of a soldier for a more stable
existence in Indianapolis, as a police officer.
Brittany Waltz graduated from high
school, started college and became a
mother — twice — before following a
path to which her high school softball
coach introduced her: the life of a cop.
And Gerson Cardona, a former chaplain and Bible college instructor who was
born in Guatemala, found a new calling
in policing, where he hopes his most
powerful weapon will be an ability to
love his neighbors.
Amid multiple national controversies
over police tactics, brutality and racial
profiling — a combination that only inflamed distrust of law enforcement, particularly among racial minorities — the
threesome entered the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department training
academy last fall.
Now they are progressing toward
graduation this year into a department
flush with applicants. This training class
is expected to produce 80 graduates, and
115 are expected to enter training sometime in 2015. That second grouping — of
115 — is an expansion of the recruiting
well.
Abbott spoke to reporters after an
hour-long discussion with Democratic
and Republican legislators from Harris
County and nearby areas.
Abbott, who lived in Houston for 12
years, privately offered a preview of his
agenda and then opened the floor to lawmakers who offered their thoughts on
issues ranging from storm protection to
property tax relief.
Sen. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood,
described the private meeting as
"conciliatory."
"We have real differences in opinion,
but we tend to have healthier debates," he
said afterward. Abbott also expressed
confidence that the steep fall in the price
of oil would not profoundly effect the
Texas economy.
He told reporters the state could handle a decline because of the state's budget
surplus and increasing diversification of
the economy.
"This is not the first time the price of
oil has dropped," he said. "We have all
lived through the price of oil going down,
going up, going down, going up, and
every single time Texas has risen higher
than it's ever been before."
Abbott took office Jan. 20.
Ft. Worth Star Telegram
class city officials announced Thursday,
made possible by a new public safety tax
and efficiencies from the public safety
budget.
The eventual graduation of the trainees comes as an aging police force is expected to shed hundreds of officers to
retirement in the next 10 years and as gun
violence remains a matter of grave concern in the city. To keep up, IMPD will
need to spend more than $10 million annually to recruit and train replacements.
Despite the challenges on the streets
— and the skepticism in some segments
of the community about police — the
new trainees say they are eager to take
their place on the force and to build
bridges with a public whose trust in them
won't be universal.
"Hopefully I can get through to the
communities to start young and let them
know at a young age that police aren't
bad, they are actually here to help, not
just lock you up," said Chamberlain, the
soldier-turned-trainee, who is black.
Chamberlain, 34, sat through a training session Thursday afternoon with instruction on the importance of wearing a
bulletproof vest, seat belts in the patrol
car and the deadly perils of being complacent during roadside stops or while
directing traffic. In a few cases, the train(Continued on page 7)
Page 6
The BLUES Newspaper
Chaplain’s Corner
By Chaplain Bill Wolfe
Llano County Sheriff’s Dept.
Giving
Thanks
for No
Elisabeth G. Wolfe, PhD
Hi and welcome to the February edition of the Chaplain’s Corner. This will
be sort of a “daddy-daughter” column and
a little longer this time. As I was trying
to find something to share, I visited Elisabeth’s blog
(https://egwolfephd.wordpress.com/)
to find her next speaking engagement and
I found this entry. Now granted, she’s
writing from her heart and from life experience and not from a police perspective, but I thought that someone might
need to hear what she had to say. I asked
if I could use it, and she said, “Steal
away!” So, here ya go:
****
Axiom: God always answers our
prayers.
Corollary: His answer usually falls
into one of three categories: “Yes,” “No,”
or “Wait.”
The corollary vastly oversimplifies
matters, I find; for example, it doesn’t
take into account the way He answers
questions or the fact that “Yes” doesn’t
always look like we think it should, such
as a request for healing being answered
by His taking the person Home, which is
the ultimate deliverance from bodily
woes. But it’s still a useful corollary as
far as it goes because it reminds us to
accept the answers we may not want to
hear.
That’s my chief quibble with the
Garth Brooks song “Unanswered
Prayers.” The speaker’s prayer was answered, but he hadn’t wanted to hear the
“No” he received. However, the larger
point of the song–that we should be
thankful for the times God doesn’t give
us what we want because He knows
they’re not what we need–is a very good
one.
I sat in a mentor’s office one grey day
early in the semester, looking for advice.
He was teaching a class I really wanted to
take, but to do so in addition to the
classes I was already registered for would
mean taking an overload, and I didn’t
know whether to attempt that or drop one
of the other classes or just what.
He knew, however, that the previous
semester had been extremely hard on me
physically and emotionally. Christmas
had helped, but I still had a lot of healing
to do. So he explained what the workload
in his class would be like and told me
gently that I wasn’t well enough yet to
keep up with it all. The other classes
would be better for me.
I nodded, disappointed and relieved at
the same time. “Thank you for telling me
no,” I said.
Years later, I interviewed via Skype
for an editorial position at an academic
press on the East Coast. It sounded like a
cool job, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to
move.
“I don’t know what I want, Lord,” I
confessed in my prayers. “What do You
want?”
“I want you to trust Me,” He replied.
“Okay,” I said. “If You don’t want me to
take this job, don’t let them call me for a
second interview.”
I received a rejection letter by the end
of the week and thanked Him for the answer.
The following summer, I interviewed
for a position at a state college in the
hope of being able to teach the kinds of
courses I’m teaching now for BCF
(Baptist College of Florida), online. What
the state college offered me instead, basically for peanuts, were three on-campus
sections of the single hardest course in
any English department. I had one day to
decide.
I didn’t want the job. I felt exhausted
just thinking about it. But I hadn’t had
any work coming in all summer and had
no truly promising prospects on my radar,
and I didn’t know whether my hesitation
was from God or a result of my own fears
of burning out.
(Continued on page 7)
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Art Acevedo, other police
chiefs, support Obama’s
immigration action
Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo and
other police chiefs and sheriffs around the
country filed a brief in federal court Monday supporting President Barack
Obama’s executive order on immigration,
which could shield as many as five million unauthorized immigrants from deportation.
Texas is leading a 17-state coalition in
a lawsuit against Obama over new immigration policies he announced in November.
Gov. Greg Abbott, who filed the lawsuit last month as the state’s attorney general, said then that the president’s policies
would lead to a rush of new border crossings.
The new deferred action program
would benefit parents of U.S. citizens or
permanent residents who have been in the
country for more than five years.
