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The BLUES - JANUARY ‘25 1

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VOL. 41 NO. 1 JANUARY 2025

FEATURES/COVER

DEPARTMENTS

74 POLICE PRODUCTS - 2025

POLICE EV’S:

ARE THEY READY FOR PATROL ?

84 TOM HOMAN:

TRUMP’S NEW BORDER CZAR

94 DRONES:

WHO THE HELL IS FLYING THEM

PUBLISHER’S THOUGHTS

EDITOR REX EVANS THOUGHTS

GUEST COMMENTARY - TRAVIS YATES

GUEST COMMENTARY - CRAIG FLOYD

NYC SUBWAY FIRE - DANIEL CARR

OFFICER INVOLVED - DANIEL CARR

NEWS AROUND THE US

MIGRANT CRIME

BREAKING NEWS

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

REMEMBERING OUR FALLEN HEROES

WAR STORIES

AFTERMATH

HEALING OUR HEROES

DARYL’S DELIBERATIONS

BLUE MENTAL HEALTH DR.

LIGHT BULB AWARD

ADS BACK IN THE DAY

PARTING SHOTS

ISD PD JOB LISTINGS

NOW HIRING

BACK PAGE

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26

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102

106

114

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GUEST COMMENTARY

DANIEL CARR

20

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BLUE MENTAL HEALTH



FOUNDER, PUBLISHER, EDITOR-N-CHIEF

MICHAEL BARRON

OUR TEAM

EDITOR-AT-LARGE

Chief Rex Evans(Ret)

SENIOR EDITOR

Dr. Tina Jaeckle

CREATIVE EDITOR

Jessica Jones

COPY EDITOR

Lt. John King (Ret)

OUTDOOR EDITOR

Rusty Barron

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Lt. Daryl Lott (Ret)

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS

Sam Horwitz & Det. John Salerno (Ret)

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Doug Griffith

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Art Woolery

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Daniel Carr

FEATURE STORY

Michael Barron

Patrick Tucker

OUR CONTRIBUTORS

WARSTORY

C.W. Kincade

AFTERMATH

Adam A. Meyers

CONTRIBUTING COMMENTARY

Travis Yates

Craig Floyd

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Joanna Putman

Matthew Hollaway

Jenna Curren

Julie Reinstein

Danielle Smith

Dave Goldiner

Stephen Groves

Zach Despart

Ayden Runnels

Noah Feit

Susan Haigh

Kate Linderman

Brad Devereaux

Richard Moorhead

Anthony Galaviz

Sarah Roebuck

Wayne Parham

Our Thanks to:

Fox News, Associated Press, Police Magazine

The Law Officer, Police 1.com

& Law Enforcement Today

The BLUES is published monthly by Kress-Barr, LLC, PO Box 2733, League City Texas 77574. The opinions expressed in some

articles, op-eds, and editorials are those of the author and do not reflect the opinion of The BLUES or its parent company.

Rebuttals or submission of news articles and editorials may be submitted to: The BLUES @ bluespdmag@gmail.com.

The entire contents of The BLUES IS copyrighted© and may not be reprinted without the express permission of the publish-


FROM THE PUBLISHER’S DESK

EVERY HOUR, 4 PEOPLE DIE..

..by suicide here in America. We need to do

better to help those who need our help.

Every hour in America, four

people commit suicide. On average,

184 cops take their own

lives every year. More than 1,200

first responders died by suicide

over a seven-year period,

according to a report released

by a nonprofit organization

that tracks law enforcement

suicides. From 2016 to 2022,

there were 1,287 public safety

personnel -- identified in the

report as law enforcement and

corrections officers -- who died

by suicide, according to the

First HELP and CNA Corporation

report.

I’m no expert and I certainly

do not have the answer to

this horrific problem facing our

brothers and sisters in Blue.

But we do have some terrific

partners here at the BLUES that

address this growing problem

each month; Dr. Tina Jaeckle

with her Blue Mental Health

column and Retired NYPD officer

John Salerno and Former

Secret Service Agent Samatha

Horwitz with Badge of Honor

articles and pod casts. And in

the coming months, we’ll be

adding even more experts to

help address this growing problem.

So, what can we do to help

our brothers and sisters who

think they have reached the end

of the road and have no other

alternative but to take their own

life. Often, when we see someone

post on social media that

an officer has died of a self-inflicted

gunshot, the comments

read like this:

“I wish he would have reached

out to me; I could have helped.”

“I had no idea. I can’t believe

she didn’t call me. I’m so heartbroken.”

“OMG no, no, no. Why did he

do this. Why didn’t he reach out.

Why didn’t anyone know?”

Maybe they did try and call

and no one picked up. These

days, no one answers calls on

their cell. Everything is done by

text. People look at incoming

calls and say to themselves,

“why in the hell is someone

calling me in the middle of the

night?” Very few people will

pick up when you call. Especially

if they don’t recognize the

number.

Imagine you are that officer’s

last attempt to reach out

to someone to just “talk” and

you send it to voicemail. And

the next day, you read a post

in the retired officers FB page

that “retired officer X took his

own life last night.” You were

their last hope of finding some

meaning to their life and you

passed them by because you

couldn’t be bothered.

As a society, we must do

better. As first responders, as a

brotherhood of cops, we owe

it to one another to save each

other from ourselves. On the

street, we always have each

other’s backs and would sacrifice

our own life to save someone

else’s. But what about now.

Don’t we have a responsibility

to save the ones who are willing

to give up their own lives to

protect us?

I ask each of you, to reach out

to someone you haven’t heard

from in a while and check on

them. Make sure they are doing

OK. Take them to lunch. Stop

by the retirement home and

show them someone still cares.

Because one day, it will be YOU

that’s all alone and wondering

when someone will come visit

you.


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FROM THE EDITOR-AT-LARGE

Keep it simple(r) in ‘25

Time is only a means of measurement.

Every minute that passes is

just a moment in time. What happens

in those minutes not only defines

the moment, but it also defines

the people in that moment. We have

all had moments in our lifetime

that come to define us. As one year

passes and we enter the year of

2025 A.D. one cannot help but keep

a watchful eye to the future.

No one will question that 2024

was a tumultuous year. Outside

our profession, we saw battles

and wars being fought all over

the globe. Our armed forces were

engaged in some sort of action

just about everywhere. And here

at home we witnessed numerous

problems in our communities only

become more intense and severe.

Homelessness. Mental Illness.

Economics. Inflation. Political

corruption. The corruption of humanity.

All prompting many in our

profession to take early retirement.

Recruiting and retention of officers

became just one of the many priorities

Law Enforcement Leaders faced

daily. In some cases, departments

faced critical shortages affecting

the safety of their citizens.

One might even suggest as the

new year begins, why would anyone

want to be involved in this rodeo

we call “Law Enforcement.” I cannot

offer an all-inclusive answer. No

one can. I can only offer my take on

why we do what we do, and why

we should continue our efforts to

bring on those who have not already

done so, into the fold.

It’s short and simple really. There

isn’t a need for lengthy dissertation,

studies or analytical analysis.

There’s always been and always will

be, a need for a very special few to

serve, protect and defend the many

from those that would do them

harm.

Too simple? I don’t think so. I

seem to remember academy instructors,

Field Training Officers and

Ole Timers in general, telling this

very young and naive deputy sheriff,

“Just keep it simple. If you think

you should write a report, write the

damn thing.” And “If you think what

you’re doing is wrong, it probably is.

So, stop doing it.” Perhaps it would

be smart to look back at how such

instruction and guidance, although

not written in any book, was instrumental

in the progression of

profession. Maybe like how society

itself has become entangled in and

of itself because of complexity, so

have we. And maybe, just maybe,

we only simply need to hit the proverbial

“Reset” button and just keep

it simple.

Now before you start sending me

“Hate Mail” (lol) I understand and

acknowledge that not every problem

we face is simple. Whenever

it can be made simple, I gotta ask,

why the hell aren’t we doing it the

simple way. Stop with all the innuendos

and complications. As Charlie

Brown would say “Good grief…”

As the new year cranks up, I

would encourage law enforcement

leaders across the country to stop a

moment, analyze your problems or

challenges, look for simpler solutions.

Then prioritize the list for the

betterment of everyone in the department

and community. Whatever

the complexities are, just correct

them. You are the Sheriff, Constable,

Director or Chief, so make it

happen. I would encourage you to

wish your Command Staff a Happy

New Year and explain to them the

mission for 2025 is to keep things

simple. Stop with all the nonsense.

This job we do, especially our

Night Shift Officers, is dangerous,

arduous and taxing enough. Every

24 hours in this country a cop is

shot in the Line of Duty. Why in the

hell are we (Law Enforcement Leadership)

adding stress to an already

stressful situation? Because we

can, is NOT the answer. The solution

is, we are going to fix that in 2025.

Because that is what we as Law Enforcement

Leadership are supposed

to do.

So, my friends Happy New Year!!!

May everything you need be yours.

May the dreams and aspirations you

have come true. May all of you and

your personnel come home safe at

the end of their shift. And finally,

may the Dispatcher never give you a

barking cow call. (Yep. It happened.

You just can’t make this stuff up.)

God bless you all.

Your Friend, Chief Rex Evans (Ret.)


START SHOPPING




GUEST COMENTARY

Travis Yates

Hiring Bonuses are Easy..

Culture is the Hard Part.

I recently saw an agency was

hiring 10 laterals and giving a

$100,000 bonus. The agency is

down almost 40 officers and

their offer is no doubt out of

desperation but they have everything

wrong. While they may

pick up a few officers, nothing

will actually be solved and

it’s likely things will get much

worse.

We don’t have a recruiting crisis

in policing…We have a culture

crisis.

I don’t even have to ask about

the leadership at the agency.

If you have to bribe new hires,

the environment is in the gutter

and it’s sickening to see them

brag about their bonus offer.

SAFEGUARD Recruiting has been

successfully helping agencies

recruit across the country and

they routinely build culture into

their advertising. In fact, their

data shows that agencies that

highlight culture are much more

successful than those that highlight

benefits.

The beauty of organizational

culture is that it can be fixed and

once it is, everything else becomes

right again.

1. Define Core Values and

Mission

Law enforcement agencies

must articulate their core values

and mission clearly and the heart

of that mission is law and order.

Look no further than the United

States Military on how the wrong

mission and values will hurt the

organization in recruiting and

more. In 2024, more Marines reenlisted

than in the last 14 years

and they met their recruiting

goal by 101%.

Their success is not only not

unique but should be expected.

All other branches of the military

are suffering in both recruiting

and retention and when the

Marine General was asked by

Congress how he could surpass

his recruitment without bonus

money, he simply said, “Because

they get to be Marines.”

Law enforcement needs to

remember that their core mission

is the safety of their citizens

and there have always been a

segment of society ready and

willing to do that job. But if you

make the job impossible and

say you don’t want warriors to

perform that core mission, good

luck.

2. Empowerment

I always thought it was wild

that we give law enforcement

officers more power than the

President of the United States

(They have the authority, if needed,

to kill United States Citizens

on American Soil) but cowardly

leaders don’t want to hear what

they have to say and they micromanage

them constantly.

When I’m at an agency with

strong culture, I hear two things

from the officers. They give me

the resources to do the job and

they let me do the job. It sounds

simple but I get calls every week

from officers from across the

country that are ready to quit

because the job they were promised

doesn’t exist.

3. Prioritize Training and Development

The priority of any leader is

to ensure that their employees

have the training to prepare

them for the job. We need to get

away from the “check the box”

training those DOJ funded police

organizations keep pushing and

get back to training that builds

confidence and competence.

Whether it’s tactics, leadership,

medical, or communication,

there is some fantastic training

available to agencies but few

are taking advantage of it. Our

profession should not be getting

less training annually than a

banker or a hairdresser but that

is the reality in most departments

and it has to end if we

truly care about our employees.

4. Foster Open Communication

We need to stop the “I have

an open door” policy and go to



their door. Trust me, unless your

culture is top notch, no one is

coming to your door and leaders

need to not only make themselves

available to those around

them but invite critical feedback

without fear of retribution.

5. Recognize and Reward

Positive Behavior

Acknowledging and rewarding

officers who exemplify the

agency’s values reinforces those

behaviors. Recognition can come

in various forms, such as awards,

public commendations, or opportunities

for advancement.

This not only motivates individuals

but also sets a standard

for others to follow. I can still

remember the (few) times that

a leader stopped and recognized

me in a genuine fashion. It

meant more than any plaque or

award I ever received and leaders

must embrace this.

6. Focus on Officer Wellness

Our profession is speaking

about this more than ever and

there is a danger to that. It becomes

very easy to sign a pledge

or check the box and forget

about it. Leaders need to truly

care about their employees and

their overall wellness and that

goes much further than counseling,

peer support groups, or

fitness programs. A true focus on

officer wellness is built into everything

a leader does including

how we discipline and address

daily issues.

7. Evaluate and Adapt

Culture is not static. Agencies

must regularly assess their culture

through surveys, feedback,

and performance reviews. Identifying

areas for improvement and

making necessary adjustments

ensures the culture remains

aligned with the agency’s mission

and evolving community

needs. There is no better way to

do this than the MAGNUSWorx

Application. It’s ridiculously

cheap and needs to be a tool for

every leader in law enforcement.

CONCLUSION

Creating a strong culture within

law enforcement agencies

requires intentional effort and

ongoing commitment. By focusing

on core values, effective

leadership, training, communication,

recognition, wellness,

and adaptability, agencies can

build a culture that fosters trust,

professionalism, and resilience.

Such a culture not only enhances

the agency’s effectiveness but

also strengthens the bond between

law enforcement and the

communities they serve.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr. Travis Yates retired as a

commander with a large municipal

police department after 30

years of service. He is the author

of “The Courageous Police Leader:

A Survival Guide for Combating

Cowards, Chaos & Lies.” His

risk management and leadership

seminars have been taught

to thousands of professionals

across the world. He is a graduate

of the FBI National Academy

with a Doctorate Degree in Strategic

Leadership and the CEO of

the Courageous Police Leadership

Alliance. REPRINTED FROM THE

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GUEST COMENTARY

Travis Yates

Courage is the Ultimate Virtue.

After two decades of law enforcement

experience and more

than one personal story of watching

self proclaimed leaders bow down

in times of crisis, I decided to begin

using a phrase called “Courageous

Leadership.”

A decade ago, there weren’t many

referencing leadership in this fashion

but today, the term has been

repeated in articles, books, and a

host of podcasts.

I’ve taught a seminar on the topic

for a decade and wrote a book on

it in 2019 but with the more popular

interest the term has garnered,

there is a risk that what was originally

a call to action turns into a

cool term without substance. With

this in mind, I thought it made sense

to remind everyone exactly what

Courageous Leadership means.

WHAT IS LEADERSHIP

I consider “leadership” the theory,

thought or idea and “courage” the

action behind it. Everyone has some

understanding of what leadership

is. Sure, 100 people will have 100

different definitions but they will all

be correct in some way and I’m not

in the business of trying to define a

term with that kind of subjectivity.

But I will lean in to courage because

without it, all the training,

yellow bricks, and theory mean

absolutely nothing.

“Without courage, all other

virtues lose their meaning” – Sir

Winston Churchill

WHAT IS COURAGE

The official definition of courage

is “the quality of mind or spirit that

enables a person to face difficulty,

danger, or pain.”

In regard to leadership within law

enforcement, it is the willingness to

lead, regardless of the risk to status,

rank, or even employment.

You will do what is right…no

matter what.

This is why I’m not packing stadiums

across the country discussing

this issue. It is not for the faint of

heart but it is for those that want to

leave a legacy of greatness.

It is for you!

ULTIMATE VIRTUE

Courage is the virtue where every

other virtue is reinforced when

tested.

You can say you are honest,

compassionate, fair, and selfless

but when the time comes to show

it and you are risking your personal

self or reputation, will you still do

it?

If the chief tells you to lie or be

fired, are you ready for that?

If you witness excessive force will

you report it?

Will you let the media or mayor

lie about your officer or agency and

keep your mouth shut or will you

go against their narrative and tell

the truth?

I could continue for hours and I

have seen both courage and cowardice

in every example given

above. Some with courage were

destroyed and many with cowardice

got promoted.

Which one will you be?

As Patrick Bet-David recently said,

“You have to have courage if you

want to do something special in

your life. Courage is the common

thread among all the great ones.”

Courage doesn’t come without

risk but nothing great ever happened

without those taking the

risks…without courageous leaders.

If God gave you today, this is your

chance. This is your time.

JOIN THE MOVEMENT TODAY

If you are reading this, you are doing

more than most but I want you

to consider what else can be done?

• Spread this content to those

around you

• Plug in to our Podcast wherever

you listen to them at “Courageous

Leadership with Travis Yates”

• If you haven’t read the book that

started this movement, you can get

it here. If you can’t afford it, I’ll send

it to you.

• We are launching a membership

designed to encourage and equip

you. If you want information on

the launch, plug your email in here

and you can download our Principle

Poster for your office or agency

while you are there.

• Encourage your agency or conference

to host our training. It will

throw gasoline on the match you

have already lit.

• If you need anything, call me. My

number is located at the top of the

main website and you can reach me

through any of the contact pages as

well.

And always remember, Lead On &

Stay Courageous!

REPRINTED FROM THE LAW OF-

FICER, lawofficer.com



GUEST COMENTARY

Craig Floyd

Election Signals the End of

‘Defund the Police’ Sentiment

The latest national election results

show Americans want safer

communities, stronger prosecutors,

and less crime. Basically, it

marks the end of the “Defund the

Police” movement and a swing

toward a pro-police sentiment.

If there was any doubt left,

last month’s elections sealed the

deal. The nationwide experiment

labeled “Defund the Police” was

an abject failure. Our citizens

made it clear that they are sick

and tired of politicians who prefer

coddling criminals to supporting

our police. Sadly though,

it will take years to recover from

the disastrous consequences of

this movement that decimated

and demoralized our nation’s police

forces, ignited more crime,

and cost thousands of innocent

lives.

The election results last month

were a knockout blow to the

“defund” movement. Kamala

Harris was one of the movement’s

earliest and strongest

supporters. She wanted to

“re-imagine” policing. In June

of 2020, she said, “For too long,

the status quo thinking has been:

You get more safety by putting

more cops on the street—well

that’s wrong.”

The American electorate, and

hard data, disagreed.

Not only was Harris soundly

defeated, but she lost to an

opponent who had pledged if

he were re-elected president,

“There won’t be defunding, there

won’t be dismantling of our police,

and there is not going to be

any disbanding of our police.”

There were many other notable

pro-police and anti crime

election results on Nov. 5. Twelve

out of 25 George Soros-linked

progressive, soft-on-crime

local district attorneys across

the U.S. were either defeated or

recalled—many of them in deep

blue jurisdictions.

The biggest loser was Los

Angeles District Attorney George

Gascon, who lost by 24 points

to tough-on-crime opponent

Nathan Hochman. Voters across

California, one of the most liberal

states in the nation, overwhelmingly

approved Proposition

36, which lengthens jail and

prison sentences for drug and

theft convictions.

This voter outrage should have

been expected given the damage

done by politicians who catered

to criminals at the expense of

public safety.

Cities across the country cut

hundreds of millions of dollars

from their police budgets as a

knee-jerk reaction to George

Floyd’s death in 2020. After being

defunded and defamed, officers

left the profession in droves. The

number of full-time state and

local officers dropped by 5.3%

between 2019 and 2021, which

meant 36,907 fewer officers

were serving and protecting our

communities.

During this same period, police

response times slowed and violent

crime in America spiked by

3.8%. In 2020, homicides nationwide

rose by 29.4%—the largest

single-year increase in more

than a century.

There have been many more

troubling consequences. At the

start of the “defund” movement,

many cities across the country

abolished their school resource

officer programs. In the aftermath,

there has been a dramatic

increase in the number of school

shootings—more than 300 in

each of the past two years.

Progressive soft-on-crime policies,

like no cash bail, have created

a revolving-door criminal

justice system that has frustrated

officers and endangered citizens.

Failure to prosecute shoplifters

has caused retail theft to

skyrocket. A recent nationwide


survey found that 40% of retail

employees would quit their jobs

next year because of “personal

safety concerns.”

Youth crime is out of control

as well. Carjackings nearly

doubled in Washington, D.C.,

last year, and the average age of

those arrested was 15.

And illegal immigration has

caused some cities, like Denver,

to cut their police budgets so

they can shift the money to assist

the migrants flooding into their

communities.

We can be thankful that many

states and localities have realized

the errors of their ways and

are restoring police funding and

reversing failed progressive policies.

Minneapolis cut its police

budget by $8 million in 2020 only

to reverse itself and add $7 million

two years later to help fill

the ranks of its dwindling police

force. After Oregon decriminalized

hard drugs like heroin and

methamphetamine in 2021, the

resulting record-high overdoses

and rampant homelessness

forced the state to backtrack and

end its experiment earlier this

year.

With the “defund” movement

now on the trash heap of so

many other ill-conceived ideas,

the anti-police rhetoric that led

to attacks on officers by violent

individuals has also quieted,

with some encouraging results.

According to the Fraternal Order

of Police, the number of officers

shot this year (301 as of Oct. 31)

was 7% less than the same time

in 2023. And the number of unprovoked

ambush-style shootings

of officers (71) is on pace to

be nearly 40% lower than the 138

in 2023.

The disastrous results of the

defund the police movement

will not be reversed overnight.

We lost too many talented and

experienced law enforcement

officers. This brain drain will

take years to fix. There are still

many pro-criminal district attorneys

who need to be replaced.

And while we have a strong

pro-police president soon retaking

office, much of the “defund”

damage has occurred at the

state and local level where more

corrective action is needed.

However, we can be grateful

that the pro-police, anti-crime

pendulum is finally swinging

in the right direction. And we

have learned a valuable lesson:

A well-funded and fully staffed

police force is essential to keeping

America safe.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Craig Floyd is the founding CEO

of Citizens Behind the Badge, a

national nonprofit organization

supporting law enforcement. This

article originally appeared on

The Daily Signal as Public Support

Shifts From Defund Police to

Pro-Police Policies Nationwide.

REPRINTED FROM POLICEMAG.

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GUEST COMENTARY

police law news

Daniel Carr

NYC Subway Fire Case

Did a police officer in New York City idly stand by and watch a woman

burn to death on a subway car while he did nothing? ”

I’ve gotten a lot of heat for my

take on this case.

Comments and honest disagreement

are encouraged.

WHAT HAPPENED

On December 22, 2024 a Guatemalan

citizen (Sebastian

Zapeta - who was in the U.S.

illegally) is accused of setting a

woman on fire - while she slept

on the subway.

The images and video of woman

on fire are horrific and Zapeta

has been arrested and charged

with murder.

THE CONTROVERSY

Cell phone video of the crime

has emerged and immediately

there was outrage over the police

response. One police officer

in particular has been demonized

and is the subject of intense

online hate.

I posted several Notes on

SubStack and I have not had this

much push back since the Roger

Fortson case.

