fi nd an article outlining expected

Transcription

1 Newsletter published by the Monroe County Sheriff s Office Community Relations Division for Monroe County Sheriff s Office employees July/August 2006 Sheriff s Report Hurricane season - we re currently approaching the busiest time with the most storms expected during late August and September. We all got a short practice session with Tropical Storm Chris threatening. We need to maintain that awareness level and keep an eye on the Atlantic for the next couple of months. I know many of us are still recovering from last season s storms. We are all just hoping for a reprieve this year so we can have a little more time to put the pieces back together. We are also in the middle of the budget process. On page 2, you will Colonel s Notes It has been a long and difficult time for everyone at headquarters while the building was being repaired. The trailers were not the best working environment - they were small, cramped and noisy, but I am glad to tell you that staff has moved back into the building and everyone is more than happy to be back. We moved back just in time for the scare of Tropical Storm Chris, which was expected to become a Hurricane and impact us. We were very lucky with this last storm as we fi nd an article outlining expected raises for our employees. I know many of you are concerned about having to wait until your anniversary date to receive the second part of your raise. We are adopting this practice in order to remain in step with the county. I want to thank all of you for your patience as we repaired the headquarters building. It certainly disrupted many of our offi ces, and caused diffi culty for many who had to relocate, but all air quality tests are showing that the repairs were effective in making our offi ces healthier places to work. I m sure we are all keeping a close eye on Cuba right now. Being as close to that country as we are, anything that happens there has the potential have been so far this year. This season has so far been very slow and initial predictions from forecasters have now changed with a dramatic decrease in predicted storms. We are far from out of the woods as we still have approximately ten weeks of hurricane season left. Tropical Storm Chris was a good readiness test as we had started hurricane meetings with staff and started activating early fazes of our plan. I sent out the first information to you all, but no others followed as the storm broke apart. Sheriff Roth and Chief Bill Mauldin at Police Memorial Day in Key West. to effect us. I believe, however, that our agency is ready should anything happen that would require any type of response from us. With future events, I will make sure to up-date you all with current information as I receive it. I thank you all for your efforts this season - may it be a slow one. In May, the Sheriff s Office opened a satellite office at Stock Island Apartments. Left to right: Deputy Matt Dowling, Captain Chad Scibilia, Colonel Rick Ramsay, Property Manager Zenada Garcia and Lieutenant Mitch Snider.

2 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet July-August 2006 Sector Four/Five Report By Lt. Lou Caputo Things are going well here in sector four and five. We would like to welcome aboard two new deputies, John Perez and Syd Whitehouse we are pleased to have you as part of our team. We wish for a speedy recovery to deputy Guerra (Willie) who was injured while apprehending a subject who had stolen a car out of Miami. Willie had to undergo surgery for torn ligaments in his right shoulder. A side note to this is that Willie seems to be very proud of his scar he has flagged down everybody in the office to show Upcoming Raises for Employees For the upcoming year, the Agency has decided to follow the County and the other Constitutional Officer s lead with pay raises. This means that if the BOCC approves the Sheriff s budget without changes, then non-bargaining members will receive the following: COLA of 3.4% effective 10/01/06 5% MERIT on the individual employee s hire date, assuming evaluation scores are at the required level. This percentage will not be retro-active back to 10/01/06. If a non-bargaining member left the agency and was re-hired at a later date, then the Re-hire date will be used when determining the effective date. It is the intention of the County Administrator that this practice of offering raises will continue into future years FOP/Bargaining Unit Members will receive their increases on 10/01/06 according to provision made in the Union Contract. Questions regarding hire dates should be directed to Human Resources staff. them. I think even if he doesn t know you he will stop you to show you His pretty scar. As most of you know our agency has issued Tasers to qualified officers. Every shift at roll call, the officers check the Tasers out. Part of the checkout process is to make sure that the weapon is functioning properly. It s not uncommon to hear the sound of the Taser going off at roll call. At one roll call we heard a lot more then the Taser. We heard chairs falling, men screaming in high pitch voices, a few words [in French, I think] as a cartridge fired and hit the wall. It seem that when the night shift checked the Taser in they didn t take out the cartridge. When the day officer came in they didn t check to see if the cartridge had been removed. you know the rest of the story. So a little word of advice please be very careful with the Tasers so the trustees won t have to mop the squad room that early in the morning. It seems that no matter what we do we just can t beat the Coast Guard in softball. We had some outstanding players on our team, [we imported them from other sectors]. But the talk of the games seems to be the play of Deputy Coleman from Islamorada. It seems he was all over the field making diving catches, chasing down balls. There was even talk it was like Mickey Mantle being on the field, why when he was up to bat he was knocking the ball out of the ballpark. Now you have to understand this is a remarkable turn of events for Deputy Coleman. In the last game he was more like Mickey Mouse, if the ball hit the glove it fell out or he fell down (broke 2 his wrist), if he hit the ball it didn t go too far. So Deputy Coleman, what ever they are feeding you in sector six keep it up. After the game everybody enjoyed hamburgers and hot dogs and fun was had by all. Captain Peryam has a new nickname here in the city of Marathon Gator it seems he picked this up at the concerts held here in Marathon. As most of you know the details for officers at the concerts was to walk around and provide security. Captain Peryam fell in love with a small fourwheel vehicle, green in color and for three days that was his ride. It might have had something to do with the Tampa Bay cheerleaders. It seems that they like green they were all over that machine. Well that s all for now. Marathon Deputy Wilfredo Guerra measures a lobster to make sure it is legal during the recent two day sport lobster season.

