Officer Robert Bakert Arrested for Using Meth

A Carrollton, Mo., police officer has been charged with possession of a controlled substance.

Marshall police said they received a tip that Robert W. Bakert, 34, of Marshall, had been suspected of using methamphetamine while working for the Carollton Police Department.

"(It was) inconceivable at first," said Carrollton Police Chief Donny King, on how he reacted to news of Bakert's arrest. "You have a hard time imagining anybody that picks this for a career getting involved in that, and then there's the shock."

According to court documents, an officer pulled Bakert over for a traffic violation early Tuesday and searched his vehicle. The officer said Bakert was wearing his police uniform and had his service firearm on a belt in the passenger's side floorboard.

The documents said a K-9 officer was brought to sniff Bakert's vehicle and led officers to a glass smoking pipe that was under a floor mat. Police also said they found a plastic bag with white residue, two near-empty containers of "Pump-It" stimulant in the car.

In the trunk, police said they found an evidence bag containing three spoons covered in a white powdery residue. The evidence bag had been cut open.

Investigators later said the stimulant containers tested positive for the presence of methamphetamine and the spoons tested positive for cocaine.

According to court documents, Bakert said he had not used methamphetamine since December 2010, but said he would not provide a urine sample for drug testing. He initially said the spoons had been intended for use in a display at the Carrollton Police Department, but later said he had planned to dispose of them, but they must have fallen out of a bag and into his trunk.

If convicted, the charges carry a maximum penalty of seven years in prison or up to $5,000 in fines.Bakert graduated from the police academy six months ago and has been working for Carrollton ever since. A hearing is scheduled next Monday to determine whether Bakert should be fired.

"He was a friendly guy and did good work," King said. "(There was) no indication anything like this was going on."

Officer David Pizzolato Arrested for Illegally Recording Girlfriend

A former employee of the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office was arrested today for illegally recording his ex-girlfriend.

David Pizzolato Jr., 41, was employed with the Sheriff’s Office for the past 16 years and was a Sergeant serving in the traffic division. He has also worked in uniform patrol.

According to reports, Pizzolato allegedly entered his ex-girlfriend’s home and hid a digital recording device on the headboard above her bed in early January of 2012.

He then allegedly entered the home on at least eight different occasions to listen to and test the device.

The victim contacted the Sheriff’s Office on February 17th to file a complaint, but did not want to press charges or for the accused to lose his job. The same day the accused informed his supervisor of the device.

The accused said he placed it there to monitor his ex-girlfriend’s treatment of their small child. He later admitted he had a key to the home and entered it on multiple occasions without the victim’s knowledge.

The Sheriff’s Office launched an investigation immediately after receiving the complaint and placed Pizzolato on administrative leave. Once the investigation was complete, he was terminated from the Sheriff’s Office prior to be booked into the prison.

Officer Megan Laffoon Arrested for DUI

A Kansas City Missouri Police Officer was arrested early Wednesday morning for driving under the influence.

According authorities, KCPD Officer Megan Laffoon, 29, was pulled over in Clay County by a Missouri Highway Patrol trooper around 3:20 a.m. on Wednesday morning. Sheriff’s deputies say Laffoon was swerving out of her lane traveling up the curb that separates northbound from southbound traffic.
 
Missouri Highway Patrol troopers allege that Laffoon failed a series of field sobriety tests and assaulted a trooper and resisted arrest. She now faces four counts, including DUI, lane violation, assault of a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest.

According to the probable cause statement, Laffoon scratched the arresting officer on the neck with her fingernails and head-butted another officer as they tried to place her under arrest.

The MHP said Laffoon was so belligerent, they called Kansas City, Mo. police for assistance in arresting one of their own.

When she was taken to the Clay County Detention Center, it took seven officers to place Laffoon in a restraint chair, according to the probable cause statement.

The statement reads:
“Laffoon began to fight all the attempts I made to gain control of her. During the struggle, Laffoon scratched the right side of my neck with her fingernails.”

Laffoon has been suspended without pay and will remain on suspension until the case is resolved.

Officer Robert Fourt Arrested for Domestic Violence

A Tuscaloosa police officer is arrested.  The victim told responding officers that the suspect was highly intoxicated and destroying items inside the residence.

It happened Tuesday night at 6:00pm in the 4600 block of Woodland Hills Drive.

Since the incident involved a Tuscaloosa police officer, Tuscaloosa County Homicide was contacted to investigate.

Robert Ashley Fourt, 54, of Tuscaloosa, was arrested for Domestic Violence Criminal Mischief.  He was taken into custody without incident.

Police say that a small fire that had been set by the suspect was found in the garage.  It was put out by the Tuscaloosa Fire Department.

Fourt has been with the Tuscaloosa Police Department since 2003 and is currently a Sergeant for its patrol division.  He has been placed on administrative leave.

Homicide Detective Roger Smith Arrested

A homicide detective at the Tulsa Police Department is charged in connection to a July altercation in Osage County.

Roger Smith faces charges of domestic assault and battery and pointing a weapon at another.

In an affidavit from Osage County District Attorney's office, a witness says Smith allegedly pointed a gun at a man in  the driveway of his home and sprayed a woman with pepper spray.  Smith was arrested and released on $2,000 bond.

An official with TPD says Smith is on restricted duty until further notice.

Read more: http://www.kjrh.com/dpp/news/local_news/tulsa-officer-charged-with-domestic-abuse-and-pointing-weapon-at-another#ixzz1XExEprZY

Officer Caught In Surveillance Photo Having Sex On Car: Report (GRAPHIC PHOTO)

A photo of what appears to be a police officer having sex with a woman on the hood of a car has caused an uproar in New Mexico.

Albuquerque, N.M. TV station KOB 4 and the Albuquerque Journal both identify the man as a uniformed officer.

The Santa Fe Sheriff's office released pictures to KOB in response to a public records request. The photos were taken from security footage at the Santa Fe Canyon Ranch.