Obama’s executive order will also allow
millions of unauthorized immigrants in
the country to work despite their nonlegal status.
In Texas, about half a million peo-
ple will be able to apply for temporary
relief from deportation.
The brief filed by Acevedo, the Major
Cities Chiefs Association and several
Texas sheriffs, argues that stopping
Obama’s action would harm local enforcement agencies while the new policies would improve public safety.
Law enforcement officers cannot effectively police and protect a community
without cooperation from the people who
live there, the brief says, and people who
fear deportation might avoid interacting
with officers so as to avoid any scrutiny
of their immigration status.
“A domestic violence victim who
doesn’t have legal status may not call
police for fear that she or her abuser will
be deported,” according to the brief. “An
avoidance of law enforcement makes
immigrants especially vulnerable to all
types of crime and civil violations…
Criminals are known to target immigrants
because their reluctance to report crimes
is well-known.”
Austin American Statesman
The BLUES Newspaper
IDEALISM
(Continued from page 5)
ing included lessons from the fatal encounters of other officers.
At home, he has four children. And
the session was a reminder of the sacrifices officers make. But Chamberlain
knows, from Afghanistan, what it means
to work in dangerous situations. "This is
something bigger than myself," he said.
Waltz, 23, was the only female trainee
in a room of roughly 26 trainees. She said
she's a different kind of minority but
hopes that enables her to empathize with
other minorities. The training has included visits from various members of
minority communities who have explained the resentment that's sometimes
out there.
"We've talked about that it's not so
much about us personally but it is the
uniform and what we represent as a
whole," Waltz said.
She's training to be a cop because she
wants to give back to the community she
grew up in, on the Southside. The grim
lessons from the sessions have been
"sobering" but helpful in understanding
the importance of being aware of one's
surroundings. They also have given her
an appreciation for her classmates and the
officers already on the streets.
"I think it takes a special kind of per-
Page 7
son to wake up and put the uniform on
every day and knowing the potential
threats that are out there," she said.
Cardona, 35, was a professor at
Crossroads Bible College when he became a volunteer chaplain assisting Latino pastors serving IMPD's East District.
The experience showed him ways to use
his gifts as a community leader in a manner beyond pastoral counseling. He considers his role models to be the patriarchs
of his faith — Joshua, Moses and Joseph.
"Making a difference," he said, "that's
where we come from."
Listening to Cardona, one gets the
impression that he might find it difficult
to pull his gun in a tough situation.
Cardona said he hopes he must never do
so, but he feels he's tough enough if the
situation calls for it.
"I will pull out my first double-sized
sword first — Scripture — and treat people as human beings before I can be
forced to do that."
Cardona said he hopes to be a bridge
between police and Latinos, who he says
often distrust police based not only on
profiling incidents but also from their
experiences with corrupt police in their
native countries.
"I love education," he said, "so I will
be an educator."
Such idealism in new police recruits
is not uncommon, said Jeremy Carter, an
(Continued on page 11)
(Continued from page 6)
So I prayed and asked friends and
mentors to pray. Most friends outside the
English department couldn’t see past
“YAY! JOB!” But several mentors asked
the same questions and gave the same
cautions, and the more I prayed, the more
God confirmed that the “no” really was
from Him. And He repeated what He’d
told me before: “I want you to trust Me.”
It may have been the hardest thing I’d
ever done, but I turned down the job.
And two months later, I received a contract from a translation agency that remains one of my biggest clients.
A few months after that, I came to the
conclusion that it was time to leave
Waco, and it looked like the right doors
were open for me to move back to Llano.
At the same time, however, I got word of
a teaching position at a Christian college
in Fort Worth that sounded like a really
good fit. I applied, and they asked me for
a phone interview.
“Okay, God,” I prayed before the
interview. “I really don’t know what I
want. Show me what You want.” And
the interview began with the dean admitting that they’d already hired someone
else but wanted to interview me anyway
in case, as they hoped, another position
came open within the next couple of
years. So I moved back to Llano and
haven’t regretted it.
Now, I won’t try to kid you. It’s not
always that easy. Walking by faith gets
downright scary when not only can I not
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CHAPLAIN
(Continued from page 3)
PD BLUE FOREVER
FIND NEW ROADS
[email protected]
hands of your father. There is just one
more thing.
This entire platter of
brownies contains a very small amount
of dog poop. There is no physical harm
to come from it because the oven baking
killed all the bacteria and there will be
absolutely no taste from the dog poop.
If I had not told you, you would never
have known it was even in them. Now
if you will eat just one brownie, I will
allow you to go to the movie.”
That is the decision you, as a young
see light at the end of the tunnel, I’m not
even sure whether I’m facing the right
way or whether I’m about to walk smack
into the tunnel wall. And there have been
many times in recent years when I’ve
gotten my hopes up about an opportunity,
especially with regard to my writing, and
been bitterly disappointed when it fell
through. But in quite a few of those
cases, I now realize that God, like my
dear mentor, was telling me I wasn’t well
enough yet.
It’s hard to be patient, to wait for His
timing, especially because I’ve spent so
much of my life in school that I’m used
to seasons having pre-defined end points.
This post-doc in hardship is taking a lot
longer than I’d hoped! But if there’s one
thing I know from long experience, it’s
that God tells us “no” because He loves
us and wants the best for us, even if we
never understand the answer this side of
eternity.
****
Thanks, Elisabeth. Sometimes I don’t
know which answer to prayer is the hardest to accept: no or wait. Both require a
stretching of our faith, but like a muscle
in our bodies, the more our faith is
stretched and exercised, the stronger it
becomes. So the “moral of the story” is
essentially the same as the book and
movie “Unbroken” – don’t give up, don’t
give in. Just thank God that He knows
what’s best for you in every situation you
and your family face.
Well, thanks for taking time for us.
We trust God will bless you and yours
until we get together again.
Chaplain Bill
[email protected]
officer, will have to make each and
every day of your career. Will you eat
the brownie to justify an action you want
to take?
If you remember this little parable
and apply it to your actions, there may
be occasions you feel eating that
brownie is worth something you want to
do, but at least you will realize there is a
price you will pay.
The cost of doing anything is always
a factor is our decision to do it. If
you’re willing to eat dog shit just to be
able to do something, it must be very
important to you.
Don’t you think?
Page 8
The BLUES Newspaper
Advertising space in this section is offered at a discount and strictly limited to bona fide law enforcement agencies.