3 July-August 2006 Sheriff names employees of the first quarter EXPLORER: Cadet Alicia Peteck has been an Explorer for four years. She has worked her way up the ranks starting as a Cadet, then to Sergeant of the Explorers, Lieutenant, and now as Captain. In addition to serving as the Captain, Alicia has voluntarily assumed the role of Post Historian, documenting and photographing all Post events. When the Keys suffered damage from recent hurricanes, Alicia lead her Post during two car wash fund raisers, giving all $600 profits to Habitat for Humanity and Hurricane Victim Relief. As a volunteer during a recent weekend at Kids Day America, Alicia helped the post raise over $1000, which was donated to the Sugarloaf School DARE program. RESERVE: Reserve Lieutenant David Bickford joined the Reserves in November Lt. Bickford has volunteered over 2,376 hours of his time working in Sector Seven and Aviation. Recently David Bickford accepted the position of Reserve Lieutenant and taking on the huge task of re-organizing the Reserve Squad. The duties of the Reserve Aviation Squad have greatly changed and the task of communicating these changes to the squad has been very frustrating. David has done a great job of answering all the difficult questions and providing assistance to the members in making their decisions. David has also taken on the responsibility of being the Countywide coordinator for the Child Seat installation program. David is a Monroe County instructor for this program besides being one of the few installers in the county. SUPPORT: Airport Security Technician Ronald Wheeler began his career with the MCSO in February of One day an elderly female passenger was departing from an aircraft when she tripped and fell over the stairway banister leading down from the aircraft. As she fell, her leg became entangled in the banister and left her hanging in the air, with her head three feet from the ground. Ron, first to respond, held the woman up as other passengers extricated her leg from the stairway. In addition to assisting airline employees the main responsibility of an AST is to respond to the many alarms that the computer surveillance system generates during the course of a shift. From December 2005 through February 2006, Ron responded to an average of one hundred such alarms per week. Most of the calls appear routine however, a rapid and efficient response is required for each and every alarm to insure that there has been no breech of security or other violation. If, for some reason, an immediate response to the alarm has not occurred and no breech of security has been determined, then the airport would be closed down. In addition the Sheriff s Office and individuals involved are subject to heavy fines of $25,000 or more. On two occasions, Ron responded rapidly and decisively saving the County taxpayers $39,000 each instance. Security work of often very tedious and routine. It is the rare individual that can mentally extinguish these periods of monotony and function in such a manner as to insure the job gets done. Ron Wheeler is one of these individuals. CORRECTIONS: Detention Deputy Timothy Stevens began his career with the MCSO in September 3 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet of Months before the Florida Model Jail Standards Annual Inspection, D/D Stevens began preparing the facility by supervising outside cleanup details. He kept his supervisor informed of his progress and as long as staff was able to procure supplies and trusties, his work continued. Not only did D/D Stevens supervise countless work details, he usually jumped in and helped. To save the Sheriff s uniforms, command staff had to have him start wearing paint clothes to work. During these weeks of preparation, the staff knew him as Maintenance Tim. Thanks in part to the hard work of D/D Stevens, Lieutenant Ross, lead Florida Model Jail Standards Inspector, commented that the plantation Key Jail Facility was exceptionally clean for a jail that handles nearly 10,000 inmates a year. In the words of Inspector Edwards, Monroe County has made a science out of cleanliness. In addition to activities to prepare the facility for its inspection, D/D Stevens has been recognized for his actions during Hurricane Wilma. D/D Stevens spent hours wading through the floodwaters at the Key West Jail saving animals and assisting injured staff members. Continued on Page 7

4 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet July-August 2006 Special Investigations By Lt. Corey Bryan It s been a while since we ve had a Rap Sheet, and lots of stuff s been happening. I ll just give a quick run down: In February, we bought a new bomb truck and SWAT van, and the SWAT team participated in training Cadets in rappeling. Our unit also assisted the Department of Homeland Security with a warrant sweep. We also had a Narcotics/SWAT operation with two search warrants served and six arrests in the Lower Keys. Congrats to Mike Digiovanni and his new bride Rosa (Perez) Digiovanni who had a quiet little wedding ceremony at the Key Vaca substation in March. Thank you to Andrew Leird, Adam Rabinowitz, and Luis Blasco for all the assistance they gave escorting some wounded veterans for a vacation in the keys. The event was set up by a private firm called Hawk and Associates. In March, Det Sgt Trish Dally and Det Terry Smith gave an excellent presentation regarding the Perisho homicide from a cold case back in The meeting took place in Key West with numerous agencies from around the state attending in a effort to compare their murder cases with our case to see if they could tie them together. Also in March, Jason Madnick, Haydee Martinez and Peggy Bryan did a terrific job showing the Keys Kids Play Group all about police officers and the jobs they do. The kids were all really little but were soooooo excited to see the police station, cars and hear Jason Sponge Bob Madnick talk!!! Great job by the SWAT team working with the FBI, the Hostage Rescue team, the Navy SWAT team and Metro Dade SWAT. In a staged exercise, a real 767 jet liner was taken over by bad guys. The plane was filled with 100 role playing hostages. The exercise was very real with miscalculations on times, last minute reorganization of teams and lonnnnnnnnnnnnnng waiting periods. Ross and I were both very proud of the way our guys handled themselves with almost all 4 Two officers from Scotland recently visited the Florida Keys. members being up 24 hours straight. The team looked sharp and was called upon to perform a variety of tasks in the operation, great job guys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hello to David Lariz who recently joined the Special Investigations Division. Good luck to Narcotics Detective Mark Eastty who moved on to pursue his career with Pinnelas County S.O. Welcome Lee Cowart to the Hostage Negotiation Team and good luck to Julio Alvarez on his transfer to traffic. Congrats and good luck to the Narcotics Detective Sgt. Donnie Elomina on his transfer to HIDTA we miss you but I will keep you in my thoughts while I m at Miami Subs on 73rd Street ( you my boy, blue!!!!!! ) Excellent job by all the detectives who participated in the Active Shooter training. Special thanks to Det. Catala, Det. Rivera and SRO Schlegelmilch for setting up the classes and doing the instruction. Our Homicide fellas, Terry and Mark have been busy with cold case follow up, and numerous death investigations along with assisting detectives from Ohio on a murder investigation. The suspects had fled to north Key Largo and were located and taken into custody on unrelated charges. Mark and Terry worked up search warrants and stayed assisting these detectives for about 30 hrs straight. That s dedication!!! Continued on Page 7 Some of the law enforcement officers escorting the wounded combat vets who were treated to a short vacation in the Keys. Rear, left to right: Deputy Steven Barney, Deputy Luis Blasco, Deputy Andrew Leird, Sgt. Dennis Coleman, FHP Trooper David Muehler, Border Patrol Agent Darryl Walraven.

