Academy

One of my friends is starting the police academy this week and I passed on a few works of wisdom to him.  No matter how many uniforms they issue you, make sure you have at least five complete sets.  You may have to pay for them on your own but it's better to do that than attend with a rumpled uniform.  The uniform should go to the dry cleaners every day.  You need your wife or someone else designated to pick up and drop off uniforms every day.

Have at least two pairs of uniform shoes.  Sometimes they can run you on the grass or in the mud and it can take a while to get the shoes back in service.  A second pair can buy you a little time.  Take a spare tee shirt, socks and underwear and keep them in your locker, your car or in your gear bag.  There is nothign worse than realizing you don't have white socks for your gym outfit.

When you are attending the academy, that's your full time 24/7 job.  Don't work part time, don't babysit, don't go shopping, just church and the academy.  It is all consuming.  You must have someone else as your support team to help you cook, clean, wash and do all that for you so you can concentrate on the academy.  It's worth it in the long run.  Get as much sleep as you can.  Eat right, don't rely on energy bars and power drinks.  Attend every pre-service training session they offer to exercise, learn the rules, memorize the informaton they want you to know.  The academy is difficult, but every cop passed, that's what the SGT Says.

No Race

UPDATE: Driver Crashes After Allegedly Racing on Newhope - Fountain Valley, CA Patch

 

Racing cars has been around for as long as there have been two cars on the street.  People always want to know who has the fastest car and best driver.  Racing on city streets is very dangerous.  While I support the idea of young people having a place to go to race cars, the city streets are not that place.  Local open spaces can be made into raceways with little investment in infrastructure.  Small entry fees can be paid to support medical and fire response.

 

Those who perform street races place not only themselves in danger but average citizens too.  They drive without proper safety equipment, without helmets, and without fire or medical response readily available.  People who participate in street racing need to be arrested, and their cars impounded.  I recommend using air units whenever possible because they are fast enough to follow street racers and can follow a second car while a ground unit stops the first.

 

Street racing is often advertised on line, on Facebook, and other social media.  Have your DARE officers and juvenile officers keep an ear open for potential street races.  Certain locations often become hang outs for street races and you should patrol them often.  Use two units when possible and come in from two directions at the same time, it makes it harder for them to run away.  Street racing is a lot of fun, until someone gets killed, that's what the SGT Says.

Murder is Murder

Murder is a dishonorable act. It is not excusable. Murder is by definition a terrible, horrible, despicable, evil deed. The term, "Honor Killing" is sometimes used to describe certain types of murder. Under the extreme interpretation of Islam many consider the killing of a relative who has left fundamental Islam to be proper.

 

They are willing to kill people who have left the religion or done anything that is not in keeping with the most fundamental aspects of their belief system. Something as simple as dating someone who is not Muslim, or wearing Western attire may be considered an affront to Islam and worthy of an "Honor Killing."

 

The term "Honor Killing" provides a legitimacy to this evil act. I agree with others who are dropping this term and are now calling this for what it is, "Sharia Murder." It describes the reason for the killing and it describes the killing for what it is, a murder. From now on I plan to call honor killing, Sharia Murder, that's what the SGT Says

Escape

Click here: Mayhem In Mobile: Office r Dead, One Wounded | WKRG

 A suspect is being transported in the back of a police car. He is wearing a neck chain. That neck chain has a handcuff key on it. He gets the handcuff key and removes his handcuffs. He eventually murders one officer and wounds another before he is killed by police.

When you take custody of a prisoner, no matter where you get him or how long you have had him, be sure to pat him down for weapons, contraband and handcuff keys. It happens every year that an officer is killed by someone in custody who manages to get the cuffs off and kill a cop.

Everything should be removed from suspects when they are in custody. Everything out of their pockets, everything off their arms and neck, every bracelet, every necklace, and all his jewelry, including rings. Socks, caps, and cuffs can all hold contraband and handcuff keys or even a tiny knife. Search every suspect, every time; that's what the SGT Says.

Prison

http://www.freewebs.com/mansonmurders/

This is the 43rd anniversary of the Manson family murders.  They went on a killing spree and murdered young and old, rich and poor and even tried to assissinate President Ford.  They were motivated by money or politics, they were simply evil people bent on doing evil deeds.  They are an excellent reason why we need the death penalty for certain criminals.  They are far too dangerous to be released from prison and far too dangerous to expect someone to spend their life guarding them.

Think about that for a few minutes.  We in California value the life of Charles Manson so much that we have people spend their whole lives guarding him rather than put Mason to death.  We pay prison guards tens of thousands of dollars per year to guard someone who is partly responsible for many murders, there is no doubt of his guilt.

How would you like to be a prison guard and spend every day with people like Charles Manson?  Knowing that everyone you contact during the course of your workday is another officer or a deranged, murderous criminal who has killed before and could very likely kill again?  You are guarding people who often were sentenced to death but in nearly every case will die of natuaral causes before they are every executed.  I greatly respect those officers who work in our prisons, the toughest beat in the country; that's what the SGT Says.

Spend Local

http://www.autoblog.com/2012/02/06/why-havent-you-seen-many-new-chevy-caprice-police-cars-gm-dela/?a_dgi=aolshare_email
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Probably the largest single purchase you agency will make this year is buying new police cars.  One of the reasons we became police is to help our communities.  One way to do that is to buy American products whenever possible.  Did you know the new Caprice from Chevrolet is made in Australia?

Did the US Government spend billions of US taxpayer dollars to bail out an Australian company?  Should your local taxpayers be expected to see large numbers of their dollars go overseas to buy police cars when 10% of those taxpayers are unemployed?

When possible, agencies should have a policy of buying American made products.  At a time when our taxes are high, our unemployment is high and our trade deficits are astronomical we need to do what we can do buy local products from local vendors and help them to survive.  All this talk about cutting police pay and retirements goes away when the economy is roaring so you are helping yourself if your agency spends money in your own home town, that's what the SGT Says.