HARRIS COUNTY CONSTABLE’S OFFICE PRECINCT 7
PATROL DEPUTY JOB VACANCIES
The Harris County Constable’s Office Precinct 7 currently is hiring experienced patrol deputies for upcoming
vacancies.
Minimum qualifications:
TCOLE Certified (BPOC) Minimum
Lateral Transfers - Minimum of 5 years previous full-time police experience
Minimum High School Diploma or its equivalence
No Class B Misdemeanor or Higher Criminal Convictions
No Dishonorable Discharges from Armed Forces (DD214)
Physically and Psychologically Fit
Ability to Read, Write Offense Reports and Complete Accident Investigations
Valid Texas Driver’s License and Automobile Liability Insurance
Valid Proof of United States Citizenship
All applications for employment as a deputy constable must be picked up, accurately completed
and submitted in person to:
Harris County Constable’s Office, Precinct 7
5290 Griggs Road Houston, Texas 77021
713-643-6118
Attention: Recruiting
Our vacancies for Patrol Deputy Positions are required 5 days (40 hours) work week with 2 days off. Starting
salary will range from $47,900.00 – $59,800.00 per year, with 26 pay periods per year. There are other benefits
such as paid Vacation/Sick Leave, Longevity Pay Medical and Dental Insurance.
For further details, contact the Recruiting Unit at 713-247-3563 Mondays – Fridays from 10:00 am until 5:00 pm.
All vacancies are scheduled to be filled by the close of business on Tuesday, March 31, 2015.
Is your department hiring?
Running a police career ad in The
Blues is an inexpensive and easy way
to get the word out to the most
qualified candidates all over the Lone
Star state! Ads run for as little as $75
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Call Toll FREE
1-866-45BLUES for more information
The BLUES Newspaper
Page 9
Advertising space in this section is offered at a discount and strictly limited to bona fide law enforcement agencies.
Memorial Villages
Police Department
Bunker Hill • Piney Point• Hunters Creek
Now accepting applications for the position of
POLICE OFFICER
EOE/M/F/D
Located in suburban West Houston, Memorial Villages Police Department offers a superior salary and benefits package; Cutting
edge Technology, 12 hr. shifts; and outstanding community support. Benefits include:
 Starting Salary: $28.62 hr
 Additional incentive pay for TCLEOSE Intermediate (2.5%), Advanced (5.0%), and Master (7.5%) Certifications, College
Degrees, Bi-lingual (2.5%), and Longevity.
 Insurance: PPO, and HSA health and DHMO dental – 100% paid for employee, 50% for spouse/dependents. Paid longterm disability and life insurance for employee. Life insurance also available for spouse/dependents.
 Retirement: TMRS 7% 2 to 1 matching. Deferred Compensation plans also available.
 Females and minority candidates are urged to apply.
HELP WANTED
In accordance with the employment policies of Austin
County, notice is hereby given that the Austin County
Sheriff’s Office is accepting applications for a Full-Time
Dispatcher. TCOLE Certification is preferred, but not
necessary. Must be available to work various shifts. Austin
County is an Equal Opportunity Employer and will not
discriminate against any person for reason of socioeconomic
level, race, sex, religion, age, handicap or national origin.
Applications are available at the Austin County Sheriff’s
Office, 417 N. Chesley, Bellville, TX 77418 and at
www.austincountyso.org
GALENA PARK
POLICE DEPARTMENT
Applicants must hold a current TCLEOSE certification and have at least THREE years prior patrol experience.
Other qualifications apply. See website at www.mvpdtx.org
Or contact Lane Owens at 713-365-3711 or [email protected]
11981 Memorial Dr. Houston, Texas 77024
The City of Woodbranch
Police Department
Is accepting applications for the position of
Full Time Non-paid
Peace Officers
Our small community police department is seeking
applicants for full time Non-paid Peace Officers. The
Non-paid Peace Officers shift requirements will vary
and are determined by department needs. Desirable
applicants must be at least 21 years of age, United
States citizens, have a Peace Officers License, current
on TCOLE certification, have a valid Texas Driver’s
License, have no felony or Class A misdemeanor
convictions. Final applicants will be subject to a
complete criminal background investigation.
Application packet and more information can be obtained at 58A Woodbranch Drive, New Caney, Texas
77357. Applications will be accepted until the positions
are filled.
Contact Chief Andre’ Singleton at 281-399-2034
after 10:00 a.m. Monday thru Friday for
information.
NOW HIRING POLICE OFFICERS
$46,144
POLICE DISPATCHERS
WANTED
The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris
County (METRO) Police Department is
seeking Full-Time Police Dispatchers.
Minimum requirements are three (3) years of
dispatch experience with experience in a high
volume telephone or customer service
environment. Accurate typing skills 40-45
wpm is preferred. METRO offers a
comprehensive benefits package to its
employees, including medical, dental, life,
and retirement savings plans, as well as
training and development resources. We
provide equal opportunity to all qualified
individuals regardless of race, color, religion,
age, sex, national origin, veteran status,
genetic information or disability.
Applications are accepted online at:
www.ridemetro.org/Opportunities/Jobs
Annual starting salary
A Civil Service exam will be administered
Wednesday, March 25, 2015 at 6:00 PM at the Alvin
Baggett Community Building located at 1302 Keene
Street, Galena Park, Texas 77547. Registration
deadline is 5:00 PM Tuesday, March 10, 2015.
To register for the exam contact City Secretary Mayra
Gonzales at City Hall, 2000 Clinton Drive.
Applicants must be a U.S. citizen between 21-44
years of age, possess a H.S. diploma or GED, and
be TCOLE certified no later than 60 days after the
exam.
Successful applicants must pass a background
check, psychological and physical examinations, and
meet all TCOLE requirements.
Benefits package includes 100% paid health
insurance for employee (approx. 90% employer
contribution for dependents), 7% TMRS matched
2:1, TCOLE certificate pay, and 26 vacation days and
15 sick days annually after successful
completion of the probationary period.
Page 10
The BLUES Newspaper
Dallas murder rate falls to lowest point since 1930
Dallas’ 2014 murder rate was its lowest since 1930 — the year Bonnie and
Clyde met at a West Dallas house party.
And the Dallas Police Department’s
preliminary count of 116 murders last
year — there is one unexplained death
awaiting a ruling — would be the lowest
yearly murder tally since 1965. It’s also a
notable drop from the 143 murders in
2013 and it’s fewer than half the murders
recorded in 2004.
