A pink slip and the big picture....

"Don't you have something more important to do than write me a ticket?" ...It seems every police officer at some point in their career has been asked that question.

The fact is, traffic enforcement is just one part of a comprehensive approach toward making our community safe.    The Greenville Police Department works toward a safer community in a variety of ways. Among these are:  patrol officers and detectives catching criminals, volunteers working on community watch, code enforcement working to reduce public hazards,  community outreach with kids in the PAL program, and through traffic safety enforcement, just to name a few.

Let's dispel a few myths right here.  There is no such thing as a quota for traffic tickets.  Traffic tickets do not generate revenue for the City.  And no police officer has ever received a toaster oven for writing the most traffic tickets.

But there is a correlation between the number of traffic tickets being written, and the number of car crashes that take place each year.   As the number of traffic tickets that were issued decreased,  the number of car crashes increased.    No myth there. That is a fact.

Are other factors involved? Almost certainly.  The City of Greenville has seen tremendous growth and new roads have been built.  But the fact remains that the number of car crashes yearly has steadily risen from 5,046  crashes in 2005 to 5,575 crashes in 2011.   The number of traffic tickets issued yearly have gone down from 24,478 in 2005 to 14,950 in 2011.

Voluntary compliance to the traffic safety laws leads to safer roadways,  to lives saved, and to a safer community.  That is the goal of traffic safety enforcement and its part of law enforcement, which in turn is part of the bigger picture. 

So when you see that police officer ahead with the RADAR and you slow down, then who knows, a life may be saved and it may be someone you love.  It may even be yours, and what's more important than that?

While you were away...

Officer Slaughter on a traffic stop recovered a small amount of marijuana from the driver, more than likely just purchased from his two passengers. On a consent search a .38 caliber revolver was located under one of the back passengers, arrested was Rashad Lamar Barnes.

Officer Lather stopped Kenneth Johnson for blowing through a stop sign on Chestnut Street. Johnson was extremely nervous and consented to a search. Summing it up, Johnson ate the crack he had just purchased and was charged accordingly. Johnson is on probation and works at the Campus Store.  

Officers Young and Galluppi stopped a vehicle traveling reckless on Myrtle Ave. the driver jumped out stated that he didn’t steal anything. Turns out he and his two passengers had been cleaning out Walmart of steaks, underwear, t-shirts, and bodywash. Arrested:   Antonio Taylor who also had outstanding warrants for FTA Unauthorized Use & Hit Run, Angela Taylor and Mr. William Sheppard. They are now freshly dressed in orange at PCDC.

Can we help you?...

The Police Department front lobby is the front door as well as the front porch of the Greenville Police Department. 

A large volume of police-related business is conducted in the lobby and at the front desk, which is staffed daily by our Community Services personnel and by police officers. 

Many people come to the police department each day to file police reports for every type and variety of incident.  The Community Services personnel see reports for everything from a stolen lawn ornament to sexual assaults, and all things in between. 

Homeless people seeking admission to the Greenville Homeless Shelter come to the front desk to get background papers completed for admission.  Job applicants come here to get fingerprinted.  Almost everyone who has their car towed in Greenville comes through the front lobby to obtain a vehicle release form.  Some people come just to ask directions.  The personnel staffing the front desk see it all, daily.   They maintain a calm composure in the midst of occasional chaos, and seem to handle the many requests for help efficiently and effectively.    

The front desk is open to the public from 7:00 am until 11:00 pm, daily.  Non-sworn Community Services personnel are on duty from 7am to 7pm.  Police officers may be assisting them sometimes during the day, and police officers staff the desk at night until 11pm.  Anyone needing help after 11pm can speak with a dispatcher through an intercom located outside the front door, and a police officer will come to assist them.

Fingerprinting for job applications is conducted on Tuesdays & Thursdays from  8 -10am, and 1-4pm.  Volunteers graciously give their time and assist with fingerprinting--What would we do without the volunteers!?

Another vital part of the front lobby is the Records Division.  The Police Records Division is located on the first floor of the police department and has an access window in the front lobby for customer service. The normal hours of operation are 9:00AM to 5:00PM, Monday through Friday.  Records is closed to the public on Holidays. 

The Records Division handles public requests for Accident, Arrest, and Case Reports as well as applications for various permits.  Each day a small army of people come to the Records window to retrieve police case reports & accident reports.    A small fee is charged for making copies of reports under certain circumstances.  Victims are never charged for getting a police report, though.