5 July-August 2006 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet Employees of the year honored At a ceremony in March, the Sheriff s Office honored it s Employees of the Year at a ceremony held at the Marathon Government Center. The yearly award winners received a special plaque from the Sheriff in recognition of their exemplary work, and a badge to wear on their uniforms with the designation Officer (or Employee) of the Year. In addition, they each receive a check for $ donated by TIB Bank, and $1, from the Sheriff s Office. The Cadet of the year receives $ from TIB Bank, with a matching amount from the Sheriff s Office. The Cormier Memorial Award, given to the Sheriff s Office Sworn Law Enforcement Officer of the Year, is named for Deputy David Cormier, a Sheriff s reserve officer killed in the line of duty in a traffic accident in November of 1989.Employees honored this year include: SWORN: Deputy Luis Blasco s began his career with the MCSO in April of During the last quarter Deputy Blasco has gone above the call of duty. He has helped with escorting to the rangers food and water in the Everglades National Park and personally escorting Congresswoman Ileana Ros Lehtinen during her tour after Hurricane Wilma. Even though the hurricanes left the Traffic Unit assisting with storm related duties, Deputy Blasco led the county in self initiated arrests. On one occasion after completing a DUI arrest, Deputy Blasco was heading home off-duty when he saw another driver failing to maintain a single lane. Instead of calling for another Deputy to handle the vehicle he took care of the situation himself. After checking the driver for impairment, he was arrested for DUI. A thorough search of the vehicle also revealed 23 grams of marijuana. CORRECTIONS: Within every agency there exists people who are the go to, to get it done people. Sgt. Frank Mara is an outstanding example of a get it done person. As the date drew near for our Florida Model Jail Inspection, we had a 12 page itemized list of maintenance and public works issues that drastically needed attention. Some of the items had been in need of attention for quite some time. Without hesitation, Sgt. Mara stepped forward and volunteered to tackle the list and address the maintenance issues. He enlisted the assistance of dependable crew inmates who possessed the knowledge, skills, abilities and willingness to work. Sgt. Mara spent endless hours working throughout the evenings and weekends with the inmates in order to paint and repair countless items throughout the facility. Every time you turned around, you found Sgt. Mara and his crew fixing or painting something. He spent many hours of his own time gathering materials during the day for his crew to use at night. Sgt. Mara and his crew accomplished more work than anyone thought was humanly possible. Their efforts resulted in a successful Florida Model Jail Inspection with facility in 100% compliance of all the standards. This would not have been possible without the leadership of Sgt. Mara. SUPPORT: Kimm Johnson is the behind-the scenes person who faithfully processes every check each payroll period and makes certain the rest 5 of us get paid. Kimm s integrity to the Sheriff s Office really showed when she left the agency to explore employment in Buffalo, New York. Within 8 weeks, two different payroll clerks were hired and both left after processing just a couple of payrolls. Each time a payroll clerk left, Kimm was immediately contacted. She dropped everything she was doing in order to come to Headquarters and process payroll. With Kimm s unselfish assistance, no one missed a paycheck during each of the transitions. Thankfully our sun seeking Kimm returned to the Keys when the temperatures in Buffalo dropped to a bone chilling 30 degrees. Upon her return, Kimm once again displayed her dedication to the Sheriff s Office. The lengthy contract negotiations between the Fraternal Order of Police and the Sheriff s Office resulted in a pay increase for all union employees. The contact was ratified with the understanding that the union employees would receive a retroactive paycheck before Christmas. Kimm spend an entire weekend computing and processing the retroactive checks. As promised, all employees received their retroactive monies before the Christmas holiday. Continued on page 6

6 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet July-August 2006 Employees of the second quarter to be honored At A Ceremony to be held August 11th at 2 p.m. at the Marathon Government Building, Employees of the Second Quarter will be honored, along with employees eligible to receive a Years of Service plaque. EXPLORER: Cadet Alyssa Vartoumian joined the program August Alyssa says she wants to work for the Sheriff s Office and is willing to make sacrifices necessary to achieve that goal. Alyssa has attended all Explorer functions during the past year, arriving early and staying late. Alyssa is an honor roll student and has been inspirational to other Post members. She has served the citizens of Monroe County well as an Explorer, and exemplifies what this program can accomplish. Alyssa is a true credit to her post, the Explorer program, the Sheriff s Office, and Monroe County. RESERVE: Reserve Deputy John Marlowe began his career with the MCSO in February of Deputy Marlowe volunteers at the Plantation Key Courthouse at least once a week and more if they are short-handed. Almost every Wednesday John is there Employees of the year, cont. RESERVE: Chaplain Judith Remley has been volunteering her services as Chaplain for the past eleven years and has approximately 23,0000 hours given to our agency. Chaplain Judy has provided comfort and guidance to the inmates and the Sheriff s Office family when they are experiencing a very stressful time in their lives. The benefits received by the citizens of Monroe County for Chaplain Judy s volunteer work is measured by the changes that inmates experience from their contact with Chaplain Remley. EXPLORER: Explorer Dayanara De La Cruz (Dana) is the explorer Supply Manager, responsible for upkeep, issuing and the organization of equipment and uniforms to our members. This includes preparing equipment such as radios, flashlights, traffic vests, first aid kit, coolers, etc. for details and making sure it is in good volunteering due to the busy court day on Wednesdays. In addition John has a full time job. Over the Memorial Day weekend Dep. Marlowe spent twenty-four hours on the road with fifty citations and warnings. Quoting Reserve Lieutenant Bickford, I have never had the privilege of supervising such a consistently selfless and dedicated individual. SUPPORT: Records Assistant Rita Hinerman began her career with the MCSO in December A Monroe County resident wrote a letter to Sheriff Roth commending Rita for her outstanding work. Quoting his letter, Ms. Rita Hinerman is much more than the person who answers the phone and receives your messages. She is much more than a most effective receptionist. She is your external ambassador who represents all members of the department as highly motivated, dedicated officials of their community. She knows the community well and is treated by the community with great respect and even affection. Her role as a facilitator who brings about action working order. She is also responsible for issuing new members uniforms as well as replacing any damaged uniform parts as the need arises. She must keep advisors informed of needed purchases or damages to equipment. In addition to her own duties, she frequently volunteers to take on other responsibilities such as taking meeting minutes if the Sergeant is out or catching up on filing. Dana is a member of our Drill Team. She works hard to learn routines and helps others learn as well. She is one of the first to arrive for practices and last to leave, always offering to help put away equipment. Dana is a peer counselor, sings in the school chorus, takes honors classes, has a part-time job, and is very involved in family activities. With all these activities, she manages to hold a 3.9 GPA. She is interested in a career in Forensics. is well recognized. In my opinion she is one of the most valuable and effective members of your department. CORRECTIONS: Detention Deputy John Rodriguez began his career with the MCSO in July In April 2006 the Commission for Law Enforcement Accreditation gave Court Holding a surprise visit. When the Commission arrived they had a meeting with Professional Standards and said they wanted to inspect the Court Holding area. When asked why since they are under jail accreditation, they stated that Court Holding was under law enforcement. A new policy to comply with the this standard had to be implemented. Officer Rodriguez and Lt. Winegarden met to write a new policy. Quoting Director Campana, The true workers are sometimes forgotten and they who make all of us look good should be brought to the forefront and given the praise that they so well earned. SWORN: Deputy Wilfredo Guerra began his career with the MCSO in November Deputy Guerra routinely patrols high crime areas during shift changes even though he is a Marine Patrol Officer. While passing a vehicle that was unknown to him he ran the vehicle tag that subsequently returned as stolen. In an attempt to prevent the vehicle from fleeing the area he called for backup and attempted to take the subject down at gunpoint. The suspect then drove at Deputy Guerra nearly hitting him within inches. He restrained himself from using deadly force because of small children and bystanders in the area. He then quickly took chase-advising units of direction of travel. The suspect lost control of the stolen vehicle and fled on foot where Deputy Guerra quickly apprehended him on foot. The incident from start to finish only took under ten minutes from observation, pursuit to arrest. His overall performance in this case was outstanding and his dedication to duty embodies the true spirit of our law enforcement mission. 6