Instead of responding to hundreds

of hysterical Karens - here

are my full thoughts on this

case.

WHAT REALLY HAPPENED?

The officer has been accused

of “doing nothing”, “walking

slowly”, “ignoring” her, and

“lacking humanity”.

I agree that the video does not

look good, but during a minute-long

clip - the cop in question

is in the frame for less than

3 seconds. Perhaps, more information

is needed before we call

for him to “turn in his badge.”

WHAT THE COP ACTUALLY DID

Police officers smelled smoke

and went towards it. Officers

saw the woman - fully engulfed

in flames, standing in the subway

car.

At that point multiple officers

ran to locate fire extinguishers

and one officer was tasked with

securing the crime scene and

informing dispatch of what was

occurring.

So, the cop in question got on

the radio and informed dispatch

WARNING VERY GRAPHIC VIDEO

of the location and the emergency.

This would have triggered the

Fire Department and EMS to be

dispatched.

Officers on scene located a

fire extinguisher and put out the

fire - before the Fire Department

arrived on scene.

THE DEBATE

It is absolutely reasonable to

question and criticize the actions

of police officers during this

incident.

But, we first must agree on the

basic objective facts and then a

discussion on if the officer(s) did

the right thing can take place.

Claiming that the cop “did

nothing” is just not helpful or

honest.

SAVE HER!

Many critics of the officer hold

the same idea - that the cop did


not pull her out of the subway,

smother her with his jacket, or

otherwise try to extinguish the

flames.

I understand that criticism. I

agree with most of it. I would

have liked to see the cop DO

SOMETHING - even if any efforts

absent a fire extinguisher would

have been moot.

THE QUESTION

The question that gained me

the most internet hatred was

when I asked, “What did you expect

the police officer to do?”

That’s an honest question but

hundreds of people were offended

that I even broached the

subject.

For those familiar with my

work - I often criticize police

officers. This is an important

exercise if we want to improve

policing. BUT! When I criticize

a police officer - I am specific

on what action I disagree with.

Then, I backup my opinion by

citing the law, policy, or training

that the officer violated.

If I cannot locate a law, policy,

or training that the cop violated

- then the real issue is often

found higher up than an individual

cop.

If the goal is to improve policing

it is essential to pinpoint

where the problem is.

So, for argument’s sake - let’s

assume that the officer did the

‘wrong’ thing (by calling the Fire

Dept and looking for an extinguisher

- instead of trying to put

out the fire and rescue her.)

Did the officer violate the department

policy and training?

• If so, the officer should be the

subject of an internal investigation.

Did the officer follow policy

The MONSTER - Sebastian Zapeta

and training?

• If so, the issue is administrative

and the policy/training

should be corrected immediately.

THE ANSWER

NYPD Transit Chief Joseph

Gulotta and NYPD Police Chief

Jessica Tisch made public statements

and said that the officers

on scene “secured the scene”

and “put the fire out” with fire

extinguishers - in accordance

with training and policy.

• Those saying that the officer

should have acted against the

department policy and training

are often the first to excoriate an

officer for not following training

and count every sustained policy

violation as a serious and unforgivable

offense.

MY TAKE

I’m a retired cop - not a retired

firefighter. I know nothing

about fire suppression. Most cops

receive zero training on how to

help a person fully engulfed in

flames. I am advocating that we

get cops additional fire-suppression

training, issue fire suppressant

blankets, stash more fire

extinguishers in subways, etc…

This was such a massive fire - I

understand why any cop in this

situation would think that any

effort to “smother” the person

and put out the fire with a jacket

or something would be ineffective.

If the immediate thought was -

the ONLY way to save this woman

is to find a fire extinguisher.

I get it. That is not an unreasonable

idea when faced in the

weight of the moment.

FINAL THOUGHTS

It’s easy to demonize a single

officer that is visible for 2 seconds

on a viral cell phone video.

Perhaps that helps those behind

a screen to cope with this awful

tragedy. But, it’s otherwise futile.

I am asking that we all take

a step back, think bigger, and

if the goal is to improve policing

- then the criticism must be

logical and aimed at the actual

problem.

We can disagree on police policy

and the instant decisions that

cops make during intense situations,

but let’s not forget who the

real enemy is - the monster who

set fire to a sleeping woman on

the subway.

Police Law Newsletter is a

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GUEST COMENTARY

police law news

Daniel Carr

Officer Involved: Salvatore Oldrati

How could this happen?

The criminal case against

police officer Salvatore Oldrati

could be one of the weakest

legal cases ever filed against a

law enforcement officer for an

Officer-Involved-Shooting (OIS).

Officer Oldrati was initially

“cleared” by the State and his

agency. He returned to work.

Then two years later he was

indicted.

HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN?

After you read this article

check out The Antihero Podcast

and The Comm Center Podcast

where Officer Oldrati’s parents

(Barbara and Drew) tell their

story, fill in the gaps not privy

to the media, and answer questions

about what their family has

gone through.

WHAT HAPPENED

On September 14, 2021 around

0130 hrs Officer Salvatore Oldrati

was working a shift as a police

officer for Mantua Township in

New Jersey.

Officer Oldrati and Corporal

Layton were dispatched to a call

and were given the following

information:

• A homeowner reported a burglary

in progress (to a shed and

a truck).

• One of the offenders was

armed with a gun.

• The homeowner threw dynamite/fireworks

at the offender(s).

The officers were

close and arrived on

scene within a few

minutes. They had

no idea what was

waiting for them.

NOT AS IT SEEMS

Corporal Layton

pulled up to the

scene and observed

a man (later identified

as Charles

Sharpe III (the caller))

standing in the front yard.

As Corporal Layton slowed down

to make contact - Mr. Sharpe

extended his arm and pointed

a gun right at Corporal Layton.

Corporal Layton immediately

accelerated and drove off.

Officer Oldrati was a little

behind and observed Corporal

Layton’s vehicle slow. He observed

Mr. Sharpe extend his

arm towards the driver’s window

of Corporal Layton’s car and

thought that it was the caller

- pointing out where the offender(s)

ran. Officer Oldrati was not

able to see that Mr. Sharpe was

pointing a gun.

Corporal Layton pulled forward

and then stopped and Officer

Oldrati stopped behind him. As

Officer Oldrati exited his vehicle

Corporal Layton yelled, “He’s

got a handgun on him!” Officer

Oldrati responded, “Where”?”

Corporal Layton said “Right

there! Put the gun down!” It was

then that Officer Oldrati saw that

Mr. Sharpe was pointing a gun

directly at him.

USE OF FORCE

Officer Oldrati responded to

the immediate deadly threat

with deadly force and fired multiple

rounds at Mr. Sharpe. Mr.

Sharpe fell to the ground and

reached for the gun that he had

dropped. Officer Oldrati then

fired more rounds. Mr. Sharpe

sustained a fatal injury. *Mr.

Sharpe had been armed with a

replica .45 handgun.

CHARGES

After two years Officer Oldrati

was indicted on reckless manslaughter

charges (2C:11-4). Under

New Jersey law that is, “The

actor recklessly causes death

under circumstances manifesting

extreme indifference to


human life.”

ANALYSIS

According to New Jersey law

for police officers (NJ Rev Stat §

2C:3-7) “The use of deadly force

is not justifiable under this section

unless…

There is an imminent threat of

deadly force to himself or a third

party”.

So, the relevant legal question

is - at the time of the use of

deadly force - was there an imminent

deadly threat present?

• Officer Oldrati responded to

a burglary call with an armed

offender.

• As he arrived on scene a man

pointed a gun at him.

• He responded with deadly force.

Pointing a gun is not only an

imminent deadly threat but is

universally classified as an “immediate”

deadly threat.

Also, according to the Use of

Force policy established by the

New Jersey Office of the Attorney

General (the Office prosecuting

Officer Oldrati) a police

officer is only required to give a

verbal warning prior to the use

of deadly force “when feasible”.

There was an imminent deadly

threat. It was not feasible to give

a verbal warning.

The use of deadly force was

objectively reasonable and within

the confines of New Jersey law

and Use of Force policy.

*Also, the notion that this

was “reckless manslaughter”

is absurb. There was nothing

“reckless” about Officer Oldrati’s

actions.

RELEVANT, SUPPRESSED IN-

FORMATION

The parents of Officer Oldrati

(Barbara and Drew Oldrati)

have appeared on The Antihero

Podcast and the Comm. Center

Podcast. In those appearances

Barbara and Drew stated that

the information provided to the

public about this case has been

limited and that relevant information

has been suppressed.

Since the NJ AG’s Office has

possession and control of this

unreleased information - we

have not been able to independently

verify. However, Barbara

and Drew make a very compelling

case and objectively their

statements are in line with the

known facts.

HERE IS A LIST OF SOME OF

THE ISSUES:

1. There was no burglary.

a. Barbara and Drew stated that

the investigation found that there

was no evidence of a burglary.

They claimed that there were

never any burglars/suspicious

persons on the property and this

was essentially a phony call to

911.

2. This was a su1c1de-by-cop.

a. Barbara and Drew stated that

Mr. Sharpe suffered from mental

illness, was depressed, and

su1c1dal.

3. Mr. Sharpe had illegal

drugs (methamphetamine, amphetamine,

and cocaine) in his system.


a. Barbara stated that she has

viewed Mr. Sharpe’s toxicology

report.

4. The gun was pointed at

Officer Oldrati.

a. Barbara and Drew explained

that the medical examiner report

proved that Mr. Sharpe

was pointing the gun at Officer

Oldrati at the time of the OIS.

Barbara explained that some of

the injuries to Mr. Sharpe were

on his hand/arm and also on

the firearm that he was holding

- that only could be present if

the gun were pointed at Officer

Oldrati.

5. Officer Oldrati was initially

cleared by the AG’s Office.

a. Barbara stated that the AG’s

Office conducted an investigation

into the use of deadly force

and “cleared” Officer Oldrati.

Barbara claimed that despite

those findings - that when the

new AG (Matthew Platkin) was

elected, only then were charges

filed against Officer Oldrati.

6. Back to work.

a. Barbara and Drew explained

that a representative from the

AG’s Office explained to Officer

Oldrati’s Chief of Police that he

had been cleared and that there

were no violations of policy or

law. Officer Oldrati then did go

back to work and earned another

“Officer of the Year” award and

was promoted to Corporal.

These are six relevant pieces

of information that the Oldrati’s

claim are objective facts. It is

reasonable to believe that they

are all true. They are not included

in the media reports on this

case. Also, in public briefings

about the prosecution of Officer

Oldrati - AG Platkin’s Office did

not mention any of this information.

What are they hiding?

FINAL THOUGHTS

As my readers know - I have

no interest in making excuses

for police officers who commit

crimes. My only interest is objectively

evaluating serious Use

of Force cases.

And this one could not be more

clear.

I encourage everyone to listen

to the podcasts that I linked at

the top of this article. Nothing

I write could capture the raw

emotions of parents who are

fighting for their son. A hero. A

man who reacted reasonably to

an intense situation and is being

unjustly prosecuted.

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AROUND THE COUNTRY

TERRELL, TX.

Police Officer Jacob Candanoza was shot and killed during a traffic

stop in the 1600 block of South State Highway 34 in Terrell.

ByJulia Reinstein

TERRELL, TX. – A Terrell Texas

police officer was fatally shot

during traffic stop in Terrell,

Texas. Terrell is located about 30

miles east of Dallas.

The officer, 28-year-old Jacob

Candanoza, called for a cover

unit upon initiating the traffic

stop around 11 p.m., the Terrell

Police Department said. But before

backup could arrive, police

said they received two 911 calls

about an officer being shot.

Responding officers found

Candanoza at the scene with

gunshot wounds, according to

Terrell police.

He was transported to the hospital,

where he died, police said.

The suspected shooter was arrested

early Monday, but did not

immediately disclose his name.

Candanoza was able to provide a

license plate to dispatchers that

aided in the suspect’s capture, Lt.

Mary Hauger, spokesperson for

the Terrell Police Department

said.

Candanoza had joined the Terrell

Police Department just last

July. He served in the Marines

from 2014 to 2019 and previously

worked for the Dallas County

Sheriff’s Office, according to

Dallas ABC affiliate WFAA.

“Our deepest condolences go

out to his family as they navigate

this tragic time,” the Terrell Police

Department said in a statement.

“Please join Cecilia & me in

OFFICER JACOB CANDANOZA

praying for the family & friends

of Officer Jacob Candanoza, who

lost his life last night in the line

of duty,” Texas Gov. Gregg Abbott

wrote on X. “Our hearts go out

to his loved ones & to the Terrell

Police Department.”



AROUND THE COUNTRY

MCNAIRY COUNTY, TN.

Sergeant Rick Finley was shot and killed while responding to a

suspicious person complaint in the 100 block of New Bethel

Road in Selmer Tennessee.

McNairy County, TN. — Selmer

Police reported a shooting occurred

Saturday December 14th

when Sgt. Rick Finley responded

to New Bethel Road regarding

a suspicious person who tried

breaking into a residence and

fired shots into a door.

They said when Finley got

there, the suspicious person

attacked and shot him several

times, and it forced another officer

to return fire.

Selmer PD said the suspect

tried to enter a home on New

Bethel Road before firing several

shots into one of its doors.

Finley then confronted Daniel

Holmes in a driveway across the

street from the home, where the

suspect attacked the officer and

shot the officer several times,

killing him.

A second officer, identified as

Lt. Ron Pilkington, arrived moments

later and “was able to

return fire, killing the suspect,”

Selmer PD said.

Selmer is about an hour-anda-half

east of Memphis. TBI said

it was the lead investigator in

the deadly shooting, adding that

agents were working to find

out specifics of what led to the

gunfire.

Very little information has

been released about the thirty

year-old suspect Daniel Holmes.

Local TV Station WREG Investigators

uncovered a copy of

the TBI’s rap sheet for Holmes.

It confirmed he’d been arrested

numerous times before.

In 2007, the McNairy County

Sheriff’s Office nabbed him on

a domestic assault charge. Four

years later, he was arrested

again for two drug possession

charges. In 2012, he was charged

with harassment.

Sgt. Finley worked part-time

with Selmer Police and worked

full-time at the McNairy Sheriff’s

Office.

SERGEANT RICK FINLEY

He was known for his bravery

and kindness. His former martial

arts instructor spoke highly of

his character.

“He is a super good kid,” Craig

Hamm said. “He has a heart of

gold.”

Sunday night, an escort of

law enforcement officers from

across the state took Finley back

to a funeral home in Selmer.

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AROUND THE COUNTRY

CHARLOTTE CNTY, FL.

Sergeant Elio Diaz was shot and killed during a traffic stop at

4968 Tamiami Trail in Port Charlotte on December 15th.

By Joanna Putman, Police 1

‘He had no chance’: Florida.

deputy was trying to help homeless

man avoid losing truck before

fatal ambush”

PORT CHARLOTTE, FL. — The

Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office

provided new details about the

fatal shooting of Sgt. Elio Diaz,

who was killed during a traffic

stop on Dec. 15th. Diaz stopped

a white pickup truck at a Chevron

gas station in Port Charlotte

after discovering its license plate

was flagged for financial responsibility

suspension, indicating a

lapse in insurance, FOX 4 reported.

During the hour-long interaction,

Diaz learned the driver was

homeless and living out of the

truck. Diaz worked with the man

to help him reinstate his insurance

to avoid impounding the

vehicle and its contents, Sheriff

Bill Prummell stated during a

news conference on Dec. 19.

However, as Diaz returned to

the truck after working from his

patrol car, the man retrieved a

rifle and shot the sergeant multiple

times.

“He had no chance,” Prummell

said when asked if Diaz had a

chance to return fire during the

ambush attack.

The man then fled the scene in

his truck, leaving Diaz critically

wounded. Diaz was rushed to the

hospital, where he later died.

Prummell stated Diaz had no

opportunity to defend himself,

describing the attack as ambush-style.

The man then fled

the scene in his truck, leaving

Diaz critically wounded. Diaz

was rushed to the hospital,

where he later died.

A multi-agency manhunt ensued,

with investigators locating

the man’s truck at a Popeye’s

parking lot near I-75 about an

hour later, according to the report.

The suspect had swapped

the truck’s Florida license plate

for a Georgia plate and donned

a ballistic vest armed with steel

plates, dash cam and body

camera video shows. Deputy

Andrea Short and Corporal Nate

Edwards confronted the man in

the parking lot, where he refused

to comply with commands and

made an overt movement toward

his rifle. Short fired a single shot,

fatally striking the man.

Prummell praised Short for her

decisive action.

“As you can see, the shooter

in this case was prepared and

ready for a fight,” Prummell said.

“And with a single shot, Andrea

SERGEANT ELIO DIAZ

stopped what could’ve been a

potential blood bath. In my book,

she’s a frickin’ hero.”

Diaz was posthumously promoted

to the rank of sergeant.

A search of the man’s truck

revealed an arsenal, including

three rifles, over 1,000 rounds

of ammunition, loaded magazines,

gas masks and other

tactical gear, according to the

report. Investigators also discovered

packets of hallucinogenic

mushrooms and learned from

the man’s family that he had a

history of self-medicating and

erratic behavior.



AROUND THE COUNTRY

WAXAHACHIE, TX.

Detention Officer Isaiah Bias died after being assaulted by an inmate

at the Wayne McCollum Detention Center in Waxahachie.

WAXAHACHIE, TX. - Ellis County

detention officer Isaiah Bias

was killed after being attacked

by an inmate at the detention

center on December 16.

The 28-year-old officer was

killed while putting an inmate in

his cell Monday afternoon.

“Most of the time, law enforcement

officers and detention

officers deal with good folks

having a bad day. Occasionally,

we deal with bad folks,” he said.

“I can honestly say that my staff

over the last day has dealt with

pure evil.”

Sheriff Brad Norman called Officer

Isaiah Bias an “outstanding

person” who has been involved

with the sheriff’s department

since he was 14 years old.

Investigators say 45-year-old

Arron Thompson was booked

into jail last month on three

counts of assault on a public

servant and evading arrest. He

was in solitary confinement for

23 hours a day.

Sheriff Norman says the incident

happened when Bias was

putting Thompson back in his

cell.

“He was physically assaulted by

an inmate in a cell, holding facility

while the officer was doing

his job,” the sheriff said.

An arrest warrant affidavit for

Thompson says that he punched

Officer Bias, knocking him to the

ground. Thompson then allegedly

began choking Bias and hitting

him in the head with his fist, knee

and foot.

The affidavit says Thompson

then went to a table and sat

down, leaving Bias in a “large

pool of blood.”

Thompson is now charged with

capital murder. It’s up to the district

attorney if this will be tried

as a death penalty case. He was

arraigned and issued a bond of

$2 million.

“It was a heinous, horrific,

purposeful murder that was

not needed,” the sheriff said. “If

I have anything to say about it,

that is exactly what will happen

(death penalty case). I believe

they will ask my opinion and the

Ranger that works this case. The

decision is on the DA’s office.”

Sheriff Norman said the jail

staff is struggling with the death

of Officer Bias. He brought in

counseling services to help his

staff cope with the loss.

Sheriff Norman said he’s

known Officer Bias since he was

about 14 years old. He met him

OFFICER ISAIAH BIAS

when he was a teen in the Explorer

program.

“He wanted to be in law enforcement.

He came into work

for the jail,” Norman said. “You

can work in the jail when you

are 18. You can’t be a peace officer

until you’re 21.”

Bias left the sheriff’s office in

2016 to get a degree from Navarro

College. He came back and

was promoted to corporal in

detention services in 2022.

As the oldest sibling in his

family, Bias had just become an

uncle a week earlier.


AROUND THE COUNTRY

SAN DIEGO CNTY, CA.

Air Interdiction Agent Jeffrey Kanas was killed when the Eurocopter

AS350 he was piloting crashed near Potrero in San Diego County.

By Danielle Smith

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, CA. – U.S.

Customs and Border Protection

on Wednesday publicly identified

the agent who died in a helicopter

crash near Potrero earlier

this week.

Air Interdiction Agent Jeffrey

Kanas was killed when a CBP Air

and Marine Operations aircraft

crashed north of state Route 94

and two miles south of Barrett

Lake at around 10 a.m. on Monday,

according to CBP. Flight-

Aware’s flight tracker shows that

the helicopter took off an hour

earlier from Brown Field, about

20 miles west.

Kanas — who CBP says joined

the agency in 2008 — was the

pilot and sole person aboard the

aircraft, CBP said.

His sister, Jenn, spoke to NBC 7

on Thursday and described Kanas

as smart, compassionate and

someone who loved his family

and the skies.

“He loved aviation to begin

with, and he loved flying,” she

said. “I had to actually tell my

parents, which was really hard,

and my dad was a pilot, too.”

The National Transportation

Safety Board is investigating the

cause of Monday’s crash, the

agency said in a post on X.

AIR INTERDICTION AGENT

JEFFERY KANAS


AROUND THE COUNTRY

GREENSBORO, N.C.

Police Officer Michael Horan was shot and killed while responding to

a call of a man with a firearm at the Food Lion Store in Greensboro.

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Officer

Michael Horan was responding

to a report of a man with a gun

inside a North Carolina supermarket

when he was fatally shot

Monday and authorities said a

suspect was later taken into

custody, authorities say.

Greensboro Police said Horan

was responding to the report

when he was shot shortly before

midday at a Food Lion store in

Greensboro in the central part of

the state.

Authorities said Monday afternoon

that the circumstances of

the shooting remain under investigation

and they did not immediately

release further specifics

how it unfolded. The North Carolina

State Bureau of Investigation,

the state’s lead law enforcement

agency, is continuing the investigation.

Horan was hired in 2017 and

became a sworn Greensboro Police

Department officer in early

2018, Assistant Police Chief Milford

J. Harris said. Horan served

in the department’s patrol bureau.

He also was a longtime U.S.

Coast Guard member since 2000,

according to his LinkedIn profile.

“He was an excellent officer. He

had an outstanding reputation

inside the department and in the

community,” Harris said at the

news conference.

Elsewhere, Gov. Roy Cooper

said he has been monitoring the

day’s developments.

Cooper said on the social media

platform X that his office had

sent a “significant” number of

state law enforcement officers

to help aid in the emergency

response in Greensboro.

A heavy police presence was

spotted outside the grocery store

in Greensboro afterward.

The store will remain closed

while authorities continue their

investigation, Food Lion said in a

statement, adding it was providing

resources to its affected

workers. It directed all questions

to local law enforcement and

said it was cooperating with the

investigation.

The shooting was another

OFFICER MICHAEL HORAN

reminder that state lawmakers

should strengthen resources and

improve safety for law enforcement

officers, said Democratic

state Sen. Michael Garrett, who

represents part of Guilford County

where Greensboro is located.

“During what should be a time

of joy and celebration, another

brave officer has been shot in

the line of duty. Another family’s

holiday season forever changed,”

Garrett said in a Facebook statement.

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AROUND THE COUNTRY

CHANNAHON, IL.

Trooper Clay Carns was struck and killed by a passing vehicle on I-55

near Channahon, Illinois while removing debris from the roadway.