Some of the unseen duties of our Records Division include merging computerized records from the Field Reporting System into our Records Management System.  They do quality control, auditing, and data entry.   The Records Division is also responsible for organizing and submitting Greenville Police Records to the NC SBI for

addition to the Uniform Crime Report.

Staffing the front desk and the records division are sometimes thankless jobs, it seems, but they are both extremely important to the proper functioning of the Greenville Police Department.

Some people never learn...

On Tuesday May 21 at about 5:45 pm, Greenville Police IMPACT Officers responded to a report of shots fired in the area of Chestnut Street and West 14^th Street.  Officers found the suspect, 58 year old Sammy Simms, running near Dickinson Avenue and saw Simms throw a handgun into a grass field on Broad Street.

Officers apprehended Simms without incident and further investigation determined Simms had broken into two vehicles and stolen two firearms (a .357 magnum revolver, and a .25 caliber semi-auto pistol) and a knife.  Simms is a repeat offender who is well known to police and to the courts.   As a previous blog entry described it,  Sammy is a  well known "frequent flyer."



Sammy Simms



Witnesses told police that the victims of the car break-ins began chasing Simms after they discovered what he had done.  When Simms realized the victims were chasing him he turned and fired one round in the air and four rounds at the victims.

Sammy Simms was charged with  2 counts of felony B & E from motor vehicle, 2 counts of Larceny of a Firearm, 2 counts of Possession of Stolen Firearm, 2 counts of Possession of Firearm by a Felon, 2 counts of Assault with a Deadly Weapon, Misdemeanor Larceny, and Discharge a Firearm in the city limits. 

Sammy Simms was jailed under a $1.5 Million Dollar Bond. 

For your service, part 2...

Four times each year the City of Greenville and the Greenville Police Department recognizes officers and civilian employees who have continuously served the City, the Department, and the community.  Service ribbons are presented to police officers for service of 5 years or more, and for every 5 years afterward.  These ribbons are issued to police officers to be worn on their uniform, signifying their years of service as police officers.

Service ribbons are symbolic of the public trust that each police officer holds. They represent faithfulness to duty, professionalism, and service to the community.

Officers and employees also receive a service pin and gift from the City for their continued service of 5 years or more.

 

On Wednesday May 16, The Greenville Police Department awarded service ribbons and gifts to the following employees for their continuous years of service:

·         Lieutenant Susan Bass                                   25 years

·         Interim Assistant Chief Ted Sauls                15 years

·         Mrs. Diane Leathers                                         15 years

·         Detective Frank Desantis                               15 years

·         Mrs. Devinder Culver                                         5 years

·         Ms. Molly Muise                                                   5 years

·         Ms. Kellie Mozingo                                             5 years



15-year Service Ribbon



Gently used, still servicable....

The STRIVE Second Chance Re-Entry Program will be hosting a large yard sale at CornerStone Missionary Baptist Church, Saturday, May 19 beginning at 6:00 am. 

CornerStone Baptist Church is located at 1095 Allen Road, near the intersection with Stantonsburg Road.

The Second Chance program is a plan intended to assist released jail inmates by giving them employable skill sets and job search assistance, with the goal of reducing their chances of re-offending and re-incarceration.  

In order to make STRIVE work,  staff members begin counseling with qualified inmates about 6 months prior to their release from jail.Throughout that time the staff members instruct and assist the inmates on job inteview and job skill requirements, goal-setting, and resident placement.

The City of Greenville and the Greenille Police Department are supporters of the STRIVE Re-Entry Program as a long-term crime reduction program and we want to assist in making this yard sale a fundraiser successful.

The acronym STRIVE stands for Support and Training Results In Valuable Employees.  Cornerstone Missionary Baptist Church is the sponsoring organization for STRIVE in Greenville and the local STRIVE  program is modeled after a  very successful STRIVE program in Harlem, NY that was featured on the CBS 60 Minutes.

STRIVE is a great example of the public-private / faith-based partnerships that successfully help people in need of direction and guidance.  One of the progam's mantras is, "Inspiring Change That Begins Within."

If you want to learn more about STRIVE, go to their website:  http://www.strivenc.org/

You can also see a recent news story about STRIVE, featured on Greenville's WNCT: 

http://video.wnct.com/v/55932208/11pm-report-pitt-county-s-strive-puts-ex-offenders-back-to-work.htm?q=STRIVE

Frequent flyers....

Detectives this week arrested a man and charged him with 62 counts of car break-ins, credit card frauds, and related thefts. 

Here in this case is an excellent example of the damage 1 person can inflict on a community.  Multiply that 1 person many times over and you have a snapshot of the repeat offenders who many in the criminal justice system refer to as 'frequent flyers.'