7 July-August 2006 Payroll procedures As you all know, Finance has undergone several changes. The first being the promotion of Yeny Rodriguez to the position in charge of the payroll function. In an effort to assist with the timely processing of payroll, we would like to remind everyone of the following: Completed time sheets should be First quarter awards, cont. SWORN: Deputy John Gabay began his career with the MCSO in August of Deputy Gabay s nomination and selection resulted because a letter sent by Ms. Debra Boyd, a resident he helped during Hurricane Wilma. Below is an excerpt from that letter: I am a single mother who was living in Key West last year. As Hurricane Wilma was slowly approaching, I decided that I would not risk the life of my family and myself for the fourth storm of the year. So I, along with my two young children and a cat, rented a car to drive to my sister s house near Stuart, Florida. We left several days early so that we would not encounter a traffic jam. Somewhere between Big Pine and Marathon, my rental car Special Investigations, cont. Property was recovered at the residence from the murder scene and should help officers in Ohio solve their case. Great job guys!!! Welcome to our own super hero Sgt. Alberto Ramirez who has been promoted to Narcotics Sgt. Al has some big shoes to fill in Donnie s spot but we know he is up to the task as he was Donnie s acting supervisor and has been with the unit for a long time. Congrats Al!!!!! Thank you to Lee Cowart, Linda Mixon, and Andrew Leird who helped show two Scottish police officers how to police here in the states. I know they had a really good time and appreciated how nice you guys were. Thanks again for a great representation of the agency. SID has a new look on the inside of our building. Thanks to Capt received in the Finance office no later than 3 p.m. on Mondays for the divisions located in the Lower Keys and no later than 10 a.m. on Tuesdays for the divisions located in the Middle and Upper Keys In order for Finance to process a time sheet, the employee should make sure they have signed their time sheet; started making a horrible noise and died. To top it off, my cell phone was not getting reception in the area. Now I was starting to worry. It was dark, I was with my two young children, no phone, and a broken down car. What a relief when Deputy Gabay pulled up. He not only called us a tow truck and made sure that the driver would take us back to our house in Key West, but called the rental company and helped arrange for another vehicle to be waiting for us at the airport the next morning. The house Ms. Boyd was renting was flooded and damaged during the hurricane, in turn she lost everything she left behind in the storm and did not return to the Keys. Due to the generosity of Deputy Gabay, Ms. Boyd was able to evacuate the Keys. Thomson for acquiring some cubicles from HIDTA in Miami - we look almost civilized upstairs now. The furniture is really nice and gave us a whole new look. Stop by and see us if you get a chance - we ll even give you a secret decoder ring to get inside our top secret office. A big howdy and welcome to Bill Grove who joins the Narcotics Unit from Sector 6, Bill has already made his 1st undercover buy and did a great job!!!! Well that s about it, and I m sure that s probably more than enough as I have rambled on here!! Take care and be careful. 7 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet that the time sheet has been signed by an authorized supervisor prior to reaching Finance; and that the correct Home Department Number is included in the Header of each time sheet. Time sheets received in finance late and/or without the appropriate signatures, have the potential to be rejected, which means the employee will not receive their paycheck until the next pay Cycle. Thanks for your cooperation. Fisher forum Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council There will be a Fisher Forum, sponsored by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council. All members of the public are welcome to attend. The meeting will be at: The Harvey Government Center 1200 Truman Avenue Key West, FL August 29, 2006 Session I from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Session II from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Did you know that the Gulf of Mexico is approximately 600,000 square miles and the Gulf Council manages 69 species in six of its Fishery Management Plans, and another 330 species in its Coral Fishery Management Plan? Whether you re a commercial longliner, a Charter Boat Captain, a weekend angler, or a seafood lover, fishery management impacts your life. Join us for the first in a series of Fisher Forums.

8 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet July-August 2006 Gedmin is Florida s top criminal justice officer for 2006 On June 19, 2006, Chief Judge Richard Payne presented Detective Janine Gedmin with a special Commendation Certificate for her recent recognition as the state s top criminal justice officer. The volunteer spirit of Detective Gedmin on behalf of victims is an inspiration to persons everywhere, and she is highly commended, said Judge Payne. Detective Gedmin and her task force established an advocacy center for processing sexual violence cases off-site from police headquarters and the hospital, which diminishes the trauma often experienced by these victims. Detective Gedmin, who now works in the Sheriff s Internal Affairs Division, received the State of Florida s Top Criminal Justice Officer of the Year award for She traveled to Tallahassee to accept the award from Governor Jeb Bush and Attorney General Charlie Crist during a ceremony marking National Crime Victim s Rights Week. We are very proud of Detective What not to do with super glue By Sgt. Linda Simonet Okay, don t try this at home... there are things that are best left to the pros... Hubby and I were going to see the movie, Cars. I decided I wanted to get all girlied up for him so I went out and bought a nice pair of denim capris, a nice tank top with glittery stuff on it, a braided cotton belt and a pair of casual wedge heeled sandals. Looked pretty good, but after dropping a load of bricks on my feet several years ago, my husband tells me that I now have Barney Rubble toes. So, I decided I was going to get those fake nails for the toes done in a white tip/french manicure look. Here s where things started going wrong: I took the toe nails out of the box, sized them up and put in line in the order of application. The box had a tiny suction cup applicator thingy to Gedmin, said Sheriff Rick Roth. She and successfully locked up criminals certainly deserves this award. She is who prayed upon our weakest and hard working, dedicated and cares smallest citizens. She should be very very much about the work she does. proud of her accomplishments, he Prior to transferring to Internal Affairs, she served in the Crimes Against said. Women and Children s Unit for a number of years, investigating primarily sexual abuse related crimes against adults and children. In her time serving in CAWACU, she championed many victims of violent crime, said Sheriff Roth. In her quiet, methodical way she worked many difficult cases involving some Chief Judge Richard Payne recognizes Detective Janine of the worst of Gedmin for receiving the State s Top Criminal Justice Officer of the Year society s crimes, award. help pick up and apply the nails...a drop of super glue on the nail, a drop on the toe (how hard can this be?) and I put it on my big toe...well, I tried, I couldn t get my foot up that high. So a little bit of contortionism and I finally get it on...crooked. So I pry it back off, add more glue to nail and toe and...put it on. It goes on straight. but now there is so much glue, it is running between my toes... I super glued my toes together!...then I super glued my finger to the toenail, my fingers to my toes, my fingers to each other...then the little suction cup applicator stopped picking the nails up. I figured it just got dry...so what do you do when a suction cup is dry (like the one on colored glass window thingies)...i licked it...and promptly super glued my tongue to the roof of 8 my mouth...i got that undone and just knew that the Goddess was up there laughing her toga off... So I got my tongue undone, and everything else unstuck, managed to get dressed and prettied up without my hubby ever suspecting the drama in the bedroom. While at the movie I was able to work the waxy glue off the roof of my mouth,..but I guess I will have to wait for my tastes buds to unstick themselves...