CHANNAHON, IL. – Illinois State

Trooper Clay Carns was struck

and killed Monday night on I-55

in Will County while removing

debris from the roadway after

the driver of a car on the highway

failed move over.

The accident occurred 14 years

to the day after a similar accident,

which killed Chicago Fire

Lieutenant Scott Gillen, lead to

the creation of “Scott’s Law” in

Illinois, requires all drivers to

move over when approaching an

emergency vehicle or any vehicle

with its emergency or hazard

lights activated.

About 9:42 p.m. Monday,

Trooper Clay M. Carns pulled

over to the right shoulder and

activated his emergency lights

after he observed debris in a lane

on southbound I-55 just north of

Blodgett Road near Channahon,

the Illinois State Police said.

Trooper Carns had exited his

vehicle and was standing in the

lane with the debris when the

driver of a Chevrolet Silverado

struck him, ISP said.

According to ISP, Carns was

taken to a nearby hospital where

he succumbed to his injuries.

The driver of the Chevrolet was

identified as John Fleet, 69, of

Wilmington, ISP said. According

to officials, Fleet was arrested

and charged with violating

Scott’s Law, which is a Class 4

Felony. Fleet was also issued

Multiple Vehicle code citations,

ISP said.

The violations however were

not detainable offenses, ISP said,

and Fleet was released. According

to ISP, the crash remains

under investigation.

Carns, 35, had served as an

officer with ISP for 11 years, officials

said, and was assigned to

Troop 3. Carns is survived by his

wife, two children, parents and

three siblings, ISP said.

“This is a sad day for the Illinois

State Police as we mourn the

death of Trooper Clay M. Carns

who was killed while serving the

people of Illinois and working

to keep our roadways safe,” ISP

Director Brendan F. Kelly said in a

TROOPER CLAY CARNS

statement. “Please keep Trooper

Carns, his family, loved ones, and

his ISP family in your thoughts,

prayers, and hearts during this

most difficult time.”

Trooper Carns had served with

the Illinois State Police for 11

years. He is survived by his wife,

two children, and parents.

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AROUND THE COUNTRY

CHILLICOTHE, OH.

Correction Officer Andrew Lansing died after being assaulted by an

inmate on Christmas morning at the Ross Correctional Institution.

CHILLICOTHE, OH. — An investigation

is underway into the death

of an Ohio corrections officer.

Officer Andrew Lansing was

attacked by an inmate on Christmas

morning at the Ross Correctional

Institution in Chillicothe,

according to officials.

The prison said Lansing died as

a result of the attack.

On Thursday, the Ohio Department

of Rehabilitation and

Correction identified the inmate

accused in the officer’s death as

Rashawn Cannon.

After the incident, Cannon was

transferred to the Southern Ohio

Correctional Facility in Lucasville.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol

is investigating.

The director of Ross Correctional

said in a statement that

Officer Lansing “was a friendly,

outgoing officer who treated

everyone with respect and was

always professional.”

OFFICER ANDREW LANSING

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AROUND THE COUNTRY

ST. LUCIE CNTY, FL.

Distracted driver slams into stopped cruiser at 60+ mph, destroying

truck and injuring a St. Lucie County deputy.

By Joanna Putman, Police1

ST. LUCIE COUNTY, FL. — A St.

Lucie County Sheriff’s deputy and

another motorist were hospitalized

after a crash that severely

damaged a department pickup

truck, WPTV reported.

Deputy Patterson, a six-year

veteran of the department,

was responding to debris in the

roadway when her marked unit,

with emergency lights activated,

was struck by a distracted driver

who failed to yield, according to

the report. The pickup truck collided

with the deputy’s vehicle at

high speed, causing significant

damage.

“Our deputy gets there, activates

their emergency lights,

then out of nowhere, a vehicle

following behind wasn’t paying

attention and crashed into them

at, you know, 60+ miles an hour,”

Sheriff Keith Pearson told WPTV.

Body camera footage released

by the sheriff’s office captured

the moment of impact, which

jolted the deputy’s vehicle. Both

Patterson and the driver of the

CLICK TO WATCH

truck were taken to the hospital.

Patterson has since been

released and is “shaken up, but

very, very happy to be alive,”

Pearson said.

The driver who caused the

crash sustained minor injuries

and was cited for violating Florida’s

“Move Over” law, which requires

motorists to change lanes

or slow down when approaching

stopped emergency vehicles,

according to the report.

Pearson emphasized the severity

of the crash, noting the extensive

damage to both vehicles.

“This isn’t a fender bender. This

is a full-size pickup truck. The

back half of it completely gone,”

he said.

Pearson urged drivers to stay

focused and move over for

emergency vehicles to prevent

similar incidents.

“We have two totaled vehicles

that all could have been prevented

had that driver just been

paying attention,” he said.

CLICK HERE FOR YOUR

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AROUND THE COUNTRY

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Trump slams Biden for commuting death sentences of 37 federal

prisoners saying he spared the “worst killers in our country.”

By Dave Goldiner

New York Daily News

WASHINGTON — President-elect

Donald Trump

slammed President Joe Biden on

Tuesday for commuting the death

sentences of 37 federal prisoners

in an act of holiday clemency.

Trump said relatives of victims

are angry that Biden spared

the lives of some of the “worst

killers in our country,” including

inmates convicted in the slayings

of police and military officers,

as well as murders involved in

deadly robberies and drug deals.

“When you hear the acts of

each, you won’t believe that he

did this. Makes no sense,” Trump

wrote on his social media site.

Relatives and friends are further

devastated. They can’t believe

this is happening!”

Trump, a vocal death penalty

advocate, won’t be able to reverse

the commutations. But he

vowed to aggressively push for

future federal death sentences

when he returns to the White

House Jan. 20.

“As soon as I am inaugurated,

I will direct the Justice Department

to vigorously pursue the

death penalty to protect American

families and children from


violent rapists,

murderers,

and monsters,”

Trump wrote.

Biden commuted

the death

sentences of 37

out of 40 federal

death row

inmates. They

will instead

face life imprisonment

without

the possibility of parole.

He left three inmates on federal

death row: Dylann Roof, who

killed nine Black parishioners

at Mother Emanuel AME Church

in Charleston, South Carolina;

Robert Bowers, who fatally shot

11 congregants at Pittsburgh’s

Tree of life Synagogue in 2018;

and Boston Marathon bomber

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

Biden explained his decision

by noting that his administration

has imposed a moratorium on

federal executions except in cases

of “terrorism and hate-motivated

mass murder.”

“I cannot stand by and let a

new administration resume

executions that I halted,” Biden

tweeted.

Relatives of most, but not all

the victims, denounced Biden’s

Christmas week decision to

spare the killers.

Tim Timmerman, whose

daughter, Rachel, was thrown

into a Michigan lake in 1997 to

keep her from testifying in a

rape trial, said Biden’s decision

to commute the killer’s sentence

offered families “only pain.”

“Where’s the justice in just giving

him a prison bed to die comfortably

in?” Timmerman said.

But Donnie Oliverio, a retired

Ohio police officer whose partner,

Bryan Hurst, was murdered,

said the killer’s execution “would

have brought me no peace.”

ED: I disagree Donnie, I’m pretty

sure that Officer Hurst’s family

would like to see that scumbag

murderer POS 6-feet under.

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AROUND THE COUNTRY

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Senate passes Social Security Fairness Act to boost benefits

for many public service retirees, waiting on Biden to sign.

By Stephen Groves

Associated Press

WASHINGTON — The Senate

passed legislation early Saturday

to boost Social Security

payments for millions of people,

pushing a longtime priority

for former public employees

through Congress in one of its

last acts for the year.

The bipartisan bill, which next

heads to President Joe Biden,

will eliminate longtime reductions

to Social Security benefits

for nearly 3 million people who

receive pensions from work in

federal, state and local government,

or public service jobs like

teachers, firefighters and police

officers. Advocates say the Social

Security Fairness Act rights a

decades-old disparity, though

it will also put further strain on

Social Security Trust Funds.

The legislation has been decades

in the making but the push

to pass it came together in the

final weeks — and was completed

in the final minutes — that

lawmakers were in Washington

before Congress resets next

year. All Senate Democrats, as

well as 27 Republicans, voted

for the bill, giving it a final tally

of 76-20.

“Millions

of retired

teachers and

firefighters

and letter

carriers and

state and local

workers

have waited

decades for

this moment.

No longer

will public

retirees see

their hardearned

Social

Security

benefits robbed from them,” said

Senate Majority Leader Chuck

Schumer, D-N.Y.

The bill repeals two provisions

— the Windfall Elimination

Provision and the Government

Pension Offset — that limit Social

Security benefits for certain

recipients if they receive retirement

payments from other

sources such as the public retirement

program for a state or

local government.

“Social Security is a bedrock of

our middle class. It’s retirement

security that Americans pay into

and earn over a lifetime,” said

Sen. Sherrod Brown, an Ohio

Democrat who has pushed for

the proposal for years and will

leave Congress after losing reelection.

He added that the current restrictions

make “no sense. These

workers serve the public. They

protect our communities. They

teach our kids. They pay into

Social Security just like everyone

else.”

People who currently have

reductions in their Social Security

benefits under the exceptions

would soon see a boost in their

monthly payments. But those

increased payments would also

add an estimated $195 billion



to federal deficits over 10 years,

according to the Congressional

Budget Office.

Social Security Trust Funds

were already estimated to be

unable to pay out full benefits

beginning in 2035, and the

change will hasten the program’s

insolvency date by about

half a year. A typical dual-income

couple retiring in 2033

would see an additional $25,000

lifetime reduction in their benefits,

according to the nonpartisan

Committee for a Responsible

Federal Budget.

Many of the bill’s opponents

acknowledged that the current

reductions are not fair to public

service retirees, but said they

could not support the bill when

the entire program faces challenges.

“We caved to the pressure of

the moment instead of doing this

on a sustainable basis,” said Sen.

Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican

who opposed the bill.

The policy changes will also

heap more work on the Social

Security Administration when the

agency is already at its lowest

staffing level in 50 years. The

agency currently has a staff

of about 56,400 — the lowest

level since 1972, according to an

agency spokesperson — even

as it serves more people than

ever. The stopgap government

funding bill that also passed

early Saturday did not include

increased funding for the agency,

which is currently in a hiring

freeze.

Still, Republican supporters of

the bill said there was a rare opportunity

to address what they

described as an unfair section

of federal law that hurts public

service retirees.

“They have earned these benefits.

This is an unfair, inequitable

penalty,” said Sen. Susan Collins,

a Maine Republican.

GOP supporters of the bill also

said they would return to work

on larger fixes to Social Security.

President-elect Donald Trump,

however, has said he will not

touch the benefits, even as his

administration looks to make

deep budget cuts elsewhere.

Senate Republicans are nonetheless

working on ideas that

would put the program on better

financial footing, but also inevitably

require a scale-back in

benefits. One fiscal hawk, Sen.

Rand Paul, pushed Friday for a

proposal to gradually raise the

Social Security retirement age to

70, although a vote to add that

provision to the bill only received

three votes in favor of it.

“There’s so much riding on us

getting this right and having the

courage to fix Social Security

over the next few years,” Tillis

said. “We will rue the day that

we failed to do it.”



AROUND THE COUNTRY

SAN ANTONIO, TX.

SAPD officer who died by suicide was under investigation by Rockport PD.

SAN ANTONIO, TX. – A San

Antonio police officer who died

by suicide while on duty Tuesday

was under investigation for

invasive visual recording at a

Rockport motel, records obtained

by KSAT show.

SAPD confirmed Thursday that

the death of Officer William

Kasberg, who was with the department

for 30 years, was not

an accident.

SAPD Chief William McManus

initially said that Kasberg was

preparing to enter a state-mandated

ALERRT training session

when his weapon accidentally

discharged, striking him. He was

taken to the hospital, where he

later died.

SAPD officer who died by

suicide was under investigation

for invasive visual recording in

Rockport, records show

He was under criminal investigation

by the Rockport Police

Department for recording a

teenager without their consent

inside a bathroom, records

obtained from Rockport police

state.

The incident happened Nov. 14

at a motel in the 7300 block of

South Water Street. The offense

was reported to Rockport on

Nov. 25.

In a news release, Rockport

police said Kasberg was visiting

Rockport with his girlfriend and

relatives, when a relative noticed

the invasive visual recording.

“On December 9, 2024, detectives

with the Rockport Police

Department contacted Kasberg,

who indicated he would agree to

speak with detectives in person

about our case at a later time,”

the news release from RPD

states.

Rockport Police Department

Chief Nathan Anderson said the

department will approach this

case as it would any other investigation.

“We’re treating this just like

any other case that we would

investigate. The fact that he was

a police officer in San Antonio,

it has nothing to do with our investigation,“

Anderson said. “It’s

unfortunate that it’s a fellow officer

who’s being accused of this,

but we’re handling the case just

like we would any other citizen

that this is reported on.”

On Thursday, SAPD said Kasberg

used his own gun in the

shooting.

Investigators said they are still

looking for more evidence in this

case.

“The next step now is the case

will ultimately be cleared since

the person accused has unfortunately

taken his own life,” Anderson

said. “But we will continue

with the investigation just to do

our due diligence, whether to either

clear him or see if there was

probable cause that the crime

occurred.”

Tuesday’s shooting happened

at 9:30 a.m. near the vacant

Columbia Heights Elementary

School building in the 1600 block

of Fitch Street.

A fellow officer, who was also

heading to the training, heard

the gunshot and found Kasberg

lying on his back with a gunshot

wound.

McManus described the incident

as a “terrible, terrible tragic

accident” at a news conference

on Tuesday. He noted that Kasberg

had served on the force for

30 years and was nearing retirement.


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AROUND THE COUNTRY

NEW YORK, NY.

Man accused of fatally burning woman on NYC subway

indicted for murder and arson.

NEW YORK, NY -- A grand jury

has indicted the man accused of

fatally setting a woman on fire

on a New York City subway train,

Brooklyn District Attorney Eric

Gonzalez announced.

Investigators said Sebastian

Zapeta, 33, used a lighter to set

the unidentified woman’s clothes

on fire as she slept inside a train

car at the Coney Island-Stillwell

Avenue station on Dec. 22.

Zapeta used a shirt to fan the

flames, according to the criminal

complaint. He is charged with

one court of 1st degree murder,

three counts of 2nd degree murder

and one court of 1st degree

arson related to the attack.

“These are significant counts.

Murder in the first degree carries

the possibility of life without parole.

It’s the most serious statute

in New York state law, and my

office is very confident about

the evidence in this case and our

ability to hold Zapeta accountable

for his dastardly deeds,”

Gonzalez said.

The DA noted the disturbing

details of the crime.

“This was a malicious deed. A

sleeping, vulnerable woman on

our subway system. This act surprised

many New Yorkers as they

were getting ready to celebrate

the holidays,” Gonzalez said. “I

want to thank the grand jurors in

this case. You know, right around

the holiday to have to see the

video and the images of a woman

set on fire is, very, it’s very

hard to deal with.”

Zapeta waived his Friday court

appearance and will be arraigned

Jan. 7, when the indictment

will be officially unsealed.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement

officials said Zapeta

entered the U.S. illegally from

Guatemala in 2018 and was deported,

but he reentered sometime

afterwards.

Mayor Eric Adams’ office is

pushing for federal charges to be

added against Zapeta under the

federal arson statute, but Gonzalez

noted the state charges carry

a more severe penalty.

“We believe very strongly that

this case belongs in state court,

because the charges here are

more significant in state court

than currently in federal court.

But we have a very strong working

relationship with our federal

partners, and of course we’ll

always do what’s in the best interest

of the people of the state

of New York,” Gonzalez said.

“Lighting another human being

on fire and watching them burn

alive reflects a level of evil that

cannot be tolerated,” a statement

from the mayor’s office

said.

Gonzalez said the killing was

“intentional” and that his team

intends to prove it in court.

“It’s clear that it appears that

a lighter was used to set her on

fire,” he said.

While the identity of the woman

fatally burned on the subway

remains unknown, officials believe

she may have been homeless.

Gonzalez said investigators are

working to figure out who she is.

“Her body was badly burned,


and so advanced fingerprinting

efforts are being made, as well

as advanced DNA evidence to

identify her. We have made some

progress in that area, but I’m not

at liberty to get into specifics

now,” Gonzalez said.

Thursday, community leaders

gathered on the F train platform

at the Stillwell station in Coney

Island to pray for her. They called

her death a systemic failure.

“Her life mattered. Thank God

they caught the person that did

this. But it’s not just the person’s

fault. It’s the system’s fault.

The system failed,” Rev. Kevin

McCall said. “Homeless lives

matter. She was burned up so

bad the police could not even

identify who she is.”


AROUND THE COUNTRY

SOUTH TEXAS BORDER

At least a third of landowners approached by state officials have refused to let

wall be built on their properties. That’s forced the state to largely build on ranch

land in remote areas, or erect sections that are full of gaps.

By Zach Despart,

Texas Tribune

SOUTH TEXAS – In December

2021, Gov. Greg Abbott traveled

to South Texas to inaugurate the

first 880-foot stretch of the state’s

newly constructed wall on its

border with Mexico.

At the press conference, with

cameras zoomed tightly on

him against a backdrop of the

three-story high, slatted wall in

Starr County, the Republican governor

declared the barrier to be

impenetrable. He banged a mallet

on a metal beam to drive home

his point.

“It’s heavy and it’s wide,” he said

assuredly. “People aren’t making it

through those steel bars.”

Three years and $3.1 billion later,

Abbott may be right. Migrants

and smugglers aren’t breaching

the bars. They don’t have to, because

they can walk around them.

Today, that completed segment,

now 2 miles wide, is an island of

metal and concrete surrounded

by farmland — hardly an obstacle

for migrants who have traveled

sometimes thousands of miles to

reach the United States.

An investigation by The Texas

Tribune has identified for the first

time where Texas has built its

border wall, information the state

keeps secret as it pours billions

into the highly touted infrastructure

project. It has revealed

that the unprecedented foray

into what has historically been

a federal responsibility — Texas

is the first state to build its own

border wall — has so far yielded

little return on billions of dollars

invested.

The 50 miles constructed

through November, totaling 6%

of the 805 miles the state has

designated for building, are far

from the endless barrier Abbott

often presents the wall to be in

video clips he shares on social

media. The wall is not a singular

structure, but dozens of fragmented

sections scattered across

six counties, some no wider than

a city block and others more

than 70 miles apart. Each mile of

construction costs between $17

million and $41 million per mile,

depending on terrain, according

to state engineers.

TEXAS HAS BUILT 50 MILES OF

FRAGMENTED WALL

Along the Texas-Mexico border,

the state has built 50 miles of

wall and acquired land to build an

additional 15 miles. Some of the

border is naturally uncrossable

or already covered with spans of

federal wall.

The Tribune also found the wall

building program has been hampered

by landowners on the border,

who are resistant to letting

the state build on their property.


Since 2021, the state has asked

hundreds of property owners to

sign easement contracts, under

which the state pays a one-time

fee for the permanent rights to

a strip of land to host the wall.

Officials cannot seize private land

for the wall like they can for other

public infrastructure projects

because the Legislature prohibited

the use of eminent domain for the

wall program.

Landowners in a third of the 165

miles the state is currently trying

to secure said they were not

interested in participating, the

firm overseeing land acquisition

wrote in a wall progress report

last month. This has resulted in

gaps limiting the barrier’s effectiveness

in the few areas the state

has built. Mike Novak, executive

director of the Texas Facilities

Commission, the agency in charge

of the project, has said in public

meetings that land acquisition is

the most daunting hurdle in completing

the program.

As a result, construction appears

to be driven by where the state

can most easily acquire land,

instead of where wall would be

most effective at deterring illegal

crossings, said several border

security experts who reviewed

the Tribune’s findings. Texas has

mostly built on sprawling ranches

in rural areas, the Tribune found,

while the experts said the priority

should be urban centers where

people sneaking across can easily

disappear into safe houses or

waiting vehicles.

“You wonder what the tactical

purpose of this is,” said Adam

Isacson, a regional security expert

at the Washington Office on Latin

America, a research and advocacy

organization. “This seems to be

dictated more by just who has

been able to grant [Abbott] permission

than anything particularly

strategic because a lot of these

places are very sparsely populated.”

Mike Banks, the state’s border

czar, said the wall sites were

chosen because the Department

of Public Safety designated them

as high priority. He said the rural

focus is intended to help police

intercept migrants who intend

to sneak across the border rather

than request asylum.

“Your biggest threat are those

that are trying to avoid detection,

and that’s happening away from

the larger cities in those ranch

lands where we’re building,”

Banks said. “That’s the state wall.”

Of the 94 land agreements the

state has secured so far, less than

one-third are in the 20 most populous

border cities. Some, like El

Paso, already have sections of the

140 miles of wall the federal government

has built in Texas over

decades — most of which predate

the Trump administration. But

others, like Laredo — historically a

hotbed of activism against border

barriers — have none.


AROUND THE COUNTRY

SOUTH TEXAS BORDER

Why were border wall materials put up for auction? Some Texas lawmakers including

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick slammed the Biden administration over the auction

of wall materials and a Texas Court has put a stop to it.

By Ayden Runnels

AUSTIN, TX. – Texas Lt. Gov.

Dan Patrick took to X in late December,

claiming President Joe

Biden was attempting to auction

off materials intended for construction

of a border wall “for

pennies on the dollar in secret.”

Some members of Congress

made similar claims on social

media and in interviews that the

Biden administration was selling

pieces of usable material to

stifle wall-building efforts just

a month before President-elect

Donald Trump takes office.

Trump also weighed in, calling

the auction an “almost a criminal

act” during a press conference

Monday.

“I’m asking today for Joe

Biden, to please stop selling the

wall,” Trump said.

The sale, however, was ordered

last year by Congress,

and Texas had already received

material from the federal government

— and purchased more

earlier this year.

WHAT’S BEING SOLD AND WHY?

The Trump administration invested

$15 billion in border wall

construction, buying material

with the intent of constructing

hundreds of miles of barriers

across the southwest border.

Most of the construction replaced

or updated already-existing

barriers, and today 140 miles

of barrier — mostly built before

the Trump administration — lines

the Texas-Mexico border.

Trump estimated in his press

conference Monday that about

200 miles’ worth of material was

still unused after he left office

and Biden halted most wall construction

(some wall construction

continued under Biden).

The plan for the unused material

was decided in 2023, when

Congress passed the annual

National Defense Authorization

Act and Republican lawmakers

added a section directing federal

officials to submit a plan to

Congress on how to dispose of

excess border wall material.

The Department of Defense

submitted its plan in March,

allowing the transfer of material

to U.S. Customs and Border

Protection and states, with a

preference for southwest border


projects. Congress required that

any materials received by states

be used to maintain current border

barriers.

CBP, Texas and California

received more than 60% of the

material through a “reutilization,

transfer, and donation process,”

according to the Department of

Homeland Security.

Patrick said in a Fox News interview

Thursday that Texas also

bought $12 million worth of material

during a summer auction,

enough to build about four miles

of border wall.

