Armored Car

http://www.policemag.com/channel/swat/news/2013/05/21/video-phoenix-police-ram-kidnapping-house.aspx

A man barricaded himself inside a house with several adult and children hostages.  He had kidnapped and raped a woman earlier in the day and had a long criminal history.  He had a rifle and took several shots at the police.

The SWAT team responded and surrounded the home.  They used both mobile bullet proof shields and an armored car.  Eventually the armored car rammed into the house and allowed the police to force entry.

The video shows the armored car hitting the house twice, in two different locations.  This allows the officers to make a reasonably safe entry without being restricted to using the existing doors.  This gives the officers a tactical advantage and makes the entry safer for them.  Just be sure you don't run over any hostages, make sure there is no basement, and have a back up plan in case the vehicle gets stuck.  Notice the officers on the exterior maintain their coverage of the exterior and don't all run up to the house, however many did leave cover who probably should have stayed behind their shields.  In the end the suspect was dead and the hostages were released and no officers were hurt.  No a bad days work; that's what the SGT Says.

Local Cops, Local Control

With Federal money comes Federal control.  Local police agencies should not take Federal money.  The Federal government has no business in local law enforcement except to provide technical support or to help with interstate or international crimes.  If anything they can provide surplus military and other equipment that would otherwise be sold as surplus.

LAPD takes Federal money and so they are under court orders to change how they hire, recruit and promote women and minorities. No one voted for those changes. No law enforcement officers said we needed to change to provide better services.  They may be a good idea, they may have some merit; but they should come from the local people, not be imposed by the Federal government.

Some agencies have taken to create special units SWAT that look very much like soldiers. While I understand the need for tactical helmets and armor and rifles, officers should still look like police. They should wear blue not black, they should have a hat device on their helmet and a metal badge on their armor along with their name and the name of their agency should be on their shoulder. POLICE should be on their backs. Camo and wearing dark should be secondary to proper identification. While in some ways their actions may mirror those of the military they are still police.

Jail or Sex?

http://wreg.com/2013/05/11/man-alleges-sex-assault-by-officer/

An officer on Memphis Police Department has been accused of detaining a man and then demanding the man perform oral sex on him.  If true, this is both a sex crime and kidnapping.  The officer is on paid leave and the agency will not discuss the investigation.  It is easy to accuse an officer of any number of crimes, but since they operate alone much of the time it can be difficult to prove them.  In this case the complaining party waited a day before making his complaint which would also make it more difficult to collect DNA and other evidence.

This is a good reason to have cameras in the patrol cars on the dash and in the backseat. It is also a good reason to have GPS on the car and on the handheld radio.  Officers must always try to avoid even the appearance of wrongdoing to avoid this type of accusation.  Any accusation of this magnitude should be investigated immediately.

The Memphis Police Department has had a number of problems in recent years.  While they are low paid, pay has nothing to do with morality.  The officers need to be screened better, have better supervision, better policies.  They should be doing active police work and not picking up hookers, kidnapping suspects and doing other criminal activities.  This poor behavior hurts the good cops worst of all; that's what the SGT Says.

Drug Raid

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/05/09/stunning-just-released-footage-of-wild-shootout-that-left-gunman-dead-and-a-police-officer-wounded-warning-graphic/

When doing a drug raid there is a lot to do before hand.  Make sure you got the right house. Make a controlled buy there if possible.  Watch the place for at least a few hours if not a few days and make certain your suspects are inside.  Use Google Earth or similar map programs to look at photos of the location, get a helicopter to do some reconnaissance for you if possible.

Take animal control with you to capture the pit bull dogs.  Take child services with you to round up the children.  Take a paddy wagon so you can arrest a lot of people if needed.  Notify your SWAT team, in case they are needed.  Take a drug sniffing down, and don't forget your search warrant.  Take a translator with you if the suspects don't speak English.  Take the paramedics with you, a response time of ten seconds is a life saver.  Have your command post set up.  Notify your dispatch and local patrol officers.

You want everyone in place before you knock on the door.  You want to be ready for the worst case scenario, an officer goes down in a hail of gunfire when you knock on the door.  If you don't need them, it's good practice and your lucky day; that's what the SGT Says.

Congratulations to Trenton PD

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/12/trenton-hostage-children-safe_n_3262425.html?ncid=wsc-dl-cards-headline

Police in Trenton, New Jersey saved the lives of three hostages in a dramatic rescue.  They went into the property on a welfare check and smelled the odor of a decomposing body.  They confronted a man with a gun who had three hostages and said he had explosives.  They also rescued another man who was hiding in the basement.  After a three day standoff officers entered the location a second time and ended the standoff, but were forced to kill the hostage taker.

This incident is not about the gun. It's not about the possible bombs.  It's not about the children. It's not about mental illness.  It's about a career criminal who has been convicted of crimes his whole life and is still out running around loose instead of being in prison.  The suspect had convictions of assault, conspiracy, robbery, weapons violations and child endangerment.  This is why many states have a three strikes law.  To keep dangerous felons like this from being out on the streets.

Because of a lenient penal system, this criminal murdered two innocent people, and terrorized and abused three others.  He forced the police to have to kill him to save the life of the hostages.  He is exactly why every state should have a three strikes law, three felonies and you go to prison for life; that's what the SGT Says.

Police Officer Memorial Day

This week has been Police Officers Memorial Day.  We flew our flags at half staff.  If we remember those who went before us, we can learn from them. Watch this video and learn from what you see:

http://youtu.be/qziyrsC1JtA

Two patrol officers detained an intoxicated man. They placed him in the backseat cage of their patrol car. They either did not do a search or did a poor search. The man pulled a gun out of his waistband.  This agency has a camera mounted in the back of the car so that prisoners actions are monitored.

Perform a search for weapons and handcuff all arrested persons for your safety and for their safety; that's what the SGT Says.