Santa Fe County Sheriff Robert Garcia told the Journal that the photos were taken by a camera set up to catch graffiti taggers or other crimes.

Other uniformed policeman have been caught having sex on the job. Earlier this month, a Louisiana state public safety officer was suspended for reportedly having sex in his patrol car.

In January, a veteran officer resigned after he allegedly did the deed in his cruiser.

New Mexico State Police have not said whether the man pictured on the hood of the car will face any disciplinary measures, according to the Journal.

WATCH video with the GRAPHIC PHOTO:

Video

Officer Sheldon Czegledi Arrested for Prostitution

A Phoenix police officer was arrested during a prostitution sting in El Paso, Texas. The El Paso County Sheriff's Office Strike Team arrested Officer Sheldon Czegledi, 47, along with 14 others. According to a sheriff's office report, Czegledi approached a deputy working undercover as a decoy/female prostitute Friday night and solicited the deputy for sexual intercourse for a fee of $45. Czegledi then drove his vehicle into the parking lot of a motel. According to the report, he gave the deputy $5 as a deposit and stated he would return. Other deputies conducted a traffic stop and took Czegledi into custody. Czegledi is a 14-year veteran of the Phoenix Police Department and is currently assigned as a patrol officer at Central City Precinct. Sgt. Steve Martos with the Phoenix Police Department said an administrative investigation will be launched.

Assistant Chief Brian Lee Kepler Arrested for pointing weapon at his wife

A small Craig County town is without an assistant police chief after the current officer was arrested Tuesday.

OSBI agents arrested Brian Lee Kepler Tuesday evening at the Amber Police Department.

Kepler, 35, was arrested for feloniously pointing a firearm.

Officials say the charge stems from an argument between he and his wife Aug. 24.

Kepler allegedly pointed his gun at his wife and spoke about a murder-suicide.

Agents say Kepler also waved the gun near the couple's two-year-old twin children and said, "Which one do you want me to shoot first?"

He was booked into the Grady County Jail Tuesday evening.

Officer Bradley Bickett Arrested for Drunk Driving

An Aurora police officer who was arrested for drinking and driving and speeding in Wyoming early this month has resigned from the force, officials announced Monday.

Officer Bradley Bickett was arrested in Goshen County, Wyoming on Aug. 10 after witnesses reported him driving recklessly in his marked police cruiser while a passenger threw trash -possibly beer cans- from a window.

Gerald Kirby, also an Aurora officer, was cited for littering.

Both were on their way to the funeral for one of two officers who were recently killed in Rapid City, South Dakota.

"It is unfortunate that a 31-year career of service in law enforcement was destroyed by a single day of poor judgment," said Chief Daniel J. Oates of Bickett’s resignation.

"I thank Brad for his decision. He made the honorable choice to retire. He has accepted responsibility. His apology will mean a great deal to his colleagues in the Department and will help put this unfortunate event behind us.”"

Kirby is on restricted duty pending a full Internal Affairs investigation, police said.

Sgt. Aisha Hackley Arrested for Scamming Elderly Woman

A District of Columbia police officer was charged Tuesday with scamming an elderly woman she was assigned to help, authorities said.

Sgt. Aisha Hackley was arrested on a theft charge at the police department’s Second District headquarters, where she works. The 35-year-old was released on personal recognizance and is due back in court later this month.

Hackley forged the signature of an 85-year-old woman she met last December during a fraud investigation, depositing 10 checks from the woman’s Bank of America account that totaled more than $43,000, according to court charging documents. Eight of the checks were made payable to Aisha Jackson, which authorities say is another name for Hackley, and two were written out to Kevin Jackson, her son.

The older woman contacted Bank of America on or about May 31 after noticing a series of suspicious checks charged against her account. She later told a fraud investigator that the signature on eight of the checks was not hers, that she would not have authorized the checks for the amounts written and that she did not know Aisha Jackson or Kevin Jackson, according to court records.

Hackley, when questioned by a bank investigator, said she had met the woman last December after the woman reported being a victim of a lottery scam. Hackley visited the woman’s home several times over the next few months and even helped her open a new PNC Bank account, the documents say.

Hackley’s attorney, Kenneth Auerbach, did not immediately return a call seeking comment. D.C. police spokeswoman Gwendolyn Crump said Hackley’s police powers have been revoked and that Hackley came under investigation after the Internal Affairs Division received a tip from a police officer in April.
Hackley’s next court date is June 30.

Hackley was recognized in December 2003, at the Capital Hotels Award Metropolitan Police Service Award Luncheon, for arresting two teenagers who were in a stolen car after she saw the vehicle make an illegal turn.

Cedar Rapids Officer Robyn Obadal arrested for Burglary

Officer Robyn L. Obadal, 36, was arrested on suspicion of third-degree burglary around 10 a.m. Thursday at police headquarters. She is accused of taking two dogs from a vacant house at 1201 10th St. NW on Saturday.

Obadal, a police officer in Cedar Rapids since 1997, was taken to the Linn County Jail, where she was booked and released on a promise to appear in court on Aug. 10. She has been placed on unpaid administrative leave, pending an internal investigation.

Officer Melissa Henderson, a police spokeswoman, said investigators believe Obadal took the dogs between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. Saturday while she was on duty. Homeowner Chad Ramey reported the burglary around 4:10 p.m. that same day.

Obadal strongly denied the allegations Thursday afternoon.

“I did not break into a house, and I didn’t steal somebody’s dogs,” Obadal said. “Anybody who knows me knows I always do the right thing. I don’t do the wrong thing.”

Obadal said she was on routine patrol Saturday morning when a woman on a bike stopped her and told her about two loose dogs. Obadal said one of the dogs was loose by the property, and the other was circling near the neighbor’s fence. Both were filthy, she said.

Obadal said she went onto the porch of the house, which was damaged in the 2008 flood, and saw that the dogs had gotten loose from their kennel.