HOW DID WALL MATERIALS

END UP BEING AUCTIONED?

The remaining 40% was sold in

June to government and military

surplus company GovPlanet,

which moved the materials to

Arizona in December and listed

them for auction on its website

— some of it with starting bids

of $5. GovPlanet had previously

auctioned off other border wall

material in late 2023.

Federal officials requested that

GovPlanet remove them from

auction after a Daily Wire article

documented the materials being

transferred to Arizona and called

the move “an apparent effort

to hinder President-elect Donald

Trump’s effort to secure the

border.” That prompted lawmakers

like U.S. Rep. Eric Burlison of

Missouri and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz

of Texas to call the move “sabotage”

in social media posts

referencing the article.

In the Fox News interview,

Patrick framed the auction as a

last-ditch attempt by Biden to

hinder future wall construction

by discarding usable materials,

calling it a “Great Biden Christmas

border wall heist.”

HOW ARE TEXAS OFFICIALS

TRYING TO BLOCK THE AUC-

TION?

Trump said Monday that he

spoke with Texas Attorney General

Ken Paxton about blocking

the auctions. A day later, Paxton

filed a motion alongside Texas

Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham

in a preexisting case,

claiming the sale to GovPlanet

violates a permanent injunction

that a federal judge approved in

May.

That injunction prevents the

Biden administration from redirecting

money intended for

wall construction for other

purposes — but it doesn’t mention

wall materials. Paxton and

Buckingham’s motion argues

that because the materials were

purchased with the restricted

funds, selling them to GovPlanet

violates the injunction.

“If border wall materials …

were sold to third parties, it is

as if DHS took the congressional

appropriation and gave the funds

to a third party — contrary to

this Court’s command that those

funds be used solely for the ‘construction

of physical barriers,’”

the motion states.

The motion also requests that

the federal government provide

the manufacture date and original

funding source for each of

the wall materials sold to Gov-

Planet.

WILL TEXAS BUY MORE OF

THE WALL MATERIAL?

In a Dec. 13 post, Patrick said

the materials on the auction

block were not worth salvaging.

“The Texas Facilities Commission

told us today that the

material for sale was mostly

junk, with most panels covered

in concrete and rust,” Patrick

posted. “There were a few panels

that might be usable but not

worth the cost of shipping to

Texas from Arizona.”

But on Wednesday, Patrick

claimed that the auction lot contained

usable wall panels that

were “not clearly seen before.”

Patrick said Texas would be

willing to buy any usable wall

panels if they become available.

He said GovPlanet assured Texas

officials that the state would

be the first notified when wall

materials are put up for auction

again.

Patrick also said that if the

state purchased more wall materials,

it would donate them

to the federal government after

Trump takes office on Jan. 20.

UPDATE AS OF DECEMBER

29TH - COURT ORDERS BIDEN

ADMIN TO STOP SELLING BOR-

DER WALL MATERIALS

The Biden said it would stop

selling off materials slated to

be used to build a border wall

ahead of the incoming Trump

administration. The Biden administration

confirmed to a court

that it will agree to a court order

preventing it from disposing of

any further border wall materials

over the next 30 days, allowing

President-elect Trump to use

those materials, Texas Attorney

General Ken Paxton said.

The Biden administration has

been auctioning off border wall

parts since at least 2023, with

parts listed for sale on auction

marketplaces, after it abruptly

shut down most border wall

construction in 2021.


AROUND THE COUNTRY

ACROSS THE US

The Latest Breaking News as we go LIVE.

16-YEAR-OLD ARRESTED

AFTER S.C. POLICE K-9 SHOT,

KILLED

“I’m not going to call them

kids, they don’t deserve that.

They make very adult decisions,

shooting at us, killing our dog,”

said Richland County Sheriff Leon

Lott

By Noah Feit

RICHLAND COUNTY, S.C. —

Sheriff Lott is devastated to announce

the death of K9 Bumi in

the line of duty. Early this morning,

K9 Bumi was shot and killed

while tracking for two suspects.

No other deputies were injured.

One teenager was arrested

and there’s a search for two

more who are wanted following

a stolen car chase that ended

early Monday morning when a

police dog was shot and killed,

according to the Richland County

Sheriff’s Department.

“The whole sheriff’s department

is very sad that we lost

one of our police dogs,” Sheriff

Leon Lott said Monday at a news

conference. “Very sad, but also

very mad.”

Lott said K9 Bumi was killed,

becoming the department’s third

police dog to die in the line of

duty this year. The department

also had another police dog that


survived being shot

on the job, but had to

medically retire, according

to Lott.

“These dogs are out

here protecting the

community,” Lott said.

CALIF. CITY AN-

NOUNCES $100,000

HIRING BONUS FOR

LATERAL POLICE OF-

FICERS

By Police1 Staff

FREMONT, CA. — The

City of Fremont has

introduced a $100,000

signing bonus for up

to 10 lateral police

officer hires, making it

one of the largest law

enforcement hiring incentives

in the nation,

according to a news

release. This initiative significantly

expands upon the city’s

previous $20,000 signing bonus

for lateral officers.

The incentive is part of a

broader effort by the city to

address a national decline in

law enforcement applicants

and fill the department’s staffing

gap, which currently stands at

35 vacancies out of 205 sworn

positions. Despite hiring 17 officers

this year and accelerating

recruitment efforts, the city

continues to face a challenging

hiring market, with vacancy rates

fluctuating between 30 and 35

officer positions.

“Fremont is committed to offering

competitive compensation

for our employees,” said Mayor

Raj Salwan. “This new police lateral

hiring incentive reflects our

dedication to attracting experi-

enced, high-caliber officers. By

investing in strategic solutions to

address staffing challenges, we

aim to contend with the current

police officer shortage in this

highly competitive hiring market.”

In addition to the signing

bonus, Fremont has rolled out

several programs aimed at

enhancing police recruitment

and retention. These include an

expedited hiring and training

program for lateral officers, a

double-overtime pilot program

and longevity pay for officers

with eight or more years of

service. Over the past five years,

the Fremont Police Officers Association

has received a 30.5%

salary increase, with additional

mid-contract retention benefits

recently approved.

The new hiring incentives come

as law enforcement agencies

nationwide grapple with recruitment

challenges. According to a

2024 survey by the International

Association of Chiefs of Police,

70% of agencies report that recruitment

is more difficult now

than five years ago, with many

operating at nearly 10% below

authorized staffing levels.

The Fremont Police Department

is currently hiring for multiple

positions, including police

officer, dispatcher and records

supervisor.

ILLINOIS OFFICER SHOT MUL-

TIPLE TIMES, BEATEN BY SUS-

PECT DURING TRAFFIC STOP

An Illinois State Police trooper

has returned to duty, 11 months

after he was shot and beaten by

a suspect during a traffic stop,

WMAY reports.

Trooper Dakotah Chapman-Green

spent two weeks in

the hospital and rehabilitation

center following the shooting on

Oct. 24, 2023. He spent the rest

of his recovery at home before

returning to full duty in September

2024.

The suspect, Cristobal Santana,

has remained incarcerated in

the Sangamon County Jail since

the shooting. He faces charges

of two counts of attempted

first-degree murder, one count

of aggravated battery with a

firearm to a police officer, one

count of aggravated battery to

a police officer and one count

of aggravated unlawful use of a

weapon.

Illinois State Police said Santana

fired at least 10 shots at

Champman-Green, hitting him

several times. Santana also

struck Champman-Green repeatedly,

causing facial fractures, a

skull fracture and a brain bleed,

police said.

POLICE UNIONS CALL FOR

REMOVAL OF CITY MANAGER

AFTER ALLEGED INTOXICATION

AT A PARTY LEADS TO SUS-

PENSIONS

By Matthew Holloway

JACKSBORO, TX- The city

manager of Jacksboro, Texas,

Mike Smith, is facing calls for

his removal from office from the

Texas Municipal Police Association

(TMPA) and the Jacksboro

Police Association “due to repeated

retaliation, poor leadership,

and misconduct.”

In a press release posted to

social media, the TMPA alleged

that Smith dismissed two police

officers and the Police Chief after

the manager’s alleged intoxication

was documented at a city

function on December 9th. The

incident is reportedly under investigation

by The Texas Rangers.

The release stated, “following

protocol, one officer activated

her body camera and alerted a

Texas DPS Trooper. These actions

adhered to department policy,

and no laws or policies were violated

to justify their suspension

or the subsequent investigation.”

In the Facebook post, the TMPA

added that Smith has also been

accused of “unresolved officer

pay issues and revoking benefits

out of retaliation.”

The organizations have called

for the Jacksboro mayor and city

council to “reconsider the employment”

of Smith following

what they described as a pattern

of “questionable decisions, retaliatory

actions, and leadership


failures,” according to KFDX/

KJTL.

The outlet reported Thursday

that Smith’s vehicle was pulled

over later that day after leaving

the city Christmas party. However,

the city manager’s wife,

who had not been drinking, was

behind the wheel.

When approached by reporters

from KFDX for comment Smith

reportedly said it would be inappropriate

for him to comment

until after the Texas Rangers

have completed their investigation.

In a statement issued Thursday

reported by KAUZ, the TMPA said,

“Accountability and transparency

are fundamental principles in

public service and law enforcement.

TMPA and the Jacksboro

Police Association demand immediate

action to address these

issues, restore integrity, and

rebuild trust in city leadership.”

The Jacksboro Police Association

shared the joint statement

as well and urged “the mayor

and city council to immediately

call an emergency session and

address this matter!”

CONN. LEO FOUND JUSTIFIED

IN FATAL SHOOTING OF MAN

WHO TRIED TO FLEE WITH

K-9, OFFICER INSIDE CAR

By Susan Haigh

Associated Press

WEST HARTFORD, CT. — A

Connecticut police officer who

fatally shot a man as he tried

to flee in a stolen vehicle while

being subdued by a K-9 was

justified in using deadly force,

according to a report issued

Thursday by the state’s Office of

Inspector General.

It was both “reasonable and

justified” for West Hartford

Officer Andrew Teeter to fire

five rounds into the torso of

Mike Alexander-Garcia on Aug.

8, 2023, to “defend himself and

others from what he reasonably

believed to be a threat of serious

injury or death,” Inspector General

Robert J. Devlin, Jr. wrote in

the report.

The document comes four

months after the family of Alexander-Garcia

filed a wrongful

death lawsuit naming Teeter, the

West Hartford police and the

town as defendants. It alleges

violations of Alexander-Garcia’s

constitutional rights, state laws

and police policies and procedures.

The 2023 confrontation occurred

during the evening rush

hour on a busy local street in

the Hartford suburb. Police had

received a report of a stolen

vehicle. They used tire-deflation

devices to try and stop it, but the

vehicle kept moving before eventually

crashing. Alexander-Garcia,

who was inside, abandoned

the car, tried unsuccessfully to

CLICK TO WATCH

take two occupied vehicles before

running into a nearby car

service center and getting into

a Toyota RAV4 with the keys in

the ignition.

Teeter sent the K-9 into the

vehicle through an open car

window and ordered the dog to

bite Alexander-Garcia. Teeter

also got into the RAV4. But

Alexander-Garcia, who began

to drive off, ignored the

bites, Teeter’s orders to stop

and repeated threats to shoot

and continued to drive away,

the inspector general’s office

determined.

The officer shot Alexander-Garcia

while he was

driving away recklessly, hitting

Teeter’s cruiser, another vehicle

and a stack of tires before

crashing into a utility pole. Alexander-Garcia

was treated at

the scene and later pronounced

dead at a nearby hospital.

The inspector general’s investigation

determined it was

“reasonable” for Teeter to deploy

the dog and to get inside

the vehicle himself.



MAN USES 1-YEAR-OLD SON

AS ‘HUMAN SHIELD,’ STABS

MICH. OFFICERS

By Kate Linderman,

Merced Sun-Star

BAY CITY, MI. — A 1-year-old in

a locked car sat on his father’s

lap as the 23-year-old refused

to surrender to officers saying he

was under arrest, Michigan video

shows.

Newly released body camera

footage of the Dec. 11 incident

shows the altercation between

Bay City officers and the man,

police said in a Dec. 18 Facebook

post.

The dad is seen locked in the

car with his 1-year-old son

sitting in the front seat as police

told him he was accused of

violating his bond conditions and

under arrest, video shows.

McClatchy News is not naming

the father to protect the identity

of the child.

The man refused to get out of

the car, telling police in the video

that he did not violate his bond.

After minutes of arguing, the

man started to drive the car as

police and his family members

surrounded it, yelling at the man

to stop, according to the video.

The toddler, whose face was

blurred, could be seen in the

man’s lap.

The man also told police,

“You’re gonna have to kill me

because I didn’t break the law.”

As he continually refused to get

out of the car and yelled at police

through the window, officers

threatened to break one of the

windows, video showed. They

discussed in the video breaking

the rear windows to avoid hurting

the child.

With the toddler sitting in the

man’s lap, police said he was

putting his son in danger, video

showed.

“You’re holding your son when

I told you you’re going to jail,” an

officer said in the video. “You’re

trying to use him as a shield.”

Officers broke the rear windows

after approximately 10

minutes of pleading with the

man to get out of the vehicle,

according to the video.

The man was tased and pulled

out of the car with the child

no longer in his arms, video

showed. As he was detained,

however, officers could be heard

saying they had been stabbed.

The Department of Public

Safety said the man had a knife

and stabbed and cut two of the

officers, according to a Dec. 11

Facebook post.

The 1-year-old was unharmed

and given to his mother, police

said.

The dad is facing multiple assault

charges and a child abuse

charge, according to court records.

Bay City is about a 110-mile

drive northwest of Detroit.

MICH. COMMUNICATIONS

CENTER INTRODUCES AI ‘DIS-

PATCHER’ TO ANSWER SOME

CALLS TO NON-EMERGENCY

LINE

By Brad Devereaux,

mlive.com

KALAMAZOO COUNTY, MI. —

The Kalamazoo County Consolidated

Dispatch Authority is now

using an artificial intelligence

(AI) system to respond to some

calls that come in through a

non-emergency line.

The calls will now be processed

by Ava, the dispatch

center’s new virtual assistant.

The tech is powered by Aurelian,

a Seattle-based software

company, the Kalamazoo County

dispatch center said in a news

release while announcing the AI

on Thursday, Dec. 19.

Ava is quick to react to requests

and respond to questions.

It speaks multiple languages,

officials said. The AI is “very

smart,” the agency said.

The company advertises the

technology as “a powerful Voice

AI that doesn’t just route callers,

but actually solves their needs.”

The AI agent is designed spe-



cifically for emergency communications

centers, including

routing calls appropriately and

collecting information for public

safety resources to be dispatched,

the news release states.

The dispatch center encourages

callers to provide as much detail

as possible to the AI to get the

fastest response to non-emergency

requests.

“We’re trying to free up some

of our staff to have more time to

deal with emergencies,” Kalamazoo

County Dispatch Authority

Executive Director Jeffery Troyer

said.

All calls that require public

safety assistance are reviewed

and monitored by dispatchers to

ensure complete and accurate

information is passed on to the

correct resource, Kalamazoo

County Dispatch Authority said.

Several “fail-safes” are in the

system, Kalamazoo County Dispatch

Authority said.

If Ava can’t understand the

caller’s needs or determines the

call to be an emergency, the call

is immediately transferred to

a dispatcher to assist, officials

said.

There are times when the call

center is handling a high volume

of calls, like during a tornado,

he said. The AI will be useful for

those times, when dispatchers

sometimes cannot get to the

non-emergency calls.

A call placed to the non-emergency

number Thursday afternoon

was answered by the AI.

The call was promptly forwarded

to Troyer after the caller asked

for the director. Hear the AI’s

voice in the video below as Ava

transfers the call:

In the past, the transfer would

have been handled by a human.

CLICK TO WATCH

The facility handles an average

of 260,000 non-emergency calls

per year including police, fire and

medical incidents. About half of

the calls come through the main

non-emergency number, 269-

488-8911, and the AI will handle

those calls, the agency said.

MAN FLEES OHIO POLICE

WITH OPEN DOOR, EJECTING

BABY DURING HIGH-SPEED

PURSUIT

Joanna Putman

BRYAN, OH. — A high-speed

pursuit involving a man with a

warrant resulted in a 9-monthold

baby in a car seat being

ejected from a speeding minivan,

WSVN reported.

The incident began on Dec. 1

in the parking lot of a Walmart

in Bryan, where officers approached

a man who had an

active warrant. Body camera

footage shows the man’s girlfriend

loading groceries into

the minivan as officers initiated

contact.

Seconds later, the man sped

away, leaving his girlfriend behind.

Inside the van were his infant

son and 5-year-old daughter,


Dashcam footage captured

officers pursuing the man as

he reached speeds of up to 100

mph. During the pursuit, officers

noted the minivan’s door was

ajar. As the vehicle rounded a

curve, the 9-month-old in a car

seat fell out, bouncing on the

roadway.

Authorities said the door was

likely not properly closed when

the man fled, according to the

report.

The pursuit ended when officers

decided to halt the pursuit

due to bad weather. While

attempting to evade police,

the man contacted the infant’s

mother and revealed his location.

The man later dropped off his

daughter at a friend’s house, but

it took officers an hour to locate

the baby, according to the report.

The infant was found on the side

of the highway in his car seat,

awake and crying. Bodycam video

shows the emotional moment

the child’s mother found him and

cradled him in her arms.

Doctors said the baby’s body

temperature had dropped to

dangerous levels and could have

become life-threatening if he

had been left outside much longer,


The man was eventually ar-


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rested at a nearby apartment

complex. He admitted to police

that he panicked and made a

“poor decision.” He now faces

charges of child endangerment,


LOUISIANA LAW GRANT-

ING POLICE 25-FOOT ‘BUFFER

ZONE’ FACING LEGAL CHAL-

LENGE

By Richard Moorhead

BATON ROUGE, LA - A Louisiana

state law that requires members

of the public to stay 25 feet

away from law enforcement in

the midst of their official duties

is facing a legal challenge

in federal court this week, with

a judge suggesting that he may

issue a ruling against it.

Under the law, those that approach

law enforcement “knowingly

or intentionally” within the

distance after receiving a warning

can face as many as 60 days

in jail, according to Newsday. U.S.

District Judge John deGravelles

heard arguments in a lawsuit

regarding the legislation on

Wednesday, filed by attorneys

from six different news organizations

who accuse the state of

violating the First and Fourteenth

Amendments to the Constitution

in enforcing it.

DeGravelles did appear to take

exception with the law’s lack of

distinction between individuals

engaged in disruptive or criminal

conduct- or members of the

public simply watching law enforcement

activity at a distance

within the 25-foot threshold.

“That person (reporter or bystander)

doesn’t have to commit

a crime. The person doesn’t

have to act suspiciously and

the officer doesn’t have to feel

threatened,” the judge said of

the provision. DeGravelles further

disclosed how the law could be

selectively enforced “willy-nilly,”

and raised the concern that

authorities could enforce the

buffer zone out of a mere desire

that he or she “doesn’t want to

be looked at.”

Louisiana state legislators defended

the measure as one that

would facilitate the safety of

police officers performing arrests

and other dangerous duties

during debate on the legislation

earlier this year.

“At 25 feet, that person can’t

spit in my face when I’m making

an arrest,” Republican state

Rep. Bryan Fontenot said of the

proposal in committee hearings

earlier this year.

“The chances of him hitting me

in the back of the head with a

beer bottle at 25 feet — it sure

is a lot more difficult than if he’s

sitting right here.”

No arrests under the new law

have been made yet- a fact that

attorneys for the state cited in

arguing that the plaintiffs were

bringing up an entirely “hypothetical”

case before the court.

Critics of the law

Similar laws in other states

have come up short as a result

of legal challenges, with laws

enacted by Arizona and Indiana

nixed by the courts. Florida is set

to place a similar law in effect

on Jan. 1, having been signed

into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

DeGravelles is slated to make

a ruling regarding the law after

the plaintiffs and defense

are provided three days each to

make additional legal arguments

regarding the matter.

WOUNDED CALIF. POLICE

SERGEANT RETURNS FIRE AF-

TER AMBUSH

By Anthony Galaviz,

The Fresno Bee

FRESNO — The Fresno Police

Department released chilling

video footage Friday afternoon

of an October officer-involved

shooting that injured a sergeant

and left a suspect dead in a

southeast neighborhood.

The gun battle happened Oct.

26 when officers responded to

an alarm from a device called a

ShotSpotter that is designed to

detect when gunshots are fired

in Fresno neighborhoods. Two

shots were detected in the 3700


block of East Platt Ave. in the

early evening.

A sergeant was investigating

those gunshots and a nearby homicide

as he was parked along

the east curb of South Seventh

Street, south of East Verrue Avenue,

police say. As the sergeant

was parked, a blue Nissan Frontier

rolled up from Verrue Avenue

and the driver began firing.

The suspect initially fired 10

rounds into the side of the patrol

car at the sergeant, referred

to as “Sergeant # 1” in the video

released by Fresno police onto

youtube.com. The ensuing gun

battle, which unfolded in two

different locations, resulted in

the sergeant shot three times in

the legs and the suspect killed.

The composite video, which

includes multiple angles and perspectives,

captures the sounds of

gunfire and shows some blood

on the sergeant’s left leg and on

the suspect’s shorts.

The suspect in the vehicle was

later identified as 40-year-old

Andy Morales. He was pronounced

dead at the hospital.

Police say he is suspected of

earlier killing a man in a nearby

home.

Mayor Jerry Dyer reviewed the

video and on Friday called it

“very shocking and disturbing to

watch.”

“It clearly showed how committed

the suspect was in trying

to kill officers,” Dyer said in an

email to The Bee. “It also reflected

how heroic the officers

actions were. I am thankful no

officers or community members

were killed, other than the initial

homicide victim.”

Police said the incident is an

on-going investigation and “no

additional information or statement

will be provided beyond

the written news release and

video.”

The department posted the

video on youtube.com on Friday

and said it was a composite production

taken from surveillance

video, body-worn camera footage

and 911 call recordings. It

also includes an interactive map

showing where and how the

gun battle unfolded and written

commentary read aloud by

a narrator explaining the action

and pausing video to highlight

key moments. The video contains

a warning at the beginning that

says it is graphic in nature and

that “viewer discretion is advised.”

N.J. SHERIFF DEPLOYS

DRONE PATROL UNIT TO INVES-

TIGATE MYSTERY SIGHTINGS

By Joanna Putman,

Police1

SEASIDE HEIGHTS, N.J. — Residents

in Ocean County witnessed

increased drone activity on Dec.

15 as the Ocean County Sheriff’s

Office launched a new drone

patrol unit and investigated

numerous reports of unidentified

drones in the area, CBS News

CLICK TO WATCH

Philadelphia reported.

Sheriff Michael Mastronardy

confirmed sightings, including

an incident where a deputy

reported observing 50 drones

flying from the ocean toward the

mainland over Island Beach State

Park, according to the report.