9 July-August 2006 Kids fishing tournament in Islamorada By Sgt. Dennis Coleman With 4-5 foot seas the 2006 Florida Keys Kids Classic Fishing Tournament was held recently. All kids who participated received a gift bag filled with fishing items supplied by Berkley and the Flying Fisherman. The award ceremony and pizza party was held at Founders Park in Islamorada. We were able to award eight trophies and over $1, to our winners. Also handed out were 13 sponsorship plaques and over $1, In raffle items. The big winners of the tournament were Gabriela Hernanadez and Dylan Scoble. Gabriela took 1st place Grunt category and 2nd place in both the Snapper and Grouper category. Dylan took 1st place Snapper category and 2nd place Grunt category. He also walked away with a truck load of raffle items. THE RESULTS: GROUPER; 1ST A.J. HERNANDEZ 2ND GABRIELA HERNANDEZ 3RD NO WEIGHED IN SNAPPER 1ST DYLAN SCOBLE 2ND GABRIELA HERNANDEZ 3RD BRANDON CLAIRMONT GRUNT 1ST GABRIELA HERNANDEZ 2ND DYLON SCOBLE 3RD JADEN THRIFT The proceeds from this tournament will go to local charity and kids events. We have already sent 12 local kids to see a Florida Marlins game. Mike Digiovanni and I are currently working with the I.G.F.A. (International Game Fish Association) to make this a qualifying tournament for their end of the year tournament for Thanks to our sponsors this was a Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet free tournament for the kids. This tournament was held with the cooperation of the Monroe County Sheriffs Office and the City of Islamorada. If anyone is interested in next years tournament, they can contact Sgt. Dennis Coleman at keysdeputy@ yahoo.com and I will contact you when next years tournament gets closer. In the back row from left to right; Event Coordinators, Dennis Coleman And Michael Digiovanni. In the front row from left to right are our winners; A.J. Hernandez, Gabriela Hernandez, Brandon Clairmont, Dylan Scoble and Jaden Thrift. Competitors take medals in Law Enforcement Games The annual Florida Law Enforcement and Firefighter Games were held in June in Jacksonville; Sheriff s Office competitors took home a total of 12 medals in the games competing in bowling and in shooting events. Six Sheriff s Office employees chose to participate in the games. Of those, the following people medalled in their respective events: Bowlers Dorothy and Larry Child, and Phyllis and Greg Walter: 4 Bronze (mixed team) 2 Bronze (ladies doubles) 1 Gold (Ladies singles) - Dorothy Child 1 Silver (Ladies singles) - Phyllis Walter 1 Silver (All around) - Dorothy Child In the shooting events, Brad Bandlow and Dave Johnson represented the agency. Bandlow competed in the Combat Shotgun, three gun match, and practical pistol shooting in his age group, performing quite well in all. Bandlow took home: Gold in Combat shotgun Bronze in three gun match Bronze in Practical pistol Dorothy Child and Phyllis Walter show off their medals. 9

10 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet July-August 2006 Conference: Women in Law Enforcement Rocky Mountain Women in Law Enforcement was formed in 2002 to provide focused training to law enforcement agencies. Our annual conference is designed to provide innovative and current information on the recruitment, retention, and development of women in law enforcement for both sworn and civilian positions. Our 2006 conference will be held in Snowmass, Colorado, September 27-29, Some of the issues that will be addressed at this year s conference include skill development/ enhancement, stress management, recruiting, promotion, and much more. This conference is open to all sworn and civilian Law Enforcement personnel, male and female. Join us in Snowmass, Colorado at the Silvertree Lodge on September 27-29, Please visit our website at www. rmwle.org for the specific conference agenda and a list of speakers. Registration for the conference can also be completed on the web site. Contact information: Rocky Mountain Women in Law Enforcement P.O. Box Colorado Springs, CO Phone: (719) [email protected]. Knock-and-Announce FLORIDA CASE LAW UPDATE 06-04, from the Office of the Attorney General Case: Hudson vs. Michigan, U.S. Supreme Court, 2006 WL Date: June 15, 2006 (Opinion filed June 15, 2006) FACTS: Police obtained a warrant to search Hudson s house. They did not comply with the knock-and-announce rule when executing the warrant. The trial court suppressed the evidence found in the house, but the Michigan Court of Appeals reversed. The state conceded that the knockand-announce rule was violated, but argued that suppression was too severe a remedy. RULING: In a 5-4 decision, the Court ruled that the Constitution does not require suppression of evidence found after a knock-and-announce violation. Justice Scalia wrote the majority opinion (joined by Thomas, Kennedy, Roberts and Alito) and noted that the knock-and-announce rule was never intended to protect a person s interest in preventing the police from seeing or taking evidence described in a warrant. He wrote that the threat of evidence suppression would not likely deter knock-and-announce violations, but threats of civil suits and departmental discipline would do so. A vigorous dissent was written by Justice Breyer, who was joined by Stevens, Souter and Ginsburg. NOTES: It is important to recognize that this case does not eliminate the knock-and-announce rule and does not eliminate the essential elements required to support a no-knock entry. It merely eliminates automatic suppression of evidence seized after a knock-and-announce violation. Even if evidence is not suppressed, there may be serious consequences for such a violation. The Court noted that qualified immunity does not apply to officers named in a knock-andannounce civil suit. In addition, of course, there may be departmental discipline for willful disregard of the Officers attend boating class 10 knock-and-announce requirement. Steve Hurm Regional Legal Advisor Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Tallahassee and Pensacola Regional Operations Centers A law enforcement boating class was recently held to support the effort of area law enforcement agencies to become more active in area waters. The Monroe County Sheriff s Office participated, along with Key Colony Beach Police and the U.S. Coast Guard. 15 students attended the class, which was taught by Marine Deputy Nelson Sanchez, assisted by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission and member of the Florida Keys Community College Institute of Criminal Justice. The purpose of the class was to train students in the safe law enforcement operation of small vessels such as those the Sheriff s Office operates. The Monroe County Sheriff s Office currently has a total of seven boats assigned throughout the Keys.