Police officials say their crimefighting and crime-prevention strategies
have played a major role in reducing
homicides, the rarest of major crimes.
Others say outside variables — medical
advancements, changing demographics
and better social services — deserve
much of the credit.
But they all are marveling at the figures.
“I’m really amazed at how low that
number has gotten,” said Dallas ISD Police Chief Craig Miller, who became a
Dallas police officer in 1982 and later
headed the homicide unit.
Miller said police technology, such as
surveillance cameras, has helped deter
criminals. He also said paramedics and
better trauma care have played big roles.
Dallas Fire-Rescue has touted improved
response times in recent years. And officers also are now equipped with tourniquets and gauze. One officer used the
aids last week to help save a gunshot victim in South Dallas.
Police officials will brief City Council
members on the murder drop during a
retreat next week, although they already
are dealing with eight slayings in the first
seven days of 2015. Still, they are taking
stock of last year’s murder figure — one
they couldn’t imagine in previous years.
For every 100,000 people, the city
tallied just over nine murders last year.
That is still slightly above the 2013 national average for cities of more than 1
million people but is far better than murder havens Flint, Mich., and Detroit,
where about 48 and 45 people out of
every 100,000 are slain, respectively.
And many similar-size cities aren’t reporting such significant drops. Some are
reporting upticks.
The murder number does not include
justifiable homicides, such as shootings
by police or homeowners who shoot burglars.
Assistant Chief Randy Blankenbaker,
who oversees criminal investigations,
said police aren’t celebrating much or
focused on improving the year-over-year
numbers.
“Our goal and our desire is to not beat
this year, it’s to not see people get murdered in the city of Dallas,” he said.
He said Dallas officers deserve much
of the credit because “they’re true heroes
every day.” But he said police commanders’ strategies, such as youth outreach
programs and crime watch groups, also
are paying dividends.
And he said police work to bring
down drug houses, an increase in robbery
detectives and a task force assigned to
catch big-time robbery suspects have
contributed to the murder rate decline.
Blankenbaker said the city’s focus on Robbery-motivated slayings in Dallas were cut nearly in half last year from 2013.
Domestic violence killings also were down, but the city saw an increase in aggrafamily violence, and new efforts by famvated assaults.
ily violence detectives such as a lethality
assessment, have helped, too.
He said robbery-motivated slayings volved in one of those activities will mur- studies galore. Nobody has reached any
were cut nearly in half last year from der again and again and again until they kind of consensus on what’s driving this
2013. Domestic violence killings also are taken off the street.”
kind of decline.”
were down to 15 from 24 in 2013.
Retired Assistant Chief Ron Waldrop,
Worrall said the Dallas department is
But Dallas will record an increase in who oversaw the homicide unit in 1991, “certainly a forward-thinking, progressive
aggravated assaults last year, meaning said he never thought the murder tally agency” that puts together “creative iniviolent attacks aren’t necessarily down in would get as high as it did that year. He tiatives.”
the city. Blankenbaker played down the said the boost to the squad was “certainly
“But parsing out which of those have
tie between aggravated assaults — which necessary,” even if it did take a while to any effect on homicide is impossible,” he
could be serious but non-life-threatening break the new officers in.
said.
attacks — and homicides.
“We just weren’t prepared to handle
But, Rathburn said, police have to
Still, he said commanders have been that many murders with the number of keep fighting to keep crime down, even if
more intensely scrutinizing aggravated detectives we had,” he said.
they can’t control it.
assaults in recent months so they can
Rathburn and Waldrop also said a
“You have to believe you’ll make a
bring the number back down again.
new narcotics street squad helped keep difference, or you won’t make a differsmall-time drug players and addicts in ence,” he said.
‘Tremendous’ change
Violence is still down significantly check.
Victims’ view
from when the city peaked at 500 murIn 1993, Rathburn’s last year as chief,
Not everyone was pleased with the
ders in 1991.
the city was back down to 317 murders. work of homicide investigators.
“It was almost a daily occurrence The total hasn’t hit 300 since.
The slaying of D’Lisa Kelley remains
where you worked a murder or somebody
Much of the decline in Dallas over the unsolved nearly a year after the 24-yearbeing shot,” said Blankenbaker, who years has mirrored a national trend. John old pregnant mother was found dead last
worked in the southeast division at the Worrall, a criminology professor at the March inside a vacant east Oak Cliff
time. “It’s a tremendous difference now.”
University of Texas at Dallas, said theo- house.
That year, Bill Rathburn took over as ries include an aging population, the end
Dominique Alexander, a family
Dallas chief. He quickly doubled the size of the crack cocaine epidemic and less friend, said Kelley’s family hasn’t been
of the homicide unit to solve more cases.
lead-based paint in houses.
in contact with police in several months.
“The reason is that a lot of murders
“It’s a mystery, long story short,” he He said the family is “saddened” by the
are the result of robbery-related, gang- said. “My guess is that it’s going to go seeming lack of progress with the investirelated and drug-related,” Rathburn said. back up at some point. There are entire gation.
“People who murder while they are in- classes, entire books written on this —
(Continued on page 11)
The BLUES Newspaper
Page 11
BEXAR COUNTY SHERIFF'S
DALLAS
DEPUTIES AMONG THOUSANDS
WHO ATTENDED FUNERAL OF
FALLEN NYPD OFFICER
(Continued from page 10)
“This was a brutal killing and [the
killer] is out there,” Alexander said.
But Tammy Simpson, the mother of
slain Wilmer-Hutchins High School basketball star Troy Causey, said Dallas
detectives did make a difference for her.
Jonathan Turner, 19, was arrested and
charged in May in Causey’s beating
IDEALISM
(Continued from page 7)
Members of the Bexar County Sheriff's Office were among thousands of law enforcement officers who traveled to New York to pay respects to two officers killed
there Dec. 20.
SAN ANTONIO — Bexar County
Sheriff’s Office Deputy William Henricks expected to see a lot of cops when
he traveled nearly 2,000 miles to pay his
respects to slain New York Police Department Officer Rafael Ramos.
Even so, he admitted, seeing the
thousands of people who attended the
service for the fallen officer surprised
him.
“I’m going to say we were like three
or four blocks away from the actual
church,” he said. “The crowd stretched
out about nine blocks in every direction.”