The command center in Seaside

Heights monitored the skies

while deploying its own drones

to investigate further.

The surge in drone sightings,

which began in mid-November,

has spanned New Jersey, Pennsylvania

and four other states,

with drones seen over homes,

highways and military installations,


Despite reassurances from the

White House that the drones

do not pose a public safety or

national security threat, local

officials remain frustrated by the

lack of detailed federal responses.

“This is affecting our citizens

every day, every night, and this

has to stop,” said Ocean County

Commissioner Frank Sadeghi.

Seaside Park Mayor John Peterson

Jr. echoed similar concerns,

calling the federal government’s

response “very, very insulting.”

In a press conference on Dec.


15, New Jersey Congressman

Chris Smith announced plans

to introduce federal legislation

granting state and local law enforcement

enhanced authority to

counter drone activity.

“It will most of all allow the

state police to have the same

type of capability as the Department

of Defense and Homeland

Security that if necessary to

down one of these unmanned

drones,” Smith said.

MAN WIELDING BOX CUT-

TER FATALLY SHOT BY BAILIFF

DURING EVICTION

Sarah Roebuck

DETROIT, MI. — Body camera

video released by the Detroit

Police Department shows the

moments leading up to a fatal

shooting during an eviction.

On July 12, a bailiff was at an

apartment to evict a 44-yearold

man, CBS Detroit reported.

The bailiff reported that the man

became aggressive, resulting in

Detroit police responding to the

apartment.

Body-worn camera video from

the incident released on Dec. 23

shows the bailiff and the officer

knocking on the apartment door,

stating they are there to serve

the eviction notice.

Once the bailiff and the officer

make entry into the apartment,

the bailiff tells the man, who

was inside a bedroom on a bed,

that they can talk about the situation

as the man tells the bailiff

they are inside his apartment

“illegally.”

The bailiff continues to try to

de-escalate the situation, asking

the man if there’s a family member

he can call to help resolve

the situation.

“Listen, we will back up if you

drop the knife,” the bailiff says.

More officers respond to the

scene as the bailiff continues to

ask the man to drop the knife,

which was later determined to

be a box cutter. The man continued

to yell at the bailiff and

officers and refused to drop the

weapon.

After an officer reads the

papers from the court out loud

to the man, the bailiff starts to

move into the bedroom near the

suspect. The bailiff then tases

the suspect, who is still holding

the box cutter, video shows. The

suspect then got up from the

bed and went toward the bailiff

with a box cutter, prompting the

bailiff to fire shots at the suspect,

prosecutors said. The suspect

then attempted to approach one

of the officers with the box cutter

when the bailiff fired again.

Officers on the scene rendered

aid to the suspect who

was transported to the hospital

where he was pronounced deceased,

CBS Detroit reports.

Police did call a crisis intervention

team, but before they

arrived, the bailiff had to act

CLICK TO WATCH

in self-defense and defense of

others, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s

Office said.

“The actions of the bailiff were

not criminal given these circumstances,”

Wayne County Prosecutor

Kym Worthy said.

CA GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM

EYEING WAYS TO HELP ILLEGAL

ALIENS DODGE DEPORTATION

UNDER TRUMP ADMINISTRA-

TION

By Richard Moorhead,

Law Enforcement Today

SACRAMENTO, CA - With President-elect

Donald Trump slated

to begin his second term in January,

California Gov. Gavin Newsom

is eyeing policy that would

throw a wrench into Trump’s

plan to carry out a mass deportation

of illegal aliens.

A Newsom administration

memorandum leaked to Politico

reveals that the state is mulling

over a “Immigrant Support Network

Concept,” in which illegals

would be connected with free

services from Democratic-controlled

municipalities, schools,

legal services and labor unions

controlled by the state’s super-



majority Democratic government.

The California Department of

Social Services would divert

taxpayer funds to open borders

non-governmental organizations

under the proposal, serving to

enrich organizations with a vested

interest in maintaining the

status quo pertaining to migration.

A final plan related to the

state network is slated to be announced

in mid-January, around

the same time that Trump is slated

to take office. Newsom hasn’t

publicly addressed the proposal,

which would be among the first

enacted by a state government

in the country if approved- creating

an engine of state government

purely intended for the

benefit of illegal aliens.

The draft document for the

concept outlines using taxpayer

dollars for “community outreach,

partnership, legal services

staffing positions, and approved

administrative costs associated

with hub operations.”

Rep. Scott Weiner, a California

state legislator, has also proposed

legislation that would see

immigration lawyers the beneficiaries

of a $60 million windfall

at the expense of taxpayers. That

expense, if enacted into law,

would follow legislation appropriating

$25 million for lawsuits

against the federal government.

California has the most severe

crisis regarding illegal immigration

in the United States,

with roughly two million people

living and working in the state in

violation of federal law. Newsom

has largely rebuffed criticism of

the problem and proposals to

replace the illegal alien labor

with automation, arguing that a

largely older and affluent demographic

of agricultural landowners

in the state require the cheap

labor to further grow their own

generational wealth.

Newsom previously called for

an emergency session of the

California legislature to counter

Trump’s planned agenda.

Newsom utilized a questionable

interpretation of the California

Constitution- claiming the due

and lawful election of Trump as

president constituted an “emergency”

required for a special

session as per the document.

ACLU EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

VOWS TO HELP DEFY MASS

DEPORTATION OF ILLEGALS,

HAS NO INTEREST IN PRO-

TECTING LIBERTY OF AMERI-

CAN CITIZENS

by Pat Droney,


WASHINGTON, DC - The incoming

Trump administration

has promised to conduct “the

largest mass deportation effort

in American history.” That operation

is scheduled to begin shortly

after President-elect Donald

Trump’s inauguration on January

20, 2025. Not everyone is happy

about that prospect, including

the radical far-left American

Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

According to Headline USA, the

ACLU claims to have a plan for

advising cities and states to defy

the federal government and federal

law by refusing to cooperate

with federal immigration authorities.

The ACLU appears only to

consider the interests of illegal

aliens, not the liberty interests of

American citizens.

Anthony Romero, executive

director of the ACLU, told MSN-

BC radical leftist and devout

anti-Trumper Rachel Maddow

of the group’s plan to put up a

roadblock to the mass deportation

of illegal aliens who have

entered the country primarily

under the Biden administration,

with some estimates showing

that number is over twelve million.

“We have this whole plan

around the firewall for freedom…

the idea that these local officials

can really play an important role

in stopping the guardrail abuses,”

Romero said.

In describing how the plan

would work, Romero admitted

that the Trump administration is

legally permitted to conduct its

mass deportation efforts.



“For instance, when they’re

going to try and detain and deport

all these hundreds of thousands,

up to a million [very low

estimate] people,” Romero said.

“That’s an operation that they

have the legal power to do, to do

the raids.”

Romero then warned that such

an effort would be difficult due

to the large amount of illegal

aliens in the country.

‘But the logistics, they’re going

to need mayors and governors or

city councils to give them access

to police officers or not, jails,

where are you going to house all

of these folks?” he said.

Romero then went totally off

the rails, suggesting that illegal

aliens be pardoned so they don’t

have to leave the country. That

would not be out of the question

given Joe Biden’s sudden fascination

with pardons, especially

since he now has nothing to lose.

Short of pardons, Romero told

Maddow cities and states should

make it difficult for Immigration

and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

agents to do their job.

“They should sever these relationships

that they have with the

federal government or immigration

enforcement,” he added.

That actually sounds like a

good idea. If cities and states

“sever their relationship” with the

federal government, the federal

government should reciprocate,

i.e., cut off federal funding to

these cities and states. After all,

what’s good for the goose.

Trump’s incoming border czar,

Tom Homan, has said that if cities

and states wish to block the

federal government from defending

its border, he will have

no problem arresting anyone

who stands in the way. For example,

the mayor of Denver, Mike

Johnston, has said he will defy

any efforts the Trump administration

makes to deport illegal

aliens who live in his city up to

the point of risking arrest.

To that, Homan has no issues

carrying out the job he is being

hired for.

“But, look, me and the Denver

mayor, we agree on one thing,”

Homan said. “He’s willing to go

to jail, I’m willing to put him in

jail.”

ICE GRABS ILLEGAL IMMI-

GRANT FACING CHILD SEX

CRIME CHARGES AFTER HE’S

SPRUNG FROM COUNTY JAIL

By Richard Moorhead,


BOSTON, MA - An illegal alien

facing criminal charges related

to the sexual exploitation of

children has been arrested by

Immigration and Customs Enforcement

after a Massachusetts

court cleared him release from

jail- in defiance of a request

from ICE to transfer him to federal

custody.

Hugo Israel Ruiz, 55, was

apprehended by ICE earlier this

CLICK TO WATCH

month after bailing out of the

Nashua Street Jail in Boston,

according to Fox News. Ruiz is

facing felony charges of indecent

assault and battery on a child

under the age of 14.

After Ruiz’s initial arrest in August,

the Chelsea District Court

approved his bail- defying the

request from ICE to transfer him

into immigration custody.

Subsequently, Ruiz was released

into the community,

pending the adjudication of his

child sex crimes charges. The

exact circumstances of Ruiz’s release

aren’t clear- it’s uncertain

if the jail willfully ignored ICE’s

request to detain the accused

pedophile, or if the county failed

to account for the federal interest

in Ruiz’s continued detention.

It’s also unclear for how long

Ruiz was allowed to walk the

streets of the community before

his immigration arrest.

With Ruiz’s federal arrest, he

stands to face deportation after

his sex crimes charges are resolved.

ERO Boston acting Field Office

Director Patricia H. Hyde defended

her agency’s purview to detain

illegal aliens after the arrest.


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JOIN US IN HONORING

FALLEN HEROES

Each year in the week surrounding National Peace Officers Memorial Day, over 26,000

law enforcement officers and their families visit Washington, D.C. to honor fallen law

enforcement heroes. In 2025, the 18th annual National Police Week 5K (NPW5K) will be

held in Arlington, Virginia during Police Week. The NPW5K not only raises awareness

of law enforcement line of duty deaths and pays tribute to those who have made the

ultimate sacrifice, it also generates funds for the Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP)

and Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.), two organizations that honor fallen officers

and provide support to their survivors. Last year's event raised more than $200,000 for

these organizations.

Statistics over the last decade show that on average 168* officers are killed in the line of

duty each year. The Officer Down Memorial Page pays tribute to each of those heroes and

is ranked as one of the top law enforcement websites in the United States. ODMP also

partners with organizations that provide free bulletproof vests to officers, honors the

hundreds of police canines who have sacrificed their lives in the line of duty, and works

with initiatives like Below 100 that aim to improve officer safety and awareness.

The National Police Week 5K is attended by nearly 3000 runners annually from all over

the U.S. and around the world. The virtual NPW5K option, which allows participants to

run their own race wherever they are in support of those who gave their lives in the line

of duty, adds hundreds of additional participants to this event each year.

PO Box 1047

Fairfax, Virginia 22038

www.ODMP.org

information@odmp.org

Sponsorship of the National Police Week 5K is an ideal way to demonstrate your support

for the law enforcement community and to promote your organization to a wide

audience of like-minded supporters. Sponsors and donors are recognized on the NPW5K

event website, and are also featured in specific email and social media communications,

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following page outlines the possible 2025 sponsorship opportunities. Thank you for your

consideration — we hope that we can count on your support.

* This average does not include the extraordinary number of deaths caused by the pandemic in 2020 and 2021

Contact: Amy Herrera | 5K@odmp.org


“ERO Boston will take every

opportunity to identify, locate

and take into custody criminal

non citizens facing felony

charges and keep them in custody

until their criminal and immigration

proceedings are resolved.

Not only is this our mission, it is

also the lawful thing to do.”

The Suffolk County Sheriff’s

Department opted to end a partnership

arrangement with ICE in

2019, instead pledging to divert

the resources involved in the

partnership to women detained

in the Suffolk County House of

Correction. The head of ICE ERO

(Enforcement and Removal Operations)

expressed her dissatisfaction

with the decision, ending

a law enforcement partnership

that had served the community

since 2003.

Massachusetts Gov. Maura

Healey has pledged to undermine

the incoming administration

of President-elect Donald

Trump as it relates to deporting

illegal aliens, pledging to use

“every tool in the toolbox” to

shield illegal aliens from deportation.

Illegal immigration significantly

raises housing costs on

local communities flooded with

an influx of largely low-wage

workers, and Massachusetts

hosts one of the most onerous

cost burdens for housing in the

United States.

LAS VEGAS METRO PO-

LICE OFFICER KILLED IN

WRONG-WAY ACCIDENT WITH

TWICE-DEPORTED ILLEGAL

IMMIGRANT

By Matthew Holloway,


LAS VEGAS, NV- Federal officials

have identified the wrongway

driver who struck the vehicle

of Las Vegas Metro Police

Officer Colton Pulsipher, 29, on

Dec. 12, as Fernando Jimenez a

31-year-old twice deported illegal

immigrant under an ICE removal

order since 2021. Both men

were killed in the crash that took

place in the northbound lanes of

Interstate 15 near the Valley of

Fire and were pronounced dead

at the scene.

As reported by KLAS, as of this

report it is unknown if intoxication

was a factor in the accident,

however, “several containers of

alcohol and marijuana packages

in and around,” the wreckage of

Jiminez’s vehicle according to

LVMPD. A post-mortem toxicology

report is still pending.

KSNV reported that a third

driver suffered serious injuries

when their vehicle a Honda CR-V

collided with the overturned

Ford F-150 driven by Jimenez.

Jiminez entered the U.S. illegally

twice in 2019 and was deported

both times per Immigration

and Customs Enforcement

(ICE) officials told the outlet. The

New York Post reported that he

attempted to gain entry legally

in 2020 at the Brownsville, TX

Port of Entry, after which under

Biden Administration policy

he was released into the U.S.

When he failed to appear for his

immigration hearing in 2021 an

immigration judge ordered his

deportation in absentia. But at

this point, Jiminez’s whereabouts

were unknown to authorities.

In a Facebook post, the department

stated that Pulsipher

was off-duty at the time of the

accident and driving home from

his shift. He had been a member

of the department since 2017

and was assigned to the Tourist

Safety Division, Traffic Bureau.

His wife and three young children

survive him.

Officer Pulsipher was laid to

rest on December 18th.

LVMPD said in a post memorializing

the officer, “As we honor

his legacy, we remember a man

who truly embodied the spirit of

service. He will forever hold a

special place in our hearts. Rest

easy, Officer Pulsipher. We’ve got

it from here.”


HPD OFFICER FINDS DEAD

MAN IN THE BACK OF POLICE

CRUISER AT BEGINNING OF HIS

SHIFT

By Jenna Curren,


HOUSTON, TX- On Sunday,

December 22nd, authorities with

the Houston Police Department

(HPD) said that a dead man was

found in the rear seat of a patrol

car, prompting an investigation

into the incident.

According to ABC News, the

body was discovered around

2:30 p.m. on Saturday, December

21st in a police car that had been

parked outside a city-run drug

and alcohol treatment center

northeast of downtown Houston.

In a statement, HPD said, “An officer

with our Mental Health Division

went to his patrol vehicle to

being his shift and discovered a

deceased male in the back seat.”

Officer Erika Ramirez, a

spokesperson for HPD, told

ABC News that the investigation

was ongoing and that police

are awaiting the results of an

autopsy by the Harris County

Institute of Forensic Sciences.

Ramirez said the cause of death

and the man’s identity remained

unknown as of Sunday. Police

said there were no obvious signs

of trauma on the man’s body.

Ramirez said, “It seems like he

was a homeless man seeking

shelter from the weather.”

It is unclear how long the deceased

body was in the police

car before being discovered.

VIOLENT CRIME DROPS IN

2024, WITH 16% FEWER HOMI-

CIDES NATIONWIDE

By Joanna Putman

WASHINGTON — Homicides

across the United States are on

track to drop for the third consecutive

year in 2024, reaching

levels not seen since before the

pandemic, according to preliminary

data from law enforcement

agencies.

Analysts predict a nearly 16%

nationwide decline in homicides,

alongside a 3.3% drop in overall

violent crime, making this year’s

decrease the most significant

since the FBI began keeping

comprehensive crime statistics,

ABC News reported.

The trend builds on substantial

declines in previous years: a 13%

reduction in homicides in 2023,

following a 6% decrease in 2022.

These decreases come in the

wake of a 30% spike in murders

between 2019 and 2020, the largest

single-year increase in more

than a century, according to the

report.

“Considering where we were

just three or four years ago,

we’re basically looking at 5,000

fewer murder victims than in

2020, 2021 and 2022 having occurred

in 2024,” said Jeff Asher,

a national crime analyst and

co-founder of AH Datalytics.

Cities large and small contributed

to the decline, with major

metropolitan areas like Philadelphia

seeing a 40% drop in

homicides and other cities such

as New Orleans, Washington,

D.C., and Memphis reporting

decreases of 38%, 29% and 23%,

respectively, according to the

report. Smaller cities also experienced

sharp reductions, with

a 19% decline in murders across

municipalities with populations

under 250,000.




PRODUCTS &

SERVICES

AROUND THE COUNTRY

EV PATROL CARS

Are Electric Patrol Vehicles Ready for Duty?

BY Wayne Parham,

POLICEMAG.COM

Although the Ann Arbor Police Department

only uses battery-electric

vehicles in administrative roles, its

Ford Mustang Mach-E is serving as

a recruitment aid to attract younger

generation officers.

What are the capabilities of

battery-electric police vehicles to

serve in a patrol capacity? There is

no simple answer due to variety of

mission needs, agencies, and the

availability of charging infrastructure.

So, what role does a battery-electric

patrol vehicle (BEV)

now play, and how do they meet

the needs of law enforcement? The

vehicles are capable in some roles,

but what else is needed?

The Michigan State Police Precision

Driving Unit tests and evaluates

patrol vehicles submitted by automakers

(OEMs) and has tested BEVs

for the past three years. This was

the second year of testing for the

Chevrolet Blazer EV PPV, a purpose-built

BEV intended for patrol

and pursuit. However, Ford did not

send its Mustang Mach-E for evaluation

this year.

The Mach-E was undergoing some

updates that were not completed in

time for the MSP evaluation, explains

Lindsey Bertino, police brand

marketing manager for Ford. However,

the Mach-E was included in the

West Coast evaluations that were

done later in the year.

BATTERY-ELECTRIC VS. GAS

Michigan State Police started

testing police vehicles in the 1950s,

long before the modern era of battery-powered

cars. When an OEM

submits a BEV for testing, MSP gives

it a full review the same as it does

with the internal combustion engine

(ICE) vehicles.

Lt. Nicholas Darlington, of the

Michigan State Police Precision

Driving Unit, shares his insights

after time behind the wheel of both

the Ford Mustang Mach-E and the

Chevrolet Blazer EV PPV. Compared

to ICE vehicles, in BEVs, the location

of the battery lowers the center of

gravity, and the cornering speeds

are much greater than they are in

the ICE counterparts.

“The one thing I think is notable

in comparison to some of its ICE

counterparts is when you start

looking at acceleration, [BEVs] stand

out. In terms of dynamic testing and

vehicle handling, there is really the

consistency in the times across all

four drivers; that’s where that vehicle

stands out,” says Darlington. He

describes both the Mach-E and the

Blazer EV PPV as “super capable

cars around the track.”

DOES THE ADDED WEIGHT HELP

MAINTAIN TRACTION?

“I think so,” Darlington answers.

“Where we do our dynamic testing

at Grattan Speedway, it’s a pretty

taxing course for the cars that we’re


The Chevrolet Blazer EV PPV is a purpose-built battery-electric vehicle engineered

for patrol. General Motors calls it pursuit-rated.

testing. You just don’t see the wheel

spin that you otherwise would in

some of the ICE vehicles.”

Darlington says he is often asked

if BEV patrol vehicles handle and

drive like heavier vehicles. His answer

is all anyone has to do is give

it a try on an acceleration run. BEVs

are known for lots of torque and

quick acceleration. Yet, the weight

of a BEV does not hamper how it

handles.

“That BEV vehicle is capable of

handling corner speeds at much

higher speeds than that of the other

vehicles. So, you’re just not even

getting that understeer or a push in

a lot of the turns,” Darlington says.

TRANSITIONING OFFICERS TO BEVS

When a department adds BEVs

to its fleet, what do officers need

to learn before getting behind the

wheel? Darlington says MSP is

working to learn what can be done

with applications of BEVs, policies,

what shouldn’t be done, and what

could be done better with ICE vehicles.

“I don’t think that there’s a lot of

training that needs to take place

outside of learning about charging

and paying attention to the miles

and things like that,” he explains.

MSP troopers, and likely other

officers as well, are accustomed to

using patrol units to push disabled

vehicles out of the roadway in metro

areas. Can that be accomplished

with a BEV? Darlington thinks that

would be no problem at all.

Can BEVs be used when an officer

needs a PIT maneuver to end a

pursuit?

“So even though I don’t have any

firsthand experience practicing any

PITs yet with a BEV vehicle, I know

with the torque and acceleration,

that vehicle probably shouldn’t have

any problems pushing that vehicle,

and even the increased weight of

the vehicle is probably going to help

it maintain traction as you’re pushing

into that vehicle and rotating it,”

Darlington says.

With a heavier vehicle, is there an

officer safety concern about single-vehicle

crashes?

“The OEMs have done a fantastic

job of building in some integrated

safety features into the stability and

traction control to help assist those

officers who are behind the wheel

and keep them safe,” he explains.

Ford’s Bertino says she is seeing

agencies now that will include BEVs

in EVOC training.

“They want to make sure that officers

are trained on how to handle

the vehicles and feel that they have

a little bit more control than they

do the traditional patrol vehicles,

there’s additional weight with the

battery electric vehicle because of

the battery pack, “Bertino says. “So,

it’s really interesting to see that.”

SIZE AND PAYLOAD CHALLENGES

One key challenge for departments

adopting BEV patrol vehicles,

Darlington points out, is payload

capacity. In looking up the data on

BEVs tested, he found the total pay-


load capacity was only around 900

pounds.

“I think of the size of our troopers

and the amount of equipment that

we carry, I think that we would be

critically close to, if not, overloading

each one of those vehicles,” he says.

With some operations, two MSP

troopers might be assigned to the

same car. That could also double the

amount of gear that is being carried

as well.

“So, you start adding push bumpers,

and computers, and center

consoles, and patrol car lighting, and

then all the equipment in the back,

and the drawer organizers, and the

flares and, fire extinguishers, Halligans,

and all those things,” Darlington

points out.

“As soon as you start overloading

these vehicles, you know you’re not

going to have the same predictability

in terms of safety,” the MSP lieutenant

adds.

Darlington says MSP’s testing the

BEVs has been an opportunity for

OEMs to glean a lot of information,

learn their BEVs capabilities, and

gauge law enforcement interests.

“I think that as interest continues

to grow and the engineers learn

more on how they need to engineer

a vehicle to meet our specific needs,

which is very specific compared to

that of the consumer market, I think

that there might be other platforms a

little more conducive to what police

need in terms of size and capabilities

of a car, a police vehicle,” Darlington

shares.