11 July-August 2006 Letters of Appreciation and Commendation Marilyn Williams, the mother of Deputy James Jimmy Williams, who died suddenly in March of this year, wrote to thank members of the Sheriff s Office. She said, Everyone has gone out of their way to help me and my family. Thanks very much doesn t seem enough. Mildred Silvane of Arlington, Virginia wrote to thank Deputy John Gabay who helped her by washing her windshield after noticing her having trouble driving because she had trouble seeing through it. Emily Boyd Lowe, from Keys Chorale at FKCC, wrote to thank lower Keys reserve officers for their help with a concert event held in May. Sandi Bisceglia, Principal of Plantation Key School, wrote to commend Deputy Larry O Neill for his exemplary level of support and assistance at the school. John Donnelly, of Key Largo, wrote to commend Deputies Edward Askins, Jeffrey Parker, Eric Mixon, Edwin Grove and Franscisco Gaete for their apprehension of dangerous felons preying on victims of the upper Keys. He says, Please extend my heartfelt thanks and respect to these officers...they promote the finest ideals and highest traditions of law enforcement. Detective Henry Hamilton wrote to commend Detectives Jeremy Davy, Diane Mimosa and Paul Schultz for arresting a repeat burglary targeting homes on Big Pine Key. Sgt. Jake Brady commended Deputies Wilfredo Guerra, Jon Huff and Jacek Szymanski for their efforts safely apprehending a grand theft auto suspect who fled, crashed the car and, through his actions, caused a great potential for hazard to the community. Sgt. Jennifer Torres commended Director Sharon Harrold, Sergeants Sam Cassel and James Norman, Deputies Linda Kohout, John Whortenbury, Janet Shepherd, Derek Paul and Detective Charlene Sprinkle-Huff for their help with court security during a high profile case in May. Gary Valle, U.S. Border Patrol Agent in Charge, wrote to commend Director of Transportation Tony Campana and Deputy Peco Broussard for their help with two separate migrant landings. The assistance provided by these two individuals is indicative of the level of cooperation our two agencies enjoy, he said. Congresswoman Ileana Ros- Lehtinen wrote to thank Sheriff Roth for providing her with an escort during a recent tour in Key West. She particularly wanted to thank Pilots Gary Baginski and Jack Leopold as well as Sgt. J.B. Flatter. Airports Director Peter Horton wrote to commend a number of employees for their help when an unauthorized flight from Cuba arrived at the Key West airport. He in particular 11 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet wished to thank the airport security force and road patrol, singling out Director Jerome Fain, Sgt. William Gordon and Deputy Becky Herrin for their assistance. David Stark, Director of Public Safety at Ocean Reef, wrote to commend Deputy Keith Nyman for helping his officers prevent a large boat from going aground off of the resort community. Jonathan Solomon, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Miami Beach, wrote to commend those officers who helped with a special field training exercise held in the Keys in March. Continued on page 19 Funeral for Deputy James Jimmy Williams, who died in March of 2006.

12 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet July-August 2006 This motley crew ran the Seven Mile Bridge Run in April. Left to right are: Phil Lytle, North Miami Sniper team leader; Vince Nacin, my buddy, Air traffic Controller (Washington Center); Training Sgt. John McGee; Det. Sgt. Gene Thompson, John Kornetti and another friend, name unknown. Deputy Tom Walker of Road Patrol, and Detective Henry Hamilton of the MCSO Dive Team escorted the Horace O Brien Middle School, 8th grade student council, on a field trip to the reef. The 67ft. vessel 2nd Destiny volunteered to transported the kids out to the reef. The kids enjoyed relaxing on the water, after a long hard school year. The kids learned about and observed migrating tarpon, sharks, barracudas, yellow tail, grouper, sting rays corals, and other sea life. Sheriff s Office employees attended a retirement party for Vicky Melon of the FBI. They all say she will be missed. Teen Court participants receive thanks for their donated time and effort in the program at a special ceremony. Left to right, Julie Russell, Program Coordinator Karol Cotton, Sele Gordon, Kayla Lyons and Thuy Van. Stefanie Gonzalez: age 11 yoa, and in the 5th grade at the Redlands Elementary School She came to PKJ to help her step-mom out Clarisa Gonzalez as the Data Clerk for the day. (she is also the daughter of Luis Gonzalez, and the niece of Nelson Sanchez) Her job assignment was to assist with scanning, and taking court folders to the Clerk of Courts. A large crowd of well wishers said goodbye to Patricia Almeda at a party in Marathon. 12

13 July-August 2006 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet Sgt. Sheagren and his watch made sure Sharon Delossantos 15 years in the jail would not be forgotten. They built a memorial in the back of the facility. A few inmates assisted with digging trenches, supervised by Officers Stevens and Martinez. Sgt. Sheagren did the wood burning for the sign with the inscription of A Gift for Sharon Delossantos for all the years of service- Monroe County Sheriffs Office. The pond even included half dozen of gold fish, and a water fountain. Little history about the Hawaiian word Kapua...it means the Mischief God. A new mural painted by an inmate at the Marathon Detention Center. After 20 years, they re still going strong. Lynne and Brian Christian recently renewed their wedding vows with members of the Sheriff s Office looking on. The Sheriff s Office Honor Guard and Scout Troop 314 from Islamorada held a special ceremony at Islamorada s Hurricane Monument on Memorial day to honor those veterans killed in the deadly 1935 storm. Submit your office photos and photos from the field for the Rap Sheet and for the Sheriff s Office web site to: [email protected]. 13 Dorothy Child retired recently from the Stock Island Detention Center. Here she is - Ready for the Good Life!

14 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet July-August 2006 National Night Out, Marathon, Islamorada... 14