“There was no way I could put them back into the kennel they came out of,” Obadal said. “It was in unsanitary condition.”

Instead, Obadal said she stretched her emergency blanket over the back seat and got the dogs in her patrol car.Dogs jump in a kennel at 1201 10th St. NW last week before Cedar Rapids police officer Robyn Obadal was accused of stealing them. Obadal said she took the photo to show the unsanitary conditions the dogs were living in and e-mailed it to animal control.

A few minutes later, she said a man came up to her car and said he would take the dogs and get them back to the owner, who he claimed to know. Obadal said she did not ask for man’s name, but agreed to let him have the dogs, which she said was acceptable practice when handling a loose dog call.

“I was covered in dog feces from head to toe, and my back seat was disgusting from the dogs,” Obadal said. “I had one thing on my mind, and that was getting home to wash up my uniform, wash off and scrub the back seat of my car.”

Obadal said she did not notify dispatchers while she was out with the loose dogs, but did go on the radio to say she was stopping at her residence to clean up. She said doesn’t know what the man actually did with the dogs, but thinks he might have been setting her up.

“What I believe is that someone in the neighborhood went over and let the dogs out, and just by chance, I pulled up and they were running loose,” Obadal said. “So I took the blame for the dogs being let loose…

“I was the perfect scapegoat.”

Ramey, the homeowner, said his brother arrived Saturday afternoon and realized the dogs were missing. He said the dogs – a three-year-old female pit bull named Shadow and a two-year-old female German shepherd named Sylvia – were found Sunday running loose along Ellis Boulevard NW.

“Animal Control found them over off of Ellis,” Ramey said. “They magically appeared the next day, after the burglary report was filed.”

Ramey, 27, said he kept the dogs in a kennel behind the house. He said he bought them in Texas, where he was serving in the Air Force, before coming home and buying the house in mid-2009. He said he is repairing the house so he and his wife can move in.

Ramey said he previously kept the dogs at his mother-in-law’s house, but built the kennel for them after it got too crowded there.

“I come over and feed them, clean it, and all that every day,” he said. “They get checked on every single day.”

Obadal said she was questioned by her superiors earlier in the week about the dogs, and told them her story. When she arrived for work Thursday, she was told she was being arrested. Obadal said she was “shocked” and “dumbfounded.”

“I was advised that disciplinary action could be taken even prior to going to court,” Obadal said. “I expect to be fired.”

Obadal’s arrest is the third embarrassing development for the Cedar Rapids Police Department since May. K-9 unit Officer Wayne Handeland, a 21-year-veteran, resigned after his squad car ended up at a Marion bar on May 5. Witnesses told SourceMedia Group he arrived at the bar in the squad car with two women, and appeared intoxicated.

Police conducted a seven-week internal investigation before Handeland stepped down.

Undisclosed disciplinary action was taken against another officer after he was photographed asleep in his squad car on the morning of May 10. The officer’s name was never released.

“Obviously, these are isolated incidents,” said Henderson, the police spokeswoman. “As a whole, I don’t think it’s a true reflection on the department. There are a lot of good things that happen here and a lot of good officers here. Unfortunately, we’ve had a run of bad incidents here.”

Former Trooper facing rape charges due in Logan Co. Court today

District Attorney Tom Lee announced Tuesday that he is charging former Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Patrick R. Venable with rape in the second degree.

Venable resigned from OHP back in July following an internal investigation into allegations that he had taken an intoxicated underage female into custody for DUI and then drove her from Oklahoma City to a residence in Guthrie to have sex.

Venable, who is due in a Logan County Courthouse at 1:30pm today, if found guilty could face up to fifteen years in prison.

----------------

More Information

Colorado officer retires after alleged wild ride

A suburban Denver police officer allowed to represent his department at a South Dakota lawman's funeral has retired after authorities say he and a fellow officer took an alcohol-fueled ride through Wyoming on their way to the service.


In his letter of retirement, Officer Bradley B. Bickett apologized for his conduct.

"I offer my most sincere apologies to the Aurora Police Department, the citizens of Aurora, and all of law enforcement for this incident," he wrote, according to a police statement.

Bickett could not be reached for comment.

He and Gerald Kirby were accused of speeding past traffic with their emergency lights flashing and tossing trash from a window on their way to the South Dakota funeral of a fallen police officer.

Their squad car was pulled over Wednesday after authorities say a volunteer firefighter spotted the car driving erratically on a state highway outside Torrington, Wyo., about 50 miles northeast of Cheyenne. Bickett was charged with driving while impaired, careless driving and speeding, while Kirby was charged with littering.
Aurora Police Chief Daniel Oates thanked Bickett for leaving the department.

"It is unfortunate that a 31-year career of service in law enforcement was destroyed by a single day of poor judgment. He made the honorable choice to retire," Oates said in his statement. "His apology will mean a great deal to his colleagues in the department and will help put this unfortunate event behind us."

Kirby remains on restricted duty pending a full internal affairs investigation.

Aurora police spokesman Bob Friel said Friday that Bickett and Kirby received permission to travel to Rapid City, S.D., to represent their department at a funeral for one of two officers killed in a shootout earlier this month. Bickett knew an officer in the South Dakota department, Friel said.

Goshen County Sheriff Donald J. Murphy said Bickett's blood-alcohol level tested at 0.08 percent, the level at which he said a driver is presumed to be under the influence. Another test determined later his level was 0.077 percent, Murphy said. A beer cooler was found in the back seat.

Bickett's speech was described as "slurred" in a booking report posted on the Goshen County Sheriff's Department website. He was released on his own recognizance early Thursday.

The funeral for the fallen officer, Nick Armstrong, 27, was held Thursday. The officers never made it to the funeral. Two Aurora police officers went to Wyoming to pick up Bickett and Kirby. They were immediately placed on desk duty pending an internal investigation.