Ramos and his partner, Wenjian Liu,
were gunned down as they sat in a
marked patrol car Dec. 20.
According to the Associated Press,
gunman Ismaaiyl Brinsley was troubled
and had shot and wounded an exgirlfriend earlier in the day.
He had referenced the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner at the
hands of police shortly before the killings, authorities said.
After shooting the officers, Brinsley
turned the gun on himself.
Henricks, a 22-year veteran of the
force, attended the Dec. 27 funeral along
with Sgt. Jerry Garza.
Their trek to honor a fallen brother
marked the first time the Sheriff’s Office has ever sent members out of state
for a funeral.
“To be there was very humbling,”
said Garza. “I’ve never experienced
anything like that. We had a lot of guys
coming up to us just to thank us for
showing up. The support was great.
When they talk about a sea of blue, it
really was.”
Henricks, who serves on the Sheriff's
Office's Honor Guard under Garza, said
showing support for officers who make
the ultimate sacrifice is an important
part of his duties.
“It’s an honor for me,” he said.
“Until this day, I haven’t gotten tired of
it. It’s hard going to these events to bury
brothers. You want to be there, you
want to show the family that your department supports the sacrifices that
these men made for you.”
San Antonio Express News
assistant professor in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana
University-Purdue University Indianapolis. People who seek to be police tend to
be motivated to improve society and "do
good things." And despite recent events,
he said, there's still an overall positive
view of policing.
As he trumpeted the coming recruit-
death. The two were roommates.
Simpson said she now works with an
organization called No More Violence,
which helps some parents of violent
crime victims who may have had difficult
experiences with police.
“That is a really tough job they have,
and I can only speak for my son’s case,”
Simpson said. “But I think it was handled
with the utmost professionalism and respect.”
Dallas Morning News
ing classes, IMPD Chief Rick Hite was
asked Thursday whether there has been a
negative Ferguson effect on police recruiting, Hite said recent calls for new
recruits have produced as many as 2,000
applicants. In the class of which Chamberlain, Waltz and Cardona are members,
about 35 percent are minorities.
"It's not diminished," he said, "it's
increased. I think there is more concern
of 'how can we help' from citizens."
kagstv.com
We Want YOU!
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looking for current and retired Officers or their family
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Page 12
The BLUES Newspaper
LONGVIEW
RALLY SUPPORTS
POLICE AMID NATIONAL TENSIONS
Former Arkansas Governor Mike
Huckabee called for a moment of silence
for two slain New York City police officers on Christmas Eve, but Longview resident Karen Maines said she had another
idea.
“I didn’t want a moment of silence,”
she said. “I wanted to come out and say
thank you.”
Maines and perhaps a dozen other residents gathered outside the Longview Police headquarters on Cotton Street on a
blustery morning. They held signs and
said thanks to local officers, who came out
to express their own gratitude for the gesture.
Maines organized the event through
her Rotary club, and others joined her in
paying tribute to law enforcement, who
they said too often go unheralded.
“We don’t do enough for them,” said
Longview resident Ken McCormick. “I
needed to come out and say thank you.”
The event mirrored others taking place
across the country this week that have paid
tribute to police in the wake of a shooting
in Brooklyn in which two officers were
killed in their patrol car.
Longview Police Chief Don Dingler
thanked those who showed up, and said in
a brief statement that the department tries
to address the community’s needs.
“We always try to provide the police
service they (the public) can be proud of,”
he said.
“This is just a great thing today,” he
went on to say to the gathered residents.
Area police departments said this week
that they always remind officers to use
caution and be aware. But those conversations have picked up in the wake of ongoing national tensions.
“That is something we address quite
often,” said Assistant Kilgore Police Chief
Roman Roberson. “Of course, after a
situation we are always more aware.”
Hallsville Police Chief Paul Montoya
said his department is blessed to serve in a
community that supports police, but added
residents understand his officers are going
to take less risk.
“It is something we have all addressed
as a community, but our citizens understand that we will probably be a little more
alert and aware,” Montoya said.
Montoya said due to the size of the
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Longview police detective Gary Shirley,
left, shakes hands with William Rapp
and his wife Dorothy who joined others
to show their support for area police
officers and first responders outside
the Longview Police Department.
department and the close-knit nature of the
police force, he and his officers often talk
about things that are going on that might
affect law enforcement in East Texas.
Longview police spokeswoman Kristie
Brian said safety is often a topic that
comes up during officer briefings, which
occur six times each day.
“At the briefings I am sure they are
talking to the officers and telling them to
be extra vigilant,” Brian said.
She said Dingler is considering sending a memo to the officers to discuss the
national unrest as well.
In the wake of the Brooklyn shooting,
gestures of thanks for police both large
and small have cropped up across the
country, including sites such as Nashville,
Tennessee, West Orange, New Jersey,
Annapolis, Maryland, and New York
City's Riverdale neighborhood, according
to an Associated Press report.
Police have been treated to everything
from cookies to a chili dinner.
“There’s been so much negativity, this
just felt like a good positive step to take,”
said Longview resident Gene Robertson.
“These guys mean a lot to us.”
Maines said she was excited about the
rally turnout during a holiday week, but
added that her happiness wasn’t what mattered.
“If these guys are pleased,” she said,
gesturing to the officers gathered around
her, “that’s what matters.”
Longview News Journal
Dallas-area police
departments make public
push for body camera
legislation
North Texas police agencies and a
state senator announced that they have a
pricey gadget on their wish list: body
cameras. State Sen. Royce West, DDallas, introduced a bill last month that
would require police agencies to buy the
cameras. He said the bill is currently just
“a shell” with plenty of kinks — such as
privacy issues, policies governing the use
and storage — left to be worked out
among stakeholders and his legislative
colleagues during the upcoming session.
But, he said with the backing of
prominent local police officials and the
background of anti-police protests over
the killings of unarmed black men in
Missouri and New York City, now is the
time to discuss rights, cameras and action.
“This is a national debate, and Texas
can not afford to be left out of the debate
and cut out of the solution,” West said.
West compared the bill to previous
legislative efforts that ended in all police
cars in the state being equipped with indash cameras.
He said the state will still have to
scrounge to find the money for the body
cameras. He believes cities will save
some money by being able to sniff out
frivolous complaints and lawsuits using
video evidence, but the cost can still be
prohibitive.