It's a sad fact that a very small percentage of the population causes a large percent of the crime-related problems in any given community.   It is true in Greenville as well. 

These same people, over and over again,  commit crimes, are arrested, convicted, and sent to jail, and then released from jail to offend again.   The many different re-entry and self-help programs offered by government and by private charities cannot reach them and cannot change them.

Any experienced police officer, prosecutor, defense attorney, court clerk, or judge, can name a dozen or more people they see in the court house time and time again, being arrested and charged with the same crimes over and over.

What can be done to stop this cycle?  How do we combat these people who never seem to stop hurting our community?

The Greenville Police Department  developed a strategy whereby known repeat offenders are identified and given the attention they need to keep them from offending again.   Detectives and patrol officers contact these people at their homes several times each week.  When they are seen on the streets, police officers stop to speak with them and document that contact.  Probation Officers and Court officials are informed of these contacts.  If the person is in violation of any pre-trial release or probation conditions, or even commits a minor offense, they are immediately arrested in order to get back into compliance.  Its a no-tolerance, tough-love program that works.

Under current manpower, the department can identify and attend to between 6 - 10 people at one time using this strategy.  Detectives and officers work with one  or two offenders in a given area at a time for about 3 months, and then move to other ones.

This strategy seems to be working.  Known repeat offenders identified through this prevention and enforcement strategy have been slowed down from offending.    A few of them have even moved away from Greenville, citing a lack of opportunity to commit crimes.

On behalf of the victims of these repeat offenders we say, good-bye and good riddance.   We'll keep doing our job to make our community a safer place.

 

potpourri...

On Saturday night May 12 Greenville Police Officers responded to Sunchase Apartments for a report of suspicious activity.  When they arrived Police Officers located three males in the parking lot.  One of the males had a bulge in his waistband and gave indications that he was concealing something in his pants.  Officers challenged the suspects and located a car's CD player in his pants.  A nearby vehicle was found which had just been broken into.   Arthur Goddard, Michael Mills, and Cortez Smith were all arrested for the vehicle B&E’s. 

On Monday May 14 it was reported that someone had entered a construction site near Arlington Blvd over the weekend and stole a toilet and 2 sinks, which were still in their boxes.

Rapid Deployment training for Greenville police officers is scheduled for July 9-27 at Sadie Saulter School.  This training is intended to prepare and train police officers to respond to active shooter situations.  This is part of the department's annual in-service training calendar.

As bold as a lion...

About every 2 days, a law enforcement officer is killed in the line of duty somewhere in America.

National Police Week, which occurs each year during the week of May 15, recognizes the service and sacrifice of U.S. law enforcement.   Established by the US Congress in 1962,  National Police Week pays special recognition to those law enforcement officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty for the safety and protection of others.

The Memorial features two curving, 304-foot-long blue-gray marble walls. Carved on these walls are the names of more than 19,000 officers who have been killed in the line of duty throughout U.S. history.

Unlike many other memorials in Washington, DC, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial is ever-changing: new names of fallen officers are added to the monument each spring, in conjunction with National Police Week.

Each year, many police officers from Greenville PD travel to Washington, DC and participate in the National Memorial Ceremony.   The memorial monument has the names of 3 police officers from Greenville enshrined in the marble walls:

• Jesse E. Mills
• Joseph L. Nobles
• Jason C. Campbell

In 2012, there will be 362 additional names of law enforcement officers added to the Memorial.

There are 4 quotes inscribed on the monument walls, including the quote seen on this page, above.  Over top of each inscribed quote are Lion statues.  Many people who visit this memorial leave small items in tribute to the fallen officers, such as photos, letters, service medals, and other memorabilia.  Some of these items are kept by the Memorial's organizing committee for exhibit later at the memorial's museum.

Like many other agencies across the nation,  the Greenville Police Department participates in an annual observance of Police Memorial Week. 

To Mother...

On May 4, 2012 the National PAL program, in partnership with Dress Barn Stores, announced the award of ten $50 gift cards to the Greenville Police Department PAL chapter  as part of Dress Barn’s  nation-wide  “To Mother, With Love” campaign. 

This campaign is intended to provide underprivileged children the opportunity to shop for a Mother’s Day gift.  10 children will participate in the event.  Each child will be paired with a Greenville Police mentor officer to shop at the Greenville Dress Barn for a gift for the child’s mother.  

The Greenville, NC PAL chapter has chosen 10 children based on need from their afterschool program to participate in this event.