Armstrong and Officer J. Ryan McCandless were killed in an Aug. 2 shootout that erupted while they were trying to question four men walking with an open alcohol container, Rapid City police spokeswoman Tarah Heupel said. A third officer, Tim Doyle, was hospitalized with multiple gunshot wounds.

Officer Jonathan Kendall Arrested for Dealing in Child Porn

Harrington Police Department, was arrested by state police on March 10 on multiple charges of dealing in child pornography, state department of justice spokesman Jason Miller said.

Officer Jonathan Kendall, 37, an active member of the Miller said the Delaware Child Predator Task Force investigated Kendall and found evidence of child pornography after seizing a computer and “other evidence” from his Lincoln home on Jan. 19.

“It is certainly a sad day when one of our own has been arrested, and it is an disappointment,” Harrington Police Chief Norman Barlow said. “We want to assure the citizens of Harrington that we will diligently work hard to move our department past this incident and provide the police service they expect.”

Police also found evidence in Kendall’s vehicle and home after his arrest, Miller said.

Kendall has been charged with 27 counts of dealing in child pornography and one count each of hindering prosecution and official misconduct. He was committed to the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center in lieu of $272,000 secured bond.

Kendall’s arrest is part of an ongoing offensive by the child predator task force that also led to the indictment of Shane Kiser, a Beebe Hospital nurse, on the same day.

“We will never let up from our efforts to protect our kids and we will never back down from the challenge of combating child predators,” Attorney General Beau Biden said.

Officer Ronald Jackson Arrested for DUI

A fired Jacksonville police officer spent a night behind bars after his arrest Friday on charges of driving under the influence. Two cars and a fence were hit prior to the DUI stop.

The arrest of Ronald Jackson, 45, comes two weeks after he was fired, ending an 11-year career with three pages of citizen and in-house complaints and disciplinary action, according to his personnel file.

Friday's incident started at Intuition Ale Works at 720 King St. where Jackson showed up for a job as a security officer whose company was hired by the business at 6:45 p.m., then drove off a few minutes later, according to the arrest report. A bit later, officers were called to two hit-and-runs on Ernest Street, a block from the bar. Witnesses told police that a black sport-utility vehicle hit a recycling bin, a pickup truck and a second vehicle and a fence before driving off, according to the police report.

Shortly after 7 p.m. police found a black Ford Explorer stopped on Riverside Avenue and then driving onto Forest Street. Its hood popped up, but the driver stopped and put it down. Officers followed the Explorer, which had a dented front end, until its hood popped up again.

The driver turned onto Magnolia Street, then hit a curb on Riverside Avenue. He got out and said, "Sarge, I'm sorry" to the sergeant who had followed him, ultimately refusing to take a field sobriety test before he was handcuffed and taken to jail just before 10 p.m., according to the arrest report.

Jackson was hired by the Sheriff's Office in April 1999 and has had 25 complaints filed against him, according to his summarized personnel report. Complaints of rudeness, unnecessary force and false arrest were made, most not sustained although he underwent informal counseling and received a supervisor's referral letter on some. In October 2010, he was suspended 20 days for unbecoming conduct and failing to be wholly candid, the records show.

But one final issue saw internal affairs recommend discipline that led to his firing.

On Jan. 20, Jackson disrupted a training academy class by arguing with an instructor over paperwork. Told to leave, he sent a classmate a text message threatening he was "gonna end it all," according to the internal affairs report. He also called the Sheriff's Office's communications center and told another officer he was going to "get his gun and blow his brains out."

Found by police, he was taken to Baptist Medical Center for involuntary examination. After being declared fit for duty on Jan. 28, he told internal affairs investigators that he had an anxiety attack and "snapped," according to the report.

The 23-page internal affairs report recommended charges of unbecoming conduct and failure to obey an order be filed against Jackson, and Undersheriff Dwain Senterfitt fired him July 22. Jackson could not be reached for comment.

Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/news/crime/2011-08-09/story/fired-jacksonville-police-officer-arrested-dui-after-2-accidents#ixzz1VDt2Nq5F

Officer Robb Gray Evans Arrested for Sexual Abuse

The Flagstaff Police Department (FPD)arrested Arizona DPS Officer Robb Gray Evans of Flagstaff late Saturday night. Officers responded to the Greenroom Bar in Flagstaff to a report of a male subject who had inappropriately touched a 30 year old female.

According to officers, they were contacted by the employees of the Greenroom Bar who were out with the alleged suspect. Speaking to the female victim, she told officers she was standing at the bar when the suspect had come up behind her and began inappropriately touching her. The woman said she confronted the male suspect and reported the incident to bar employees.

The suspect identified himself to police as an Arizona DPA Officer which was later confirmed by FPD officers.

Evans has been booked into the Coconino County Jail for one count of Sexual Abuse and is being held on $50,000 bond. According to the FPD, the investigation is still on going.

Sheriff Freedom Crawford arrested for Assault

An early morning bar fight lands a Montana sheriff on the wrong side of the law. He’s facing four misdemeanor charges. We talked with the man who says the sheriff walked up to him, tossed him into a window and took off.

The Roosevelt County sheriff was arrested after a bar fight in Lewistown early Tuesday morning.

Sheriff Freedom Crawford faces misdemeanor charges of assault, obstructing a peace officer, disorderly conduct and criminal mischief.

Lewistown Police Department says they were called to the Montana Tavern just after midnight. A bartender told them Sheriff Crawford threw another patron through a window, then ran away.

That 48-year-old Pennsylvania man was taken to the hospital, treated and released.

Officer Lauren Fanning Arrested for Intoxication

A Louisville Metro Police officer who is still on her probationary period with the department was arrested early Saturday following an incident at Molly Malone's Irish Pub on Shelbyville Road, police said.

Officer Lauren Fanning, 24, of Spring Hill Court in Crestwood, was booked into Metro Corrections at 3:29 a.m. Saturday, and released about five hours later on her own recognizance, according to jail records.