West said he hopes Congress will
provide national funding to states, which
Texas can then dole out to police departments. But he said he will try to figure
out a way to get state, local and county
funding involved to get everyone’s skin
in the game and spread the cost — he
estimates about $50-$70 million to fund
the state’s law enforcement officers —
around.
Dallas County District Attorney-elect
Susan Hawk has offered to buy some
cameras. It’s unclear how many she
would or could buy using the funds. Dallas police will use forfeiture funds to buy
200 body cameras early next year.
Dallas Police Chief David Brown,
DeSoto Chief Joseph Costa and representatives from other area police departments stood on stage Wednesday with
West at Dallas Police Headquarters. More
than a year earlier, he stood in the same
room and announced that he believed the
cameras to be “the future of law enforcement.” He was less daring with his language Wednesday, calling the cameras “a
great tool” that benefits officers.
“The camera, though, is not a panacea, but another tool,” Brown said.
“There is no substitute for having relationships with the community. Trust is
built through that type of relationships.
Cameras can continue that relationship.”
Costa said DeSoto, which has 55
(Continued on page 13)
The BLUES Newspaper
Page 13
LEGISLATION
(Continued from page 12)
body cameras, has been a “great success.” Detectives there also use the cameras, but sometimes will allow the victim
to just record audio if they are uncomfortable with being filmed.
He said he’s only had to give out verbal counseling to officers for not using
the cameras because they sometimes will
forget in the heat of the moment. He said
they are trying to train the officers.
Other area agencies, such as Lancaster, Denton and Duncanville, are actively
trying to get the cameras. Fort Worth,
meanwhile, has 600 of them. Out west in
Los Angeles, police commanders announced Tuesday that they would buy
7,000 cameras for their officers.
Dallas field-tested 50 cameras until
October. Those cameras are still being
used, and some officers even wear their
own. One captured a shooting by police
earlier this year. Deputy Chief Andrew
Acord, who has been running that program, said the field test was positive, but
commanders are still working out details
on how long to retain records, what the
discipline will be for officers who forget
or don’t turn off the cameras, how to
store the records and more.
Brown said he is also trying to make
sure they buy from the right vendor and
get the best available technology. He
compared it to making the right choice
between Betamax and VHS.
Brown got a show of support from all
the major police associations, whose officials believe the cameras will show the
reality of what officers face and attacks
on them. The chief said he is confident
that the cameras will also change the
behavior of any bad officers — and certainly of the criminals who know they are
being recorded.
“The running joke is that the most
belligerent drunk would act very professional on a body camera,” Brown said.
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Texas jails spent $77 million
housing undocumented
inmates in 2014
SAN ANTONIO — Texas' county
jails collectively spent more than $77.3
million housing 61,530 inmates suspected
of being in the country illegally over a 12
month period, according to the most recent available data from the Texas Commission on Jail Standards.
Bexar County came in sixth out of
254 counties, spending more than $3 million housing 3,627 inmates alleged to be
in the United states without documentation.
Harris County topped the list, spending roughly $22.9 million to jail 13,969
allegedly undocumented inmates from
December 2013 to November 2014.
Housing inmates costs anywhere from
"$50 to $60 daily," Bexar County Jail
Administrator Raul S. Banasco said. Undocumented inmates receive the same
services — medical, housing, etc. — that
inmates who are citizens receive before
their judicial cases are handled and they
are transferred into the custody of federal
immigration authorities, he said.
"We work with all inmates regardless
of their immigration status," Benasco
said.
State law requires jails to submit a
monthly report to the commission detailing the number of prisoners for whom
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has issued immigration detainers.
The county receives a small annual
reimbursement under the State Criminal
Alien Assistance Program, administered
by the U.S. Justice Department, to provide funds to county jails nationwide for
detaining those believed to be undocumented.
Bexar County received $105,866
through the program in fiscal year 2014,
down from the $136,483 previously
granted to the county in fiscal year 2013.
San Antonio Express News
BALCH SPRINGS
POLICE OFFICERS
NOW HAVE BODY CAMERAS
The Balch Springs Police Department
has equipped its officers with body cameras, a spokesman announced last month.
Lt. Mark Maret said the officers have
actually had the 25 or so recording devices since December. He said commanders pushed for the cameras and had little
resistance.
“The city, when we approached them
with this stuff, they were all about it,”
Maret said. “Obviously, it helps in criminal cases, but it’s going to cut down on
the number of complaints and frivolous
lawsuits.”
Maret said officers have reported noticeable differences in how people they
come across behave when they know they
are on camera.
The push for body cameras has gone
up considerably in the months since a
grand jury declined to indict a Ferguson,
Mo., officer in the fatal shooting of an
unarmed man. The Dallas Police Depart-
ment is also looking to buy more body
cameras. DeSoto also already has cameras. And State Sen. Royce West, DDallas, has introduced legislation to get
all the state’s agencies equipped with
body cameras.
There are hurdles each department
has to clear. For instance, the fact that
police record most interactions with people means a lot of video and the need for
a good deal of storage space. Balch
Springs is storing their videos for 90
days, unless the recordings are flagged
for an investigation. They have the same
retention policy for dash cam video.
But they’ll have to start looking at the
storage issue more soon, Maret said.
“Our IT guy says we’re using two
terabytes of storage per month right now,
which is apparently a whole lot,” Maret
said. “So, he’s wigging out.”
The Dallas Morning News
Page 14
The BLUES Newspaper
McManus reflects as he steps down as SAPD chief
Police Chief William McManus has accepted a position with CPS Energy to
head up the utility's security operations
McManus has focused on civic
relations
Every morning when Police Chief
William McManus wakes up around 6,
the first thing he does is check to see how
many slayings, shootings and other violent crimes took place overnight.
“There’s something sick about that,”
he said during a recent interview, in
which he reflected on his 40-year career
in law enforcement. “There really is
something wrong with that.”
Starting in January, after nearly nine
years on the job, McManus, 63, will take
over as head of security for city-owned
CPS Energy.
City Manager Sheryl Sculley appointed Deputy Police Chief Anthony
Treviño as the interim chief while she
conducts a national search for McManus’
successor.
While at the helm, McManus was
known to be ever-present at major crime
scenes and whenever police were involved in a shooting.
He shuffled his command staff, which
resulted in lawsuits from veteran female
commanders, toughened the police pursuit and use-of-force policies and recently
took on ride-sharing companies when he
said they violated the city’s vehicles-forhire ordinance.