15 July-August and Key Largo Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet 15

16 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet July-August 2006 An international perspective By Larry Kelley (MCSO retired) Well, it s been a very eventful and busy last year for me. Just to recap let s see I retired a year ago. Yeah I d have to say that falls in the category of really big. I took a job with the U.S. Department of State big. My wife, Sue, left her job at the Turtle Hospital after over eight years as the director big. Sue and I bought a couple more tracts of land up in northern Georgia, and she moved there big. My father, James C.A. Kelley, retired Chief Master Sergeant, U.S. Air Force, who lied about his age to enlist in the Army after Pearl Harbor, served in WWII, Korea and Viet Nam, passed away WAY BIG I love you and miss you dearly, Pop. My daughter, Tina, completed her second year at University Bath in the UK big. Yep I think it was a big year. Working for the Department of State in the Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) is awesome. I have been stationed, for a year now, in Pristina, Kosovo at the U.S. Office (Embassy except it can t be called that because Kosovo is not an independent country yet) as the Senior Police Advisor to the Chief of Mission (Ambassador except he can t be called that because Kosovo is not an independent country yet) and site manager of the multi-million contract that DoS has with Civilian Police International (CPI) to identify, recruit, select, train, supply, transport, supply and sustain all of the U.S. police officers that are in Kosovo and seconded to which means under the operational control of the United Nations Interim Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK). Sorry, I didn t mean for this to become a lesson in bureaucratic acronyms. In the last year here I have learned a great deal about diplomacy and thinking outside the box. In Kosovo, the political atmosphere rules every decision made by the police and local citizens as well as the ruling factions and the United Nations and the United States representatives who play a very big role in Kosovo s future. I have learned to calculate reactions that are three and four moves ahead of current actions, taking into consideration the underlying currents of emotions, and I have concluded that it is the process that matters. If the process is equitable and fair, then the results will be manageable although not always what you may want. As a matter of fact, I have enjoyed this experience and learned so much this last year, that I have agreed to extend for another year, so I will be here until at least next June, when I will decide if I am up for another year here or maybe another assignment at a different embassy or who knows! I have approximately 240 U.S. officers right now on contract in this program, and have been approved for an additional class that will be held during the middle two weeks of September in Leesburg, Virginia. Some of the officers here I have worked with before, either in Bosnia or at the Olympic Games in Atlanta or Salt Lake City, but I know most of them since I have been managing the oral boards that selected almost all of them for the last four years including the boards for Haiti, East Timor, Liberia, Afghanistan and Iraq (and we have just added Sudan and who knows, Cuba may be on the horizon). All in all, this is a 16 great group of men and women. They come from all sorts of backgrounds in police-work. There are a couple of elected Sheriffs from the Midwest, some Deputies from Florida and other southern states, a lot of police officers from the south (Alabama, South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, Louisiana, and Alabama). We have officers from Guam, Samoa, Puerto Rico (all U.S. citizens). We have a few chiefs of police of some pretty good size departments. Of course different things attract different people. Most of them are here for the money let s be honest but, some or even most of them do have a desire to help people who are not as fortunate as themselves and they want to be a part of building something that is bigger than themselves. Continued on page 17 Me and two work associates (A U.S. Federal Prosecutor and a Consular Officer assigned at the U.S. Office) at the annual Marine Ball--NOTICE the MCSO Sheriffs Star on my Suit

17 July-August 2006 International perspective, continued You see, in Kosovo, the United Nations is building a police organization from nothing. The U.S. Government is assisting in promulgating the police laws on such things as search and seizure, use of force, and evidence gathering and getting them passed through the Parliament to become active, usable laws. I have gotten to travel back to Main State in D.C. four times so far in the past year, twice to manage the oral boards for new classes of officers headed for Kosovo, which were last October, 2005 (one of whom was our own Colonel Bill McDonald, who came over for a tour and was the Chief of the War Crimes Investigations Unit while he was here and we really miss his leadership in that unit) and another this past June. I went back last February for an International Narcotics Seminar and again in April to attend a DoS Contract Officer Representative course. I am also a sitting member of the U.S. Department of State s Quint Nations Criminal Intelligence Team, and as such, attend quarterly conferences in one of the Quint countries (U.S., Italy, U.K., Germany and France). In February we were in Rome and in June we were in London this coming October we will be in Berlin. Last March, and again this month, along with the Resident Legal Advisor at the U.S. Office (a Federal Prosecutor from New York), I went to Belgrade-Serbia and Sarajevo-Bosnia, to meet with a panel of wars crimes investigative judges, senior prosecutors and technical advisors, to facilitate setting up video conferencing for witnesses so they will be willing and able to give testimony from their home areas without fear of being in an enemy country, as they sometimes consider it. This initiative is one that proves that money does not solve every problem. We were able to get an initial $60,000 budgeted last year for this initiative and it still has not gotten off the ground due to the differences in opinions between Kosovo and Serbian authorities. There is already a secure video link between Serbia, Bosnia, and Croatia. The most difficult part now is to get Serbia and Kosovo representatives to agree on the procedures as sometimes it is difficult to get Serbia and Kosovo to even agree that it is Friday (even when it IS Friday). But we will keep Cattle smuggling--i don t care how long you have been in police work or where--i dare you to tell me you have seen anything like this. 17 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet MCSO Deputies can t hold a candle to some International CIVPOL officers when it comes to safe driving skills going back, time and again, as long as it appears we may have a chance at some success, because this is a very important initiative and we will do our best to get er done. I have also recently made a nomination of one of the Kosovo Police Commanders to attend the FBI National Academy. I met with the sorry but another acronym coming here Legal Attaché (LEGATT) in Sarajevo, which covers the Balkans area. He is an FBI agent addressing international affairs and is the proper point of contact for such a nomination. After our meeting he assured me he would support my recommendation and hopefully there will be a Kosovo Police Officer in an upcoming class at the FBINA. About thirty of the U.S. police officers currently in Kosovo are NA graduates and they have formed a small social group, of which I am only an associate member, since I never attended the NA, but, because I did help host the Southernmost Boardroom in Key West in 2002, I have some standing. They have agreed to have a fund-raiser to raise some spending money for the nominated officer, and I will be putting forth the nomination and garnering support from the proper authorities. Wish me luck! Continued on page 18

18 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet July-August 2006 International Perspective, Continued As for the spending money you must understand that a Kosovo Police Officer receives a starting salary of 220 Euro (about $275 U.S. per month a senior command level officer receives a whopping $400 U.S. per month). They receive no other benefits no medical no NOTHING. And the cost of living here is NOT cheap so you can see that if a candidate comes to the U.S. for school, he/ she would need some social support. Pocket money would be an eccentricity and we intend to supply just that. So, anyway, the travel is good, the working conditions at post are good (some of the conditions on the economy are not as good but on post within the walls of the U.S. Office behind the Marine Embassy Guards so to speak they have to assure all U.S. living and safety standards are met due to the fact that so many U.S. government employees live and work here). The benefits are good and the exposure to new and exciting things is good but the separation from family is tough. At least I am able to tack on a few days at home with Sue, or fly her to me, each time they send me somewhere. I guess you all probably know what the most difficult thing about this job is for me that s right not being able to pull over bonehead drivers and stroke em a ticket and believe me there are enough boneheads here to go around. As a matter of fact, an officer here has about ten times a better chance of dying or being injured in a traffic crash then he/she does in having a violent confrontation. My vehicle (a grey 2005 Ford Everest the European version of an Explorer does have lights in the grill and a siren but that is for emergency egress purposes but I have to say they help at check points or road blocks. A vehicle here with diplomatic plates is given a lot of consideration at borders and checkpoints (especially U.S. diplomatic tags as you may or may not be aware, Kosovo is one of the few places out in the real world that still actually really likes Americans it wasn t the Kosovo Albanians who we Some U.S. CIVPOL Officers taking a meal break at the Annual July 4th Contingent Party and Medal Parade (awarding of service medals). (NATO) bombed it was the Serbs much I miss my time there and especially all of my friends and colleagues, remember). By the way, I am armed, but not as a police officer, I have a although I truly do. I promised Colonel Ramsay I would write about the concealed weapons permit from the Department of State and the Kosovo mission here and I will continue to Police Service for personal protection do so if that is ok. I think it is a good only. The officers (from all nations thing to expand one s horizons and let about 1600 of them, including our U.S. people know that there are so many officers) that are seconded to the UN things going on out in the world that are armed as police officers and have may not directly affect our little island full executive authority of arrest. community in the Keys, but indeed do Hey, guess who I ran into in affect our country, our way of life, and northern Wisconsin a few months especially how we are perceived by ago when Sue and I were visiting her other nations. mom there. None other than Bob and I would love to hear from some Cindy Peryam, well I do have to say of you if you care to write and chat. it was planned. I called him at the office to tell him I was in the states and Remember to spell it with two E s be- My is [email protected]. he was, at that exact time, confirming travel arrangements to go to his at an embassy in the far-east somecause KELLYJL will go to Julie Kelly, mom s home in northern Michigan, where, who probably will not know due to the death of his brother. It was what the heck you are talking about. a solemn occasion, but after they had She fields a lot of my mail because of finished their celebration of Bob s that. brother s life there they stopped by to You all take care, stay safe, and see us and we had a great visit. Sue remember those of us who have and my prayers are with Bob s family. left the job and moved on we still That reminds me that last Christmas; Sue was able to attend the office I ll bet a good portion of the officers remember you and think of you often. MCSO Christmas Party and was glad and staff who read this will not even to get such a warm welcome from know who I am since I m sure there many of you who remembered her, are so many new faces there. But thank you for your consideration and you are still all my family and a very thanks to Bob and Cindy for taking important part of my life. her. Bob has always been there for Take care. me and I can t say enough about that. And remember. If it really, really felt good saying it you probably Well I won t burden you with one of my long soapbox letters of how shouldn t have!!!! 18