Fanning was charged with alcohol intoxication in a public place, second-degree disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, third-degree assault on a police officer and fourth-degree assault. She is scheduled to be arraigned on the charges Monday.

Police spokesman Dwight Mitchell said Fanning, who was hired in June 2009, has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.
Mitchell said he wasn't sure what led to the charges against Fanning.

 

Officer Michelle Salentine Arrested for Smoking Cocaine

The FBI has arrested a Platteville Police Officer, charging her with smoking crack cocaine. The news came as a shock to the small police department.

Monday afternoon Platteville Police Chief Doug McKinley got a visit from the FBI. “They let us know that they’d had an ongoing investigation concerning a member of our department.”

Officer Michelle Salentine was arrested without incident when she reported for duty. She appeared in federal court Tuesday, accused of smoking crack cocaine.

Salentine joined the Platteville Police Department in September of 2004. “Been a very good officer, but apparently had some things going on that we were unaware of,” says McKinley. According to court documents, Salentine says she’s been smoking crack 4 to 6 times a week for the past year.

A confidential witness tipped off the FBI in February. Chief McKinley says Salentine is a patrol officer for the night shift.

“She was working predominantly 7pm to 7am.” According to the witness, Salentine has smoked crack while on duty. On March 4th, the witness texted a law enforcement officer at 1:35 am, saying, “your girl is here smoking she has a stem and a bag, getting f***ed up here and in the squad, she’s getting to go back on duty.”

Officer Gabriel Villarreal Suspended for Using City Computer to Obtain Woman's Personal Information

A San Antonio police officer accused of using a city computer to glean a woman's personal information and then staging an emergency response to her house has been fired after an investigation revealed he boasted about other women on his patrol car terminal and pulled their personal data as well, according to Police Department records.

After 14 years on the force with no suspensions, Officer Gabriel Villarreal, 43, was indefinitely suspended last week, a punishment tantamount to being fired.

A second patrolman, 10-year veteran Officer Keith Floyd, 41, was found to have exchanged "crude, suggestive (and) disparaging" remarks about women with Villarreal via his patrol car terminal and was suspended Friday for 15 days without pay, police records state.

Assistant City Attorney Robert Reyna said another officer faces a possible 30-day suspension in connection with the same case.

The violations involve at least seven women and occurred through October, November and December 2009, according to the city's findings, which allege the following:

For "personal" reasons, Villarreal researched the criminal history of an apartment manager in his patrol district. In conversations via car terminals, Villarreal and another officer referred to the woman by "nicknames for her breasts."

Villarreal and another officer also held an "extended" electronic conversation about two other women in which "a comment is passed back and forth about whether (Villarreal) 'knocked' or 'knocked it out,' referring to sex."

A few days later, Villarreal ran the registration of a Mercedes-Benz owned by another woman and sent it to a fellow officer. The pair then discussed her "personal physical attributes, her breasts and her attractiveness."

From the registration information, Villarreal then pulled more of that woman's personal data, including calls for police service to her home address, her social security number and her municipal court files.

The same day, Villarreal ran the registration of a Lexus that belonged to another woman; he earlier had suggested to a fellow officer they "go knock" at her residence.

A few days later, Villarreal's car terminal conversations focused on a female San Antonio police officer, whom he suggested should be invited to a "clothing optional" shift party.

The following week, Villarreal brought his wife and daughter to The Art of Shaving, an upscale boutique at The Shops at La Cantera that sells $1,000 razors.

A female employee there sold him nearly $400 in shaving supplies, she told the San Antonio Express-News.

The next day, Villarreal used his patrol car terminal to determine her address, date of birth and cell phone number. Called to assist the public, Villarreal handled that call quickly, left the scene within four minutes and drove to the woman's house while holding the initial call open, according to the city's findings.

Rousing the woman from bed, Villarreal rang the doorbell and told her that someone had called 911 and hung up. He eventually left and drove to another location, where he conducted research on her prior residences and her father, the city alleges.

Over the next two days, Villarreal pulled her cell phone history and calls for police service to her home. Meanwhile, the woman reported the incident to the Police Department's internal affairs department.

The next day, Villarreal and another officer allegedly discussed via patrol car terminals where they should eat lunch, at one point making "inappropriate sexual references" about female officers, police records state.

Villarreal was indefinitely suspended without pay last Monday.

Incidents caught on camera increase department scrutiny of officers

Minutes after a suburban Chicago police officer was charged with striking a motorist with his baton, prosecutors handed out copies of a video showing the beating - taken by a dashboard camera on the officer's own squad car.

In California, after a transit cop and an unruly train passenger slammed against a wall during a struggle and shattered a station window last fall, video from a bystander's cell phone was all over the Internet before the window was fixed.

The same cell phones, surveillance cameras and other video equipment often used to assist police are also catching officers on tape, changing the nature of police work - for better and worse.

Some say cameras are exposing behavior that police have gotten away with for years. But others contend the videos, which often show a snippet of an incident, turn officers into villains simply for doing their jobs, making them targets of lawsuits and discipline from bosses buckling to public pressure.

"We tell our officers all the time you've got to assume that everything you do is going to be videotaped," said Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis. "Everyone has a cell phone and almost every cell phone has a camera."

Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez said the video her office gave to the media on Tuesday shows police officer James Mandarino, from the Chicago suburb of Streamwood, hitting motorist Ronald Bell 15 times after a traffic stop last month.

In the video, Mandarino is seen firing a Taser at a passenger in the car and then striking Bell, who is on his knees with his hands on his head. Bell suffered a concussion and cuts that required seven stitches.

"It's a wonderful tool," Alvarez said of the video, which she says suggests that both men posed no threat to the officer.

Though police-behaving-badly videos have become popular staples of cable news shows and the Internet, Weis said he doesn't believe his officers are overly cautious out of fears they'll be videotaped - and their superiors are not advising them to be.

Quietly, though, some officers say the prospect of being videotaped makes them hesitate even if they know they should act.