FIRST BEV FOR MSP

State security property officers

located in downtown Lansing now

have the agency’s first BEV, a 2024

Ford Mustang Mach-E. Darlington

said the BEV is a good fit for that

role, both in job requirement and

location – meaning the Mach-E will

serve in a good area for charging.

The vehicle was delivered just a few

weeks ago.

With a BEV of its own now, Darlington

said MSP hopes to learn

more about BEV tire wear, how

long brakes last, what the realistic

range will be, and more.

“Once the vehicle is under a load

of power and MDC (mobile data

compute) and patrol car lighting,

and then how the ambient temperatures

are going to affect that

too,” says Darlington. “I’m just feel

fortunate that we’re finally going to

get one and be able to get clean a

lot of information from”

Darlington adds he has had conversations

with several OEMs and

potentially there could be some

new BEV entrants in next year’s

testing.

What Makes a Good Patrol Vehicle?

Many agencies look to the Precision

Driving Unity and its research

when considering patrol vehicles,

whether battery-electric or ICE.

Darlington says a lot of agencies,

especially down south, are looking

at how to use other vehicles

to meet that sedan niche. Many of

those agencies need patrol vehicles

that can go longer distances,

like patrolling highways, and carry

more payload and gear.

They are trying to fill the void left

when the Dodge Charger ceased

production, he says. He also says

there’s been some speculation

amongst one of the OEMs that

there might be a sedan available

sometime in the near future. He

was not free to elaborate.

“What I’m hoping, based on a

lot of my conversations with the

manufacturers and their engineers,

is that we’re going to really see

police vehicles that are going to be

capable of carrying out the need

of what we do in terms of size

range, charging times” Darlington

says. “That’s what I’m hoping.”

CHALLENGES FOR BEVS AS PA-

TROL VEHICLES

The Avondale Estates Police Department

in the Atlanta, Georgia,

area is like many other departments

– they have adopted fully-electric

vehicles to some extent,

but the BEVs only serve administrative

functions.

Chief Harry Hess shares what

keeps his department from adding

BEVs to its patrol fleet. And, it’s not

necessarily just about the vehicles.

In 2022 the department purchased

three Mach-E SUVs. Those were

assigned to the chief, the deputy

chief, and a sergeant in investigations.

Earlier this year, the department

added a Ford F-150 Lightning,

which the chief now drives. As a

6-foot-6-inch-tall chief, Hess said

he was glad to take the truck over

the smaller Mach-E.

“So, for admin personnel, I think

the EV is a no brainer,” he said, explaining

how the four fully-electric

vehicles are saving the department

about $250 a month. That is the

difference between the charging

cost and the cost of fuel they would

have used in four ICE vehicles.

The biggest holdup in adding

electric patrol vehicles is that the

department assigns take-home patrol

vehicles to officers. To be competitive

in hiring, providing takehome

cars is a must now, the chief

of the small 14-officer department

explains.

One concern is liability if a

charging system ever caused a fire

at an officer’s home. That, he says,

is a small possibility, but still a

possibility to be considered. Another

concern is not every home’s

electric system ready for a charger.

The department learned that with a

Mach-E assigned to an officer when

the officer’s older home was not

ready to handle the needs of a BEV

charger.

“The panel could not support

adding the EV charger. We had estimates

of almost $8,000 to $10,000

just to upgrade the panel in his

house to support that,” says Hess.

The officer lives in an area near

a Level 3 charging location, so that

was a solution. But, that meant

the city had to pay him for work


hours while he was waiting for the

Mach-E to charge.

“The lack of infrastructure on the

Level 3 chargers is the main hesitation

in implementing them in patrol

for us,” Hess says.

Another consideration is if an

officer commutes home to find his

area has a power outage following

a storm. How would he charge

the patrol vehicle to get it ready

for the next shift? He likely would

have battery capacity to get back

to work, but then he might start a

patrol shift at something like a 40%

charge, the chief explains.

Then too, there is the road trip

concern.

Officers travel for training, which

is several hours away. In doing the

drive in a BEV, Hess has found that

once he gets out of Atlanta and

takes the interstate south, there is

only one public charging site.

Hess explained how on a trip

to the Federal Law Enforcement

Training Center near Brunswick he

had to plan for one charging stop

near Forsyth, then a second closer

to Savannah. On that trip he spent

30 minutes charging at the first stop,

then an hour at the second stop.

“What happens when there’s no

spare chargers?” Hess asks. “You

have to wait for someone else to

finish charging.”

BEVS AS A RECRUITING TOOL

Agencies are finding that having

BEVs can be a recruitment tool to

help land younger officers, Bertino

says.

“There’s a shortage of officers right

now, and we’re starting to see a lot

of agencies that are actually using

the different electric vehicles as part

of a part of the recruitment process,”

she adds.

She says having a Mach-E out at

recruiting events signals to younger-generation

potential officers that

the agency is taking a more EV-forward

approach.

Police in Ann Arbor, Michigan,

rely mostly on hybrid SUVs for patrol

but the department has three

Mach-Es serving in administrative

roles. One is a marked unit that is

used for public relations, including

recruiting, and is promoted in a

social media video.

BEV LESSONS LEARNED

The New York City Police Department

(NYPD) was an early

adopter of fully-electric police

vehicles. In 2022, the NYPD purchased

148 Ford Mach-E GTs, with

40 designated as unmarked and

108 used for marked patrol, for $12

million.

Robert Martinez, who retired as

deputy commissioner of support

services for the NYPD at the end of

2020, said for a fully-electric vehicle

to be used as a patrol vehicle

there are two criteria it must meet.

First, it must meet the needs of

the mission. Second, it must be

safe.


South Pasadena PD, in Southern California has become the first in the nation to

replace its police patrol cars with electric vehicles

While some agencies may struggle

with payload limitations of a

BEV patrol vehicle, in New York

officers don’t carry as much gear,

Martinez points out. Also, the NYPD

patrol units did not get upfitted

with a cage or push bumpers, only

the light bar on top. So, they did not

sacrifice payload because of upfits.

The Mach-E has found success

as an NYPD patrol unit, but Mayor

Bill de Blasio originally wanted the

department to buy Tesla cars. The

agency tested a Tesla Model 3 that

was assigned to highway patrol.

“The biggest complaint with the

Tesla is that it’s nothing like a regular

vehicle. The dashboard is in the

center of the vehicle, not in front of

the driver’s eyes. So, when the cops

were driving the vehicle, they had

to constantly take their eyes off the

road to see the dashboard,” Martinez

says.

“We got the test of the Mach-E. I

liked it,” says Martinez. “I was impressed

with the vehicle. It operated

like a regular vehicle.”

That basically is how NYPD ended

up with Mach-E patrol vehicles instead

of Tesla patrol vehicles.

However, now two-and-a-half

years after the purchase, 20 to 25

Mach-E patrol units are not being

used because there is no place to

plug them in to charge, according to

Martinez.

“If you ever come to Manhattan,

you’ll see that patrol cars park two

or three blocks from the precinct,

because there’s no parking, even

for a police car,” explains Martinez,

adding that most of the precincts

were built in the 1920 or 1930s.

NOT AN EASY SOLUTION

Martinez points out that just like

any other ICE or hybrid patrol vehicle,

the fully-electric ones must

meet the mission, however, across

the country that mission has great

diversity. A state trooper covers a

lot of mileage, while in New York

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every month.

officers can extend battery range

through regenerative braking because

of heavy traffic and carrying

little gear.

Will an agency patrol with one

officer and limited gear, or will

there be two officers, such as in

the case of field training or special

details? Some communities have

charging infrastructure, while others

do not.

Eventually, most agencies could

possibly find BEVs to be beneficial

in administrative roles, but it will

take the perfect mix of a variety of

dynamics to make them practical

for patrol. Only time, and location,

will tell.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Wayne Parham is Senior Editor

at POLICE Magazine and PoliceMag.

com and has more than three decades

of experience covering public

safety and government. REPRINTED

FROM POLICEMAG.COM

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TRUMPS NEW BORDER CZAR

TOM HOMAN

BY MICHAEL BARRON

In a recent article by Government Executive

Newsletter staff writer Sean Michael

Newhouse, he wrote when Tom Homan retired

in 2018 from serving as acting director

of Immigration and Customs Enforcement

after a 30-plus year career in federal

law enforcement, then-President Donald

Trump remarked, “there’s no such thing as

retirement for Tom.”

For Trump’s second stint in the White

House, Homan will serve as border czar,

a new position that will oversee border,

maritime and aviation security. The role

does not require confirmation by the Senate.

While Trump has generally picked government

outsiders and household name

political figures for his Cabinet and other

senior appointments, Homan was a

long-serving federal employee who started

as a Border Patrol agent in the ‘80s and

worked his way up to senior leadership

positions.

Mathew Silverman, the national president

of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers

Association, said that he’s received many

emails and phone calls from organization

members who are excited about Homan’s

return.

“We’ve all had teachers in school that

we really, really liked and admired, and by

having somebody that you like and admire,

you want to put forth more effort. You

want to work harder for them. And I feel

Tom Holman is somebody that these agents

and officers are going to want to impress

because they like what he’s done in the

past,” Silverman said.

Likewise, Paul Perez, the president of the

National Border Patrol Council, said that he

doesn’t “think there’s a better person [to be]

border czar than Tom Homan.”

“He’s not sitting behind a desk asking

the impossible [or] asking someone to do

something he hasn’t done himself. So his

experience is very, very critical,” he said.

“When he puts policies in place to deal

with, for example, mass deportations, he’s

not somebody coming from the outside

that doesn’t understand the law and how it

should be applied.”

Trump plans to bolster immigration enforcement

agencies, utilize the National

Guard and modify asylum policy to significantly

increase the number of undocumented

immigrants who are removed from

the country.

ICE arrests increased under Homan’s leadership,

and he received an award for his

deportation efforts in 2015 from President

Barack Obama when he headed the agency’s

enforcement and removal operations.

84 84 The BLUES - - JANUARY ‘25

However Homan’s ICE failed to meet goals

for recruiting, something that will be integral

to the success — or failure — of the

second Trump administration’s immigration

policies.

But Perez argued that the environment for

recruiting has improved.

“I think with the support that ICE officers

and border patrol agents are going to get

under this administration, plus the incentives

that they’re going to offer, it should be

much easier to recruit and retain the peo-

The The BLUES - JANUARY - ‘25 ‘25 85 85

ple we need to get the job done,” he said.

Trump has said that he would ask Congress

to approve a 10% across-the-board

raise for Border Patrol agents and implement

recruitment and retention bonuses

of $10,000 for new hires and existing staff.

Still, Border Patrol has failed to keep pace

with attrition in recent years despite offering

incentives double or, in some cases,

triple what Trump has proposed.

In a recent NPR story, in his role as Border

Czar, Homan is expected to set the agenda

for how federal agencies, like the Department

of Homeland Security, carry out

immigration-related policies, potentially

shifting the traditional chain of command

within the cabinet.

“The appointment certainly signifies that

the president is placing a high priority on

immigration, because the description of Mr.

Homan’s responsibilities include both mass

deportations and border security,” said Doris

Meissner, director of the U.S. Immigration

Policy Program at the Migration Policy

Center. “But the actual implementation of

policy is in the statutory authorities and in

the responsibility of cabinet agencies.”

Trump looks forward to delivering on his

mission to be tougher on immigration “with

the help of Tom Homan as border czar

who will use his decades of experience in

law enforcement and immigration policy

to make America safe, strong, and secure

once again,” transition team spokesperson

Colton Snedecor said in a recent news

briefer.

86 The BLUES -- JANUARY ‘25

The BLUES - - JANUARY ‘25 ‘25 87 87

HOW THE POSITION MIGHT WORK

Meissner recalls working with Homan in

the 1990s, when they both served at the

U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service

. Meissner served as commissioner of the

department that oversaw the immigration

process, enforcement and border patrol

prior to the creation of the Department of

Homeland Security. At the time, Homan was

a Border Patrol agent and investigator.

“He’s a very experienced operative. He

knows how to get things done,” Meissner

said. “But all of that experience has been

in settings where he’s actually been able to

make decisions that affect where resources

are used and affect the policies and operations

of law enforcement officials. That

is not a border staff person in the White

House.”

Homan’s role as “border czar” may include

being a spokesperson on behalf of the

administration on issues related to immigration

and the southern and northern U.S.

borders, Meissner said. But he would have

to work with others across several cabinet

agencies to see through policy changes.

The lack of institutional history and track

record of the role can be both a benefit and

a challenge.

“The challenges do come with the degree

to which he, as border czar, has the full

confidence of the president and is actually

able to carry the day with the strategy

that he recommends and the advice that he

gives. And that remains to be seen,” Meissner

said.

INSIDE THE WHITE HOUSE

Presidents of both parties have sometimes

relied on appointing “czars” to quick-

ly coordinate policy without needing Senate

confirmation. Homan would not be the

first to hold the title or nickname of border

czar, though former agency officials said

he is the first to work directly in the White


House and under direction of the president.

Roberta Jacobson, who served as coordinator

for the southwest border during

the first year of the Biden administration,

was often called the “border czar” while

she served on the National Security Council,

though that was not her official White

House title.

Republicans also sought to attack Vice

President Harris as a failed ‘border czar’

The BLUES -- JANUARY ‘25 89

during her campaign for president —

though her responsibilities weren’t about

enforcing border security but about addressing

the root causes of migration from

Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

Alan Bersin served as border czar during

the Obama administration. He was also

border czar within the Justice Department

under former President Bill Clinton, leading

a crackdown on illegal border crossings.

Bersin said his role was created to have

one person responsible for coordinating

across agencies on enforcing immigration

policy. He predicts that having the role in

the White House would allow Homan to

better persuade and direct others — something

he struggled with under Obama.

“Other agencies tend to listen to you and

feel more compelled to follow the direction

that you give on behalf of the president,”

Bersin said. “He will be taken very seriously

and there will be much more hesitation to

stall or to refuse to implement policy than

was often the case that I experienced.”

Moving the role to work directly with

the president, and changing the lines of

communication and command, may help

streamline policy and direct things “at a

global level,” said Julie Myers Wood, who

was the assistant secretary of Immigration

and Customs Enforcement at DHS under

President George W. Bush. She said DHS officials

may be reassured by Homan’s experience

working within the department.

Still, she said, questions remain over

Homan’s exact jurisdiction and how he will

oversee various parts of immigration beyond

the borders, such as immigration law

enforcement in the interior of the country.

WHAT HOMAN WANTS TO DO IN

THE NEW ROLE

Homan told the TV station 7News in Watertown,

N.Y., that he would report directly

to the president as a kind of senior policy

adviser.

“I’ll be making decisions on border security

and deportation,” he said, adding that he

will oversee and come up with a strategy

for Trump’s mass deportation plan, border

security and interior enforcement.

Homan, who was considered one of the

architects of the family separation policy

during the first Trump administration, also

contributed to Project 2025, a conservative

plan from many Trump allies to reshape

federal policy and structure. Trump has

said he wasn’t involved in Project 2025,

though he has appointed many of its creators

to prominent roles in his second term.

During an interview with CBS News’ 60

Minutes, Homan said he would crack down

on workplaces and employers who rely on

undocumented workers and would consider

bringing back a policy of separating

families.

Trump supported several of Homan’s past

statements on how he would remove undocumented

immigrants during Trump’s

first network interview, with NBC News’

Meet the Press With Kristen Welker.

“The person that came in illegally can go

out, or they can all go out together,” Trump

said, in reference to Homan’s past statements

that mixed-status families can all

leave together in order to avoid separating

families. “And that was made very clear by

Tom Homan.”

ROLE OF CONGRESS

Homan told CBS he would use targeted

arrests, prioritizing those considered public

safety and national security threats —

though it’s unclear how wide-ranging such

a definition would be. In interviews, he also

90 90 The BLUES -- JANUARY ‘25

signaled an interest in changes to worker

visas — primarily expanding access to seasonal

agricultural visas for dairy farmers,

which would require congressional approval.

Visa policies underscore one of the many

ways the border czar will have to work

with lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

“Ultimately, the buck stops with Congress,”

said Rebecca Shi, executive director

of the American Business Immigration

Coalition, which advocates for changes to

immigration law. The immigration system

“needs to be fixed at the congressional level,

not the executive branch or the courts.

Those are just temporary Band-Aids that


don’t actually solve the problem.”

An additional factor in a border czar’s

success are the agency heads responsible

for carrying out his plans. Trump has nominated

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem to

be secretary of Homeland Security — the

department that includes Immigration and

Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border

Protection and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration

Services.

“If you’re going to focus on immigration

and in particular removal, that comes within

the auspices of the agency ICE, and it really

does need leadership,” said Sarah Saldaña,

who was the last ICE director to be

confirmed by the Senate and served under

Obama. “It’s wonderful to have a border

czar, but it doesn’t cover everything that the

agency does.”

Saldaña emphasized that ICE is the agency

with the jurisdiction by law to work

on deportations and removals. Last week,

Trump nominated Caleb Vitello, the current

assistant director of the Office of Firearms

and Tactical Programs within ICE, to lead

the whole branch. He must still be confirmed

by the Senate.

“It is difficult to say you’re focusing on immigration

if you don’t even have a director

of the agency,” Saldaña said.

HOMAN HAS WARNED UNDOCUMENTED

IMMIGRANTS TO ‘START PACKING’

Homan spoke about how such deportations

would work in an interview on Fox

Sunday Morning Futures hours before his

appointment was announced, saying it

would be a “well-targeted, planned operation,

conducted by the men of ICE.”

“When we go out there we’re gonna know

who we’re looking for, we most likely know

where they’re going to be and it’s gonna

be done in a humane manner,” Homan

said, adding that it will focus on the “public

safety threats and the national security

threats first.”

But those groups won’t be the only targets,

Homan told CBS’ 60 Minutes last

month. He said he would restart workplace

enforcement after the Biden administration

moved away from the controversial practice

of mass worksite immigration raids in


favor of pursuing “exploitative employers.”

He also said in that interview that “families

can be deported together,” suggesting

children who are U.S. citizens but with undocumented

parents would have to go with

them.

Months earlier, speaking onstage at the

Republican National Convention, Homan

said Trump would designate Mexican cartels

a “terrorist organization” for their role

in getting fentanyl over the border, warning,

“He’s gonna wipe you off the face of

the Earth.”

He also addressed undocumented immigrants

at large, whom he said Biden released

into the country against federal law.

“You better start packing now,” he said,

as attendees waving pro-deportation signs

cheered. “’Cause you’re going home.”


DRONES

WHO THE HELL IS FLYING ALL

THE DRONES OVER JERSEY

(NewsNation) — After more than a month of sightings across multiple

states, lawmakers and the general public are no closer to finding out what

the mysterious drones are spotted in New Jersey and a handful of other

states.

An unexplained large number of drones began flying over sensitive military

sites in New Jersey in mid-November, and while the White House and the

Pentagon insist they don’t pose a threat, lawmakers are demanding answers.

What are lawmakers doing about the drones?

On Dec. 12, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, along with three other

U.S. senators, sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security, Federal

Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Aviation Administration requesting a

briefing on the situation.

Since sightings of the drones have spread in news outlets and on social

media, a slew of elected officials — local, state and federal — have been

outspoken about what they call a lack of transparency from the government.

In late December, a group of New Jersey lawmakers met with state police

and DHS, but some were left frustrated about the lack of answers they received.

Republican New Jersey state Rep. Brian Bergen told NewsNation that meeting

was “a whole lot of nothing.”

“All they did was tell us they don’t know anything that’s going on,” he said.



WHERE ARE THE DRONES?

Other than New Jersey, they have been

spotted in other Northeastern states, including

New York, Pennsylvania and Connecticut.

Sightings have also been reported

in California, Florida, Ohio and Minnesota.

NewsNation confirmed House Speaker

Mike Johnson, R-La., received a classified

briefing on the drones, and lawmakers on

both sides have called for the drones to be

intercepted.

“We should be doing some very urgent

intelligence analysis and take them out of

the skies, especially if they’re flying over

airports or military bases,” said U.S. Sen.

Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., last week.

FAA bans drones in parts of New Jersey

Following the large number of mysterious

drone sightings, the Federal Aviation

Administration temporarily banned drone

flights in 22 areas of New Jersey where

critical infrastructure is located.

FAA officials said federal security agencies

requested the flight restrictions, which

are effective through Jan. 17, 2025.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security

said the restrictions are out of an

“abundance of caution,” without explaining

further.

Fox News host Sean Hannity called out

the Biden administration for failing to “get

to the bottom” of numerous mysterious

drone sightings as Americans across the

northeast watch the skies.

SEAN HANNITY: Of course, anxiety is running

high, and rightfully so. There are random

objects the size of a bus that sound

like a Harley hovering all over the state of

New Jersey, people’s homes, even the president-elect’s

golf club and other important

installations. But let me be clear. This is not

a story about aliens. This is not an extra

terrestrial segment. Instead, this is a serious,

alarming, potential national security threat

that your government does not seem to care

about at all or feel the need to explain in

any way. And that fails to get to the bottom

of this.

Let me be very clear. Maybe in the end

this turns out to be nothing. I actually hope

that’s true. But the fact that your government

doesn’t know and hasn’t known now

for weeks is chilling. The apparent message


from Joe Biden and Kamala and Mayorkas,

even our own military, close your eyes and

pretend like it’s not happening. Well, that’s

not going to secure our country.

The DOD says they are aware of the

drones, and that’s pretty much it. That’s it.

End of story. We also have few details or

answers from anyone at the FBI, the DHS,

the Biden-Harris White House or any other

so-called public servant or national

security official. Apparently, under Biden,

they don’t really feel they need to answer

you. They probably don’t even know, which

makes it even worse under Biden. This is not

a government by the people. For the people

of the people. It’s a shady cabal of all powerful

unelected bureaucrats that don’t really

seem to give a damn if you are concerned or

worried, and they’re the ones that should be

on top of this. Americans, we’re entitled to

answers. If you have something the size of a

bus flying all over to the skies of our country,

I think we need to know about that.


NY Post - A New Jersey congressman

claimed Wednesday that the mystery

drones over the Garden State are from Iran,

and they’re being launched by a mother

ship parked off the East Coast.

Rep. Jeff Van Drew, a Republican, said the

drones “very possibly could be” from Iran,

citing confidential sources during an appearance

on Fox News Wednesday morning.

“These drones should be shot down,” he

said, adding that “the military is on full

alert with this.”

He did not reveal where he got the information.

Van Drew, whose district includes

most of the Jersey Shore, sits on the House

Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

“I’m going to tell you the real deal. Iran

launched a mother ship that contains these

drones,” Van Drew said. “It’s off the East

Coast of the United States of America.

They’ve launched drones.”

“These are from high sources, I don’t say

this lightly,” he added, categorically ruling

out that the drones were being flown by

hobbyists or the US government itself.

SHOOT THEM DOWN?