He has had missteps. Early in his tenure, he created a tactical response unit to
focus on high-crime areas. But complaints piled up against the squad, which
used force twice as much as any other
SAPD unit, and he reassigned the commander.
Recently, he proposed a law to cite
people for giving money to panhandlers.
The plan was dropped after a public outcry.
Despite some problems, many credit
his leadership with improving both the
professionalism and the public perception
of the police force.
As tensions between police and minorities are heightened across the country
in the wake of the police killings of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, McManus
is lauded here for maintaining healthy
relations with minority communities.
“He’s been very, very aggressive
about the need for there to be a working
relationship between the community and
the police,” said Taj Mathews, an East
Side leader and the grandson of civil
rights leader the Rev. Claude Black. “He
holds police officers accountable and
that’s something that he has made well
known and has not always made him
popular within the Police Department.”
Matthews said McManus set a model
for the next chief.
“To follow behind someone like
Chief McManus, we, the community, are
going to have very high expectations of
his successor,” he said.
As he transitions to a new job,
McManus is hopeful the change of pace
will allow him more quality time with his
family and hobbies, including his passion
for exercise. He’s a member of two gyms
and works out at headquarters, too —
doing cardio, lifting weights and working
the heavy bag — and doesn’t miss a day.
He’s a recreational hunter and who
cooks the feral hogs he traps and kills on
a neighbor’s ranch in a smoker in his
backyard, and he decorates his office
with mounted deer heads and pelts from
other expeditions.
His competitive streak extends to
cooking, and in 2011 he won a local celebrity pizza-making competition. He’s
eager to show off iPhone photos of his
dishes, from Thanksgiving turkey, fish
and brisket to fiber and protein-loaded
blender drinks.
Early years
Born into a lower-middle-class family, McManus was one of five siblings
and raised in a three-bedroom row house
on the north side of Philadelphia.
He developed an interest in sports of
all kinds early on, and his football abilities garnered the attention of recruiters
for a number of colleges. He even signed
a letter of intent with Virginia Tech.
But at the behest of his father, who
wanted him close to home, he committed
to Villanova, where he played quarterback before switching to linebacker.
Without a scholarship, he said he
doubts college would have been an option
— his father worked three and four jobs
at a time, occasionally looking to William, his only son, to pitch in.
“I helped him a lot, sometimes not
with the best attitude when I was
younger,” he said. “But you know, when
I was in seventh and eighth grade, I didn’t understand what he had to go through
to keep that family together.”
His father, a lifelong cigarette
smoker, died at 65 of lung cancer. He
wears his father’s wedding ring on a
necklace.
After graduating from Villanova with
a liberal arts degree, football still was his
main focus.
“I tried out with a couple of professional football teams, but never went anywhere with it,” he said. “The Eagles and
the Redskins, and I stayed for a couple of
days and then, you know, see ya.”
When that didn’t work out, he decided to attend graduate school at American University in Washington and enrolled to study criminal justice, though he
says he was uninterested in a career in
policing.
“I had no compunction to be a police
officer whatsoever,” he said. “It never
entered my mind.”
Starting a police career
Before classes started his first semester at American University, McManus
was wandering around downtown Washington with a friend and happened upon
recruiters offering an open police exam.
They both took it on a whim, and
McManus got a call within days to show
up at the academy for training.
“Never, never, never, never” did he
intend to become a cop, he said, though
he received several promotions in Washington, eventually becoming an assistant
chief. “For the next seven or eight years, I
was still looking for a job because I wasn’t going to be a police officer.”
He looked as far away as France,
where he sent in a resume to the American School of Paris to teach physical education. After an interview in Boston he
got the job, but months before he was to
move a letter came in the mail.
“Dear Mr. McManus, we regret to
inform you that the budget for your position wasn’t approved so we can’t bring
you out,” he said, paraphrasing the letter
he received nearly 30 years ago.
So in Washington he stayed, and in
1994 he saw the woman who eventually
would become his wife working out at a
gym.
“She had a headset on, listening to
music, which means don’t come near
me,” he recalled. “So I saw her that one
time and didn’t see her again for a year.”
The next time he saw Lourdes, a native of Peru, she was speaking to a friend
of his and he butted into the conversation.
“We became friends, started working
out together. … We’d go out for runs
together and one thing led to another,” he
said.
While they were dating, McManus
graduated with a master’s degree in management from Johns Hopkins.
The couple wed in 1997, and two
years later their first child, a daughter,
was born. Two years later came a son and
in 2004 another daughter.
Rise to chief
Much like the rest of his policing career, McManus said he never aspired to
lead a department.
“I just stopped actively looking
around and being interested in other
things.”
But his superiors, including current
Philadelphia Police Commissioner
(Continued on page 15)
The BLUES Newspaper
MCMANUS
(Continued from page 14)
Charles Ramsey, who took over as chief
of the Washington department in 1998,
said he recognized McManus’ leadership
abilities quickly.
“I promoted him a couple times, made
him an assistant chief, that’s how much I
thought of him,” Ramsey said. “He expected things to get done and he held
people accountable. He wasn’t overly
harsh or arbitrary but he did have expectations and he held people accountable.”
He took promotional exams within
the department, rising through the ranks
because, he said, “I wasn’t going to let
anybody get ahead of me.”
His first job as chief came in 2001
when he accepted a position in Dayton,
Ohio.
The police union there issued a vote
of no confidence in his abilities to lead
the department, a move that came after he
implemented restrictive policies regarding chases and use of force.
“And I did it in rather quick fashion.
Now, I changed the pursuit policy here,
but I did it differently, I took more time,”
he said. “It’s painful sometimes the
things you have to do to get buy in and
understanding … but most often it’s well
worth it.”
After two years in Dayton, he accepted a job as chief in Minneapolis and
within days he ticketed the mayor after he
left his city-owned car running and unattended and it slipped into gear.
“I talked to him. He said write me a
ticket and I said OK,” McManus explained.
After two years in Minneapolis,
McManus applied for and was hired as
chief in San Antonio.
Women in each department where he
has served as chief have filed suit against
him on grounds of discrimination — one
in Dayton, Ohio, one in Minneapolis and
two in San Antonio.
Two were dismissed but two, one in
Dayton and one in San Antonio resulted
in payouts to the female officers from the
city.