"I've heard from officers who are sent to break up a fight in the street and see a group of people leaning out windows with handheld video cameras ... they go slower and are less aggressive," said Tom Needham, a Chicago attorney who has represented several police officers.

But University of Chicago law professor Craig Futterman, who has studied police brutality, said videos are helping hold police accountable.

"My own view is that YouTube has done more to expose the reality of police abuse than all the blue-ribbon commissions combined," said Futterman.

A Chicago police officer who was arrested three years ago in the videotaped beating of a female bartender never would have been charged much less convicted if not for the video, Futterman said. Anthony Abbate initially was charged with a misdemeanor until the video played across the world.

Ronald Bell's brother, Stacey Bell, said he doubts the Streamwood officer would have been charged with felony aggravated battery and official misconduct without the video and his brother still would have faced charges of drunken driving and resisting an officer, which were dropped.

"I believe it would have been six witnesses against an officer and it would have been a different story," said Stacey Bell, who witnessed the alleged beating. The officer's attorney declined to comment.

But some caution that incidents caught on tape can misrepresent police work.

"The work of a police officer, even when done properly is ... not pleasant to watch," said Al O'Leary, spokesman for the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association in New York City. "We've had situations, circumstances where an officer doing his job by the book is caught on video is tagged as brutal. Sometimes the work is brutal but necessary."

In California when the Bay Area Rapid Transit officer slammed into a window with a suspect during a violent arrest, the cell phone video - viewed more than 160,000 times on one clip posted on YouTube - ended up exonerating the officer whose actions brought claims of excessive force, a union official said.

"It wasn't the suspect's head that caused the glass to break," said Jesse Sekhon, BART police officers union president. "When you freeze the video and enhance it you see it was the suspect punching it with his hand."

What's more, video viewers rarely hear the frantic 911 call for help, rocks hurled at an approaching squad car or the countless times police have been called to the same house.

In New York City in 2008, a man died after falling from a building ledge when police jolted him with a Taser. Video of the last few moments, including Iman Morales' fall, was posted on newspaper Web sites and played over and over again on local TV.

But before the cameras were running, "this guy was stark naked, running up and down the fire escape, he tried to get into a woman's apartment by tearing out the air conditioner, terrifying the woman," and swung a fluorescent light bulb at police before Lt. Michael Pigott ordered him shot him with the stun gun, said Tom Sullivan, president of the NYPD's Lieutenants Benevolent Association.

Eight days later, Pigott - stripped of his gun and badge and demoted - committed suicide, leaving a note saying he was trying to protect his men. His widow, who is suing the police department, said the discipline humiliated her husband. The department declined to comment.

There is little chance that the videotaped scrutiny of police will slow. In fact, groups with video cameras follow police in cities all over the country, including Orlando, Fla., where George Crossley launched Orlando CopWatch in 2006.

"If we come up on law enforcement, the whole shift knows immediately," said Crossley. "They get on the radio (and say) 'Watch out for CopWatch.'"

Sgt Jerry Blash Who Filed Ben Roethlisberger Report Resigns

The Ben Roethlisberger sexual assault investigation has led to a Milledgeville (Ga.) police officer’s resignation.

According to ESPN.com, Sgt. Jerry Blash, the only police officer who interviewed Roethlisberger in the investigation, resigned Wednesday following the release of investigation documents to the public. Milledgeville police chief Woodrow Blue confirmed Blash’s resignation Friday.

Blash resigned amid reports that he made negative comments about Roethlisberger’s accuser near friends of the Steelers’ quarterback. In addition, photos released one week after the incident revealed Roethlisberger and Blash together smiling just hours before the sexual assault allegation was made.

Blue stated Blash was involved in the investigation until March 12.

Additional documents released Thursday revealed a 16-year-old told officials that Roethlisberger had made sexual advances toward a friend’s sister, but the woman declined the opportunity to speak with authorities.

The allegations against Roethlisberger continue to haunt the quarterback and the Steelers organization as well.

Roethlisberger could face punishment from the league and from Steelers president Art Rooney II for his actions. The team also could face a six-figure fine as a result of the behavior of Roethlisberger and former Steelers wide receiver Santonio Holmes.

Officer Sidney Garcia Accused of Punching CabDriver

An off-duty city police officer was arrested after being accused of punching a cabdriver in the face on the East Side, the police said.

The officer, Sidney Garcia, 42, was charged with third-degree assault on Friday evening, several hours after the driver of a yellow taxicab reported that he had been assaulted during an argument with five people late Thursday.

Officer Garcia was stripped of his gun and badge, and was suspended without pay for 30 days, as detectives from the Internal Affairs Bureau of the Police Department began an inquiry.

Appointed to the force on Feb. 28, 1994, Officer Garcia is currently assigned to the department’s Applicant Processing Division, where he handles the submissions of candidates to become police officers.

According to the police, Officer Garcia was with four other people on Thursday night when they tried to hail a cab at Third Avenue and 35th Street about 11:20 p.m. When a taxi pulled over, the officer and the others tried to get in.

“The cabby said no,” said a law enforcement official, adding that the driver apparently felt that having five passengers would violate the rules of the Taxi and Limousine Commission.

Words were exchanged as the five people got into the taxi, with Officer Garcia in front, the police said.

“Then, the off-duty cop allegedly hits” the driver in the face, said the official, who requested anonymity because the investigation was continuing.

The cabby drove away after the encounter. It was not until finishing his shift and returning to his garage, about 3:30 a.m., that he came across Officer Garcia’s ID card and shield inside the vehicle, law enforcement officials said. He then contacted the police.

The extent of the driver’s injuries, if any, was not immediately clear, and the police did not identify the driver by name.

Officer Garcia was arrested about 5:30 p.m. on Friday, the police said.

“Our rules restrict the number of passengers to the number of seat belts available,” Allan J. Fromberg, a spokesman for the Taxi and Limousine Commission, said.