19 July-August 2006 Commendation letters, continued Colonel Rick Ramsay and Major Tommy Taylor put a wreath at a memorial stone placed at the Key West cemetery in March, in remembrance of Deputy Frank Adams, killed in key West October 7, Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet He particularly mentions the SWAT team, and their professionalism and tactical assistance and Colonel Rick Ramsay and Captain Ross Thomson who helped to coordinate the event. Frank Hawkins, Jr., Chief Executive Officer of Hawk Associates and The Hawk Team, thanked Deputies Luis Blasco and Andrew Leird for their help setting up a special vacation trip for six wounded veterans. Called the Wounded Hero program, Hawkins says We didn t anticipate this event growing to the proportions it did, but are thankful to each and every person who made it happen. Bill Lemon, of Big Pine Key wrote to thank Sgt. Ronnie Roberts and Deputy Brian Kibbe for saving the life of his mother in law, who fell into a canal while visiting from Norway. He says, We would like to thank these men from our soul for saving Astrid s life. We will never be able to thank them enough. There is no doubt they would have drowned if she would have been in the water much longer. G. Matthew Immler, Chief of the City of Boynton Beach Police Department, says he is thankful to Sgt. Jonathan Crane for his help with a homicide suspect. The suspect was caught by KWPD and was held at the detention center after killing his ex-wife and fleeing in her vehicle. He says, Please convey our gratitude to Sgt. Crane for his valuable assistance to (our investigators). Andrea Phillips, with the Martin County Sheriff s Office, wrote to commend Deputy Jason Kroening for his help when her grandson was arrested in the Keys for marine violations. When situations such as this one involve our own it s a scary happening, however I cannot imagine how it could have been handled any better. Michael Perry, Division Director of Catholic Charities, wrote to commend Deputy Emil LaVache. He says he is grateful for Deputy LaVache s daily visits to their operations located on Flagler Avenue. He says, His genuine concern for our safety and well being is obvious and I welcome his daily question of any problems? Dr. Alberto Marante, Director of the Pediatric Critical Care Unit of Palms West Hospital wrote to commend Deputy Sheila Swindle. Deputy Swindle responded to reports that a truck belonging to Dr. Marante had been hit while he was vacationing at Ocean Reef. She investigated, identifying a suspect and placing her under arrest. He said,...most importantly, thanks to Officer Swindle, Ms. Reetz may have learned a valuable lesson and was prevented from physically hurting or killing an innocent victim while drunk driving. Arnold Moncada Jr. is from Pewaukee, WI and was visiting earlier in the year when he and his family were involved in an accident on Big Pine Key. Moncada, who is a retired law enforcement officer, wrote to commend Deputy Vincente Lopez for his professionalism and compassion in dealing with the traumatic situation. Howell Gilbert of Islamorada wrote to thank Deputy Greg LaRochelle and Reserve Captain Ted Migala for their help changing a tire for he and his wife in February. Debra Boyd, a former Key West resident, wrote to commend Deputy John Gabay. She and her children were evacuating prior to Hurricane Wilma when her rental car broke down. Deputy Gabay made sure she got home safely, and made sure another car would be waiting for her to pick up so she could leave the following day. Larry and Sue McDermott wrote to thank Deputy Robin Tanner for her help when they blew tires on their recreational vehicle. Ruben Iglesias wrote to commend Sgt. Vaughn Sommers for helping with a criminal mischief case, making sure he was compensated for the damage done. King Brown, Chair of the Crime Scene Investigation Sub-Committee, for the International Association for Identification wrote to commend Crime Scene Investigator Gary McCullough who helped with a mock crime scene work shop. He says, The Monroe County Sheriff s Office should be commended for having a Crime Scene Investigator of the caliber of Gary McCullough. 19

20 Monroe County Sheriff s Office - Rap Sheet July-August 2006 In the back, Deputy Caridad Bellon and Deputy Luis Blasco; In the front, Deputy Brian Luth and KWPD Sgt. Sean Brandenberg pose with drugs seized on a traffic stop in August. They recovered marijuana and a large number of Xanax pills. Crime Scene Investigator Jason Madnick shows off some of the 90 kilos of cocaine recovered from off shore of the Florida Keys in July. The drugs were found off of the upper Keys, and off of Marathon, in three separate bundles of 30 kilos each. This picture of Mary Cohen is, according to Linda Simonet, a prime example of what putting in long hours and extra days getting ready for Accreditation Inspection and too much chocolate can do to a person! Runners and their escorts who participated in the Special Olympics Law Enforcement Torch Run. The Sheriff s new TraumaStar arrived in July. The 1982 Sikorsky S-76A++ was purchased by the Board of County Commissioners from Geisinger Medical Center in Danville, Pennsylvania for $3.7 million dollars. It has twin Jet turbine engines and will travel at 175 miles per hour. It is configured to carry up to two pilots, two patients and four caregivers. It is housed at the Sheriff s Aviation Hanger in Marathon. 20