The buzz around the mysterious flurry of

drones above New Jersey and other nearby

states has prompted some officials, including

President-elect Trump, to call for the

U.S. military to shoot down the mystery

objects.

But such measures come with major risks,

experts say. The objects could be legitimate

aircraft, helicopters or other innocuous objects,

and debris from falling drones poses

a threat to people and property on the

ground.

“If people start shooting, things have to

come down,” said Jeffrey Wells, a visiting

fellow at the National Security Institute at

George Mason University who focuses on

threats from technology.

Many of the sightings appear to be aircraft

or hobbyist drones, and the Biden administration

has stressed there is no present

threat to any government installations

or military sites.

The frenzy around the swarm of flying

objects points to a need for the government

to increase its transparency with the public

about what it is tracking, experts told The

Hill this week.

Wells said he was worried that, without

answers, the public might start shooting

down drones themselves, which could lead

to a fatal accident.

98 The BLUES Blues - December JANUARY ‘25 ‘24

“There’s a whole bunch of risks that come

with that,” he said. “If you damage somebody’s

$500 drone, big deal, but if you hit

a police helicopter or medevac helicopter

or a utility company’s drone that’s out to

see where the downed wire is, now you’re

creating some additional life risk.”

The drone sightings, which began around

late November primarily in northern New

Jersey and New York City, have now spread

to several other states mostly along the

East Coast.

But for the past week, the drones have become

a national story, leading to confusion

and an air of mystery as to their origins.

Members of Congress and New Jersey and

New York state officials are among those

who have brought their concern and counsel

to social media, calling for the government

to take concrete action and to stop

downplaying the concerns.

Trump last week called for the U.S. to

clarify what was happening and to shoot

them down.

“Something strange is going on,” he added

in a Monday press conference, accusing

the government of hiding information.

And Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) decried the

failure of the U.S. government to protect

American airspace.

“Why can’t we bag at least one drone

and get to the bottom of this?” he said in a

news conference. “Why can’t we even track

a suspect drone to its origin? Have we so

little control over our airspace?”

The The Blues BLUES - December - JANUARY ‘24‘25 99 99

US HAS THE TECH TO DOWN JERSEY

DRONES—BUT NOT THE POLICY

By Patrick Tucker

One maker of counter-drone tech says it’s ready

to “shoot down whatever is going overhead.”

Counter-drone policy—not technology—is keeping

U.S. agencies from responding more effectively

to the reported drone sightings along the East

Coast, U.S. officials said Tuesday. But that’s not

stopping makers of anti-drone systems—including

ones already protecting troops overseas—from

showcasing their wares to protect airports and

domestic infrastructure.

Agencies and various levels of government have

policy “gaps and seams” that can’t be closed without

Congressional action, National Security Council

spokesperson John Kirby told reporters Tuesday.

“We urge Congress to enact counter-UAS—unmanned

aerial systems—legislation that has been

proposed and repeatedly requested by this administration

that would extend and expand existing

counter-drone authorities to help identify and

counter any threat that does emerge,” Kirby said.

Government officials have stressed that the

drones reportedly sighted since mid-November

pose no immediate threat, and do not appear to be

part of any attack. One military official speaking

on background said that if intelligence analysis

had shown the aerial objects were foreign or military

in nature, the military could bring sophisticated

sensors and weapons to bear. In February, U.S.

Northern Command dispatched an Air Force F-22

to down a Chinese spy balloon over the United

States. But the FBI is in charge of the more recent

incursions—suggesting that U.S. agencies suspect

a domestic cause.

In December, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called

on the Homeland Security department to deploy

micro-Doppler radar systems, which detect

drones’ minute vibrations, to identify objects too

small for conventional radar to find.

“We’re asking DHS to bring them to the New

York-New Jersey area,” Schumer said.

Meanwhile, one company that makes a directed-energy

counter-drone weapon is offering to

help. Epirus manufactures a solid-state, longpulse,

high-power microwave system dubbed

Leonidas.

Its microwaves disrupt a drone’s internal electronic

functioning, causing it to fall from the sky

but remain otherwise intact for investigation. Its

narrow beams keep it from affecting nearby communications

or air traffic, company officials said,

adding that it has performed well in Army evaluations.

“We’re sitting on systems ready to go, ready to

be deployed, ready to go to New Jersey, ready to

go to Langley [Air Force base in Virginia], ready to

go to any of these airfields and shoot down whatever

is going overhead,” Epirus CEO Andy Lowery

said Wednesday.

But Lowery said he would be shocked if the U.S.

government deployed Leonidas on U.S. soil in coming

days because of “how the FCC prescribes the

FAA frequencies” for communications, he said.

100 The Blues BLUES - December - JANUARY ‘24 ‘25

The FCC also prohibits the use of signal-jamming

devices of the sort that operators use to stop

drones. The Leonidas is not a jammer, but does use

the electromagnetic spectrum.

Lowery said the Army’s testing revealed that the

system can down drones without disrupting cellular

signals or the navigation and other systems of

aircraft, particularly if the aircraft is at high altitude.

It also can be aimed at a very specific area of

the sky and de-conflicted with air traffic control

or even other law-enforcement drones.

Pentagon spokesperson Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said

Tuesday that the military is rushing new drone defense

technology to military bases in response to

the frequent sightings.

“This could include active or passive detection

capabilities, plus capabilities like the system

known as Drone Busters, which employs non-kinetic

means to interrupt drone signals affect their

ability to operate,” he said.

But beyond base protection, Ryder said the military

is highly limited in any response—again due to

policy.

“When we’re here in the homeland, the authorities

that the U.S. military has to detect and track

these kinds of things is much different than it

would be if we were in a combat zone. In other

words, the intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance

capabilities that we can employ outside

the United States are much different.”

The The Blues BLUES - December -- JANUARY ‘24‘25 101

JANUARY 2025

6-7 Pedophiles, Child Molesters, and their Cross-Associated

Sexual Dev *BY PATC

Liberty , TX

7-9 WZ Criminal Level I Investigative Interviewing Techniques Denton, TX

8 21st Century Narcotics Investigations by Blue to Gold Pharr, TX

8 ICAC Field Operations Course Galveston, TX

9-10 Covert Surveillance *BY PATC Sugar Land, TX

10 Pursuing Advanced DUI Investigation by Blue to Gold Universal City, TX

10 Retail Recon – Mastering Retail Crime Investigations Denton, TX

13 Investigative Field Interviewing: Strategies for Patrol Off Galveston, TX

13 Mastering Proactive Policing for Patrol by Blue to Gold Irving, TX

13-14 Intervention & Assessment Skills for Emergency Service

Telecommu *BY PATC

La Porte, TX

13-15 Sex Offenders Against Children: Causation, Typology,

Investigating *BY PATC

Texas City, TX

14-15 Investigating Cases of Child Homicide - by LLRMI Pharr, TX

14-17 Reid Technique of Investigative Interviewing & Advanced

Interrogation

Pharr, TX

21-22 Child Death and Homicide Investigation *BY PATC Texas City, TX

21-22 Women in Command by Calibre Press Denton, TX

21-24 Reid Technique of Investigative Interviewing &

Advanced Interrogation

San Marcos, TX



Lufkin, TX

27 Motel, Airport, Parking Lot & Parcel Interdiction DYNAMIC Pearland, TX

27-29 Pat McCarthy’s Street Crimes - Real World Training

for the Real Police

Georgetown, TX

27-29 Responding to Veterans and Police Officers in Crisis *BY PATC Texas City, TX

27-31 5 Day Homicide and Death Investigation - by LLRMI New Braunfels, TX

30-31 PowerPoint Design with Cinematics for LE Georgetown, TX

FEBRUARY 2025

3-5 Pat McCarthy’s Street Crimes - Real World Training

for the Real Police

Beaumont, TX

4-6 Officer Involved Shootings - by LLRMI Pharr, TX

10-11 Lock Picking and Specialized Entry Techniques Sugar Land, TX

10-11 Managing Missing Persons Events *BY PATC Liberty , TX

10-11 Pedophiles, Child Molesters, and their Cross-

Associated Sexual Dev *BY PATC

Texas City, TX

10-12 Meeting the Leadership Challenges of Law Enforcement -

by LLRMI

New Braunfels, TX

10-14 Criminal Investigations Using Cellular Technologies

Basic Course

Plano, TX

11-13 Crime Scene Investigation and Reconstruction *BY PATC La Porte, TX



Coppell, TX

MARCH 2025

3 Advanced Search & Seizure by Blue to Gold Irving, TX

4 Advanced Traffic Stops by Blue to Gold Irving, TX

4-6 WZ Level I Non-Confrontational Investigative

Interviewing Techniques

Denton, TX

5 Advanced Criminal Investigations by Blue to Gold Irving, TX

6-7 Advanced Criminal Investigations by Blue to Gold Irving, TX

10 Constitutional Use of Force by Calibre Press Denton, TX

10-11 Cryptocurrency and the Dark Web Investigations *BY PATC Liberty , TX

10-13 Force Science Certification Course Dallas, TX

10-13 Mobile Phone Investigations & Cellular Record

Analysis *BY PATC

San Antonio, TX

11-13 Homicide Investigation: Crime Scene to Courtroom *BY PATC Texas City, TX

13-14 Community Engaged Policing *BY PATC Texas City, TX

14 Narco 101 For Patrol by Blue to Gold Pecos, TX

24-25 Social Media and OSINT Investigative Techniques *BY PATC Hondo, TX

24-28 5-Day New Detective and New Criminal Investigator - by LLRMI Pharr, TX

25-27 Crime Scene Investigation and Reconstruction *BY PATC Texas City, TX

25-27 Meeting the Leadership Challenges of

Law Enforcement - by LLRMI

Denton, TX

28 21st Century Narcotics Investigations by Blue to Gold Denton, TX

APRIL 2025

1-2 Killers and Their Victims *BY PATC Texas City, TX

7-8 Social Media and Community Outreach *BY PATC Texas City, TX

7-11 Field Training Officer Certification *BY PATC Pharr, TX

9-10 Leadership Strategy for the Modern Police Agency *BY PATC Texas City, TX

14-16 Pat McCarthy’s Street Crimes - Real World Training for the

Real Police

Corpus Christi

14-17 Mobile Phone Investigations & Cellular Record Analysis Liberty , TX

17 21st Century Narcotics Investigations by Blue to Gold Liberty, TX

22 Emerging Legal Trends by Blue to Gold Denton, TX

22-24 Internal Affairs Administrative Investigation - by LLRMI Pharr, TX

23 Duty to Intervene by Blue to Gold Denton, TX

23 Real World De-Escalation by Blue to Gold Denton, TX



Fort Worth, TX

MAY 2025

5-9 5 Day Homicide and Death Investigation - by LLRMI Pharr, TX

6-8 Reid PEACE Method of Investigative Interviewing Angleton, TX

19-22 Reid Technique of Investigative Interviewing Austin , TX

19-23 New Detective and Criminal Investigator (Villaverde) *BY PATC Texas City, TX

28-30 Domestic Violence and Homicide Investigations *BY PATC Texas City, TX

JUNE 2025

2-3 Cold Case: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Unsolved Cases Texas City, TX

3 Advanced Search & Seizure Law by Blue to Gold Fort Worth, TX

4 Bulletproof Report Writing by Blue to Gold Fort Worth, TX

5 Advanced Search Warrants by Blue to Gold Fort Worth, TX

6 Mastering Proactive Policing for Patrol by Blue to Gold Denton, TX

9-10 Advanced Internal Investigations: Legal and Practical Issues Texas City, TX

23-25 Crisis Communications: Managing a Critical Incident Texas City, TX

24-26 Criminal/Drug Interdiction Techniques and Concealment Angleton, TX

JULY 2025

7-8 Tactical Street Enforcement & Violent Force Encounters Texas City, TX

14-16 The Mind Behind Abnormal and Deviant Behaviors *BY PATC Texas City, TX

15 Advanced Search & Seizure by Blue to Gold Fort Worth, TX

15-16 Pedophiles, Child Molesters, & Cross-Associated Sexual Dev La Porte, TX

16 Bulletproof Report Writing by Blue to Gold Fort Worth, TX

17 Advanced Search Warrants by Blue to Gold Fort Worth, TX

29-30 Hidden Compartments and Other areas of Concealment Texas City, TX


Lock and Load Your Spot at

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104 VISIT WWW.ODMP.ORG The BLUES - JANUARY ‘25

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PHONE: 603-524-8787 • VISIT IALEFI.COM

HONORING OUR

POLICE OFFICER JACOB CANDANOZA

TERRELL POLICE DEPARTMENT, TEXAS

END OF WATCH SUNDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2024

AGE: 28 TOUR: 4 YEARS BADGE: 6190

Police Officer Jacob Candanoza was shot and killed during a traffic stop at the 1600 block of South State

Highway 34 in Terrell. At 11:00 p.m., Officer Candanoza requested backup after initiating a traffic stop at the

Motel 8 parking lot. A struggle ensued, and Officer Candanoza was shot. He was transported to Baylor Scott

and White Hospital, where he died from his wounds. The suspect fled but was apprehended after crashing his

truck during a pursuit. Officer Candanoza was a United States Marine Corps veteran. He had served with the

Terrell Police Department for over four months and previously served with the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office. He

is survived by his wife and child.

106 106 106 The The The BLUES BLUES POLICE - - JANUARY MAGAZINE

‘25 ‘25

FALLEN HEROES

SERGEANT RICK FINLEY

MCNAIRY COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE, TENNESSEE

END OF WATCH SATURDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2024


Sergeant Rick Finley was shot and killed while responding to a suspicious person complaint at the 100 block of New

Bethel Road in Selmer at 3:00 p.m. A subject was attempting to break into a home. When Sergeant Finley arrived

at the scene, the subject attacked him, shooting Sergeant Finley multiple times. The suspect was shot and killed by

another responding officer. He was transported to the nearest hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.

Sergeant Finley was a United States Army National Guard veteran. He had served part-time with the Selmer Police

Department while also serving with the McNairy County Sheriff’s Office, where he worked for 13 years. He is survived

by his wife and children.


HONORING OUR

SERGEANT ELIO DIAZ

CHARLOTTE COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE, FLORIDA

END OF WATCH SUNDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2024

AGE: N/A TOUR: 11 YEARS BADGE: 2962

Sergeant Elio Diaz was shot and killed during a traffic stop shortly after 3:00 p.m. at 4968 Tamiami Trail

in Charlotte Harbor. During the stop, the driver pulled out a rifle and fired at Sergeant Diaz before fleeing.

When he was found a few miles away, the suspect reached for his rifle and was shot and killed by

deputies. Sergeant Diaz was transported to ShorePoint Health Port Charlotte, where he succumbed to

his wounds.

Sergeant Diaz had served with the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office for over 11 years. He is survived by

his wife and four children. Sergeant Diaz was posthumously promoted to Sergeant.

108 108 The The BLUES BLUES POLICE -- JANUARY MAGAZINE

‘25

FALLEN HEROES

DETENTION OFFICER ISAIAH BIAS

AGE: 28 TOUR: 6 YEARS BADGE: N/A

Detention Officer Isaiah Bias died after being assaulted by an inmate at the Wayne McCollum Detention Center

at 300 South Jackson Street in Waxahachie. At 3:45 p.m., Officer Bias was transferring the inmate to his

cell when he was attacked. He was transported to the local hospital, where he was pronounced deceased.

The inmate has been charged with capital murder.

ELLIS COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE, TEXAS

END OF WATCH MONDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2024

Officer Bias had served with the Ellis County Sheriff’s Office for over six years. He is survived by his mother,

two sisters, nieces, and nephews.

The BLUES - - JANUARY ‘25 ‘25 109

HONORING OUR

AIR INTERDICTION AGENT JEFFREY KANAS

AIR INTRADICTION - US BORDER PATROL


AGE: N/A TOUR: 16 YEARS BADGE: N/A

Air Interdiction Agent Jeffrey Kanas was killed when the Eurocopter AS350 he was piloting crashed near

Patrero in San Diego County, California, at about 10:20 am. He had taken off from Brown Field and was

conducting a border security mission when the helicopter crashed into a field off of Round Portero Road

about two miles south of Barrett Lake.

Agent Kanas was a U.S. Navy veteran and had served with the United States Customs and Border Protection

for 16 years. He is survived by his wife and two children.

110 110 The The BLUES BLUES POLICE -- JANUARY MAGAZINE

‘25

FALLEN HEROES

POLICE OFFICER MICHAEL HORAN

GREENSBORO POLICE DEPARTMENT, NORTH CAROLINA


AGE: N/A TOUR: 7 YEARS BADGE: N/A

Police Officer Michael Horan was shot and killed while responding to a call of a man with a firearm at the Food

Lion at 4709 Lawndale Drive in Greensboro around 11:00 a.m. The suspect was apprehended and is in

custody.

Officer Horan was a United States Coast Guard veteran and had served with the Greensboro Police Department

for seven years. He was survived by his wife and children.


HONORING OUR

TROOPER CLAY M. CARNS

ILLINOIS STATE POLICE, ILLINOIS



Trooper Clay Carns was struck and killed by a passing vehicle on I-55 near Channahon, Illinois. At 9:42

p.m., Trooper Carns was removing debris from the southbound highway north of Blodgett Road when a

driver did not stop and struck him. He was transported to St. Joseph Hospital, where he died from his

injuries an hour later. The driver was charged with failure to slow down and move over when emergency

vehicles were on the side of the road.

Trooper Carns had served with the Illinois State Police for 11 years. He is survived by his wife, two

children, and parents.

112 The The BLUES BLUES POLICE -- JANUARY MAGAZINE

‘25

FALLEN HEROES

CORRECTION OFFICER ANDREW LANSING

OHIO DEPARTMENT OF REHABILITATION AND CORRECTION, OHIO

END OF WATCH WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2024

AGE: 62 TOUR: 20 YEARS BADGE: N/A

Correction Officer Andrew Lansing died after being assaulted by an inmate on Christmas morning around

8:00 a.m. at the Ross Correctional Institution, 16197 State Route 104 in Chillicothe. The inmate was

transferred to the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility, a maximum security prison in Lucasville, while the

Ross Correctional Institution was put under restricted movement.

Officer Lansing had served with the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction for over 20 years.


BY C.W. KINCADE

“Back when I was a cop...”

I’m not very good with computers

or the whole online thing.

And I’m sorry I had to handwrite

this message to you, but even if

I managed to hunt and peck my

way through a typed page on my

ragged old computer, I have no

idea how to send it to you. So,

I went old school, hand wrote

it and my grandson mailed it to

you. It was my grandson that

showed me how to read your

magazine on the computer. I just

turned 89 but as my grandson

says, I’m as sharp as a tack.

My story starts long ago, long

before most of you were even

born. My family didn’t have a lot

of money. My father was a drunk

that beat my mother and beat us

kids as well. Growing up in the

Houston Heights in the 30’s and

40’s was hard. We didn’t have

a lot of money and what extra

money we did manage to have,

my drunken father spent it on

booze. I swore growing up that I

would be a better man than my

father.

I left home when I was 15 and

went to live with my uncle who

lived a few streets away. I got a

job after school to support myself

and at 17 I moved in a small

garage apartment on 12th street.

I stayed in school until my senior

year, but never graduated. I had

to work to survive.

I worked several jobs until I

turned 21 and then I applied to

the Houston Police Department.

Back then, you could go to war

at 18 and be a cop at 21. I tried

signing up for the army, but I

didn’t pass the physical because

believe it or not, one of my legs

was a 3/4” shorter than the other.

No one ever knew because I

wore one shoe with an insert so

I could walk without a limp. But

the police application back then

didn’t require a physical, just a

note from a doctor that you didn’t

have any diseases that would prevent

you from doing the job. I got

the note, passed the application

exam and got the job.

I started the police academy in

1956. It was just 4 or 4 months

long as best I can remember, and

Jack Heard was the police chief.

Once you graduated, you were

assigned to foot patrol with a

senior officer. There really wasn’t

much training, just watch and

learn. They gave you a badge and

a uniform and put you to work.

On my first day, I was partnered

up with a really old man who had

been a cop back when I guess

they rode horses, cause they sure

as hell didn’t have cars back then.

His name was Jimmy White and

he was not real happy to have a

snot nose rookie assigned to him.

Our beat was Main Street that

was mostly bars, restaurants and

hotels and lots of fist fights and

petty thievery. I remember the old

rail car that ran down the middle

of Main street. Not long after I

started, Heard moved a bunch of

us up north and started what he

called “radio patrol.” Our ‘radio

patrol car’ was a 1950 Ford that

had red lights on the fender, a

radio and a siren. That’s it.

The first day of our new assignment,

Jimmy asked me why

I wanted to be a cop. In fact he

looked me in the eye and said,

“kid why in the hell are you here

and why the hell do you wanna

be a copper?” I told him my dad

was a drunk and beat me, my

brothers and my mom and I wan-


na find people like him and put

them in jail so no one else has to

grow up like I did. He just smiled

and said, “kid I think I’m going to

like you.”

Things were a lot different back

then. Most people had respect for

cops and those that didn’t knew

they were an ass-kickin away

from going to jail. You did what

you were told, or the cops would

just beat the crap out of you. It

was the days of cops and robbers

and Houston was the like wild

west. The city wasn’t very big

back then. The city limits stopped

where Little York Road is today.

They had just finished the Gulf

freeway, (my grandson says they

still haven’t finished it) and most

of the new Loop 610 was done.

The thing I remember the most

about growing up in the 40’s and

50’s was the segregation of black

folks. My dad was as raciest as

they come. Like everything else

that man did, I wanted to do the

opposite. So, when it came to

treating black people differently, I

didn’t like it one bit. That didn’t sit

right with the old cops I worked

with. Many times, I was told they

would beat me silly if I didn’t

start acting whiter. Whatever the

hell that meant.

But like everything else, that

changed in the late 60’s and 70’s,

when we just beat the crap out

of everyone, black or white. As

time went on, the city got bigger.

People moved north into the new

houses that a man named Frank

Sharp built and we had concrete

highways everywhere. And more

and more cars. Traffic jams have

been a thing in Houston since

they built cars.

And crime just seemed to get

worse by the day. In 1972, I was

promoted to Sergeant and moved

to the North Shepherd substation.

It was still modern, had new

telephones and air conditioning

that worked. I worked there until I

retired in 1979. I just tuned 89 and

I’m sure my days are just about

up. Everyone I worked with on

the job has passed already. All

my brothers and sisters are gone,

aunts and uncles passed a long

time ago. Parents died when I

was 25, and my wife passed as

well. Only people I have left are

my son and grandson, and my

grandson followed in my footsteps

and joined the department

as well. I guess you could say I

had a good life. I accomplished

what I set out to do and that’s be

a better man than my father was.

I’m sorry if this just rambles

but at my age its hard to focus on

what I’m trying to say.

I’ll just end with this. It doesn’t

matter how much fancy stuff

you have in them new cars you

boys and girls drive today. What

matters is the job you signed up

to do. To put the bad guys in jail

and make things better for law

abiding folks. Being good at your

job just requires one thing. Compassion.

Treating people with that

one thing makes the difference.