“The number of authorized passengers would go on the rate card that’s in the vehicle, the card that goes next to the driver’s license,” Mr. Fromberg said, adding that the agency did not keep “crime stats” on events like assaults against drivers. He declined to comment on what led to Officer Garcia’s arrest.

The police would not say if Officer Garcia had previously faced disciplinary action in the course of his 16-year career.

Since 1984, on average, more than 100 police officers a year have been arrested.

Two More Officers Suspended Over Beating

Prince George's County police said Thursday that they have suspended two more officers in connection with an incident last month in which officers in riot gear beat an unarmed University of Maryland student who had taken to the streets with hundreds of others to celebrate a victory by the men's basketball team over Duke University.

With those suspensions, a total of four county officers have been relieved of their police powers in connection with the attack of John J. McKenna, 21. The March 3 beating was captured on video by another student and has been aired all across the world since McKenna's attorney released it on Monday.

The video shows McKenna skipping on a sidewalk before stopping before a phalanx of officers on horseback. As McKenna backs up, two county officers in riot gear rush him and knock him against a wall; at least one of them hits McKenna repeatedly with a police baton. As McKenna crumples to the ground, the video shows, a third officer rushes in and strikes him repeatedly with his baton.

McKenna suffered a concussion and other injuries, his attorney said.

The FBI, the state's attorney's office and police internal affairs detectives are all investigating the incident.

In addition to the beating, they are focusing on official charging documents filed by Officer Sean McAleavey against McKenna and another student.

The charging documents allege that McKenna and Benjamin C. Donat, 19, assaulted officers on horseback and their mounts, and were injured by horses. Prosecutors dropped charges against McKenna and Donat before the video surfaced.

McAleavey is the only suspended officer who has been publicly identified by officials.

In another development, Maj. Daniel A. Dusseau, commander of the 1st District and the official who was in charge of the police response the night of the beating, is retiring, officials said.

Dusseau, a 21-year veteran, has taken a job in the private sector and will retire at the end of the month, said Maj. Andy Ellis, a police spokesman. Ellis said the retirement is unrelated to the controversy over the College Park incident.

Said Dusseau: "My retirement and movement to another job is something I've been working on since I was eligible to retire and has nothing to do with the incidents going on in College Park," he said.

Former ATF Agent Brandon McFadden Indicted on Drug Charges

A former Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agent was taken into custody by Tulsa Police on Thursday.

Brandon J. McFadden was indicted by a grand jury for the Northern District of Oklahoma on four counts including conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana; possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute; possessing a firearm during a drug trafficking offense, and money laundering.

According to the indictment, McFadden was employed as an ATF agent from July, 2002, through September, 2009. He regularly investigated potential firearms and drug trafficking offenses, and the indictment alleges that he was guilty of selling drugs, falsifying evidence and lying on the witness stand.

In one case, a man and his daughter were sent to federal prison and have since been released.  The woman's only son was killed by a drunk driver while she was in prison, and she was not allowed to attend the funeral.

Related Story 3/31/2010: Tulsa Police Officer, Former ATF Agent Accused Of Corruption

If convicted, McFadden faces a possible sentence of not less than 10 years imprisonment to life. The McFadden investigation is related to an investigation of corruption in the Tulsa Police Department.
Tulsa Police Officer Jeff Henderson has been placed on administrative leave in connection to this investigation which is ongoing.

Former Officer Jason Laurin Has History of Misconducts

Former Police Officer Jason L. Laurin resigned under pressure in November after he was caught in an extramarital affair while on duty and then lied about it to his superiors, according to records in his disciplinary file.

Laurin had lied about other incidents during his 11½-year career and had a record of "progressive discipline" that included a reprimand and a suspension without pay in 2008, the records show.

In 2002, 2006, 2008 and 2009, Laurin was disciplined for using his police cell phone for personal calls and texts - several hundred in all, many of them sexual in nature and made while he was on duty. The 2008 investigation determined he fabricated one call to establish an alibi.

His conduct "has certainly brought this department into disrepute," an internal investigative report concluded Nov. 18, 2009.

But, when Police Chief Joe Collins issued a short press release about the resignation on Nov. 24, it said Laurin’s departure "was related to personal matters." The release said Laurin had been investigated for "a violation of work rules," and the investigation "was not related to any criminal activity and the safety of the community was never compromised."

The announcement did not mention specific misconduct or lying because, as it turned out, the Police Department had agreed to keep the details secret unless forced by legal action to share them. Even then, in response to a formal Open Records request submitted by the Herald Times Reporter, the city denied access to Laurin’s records on Dec. 30, citing protection of employee reputation, morale and the need to preserve the city’s ability to recruit quality candidates.

Faced with a possible Open Records lawsuit, the city reversed its position and made Laurin’s personnel files available to the HTR last month. Those records revealed Laurin’s disciplinary history and the events that forced his resignation, including his efforts to disguise and deny the dozens of daylight trysts that occurred once or twice a week for almost a year, sometimes while he was on duty.
-------------------------
More Information

Officer Joe Fenison Arrested for Domestic Violence

A Birmingham police officer is in the city jail today after being arrested on a domestic violence charge, jail records show.

West Precinct Officer Joe Fenison was booked into the city jail at 12:46 a.m., according to the jail log. Sgt. James Jackson, a domestic violence supervisor, confirmed Fenison was arrested between 8:30 and 9 p.m. at a residence in the 600 block of Brussels Circle.

Police said the arrest followed an altercation over a child visitation issue.

Fenison is charged with third-degree domestic violence, a misdemeanor.

Former Officer Michael Lohman Pleas Guilty to Shooting

A former lieutenant of the New Orleans Police Department, who is charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice, has entered a guilty plea. He is alleged of having helped cover up fellow officers’ fatal shootings of two unarmed people during the chaotic period following Hurricane Katrina.