“When repeated attempts to undermine occur by any member of a command staff, personnel changes must be
made regardless of who that individual
may be,” McManus explained. “Those
changes sometimes result in lawsuits
Page 15
against a chief. I’ve been a strong advocate for racial, ethnic and gender diversity in both promotions and high-profile
assignments. I stand by that record.”
McManus took heat for the actions of
his tactical response unit, and later admitted the patrol areas were “probably too
small for the number of officers we had
out there. Not a whole lot moved in those
areas without getting stopped.”
A gang injunction implemented after
that drew similar complaints from the
same communities — that the number of
times innocent people were stopped by
police contributed to their lack of trust in
the department.
But he later won praise for changing
the strategies.
Doshie Piper, a criminal justice professor at the University of the Incarnate
Word, noted that McManus held quarterly meetings with the NAACP and
would explain in community meetings
how residents can report incidents of police wrongdoing.
“He’s a very hands-on police chief,”
Piper said. “He’s very much a presence”
Inside the ranks
Mike Helle, president of the San Antonio Police Officers Association, characterized the union’s relationship with the
chief as “cordial” and “professional.”
“But it didn’t start off that way,” he
said.
One of the major “hiccups” he said,
came in the implementation of a new
computer system.
McManus said it could have been
handled better.
“There were software problems. I
can’t say there were any hardware problems — they were system problems,”
McManus said. “And part of it had to do
with, we probably could have included
more people at the user end in the discussions building up to flipping the switch.”
Helle said he credits McManus’ opendoor policy with helping to “solve lots of
little things that could have blown up and
become big problems.”
Most of the complaints Helle received
about McManus came from officers who
felt they’d been disciplined too harshly.
“There’s always going to be that 10
percent that just don’t like you,” Helle
said. “For the most part, a majority of the
Police Department likes him.”
Life after the force
McManus will start his new job with
CPS Energy next month and said he’s
glad to stay in San Antonio for lots of
reasons.
“I like the weather, I like the Texas
attitude,” he said smiling. “I always
wanted to work in Texas.”
McManus said he’s looking forward
to taking on a job that doesn’t require him
to be on call 24/7.
“It’s not so much spending more time
at home. It’s spending time at home
where I don’t have to be on edge all the
time about getting called out,” he said.
“I’m not going to get a call that says,
'Hey we just got an officer arrested,’ or
whatever,” he said. “I don’t think there
will be even nearly as many crisis-type
situations.”
Sculley said one goal she had in hiring McManus was to change the perception many minority groups in the city had
of the department — that they didn’t have
access to it in a constructive way, that
they were disenfranchised.
“One of his greatest strengths is his
ability to work and meet with all people
in the community, he’s made himself
available,” she said. “He’s endeared himself to the community.”
San Antonio Express News
EAST TEXAS GIRL TRAVELS
TO AUSTIN TO THANK POLICE
A 10-year-old East Texas girl traveled all the way to Austin to deliver
thank you cards to police officers.
"I'm honored to speak for my generation. I want to be a voice for all kids to
let the world know that we love and respect our police officers," said Savannah
Solis.
Savannah said she was devastated by
the news of two officers that were killed
in an ambush in New York last month.
"When the tragedy with Officer
Ramos and Officer Liu happened she was
watching on the TV and it really bothered
her, really upset her, and she started asking a lot of questions wanting to do
something," said Savannah's mother Debbie Solis.
What Savannah did is touching offic e r s a l l o v e r t h e c o u n t r y.
"My goal is to tell as many officers as I
can that I love them and I am thankful for
what they do every day for us," said Savannah.
"She may be small, but the words she
has are pretty powerful," said Assistant
Chief Jason Dusterhoft of the Austin Police Department.
Savannah hand-made 500 thank you
cards for officers in Tyler, Dallas, Irving,
Houston, Austin and more.
"I just want to say, 'Thank you for
taking care of us every day. You are my
hero,'" Savannah told the officers.
Last month, she delivered the cards in
person to the Austin Police Department.
"I think it's a hard time right now
being a police officer and sometimes we
don't hear it enough that there's people
out there that want to make sure that we
get home at night," said Dusterhoft.
Savannah's message warmed the
hearts of Austin's finest.
"To my heroes I want to say, 'Don't
stop. Please don't give up. Many do not
care or appreciate the sacrifices that you
make every day, but I do," said Savannah.
Austin police gave her something in
return.
"I got a sticker, this hat, and a challenge coin," said Savannah.
The only thing Savannah asked for in
exchange is a signature.
"She just wants to get as many autographs as possible because they're her
heroes," said Debbie.
"They mean a lot to me," Savannah
added.
Savannah said she hopes officers everywhere keep doing what they do best.
"Officers all across Texas, you matter
to me. Officers in New York City, you
matter to me. Officers all across America, you matter to me," said Savannah.
"Please keep taking care of us because I will always respect you, I will
always honor you, and I will always pray
that God keeps you safe," she added.
Savannah said she hopes to someday
wear a police uniform of her own.
myfoxaustin.com
Page 16
The BLUES Newspaper
Bexar County Sheriff's Office names first female detention captain
When Laura Balditt joined the
Bexar County Sheriff’s Office as a
civilian in 1987, there weren't as
many opportunities for women as
there are today.
Balditt spent her first years with
the Sheriff’s Office as a civilian in the
Central Records division.
In 1992, however, she made the
transition to become a sworn detention officer.
She steadily climbed the ladder
through the next decade, being promoted to corporal, then to sergeant,
and finally to lieutenant in 2002.
Last month, Balditt made her next
leap to become the first female captain in the BCSO Detention division’s
history.
“It feels wonderful,” she said. “It
feels awesome.”
Balditt said she initially felt inspi-
ration to become a detention officer
as a single mother of three.
Now, she says her family has been
a source of support for her on her rise
to captain.
“I had a lot of encouragement,”
she said.
Bexar County Sheriff’s Office
Spokesman Rosanne Hughes said
opportunities for women in the detention division are growing.
“A growing number of (women)
who are incarcerated in the Bexar
County Jail means that there is a
greater number of women needed to
work here to care for them,” she said.
“They are jobs that only women can
do.”
Balditt will celebrate her 28th anniversary with the Sheriff’s Office in
February.
mysanantonio.com
Captain Laura Balditt shares a laugh with Jail Administrator Deputy Chief Raul S.
Banasco after her promotion during a ceremony at the Bexar County Jail,
Monday, Jan. 5, 2015.