The “To Mother, With Love” shopping event will take place on May 11, 2012 from 4pm-6pm at the Dress Barn, 3040 Evans Street in Greenville.

You're gonna get fleas...

My Grandfather used to tell me, "Boy, when you lie down with the dogs, you wake up with the fleas."   That was his kind way of telling me to stay out of trouble.  

When people today associate with bad folks, or do bad things, or make bad descisions,  they shouldn't be surprised when bad things happen to them.  It's not that anyone deserves bad things happening, but the chances for bad things to happen are increased greatly when we hang around a drug dealer, or party late at night with a man known to steal things, or ride in a car with somebody who is drinking.   We shouldn't be surprised.

And, nobody deserves to a victim, but as Clint Eastwood's character, William Munny, says in the climax of the movie, Unforgiven,  "Deserve's Got Nothing to Do With It."

Part of Community Policing is getting the community involved in policing itself, and reducing at-risk behaviors can go a long way toward reducing the opportunities for crime and victimization.  

As police officers work to pick up the pieces of undeserved trauma,  it is imperative that victims who have contributed to their own troubles through at-risk behaviors, recognize the role they play and cooperate fully with the investigation, even when it means accepting responsibility for behaviors that might be embarrasing, and in some cases, even against the law.      

The hope is always there that these victims will not make the same mistakes again that lead them to be victimized in the first place. 

Stranger danger...

On Friday, April 27 at about 12:30 pm Greenville Police Officer B.J. High investigated 2 reports of a man exposing himself to women near the Rosemont apartment complex on County Home Road, and on Hyde Drive near Charles Blvd.

The victims in these cases each told the officer that a suspect had approached  them in a car and had asked for directions.  The suspect then exposed himself to the women when they approached his car.  The victims each provided similar descriptions of the suspect and of his car.

Following up on the reports, Patrol Officers located a car at a residence on County Home Road that matched the suspect car description provided by the victims.  Officer A. Santamaria contacted Harrison Boyd at that address to confirm ownership of the car.  Boyd matched the description of the suspect that had been provided in the police reports.

Officer High later developed a photo lineup and had it provided to each victim independently.   Both of the victims identified Boyd as the suspect who had exposed himself to them.

Officer High obtained arrest warrants for Harrison Boyd and arrested him on 2 counts of Misdemeanor Indecent Exposure.   Harrison Boyd was jailed under a $2,000 secured bond.

Detectives from the Greenville Police Special Victims Unit followed up on this preliminary report and identified 2 additional case reports of Indecent Exposure reportedly committed by Harrison Boyd.

Detectives on Thursday afternoon May 3 obtained 2 arrest warrants against Boyd for Indecent Exposure offenses; one that occurred on April 17, 2012 at York Road, and one that took place on January 18, 2012 near the intersection of Warren Street and First Street.

The incident at York Road involved a male victim.  The incident at Warren Street involved a female victim..

In both of the additional case reports, the victims told police that Boyd drove near them in his car and asked them for directions.  When the victims responded, they saw that Boyd had exposed his private parts and was touching himself, they said.

Boyd will be served with the 2 additional arrest warrants as soon as possible.

Change for a 20...

Detectives from the Greenville Police Department's Financial Crimes Unit recently investigated the report of a Flim-Flam from a local restaurant.  In this case, 2 con artists working together scammed a cashier out of several hundred dollars.

A Flim-Flam is a form of a con scheme, which involves confusing a store cashier by trying to change out large denomination notes and swapping money back and forth, until the cashier loses track of the transactions, and the con artist gets away with a bunch of money.

Very often, Flim-Flam artists work as a team.  One person may distract the cashier with questions while the other person is requesting change for a large denomination bill, usually a $100 bill.   The targeted cashier gets distracted and confused about how much money has been counted out and swapped.   An excellent example of a Flim-Flam was portrayed in the 1973 movie, "Paper Moon" with Ryan and Tatum O'Neal:  Flim-Flam

Sometimes a Flim-Flam begins with a customer claiming to have received the incorrect change or claiming to have paid with a higher denomination bill than they actually used.  Scammers like to operate during busy times to keep the cashier off balance and confused.

Cashiers should stay alert and not allow themselves to be distracted or confused by customers.  Avoid making change from large denomination bills for customers. 

The Greenville Police Department encourages you to be in control of your transactions and to not allow the customer to intimidate or rush you.  Complete one transaction at a time and always count your change back to the customer.  Don't allow 1 person to distract you while you are dealing with another customer.

If you suspect somebody is trying to Flim-Flam you, call the police immediately.