Michael Lohman, 42, was not initially present at the scene of the shootings, which took place on the Danziger Bridge and which injured four people in addition to the two who were killed. However, Lohman later went to the scene and concluded that the shooting was unjustified, but nevertheless file false police reports. Additionally, as the officer in charge of investigating the shooting, he allegedly looked the other way when another investigator planted a gun at the scene of the crime, asking only if the weapon in question was “clean” — police parlance for a gun that cannot be traced back to a prior crime.

According to survivors of the September 4, 2005 incident, the police fired at people who were crossing the bridge in search of food, during the aftermath of the infamous hurricane which threw the city into turmoil. None of those people were armed.

Killed by police gunfire were a 40-year-old mentally disable man, Ronald Madison, and a teenager, 19-year-old James Brissette.

A recently unsealed indictment says that Lohman and two sergeants, who remain unidentified, wrote two different accounts of the bridge shootings, both false reports. One of claims made was that a victim had come forward to say that her nephew was among those firing guns at police. Federal officials contend that Lohman, unhappy with a false report written by a fellow investigator, then crafted his own false report. He also allegedly told the investigator to collude with the shooters, to make sure that they were “OK with” the bogus report and with giving statements that would back it up.

Seven officers had been charged with murder or attempted murder in the shooting, but a state judge dismissed those charges in 2008, making Lohman the first person to face justice. He is scheduled to be sentenced May 26.

In the days following Hurricane Katrina and the flooding that resulted, there were numerous reports of violence against police and rescue personnel, many of which were later proven untrue. The shootings on the bridge were one of the most highly publicized events, and this notoriety may account for the subsequent cover-up, which U.S. Attorney Jim Letten has called “a pretty elaborate ongoing conspiracy.”

Former Officer Kills Man at Sports Bar

A former Chisholm police officer is facing possible murder charges after a shooting at a sports bar on Saturday night.

Authorities say a 47-year-old patron was killed and another suffered life-threatening injuries when the suspect opened fire with one of two handguns inside Jim's Sports Club Bar and Grill just before 10 p.m.

Department of Public Safety spokesman Andy Skoogman said that the suspect had been kicked out of the bar minutes earlier after an altercation with a group of people sitting in the bar with his former wife.

Skoogman said the suspect, a former police officer in the '80s, returned minutes after being kicked out of the bar with two handguns.

"He fired off 5 shots, injuring two people and fatally shooting a third person," Skoogman said. "All three were sitting at the same table as his ex-wife and all three were shot at close range.

"We believe this was a domestic dispute that took place in a public place. It escalated to an extremely violent situation and the true tragedy here is that the victims are all individuals who tried to keep the peace."

A third patron was also wounded in the shooting, and authorities say as many as 100 people may have been in the bar at the time.

Police say a bystander knocked out the suspect with a chair to end the shooting.

----------------------------------
More Information

Retired Officer Stephen Young Accused of Molesting Children

Ada County Prosecutors said Monday that former Boise police officer Stephen R. Young is accused of molesting at least 13 children over the past 30 years. He has been charged for his interactions with four specific children, but more charges are coming, Deputy Prosecutor Jean Fisher said.

He turned himself in after he abruptly retired at the end of February, and is being held on a $250,000 bond.

Prosecutors said Young is estranged from his family, including his wife and family members are cooperating with the investigation.

Boise police officials say they were not aware of any criminal investigation into Young, and Ada County Sheriff’s detectives did not begin their criminal investigation into Young until early last week — after he retired.

By Friday, detectives had established enough probable cause to charge Young with four counts of lewd conduct with a child under the age of 16 and book him into the Ada County Jail.

Boise police and the Ada County Sheriff's officials say the charges involved incidents in the past five years and did not appear to involve on-duty work.

Sheriff’s officials say all four victims — all children between the ages of one month to 21 months — were known to Young and the abuse occurred at various homes in Ada County between 2005 and 2008. None of the victims lived at Young’s home. Detectives continue to investigate the case and are trying to find out if there are any other victims.

The 58-year-old Young worked for the Boise Police department for 30 years.

Young had several assignments with the BPD, including 10 years as a school resource officer between 1995 to 2005, spending much of that time assigned to Boise High School. Young also worked as an SRO at South Jr. High School.

Young was an officer with the Boise Police Department from October 1978 until he retired Feb. 28. He was a patrol officer from 1978 to 1994; a motorcycle officer from 1994 to 1995; a school resource officer from 1995 to 2005; and a patrol officer from 2005 until his retirement.

The charge of lewd conduct is punishable by up to life in prison.

Young has no previous criminal record in Idaho, according to state court records.

Boise Police Chief Mike Masterson said Monday his officers fully cooperating with investigators from the Ada County Sheriff's office.

"Masterson also released a statement to the public on the department's Facebook Web page Monday. Here is the full text of that message:

"As a former BPD employee goes to court today on charges of Lewd Conduct with a minor, I'd like to communicate two important thoughts; first, I know I speak for all in saying our hearts go out to the alleged victims and their families.... The allegations against Mr. Young are more disturbing than I can put into words.

"Children are truly the most innocent of victims.

"Following Mr. Young's retirement, when the criminal allegations surfaced, we have cooperated fully with investigators from the Ada County Sheriff's Office.

"Secondly, it saddens me greatly that the thousands of fine men and woman who serve as peace officers risk being judged as a whole by the actions of one.

"Law Enforcement is a challenging, rewarding profession. I am reassured to know that within the Boise Police department our employees know that actions that may compromise the integrity of this profession are not tolerated, either within the ranks of officers or by their supervisors.

"My appreciation goes out to those who quietly and honorably wear the badge, who serve, lead and protect the citizens throughout Boise, Idaho and the nation. To the heroes who do not make headlines, you deserve our admiration and gratitude each and every day.

"Finally, for the victims in this case and all cases, especially those involving children, we put our trust in the investigators that they will provide the proper and necessary answers for the community. And our faith is in our judicial system that justice will be served and healing can begin for all the affected families."