There will always be bad people

in this world. They will try and

kill you if they have a chance.

That will probably never change.

But there will always be cops that

will try and stop them from doing

bad things and you must stay

alive to do that. So, watch out for

yourself and the other cops you

work with. You are the only thing

that separates the good from the

bad. Stay safe my friends.


WORDS BY ADAM A. MEYERS

The Aftermath of a First Responder’s

Critical Incident & OIS Resulting in a death.

Adam’s story of coping with his OIS and the different ways he struggled

to return to his LE job in his own words.

To Whom It May Concern,

Please consider sharing/publishing

my story of how I lived

and coped negatively after a

critical incident and about how I

returned to law enforcement. As

a First Responder I feel obligated

to share my story in hopes that it

will help someone.

The story has been written

by me and briefly explains the

different ways I negatively coped

after I killed someone in the line

of duty. I truly hope my story

helps someone. Feel free to share

my story with anyone.

Thank you,

Adam A. Meyers

Hartford, Wisconsin - USA

(715) 864-4295 - Call/Text

www.stopthethreatstopthestigma.org

My name is Adam, and I have

been a Police Officer in Wisconsin

for 23 years. I am also a

Certified Peer Specialist in Wisconsin.

I began my law enforcement

career in 2001 after serving

as an active-duty United States

Army Military Policeman. In April

2016, I was involved in a critical

incident that changed my

life forever when I used deadly

force on someone who armed

themselves with a hatchet inside

a busy department store. That

person died.

I suffered in silence for many

years after my critical incident

and I am ashamed for the ways

I poorly coped. I still feel shame

for the ways I coped and treated

people. I find it hard to believe

that nobody realized or even had

a gut feeling that I was not doing

well. I could not have been that

good at hiding my poor coping

strategies, or was I? I have

always wondered if people were

slowly watching me self-destruct

because they did not

know what to say to me, how to

help me, or they simply did not

want to get involved.

It has taken me many years

to get back on track. There are

many different coping strategies

people may use after experiencing

trauma. They may be

good and healthy, or they may

be bad and unhealthy. My coping

strategies were bad, unhealthy,

self-destructive, and dangerous.

I used alcohol, marijuana, casual

sex, and self-harm as some of

my poor coping strategies for

years after my critical incident.

My poor coping strategies easily

put my relationships, job, and

health at risk, but I did not care.

I wanted to escape from what I

was feeling. I wanted to numb

my emotions, my thoughts, my

body, and any memory of taking

116 The BLUES - - JANUARY ‘25 ‘25

someone’s life. I wanted to feel

better even if only momentarily.

I was selfish, reckless, and I did

not care how my self-destructive

and dangerous behavior may

have affected my family, friends,

children, co-workers, and the

public.

There were many times after

my critical incident that I did not

want to go to work. This was not

because I had other plans or that

I was hungover from consuming

too much alcohol, another one

of my poor coping strategies,

but because I just wanted to stay

at home and isolate myself from

the world. I wanted to lock all

the doors of my home, close all

the curtains, and shut everyone

out of my life–which I did many

times for many years. Sure, I

called in sick from time to time,

but on one occasion, I intentionally

injured myself so that I

didn’t have to work. I used an old

12-inch adjustable steel wrench

to cause superficial injuries to

my left knee. I struck my knee a

dozen or more times, enough to

cause redness, abrasions, and

bruising, and limped into the

local emergency room. I explained

to the doctor and nurses

that I had tripped and fallen

down walking out of the back

door of my house and struck my

knee on the steel covering of

an underground septic tank. My

story was believable enough. I

received X-rays of my knee, a

prescription for pain medication,

and crutches. I was discharged

from the emergency room with a

doctor’s letter releasing me from

work for about one week. This

occurred during a busy holiday

work week. Although I was not

able to truly celebrate the holiday,

this deception got me out of

work, and I was able to enjoy the

time alone at home.

Another way I was able to

get out of working was to intentionally

make myself sick. I

remember while taking a shower

before my shift I was thinking

about the many ways I could get

out of work. While I was putting

on my ballistic vest, uniform,

boots, and duty belt, I thought

to myself, I’m going to get out

of working by binge eating and

making myself vomit. I constructed

a plan to visit the local

Burger King drive-thru while

traveling to work. I ordered a

bunch of breakfast food and

made sure I washed it down with

a large soda and a large orange

juice. I needed to make sure I

added beverages to my breakfast

buffet to ensure it would all

come back up easier.

I continued to travel to work

and passed the local McDonald’s

and thought, two is better

than one. I quickly binged what I

purchased from McDonalds and

proceeded to work.

I arrived at work and upon

exiting my vehicle I masterfully

played the role of the “sick

employee.” I walked into the

police department and made

myself vomit in the bathroom.

I made sure the bathroom door

remained open so that anyone

walking by could see or hear me.


I made sure that not all my vomit

made it into the toilet and landed

on the floor for added effect. I

was immediately sent home.

Another of my many poor coping

strategies I used was abusing

alcohol. Prior to the incident,

I collected wine and enjoyed

a glass every now and then.

However, after, I began abusing

liquor, mainly whiskey and

the cheapest vodka I could get

my hands on. I would consume

whiskey and vodka straight from

their bottles, on the rocks, or I

would create my own cocktails

by combining over-the-counter

liquid sleeping or liquid allergy

medicines. There were times I

would mix in whatever leftover

prescription medicines I had

in the medicine cabinet, and it

didn’t matter if they were prescribed

to me or someone else.

For example, I remember one

instance when my oldest daughter

had leftover prescribed liquid

cough medicine containing codeine.

I combined whatever was

remaining in the bottle with a

glass of wine. I was on a prescribed

anti-depressant called

Venlafaxine while I was abusing

alcohol. The label on this medication

specifically stated, “DO

NOT DRINK ALCOHOLIC BEVER-

AGES WHILE TAKING THIS MEDI-

CATION.” A warning label did not

deter me from abusing alcohol. I

very well could have blacked out

and never woken up from consuming

these dangerous cocktails,

but at the time I did not

care. Abusing alcohol may have

been a quick fix, but it caused

me even more stress, anxiety,

and depression.

In September 2018, I drafted

a written contract with myself

to not consume alcohol. I don’t

remember writing the contract,

but there was something inside

of me that recognized how

self-destructive alcohol was.

This contract quickly became

null and void because it took me

another three years to reduce my

alcohol consumption.

Another way I dangerously

coped was by drinking and driving.

Prior to attending any type

of social event, even as simple

as going to the grocery store, I

would consume alcohol. I would

travel to a nearby gas station

and purchase many small bottles

of liquor containing about

1.5 ounces of whiskey, vodka, or

whatever I could afford at the

time. I would immediately consume

the alcohol in my vehicle

prior to traveling to my destination.

I tossed the empty bottles

in the back of my vehicle or out

the window while I was driving.

I would rationalize that it would

take about 30 minutes for me to

feel the effects of the alcohol,

and by the time I was impaired I

would have arrived at my destination.

I was very fortunate that

I was not arrested for drinking

and driving or even worse, killing

someone.

Another example of risky and

reckless behavior that I am still

ashamed of today involved alcohol,

operating while impaired,

and my youngest daughter. I was

consuming alcohol late morning

into the early afternoon and had

to pick up my youngest daughter

at her mother’s (my ex-wife’s)

house and take her to gymnastics.

As we drove to gymnastics,

I took the wrong turn and drove

21 miles out of the way. I drove

for 61 miles impaired by alcohol.

For 46 miles, I had my youngest

daughter with me.

I used casual sex as a coping

strategy and to distract myself

from my emotional discomfort

and pain. I would meet women

and sometimes within 30 minutes,

we would have sex. This

caused me more stress and anxiety

than anything else. Sure, I felt

great during sex, but it caused


me more harm than good. I was

constantly worried about pregnancy

and contracting a Sexually

Transmitted Disease. Although

this type of sexual behavior

was risky, self-destructive, and

caused me stress and anxiety, it

was not enough to convince me

to stop. I wanted an instant feelgood

escape from my life and

casual sex provided that for me.

Another dangerous and unimaginable

way I coped was

by putting my duty weapon

to my head. During my critical

incident, it was a Glock 22 Gen

4 – 40 Caliber. I put this weapon

to my head at least a dozen

times. Sometimes I even placed

the barrel in my mouth. I would

always remove the magazine,

but for those of you who are

not familiar with a Glock, if you

don’t rack the slide and remove

the round from the chamber

(barrel) it will still discharge a

round. I very easily could have

accidentally killed myself. My

rationalization was that I simply

wanted to hear and feel the metallic

click of the trigger being

pulled while the barrel of the

gun was resting against my right

temple. I did this while I was

under the influence of alcohol. I

still do not truly understand why

I did this, and sometimes wonder

how many times it happened

while I was excessively consuming

alcohol. I am very fortunate

to be alive.

In December 2021 I experienced

a panic attack during an active

shooter training which led to

a psychological assessment in

January 2022. The assessment

lasted seven hours and resulted

in a nine-page mental health

diagnoses. I was thinking about

not being honest during the evaluation.

I thought I could beat the

evaluation. I chose to be honest

with the evaluation and myself;

that was the only way I would

receive the type of help I need.

I was diagnosed with Major

Depressive Disorder and PTSD

with Acute Stress by the police

department’s psychologist

and deemed Unfit for Duty. This

meant I was not able to return

to work and needed to undergo

intense Psychotherapy, Eye

Movement Desensitization and

Reprocessing (EMDR), Biofeedback,

and Dialectical Behavior

Therapy (DBT).

I requested a 90 day leave of

absence to work on my mental

health in hope of returning to

duty. I attended therapy two and


three days a week for 90 days. I

was finally undergoing the right

kind of mental health treatment

that helped me heal and understand

why I adapted to poor

coping strategies to self-medicate

myself. I only wished I

would have begun this therapy

five years earlier, but it was better

later than never.

In April 2022, during my leave

of absence, I was placed on a

safety plan because of my suicidal

ideations. The psychological

exam discovered an elevated

risk of harm to myself. I agreed

to not engage in self-harm,

destructive or life-threatening

behavior, or any other high-risk

behavior to myself or others. I

don’t remember ever wanting

to die by suicide, but my behaviors

were very evident that I was

heading in that direction. There

were many nights I would pray

to God that he would not let me

wake up in the morning.

In May 2022, I met with my police

chief and was told my leave

of absence was not going to be

extended. I was given the option

to resign, or I would be terminated.

I chose not to resign and

was terminated.

What next? I had been diagnosed

with a mental illness, on a

safety plan, and terminated from

a job I’ve wanted since I was a

little boy. I had been employed

with the police department for

14 years. What if I would have

gone home and died by suicide.

It was almost as if the police

department washed their hands

of me. I was ghosted by my

co-workers. The same people

who not only knew me professionally

but personally. They

knew my family, my daughters,

helped me move, and even came

to me with their own personal

and professional mental health

challenges. I would have died for

them. I felt hopeless, helpless,

and abandoned. I was devastated.

I continued weekly therapy that

includes in-person Psychotherapy

and Eye Movement Desensitization

and Reprocessing (EMDR).

I am also prescribed Lexapro

(20mg) and Propranolol (as

needed) which are medications

that help me with my depression

and generalized anxiety.

I have faced many personal and

professional mental health challenges

after my critical incident,

and it has taken me many years

to get back on track. I am currently

a police captain in Wisconsin.

I am where I am today

because I finally put myself first

and moved past my poor coping

strategies. I would not have

been successful with healing my

mental health without the unwavering

support of my Family,

Friends, Colleagues, Counselors,

and even complete Strangers. I

am very grateful and will never

be able to put into words how

much their support means to

me.

Please reach out to someone

if you believe they are struggling

with their mental health.

I know it may feel awkward or

uncomfortable, but most people

will not admit they are struggling,

and most people will not

reach out for help. You could

be a light during a very dark

time in their life. Remember, it’s

okay to talk about your mental

health. You are not alone. Please

don’t suffer in silence.

I also want to thank my Police

Chief Shawn McGee for strongly

supporting our officers, our

communities, and my mental

health.

Chief McGee’s leadership and

support means so much to me

and is important for raising

awareness that it’s OK to talk

about your mental health, you

are not alone, and you don’t

have to suffer in silence.


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A BADGE OF HONOR

healing our heroes

Deflate your Balloon

As a First Responder, the

stress from your job can

become overwhelming at

times.

We continue to internalize

our stress allowing it to fill

up in our system until one

day it POPS.

Just like a Balloon, as we

fill it up it gets bigger and

bigger, expanding, getting

tense until without warning

the Balloon explodes. As

First responders we are no

different. We never know

how many more incidents it

will take before we explode

either internally or externally.

If we view our system, the

way we look at a balloon as

it is filling, we need to regulate

and adjust just how

much (air) or in our case,

stress each can handle. Our

careers will never be without

stress or tension, so the

key is to let the air out as it

is needed. We can see and

feel when a balloon is at its

popping point, so we know

that if I keep adding air to

it, it will soon explode. We

need to be able to recognize

our bodies the same way.

By releasing some of our

daily stress, it can make a

big difference in the way

we perform at work and at

home. There is no right or

wrong way to release the

tension, so if it is not harmful

or can’t lead to any additive

issue. Go for it.

The reason I say that is,

Alcohol, gaming, social media,

Porn, gambling etc. are

all types of stress relievers

which someone may use,

and if used in proper moderation

can all be a release.

The types of mental health

releases are unlimited. Individually

you will need to

find what works for you.

First responders by nature

have a type ‘A” high energy

personality. If we were the

type “B” we would most

likely have chosen a different

career. So, we tend

to release our stress with

activities that may border

harmful, so we need to

tread with caution.

This is the reason we try

and stick to activities that

will not place us in harm’s

SAMANTHA HORWITZ &

JOHN SALERNO

way.

Walking, Running,

Weightlifting, Yoga, or any

exercise has been proven

to not only release stress

but provides overall better

physical health as well.

If you are not the physical

type, maybe tap into your

artistic side. Learn to draw,

play an instrument or any

other creative projects. Theatrical

art such as drama or

comedy, providing laughter

is a huge stress release.

Our balloons should never

reach the point of “Bust.”

Educate those around us

in Mental Health so they can

also help boost our support

network giving us an extra

layer in our safety net.

The more people watching

over our balloon gives

us the best chances to not

overfill it.

John Salerno, Retired NYPD,



DARYL LOTT

daryl’s deliberations

Grief, A Universal Experience

When we as human beings experience

different things in life,

they are always a learning opportunity.

Our brains are geared

toward learning. Think of the joy

you felt when learning a new

skill, particularly one that you

pictured yourself enjoying. Maybe

it was your first solid hit to the

outfield as a little leaguer. Maybe

it was learning to cook a meal

or play the piano. Learning is a

lifelong experience. It’s not just

for our enjoyment, sometimes it’s

for our survival.

When we lose something or

someone we love, we must learn

new skills. Experiencing

grief

is no fun walk in

the park. It has

stages. It has

procedures we

follow whether

we realize it or

not.

One way many

folks deal with

loss is to retreat

into nature. Our

natural world is

a great source

of healing. We

can shift our

inward pointing

feelings

to something

grand and glorious

located outside ourselves.

This is what Theodore Roosevelt

did on the worst day of his life:

February 14, 1884.

Roosevelt, a young New York

state assemblyman, was attending

the legislature in Albany

when he got word his mother

was deathly ill with Typhoid

Fever. His mother was his only

parent at the time. His father lost

the battle with stomach cancer at

the age of forty-six.

Teddy had always been a bright

young man, but as a boy, he was

sickly. Among other things, he

had asthma. His father told him

that he would have to work hard

on his body so he could pursue

life. Teddy, under his father’s

supervision, worked hard on his

physical fitness to compensate for

his illnesses. He grew close to his

father and succeeded in overcoming

his physical limitations.

DARYL LOTT

When his father died, Teddy

took to studying the natural

world. He considered himself to

be a naturalist

and

spent countless

hours at

the Museum

of Natural

History in

New York.

He went to

Harvard and

set his sights

on politics

after graduation.

He

married Alice

and started a

family.

While

in Albany,

his mother

watched

over Alice as she was pregnant.

Alice delivered a baby girl, and,

for Teddy, the happiest day of

his life soon turned to the worst


time of his life. Two days after the

birth of his daughter, his mother

suddenly died of Typhoid Fever. A

mere two hours later, Alice died

from a kidney disease. He lost

his mother and his wife on the

same day: Valentine’s Day 1884.

His journal notes the date with

a big, black “X”, and a note that

read, “The light has gone out of

my life.”

Teddy left his new daughter in

the care of his sister, resigned

from the legislature, and fled to

South Dakota. In his grief, he got

as far away from New York City

as possible. He became a cattleman

and a sheriff. He learned

new skills. He learned how to

keep the peace and raise cattle in

a hostile weather environment.

After two years, he returned to

his home in the city. The things he

learned in grief would turn out

to benefit all of us. His appreciation

of nature and wildlife can be

seen today via the national park

system he created. As President

of the United States, he showed

a physical and mental toughness

to our enemies and to those who

would abuse women and children

in the factories of the Industrial

Revolution.

Although grief is universal, the

way we handle it is individual

and personal. The ability to turn

one’s focus from inside to outside

was Roosevelt’s key. He returned

to the natural environment he

considered to be his first love.

Above all else, he was a naturalist.

God’s creation is there for us

in our hardest times. Don’t forget

to use it.


DR. TINA JAECKLE

blue mental health

Twenty-Five Years:

A Look Back & Lessons Learned

On this day I am truly blessed

to reach 25 years as a

counselor, consultant, and

instructor with law enforcement

and first responders. It

started out as a mission and

became a calling. It has certainly

been both an amazing

and challenging journey

and I am deeply grateful for

the experiences and lessons

learned. It is and will always

be in God’s timing when it is

time to retire, and I am truly

excited for what 2025 will

bring.

Here are some of my observations

over the decades.

1. From my work with the

FBI National Academy, the

USMS, FLETC, USDA, DCF,

FDLE, JSO, and countless

other federal, state, and local

agencies across the nation,

the one commonality they all

share is that they are comprised

of human beings, who

on any given day can change

the course of other’s lives,

both good and bad.

2. Regardless of the significant

changes in the field,

serving as a first responder

is still an honorable profession.

Hold your head high.

But please always remember,

you can love the job all you

want but it will never love

you back. In fact, it can betray

you and steal your soul

if you let it. Love your family

and invest in those who value

you. Maintain close friendships

outside of the field to

keep perspective and recognize

that not everyone is bad.

Learn early in your career

that this is only one identity

and there is so much more in

life. Never, ever lose sight of

this.

3. Ask yourself what type

of legacy you want to leave

once you are done. Record

numbers in the field are now

retiring. I have met countless

leaders who positively impact

their folks every day and

others who destroy the very

morale that holds the agency

up. Ego and arrogance have

no place here but it drives so

many important decisions. I

have challenged it and have

won some, and of course,

lost some of those battles.

I encourage you to read the

book “Seeds of Leadership”

DR. TINA JAECKLE

by Chief David Ogden, Windermere

Police Department,

Florida. Powerful work and

insight. A true servant leader.

4. The greatest lie and perpetuated

narrative ever told

to first responders is that they

must be tough at all costs

and bury their emotions. It

is incredibly destructive and

while it is changing, we still

have a long way to go.

5. In my opinion, the most

influential positions in any

law enforcement agency are

the field training officer and

patrol/corrections sergeant.

You feel the very heartbeat

of your folks and it shows in

the way you approach them

(either positive or negative).

Please build your folks up to

prepare them for the probability

of success. Your words

are forever imprinted on who


they are. From what I’ve been

told, an officer never forgets

their FTO or their first sergeant.

Again, good or bad.

6. I have supported some

incredibly powerful leaders

in the field, but my greatest

respect is for those on the

front line, who remain dedicated

to getting up every

day to try to help the broken

souls in our communities,

often under very difficult

circumstances. You are my

heroes, and I see you.

7. To my fellow colleagues

who have shared my dedication

and passion, I deeply

appreciate you and the hard

work you do in this field.

We, now as a small group,

jumped into the trenches to

push change, while taking a

hell of a beating along the

way. I am honored to know

you.

8. To the younger professionals

who now counsel

and support our wonderful

first responder community,

please be certain you are doing

this for the right reasons.

When I started in 2000, we

were a rarity, now there are

countless organizations and

providers who sadly are in it

for self-promotion, financial

compensation, and/or glory.

However, there are also just

as many who truly make a

difference. Thank you for

getting it.

9. I will never take for

granted the trust you have

gifted me and the vulnerability

you have shown to me. It

takes courage to ask for help.

10. Life is extremely fragile;

in fact, you see it every day.

How can you learn from this

to make your life better?

Always walk with grace.

Blessings always. Doc

EDITOR’S NOTE: With over

40 years of issues behind us,

I can say without hesitation

that having Doc involved in

the monthly production of

The BLUES is a God send to

our readers. Tina is certainly

one of the very best editors

the magazine has ever had.

Her contributions not only

with her monthly column, but

the outstanding feature articles

she has authored these

past five years, are one of the

primary reasons The BLUES

has become the largest Police

Magazine in the World. We

thank you for all you do for

First Responders everywhere.

God Bless.


NOT SO BRIGHT AWARD

Light Bulb Award

NOTHIN’ BUT LIES

Thank God KJP is on her way out of the White House and on

her way to either CNN or MSNBC...care to bet on which one?

Back in May of 2022, President

Biden promoted his deputy press

Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre

as his new White House press

secretary, to replace Jen Psaki,

who left to take a job at MSNBC.

Prior to that, she worked in the

Obama White House as regional

political director for the White

House Office of Political Affairs.

She also worked on President

Barack Obama’s 2008 and 2012

campaigns.

On her first day in the briefing

room, Jean-Pierre talked about

the significance of her appointment.

She was proud of the fact

she was the first Black woman

and openly LGBTQ+ person to be

appointed to the role. She said it

was a “historic moment.”

Well, it would historic all

right, not because she was black

or LGBTQ+, but rather it was one

of the only things she ever spoke

the truth about. The fact is, for

2+ years she lied nearly every

day to the American people

about the mental condition of

her boss. Yes, we’re speaking of

Joe Biden.

There is no way that she didn’t

know. She spoke to him almost

every day. They had regular

conversations about damn near

everything and besides the fact

that his lips were moving, there’s

no way she could make out what

he was saying 90% of the time.

I’m sure she just nodded her head

and said, “yes Mr. President.”

And when senior White House

correspondents asked her repeatedly

about Biden’s mental

health, she flat ass lied when she

denied accusations that Biden’s

staff had been concealing his

mental and physical decline

from the American public.

Finally, The Wall Street Journal

issued a bombshell report

that revealed that White House

aides hid President Joe Biden’s

apparent mental decline from

day 1 of the presidency. Aides

kept meetings short and controlled

access, top advisers acted

as go-betweens and public interactions

became more scripted.

Private discussions with the

President became less frequent

and a voice coach was also

hired.

According to the report, the

White House also hired a voice

coach, Hollywood mogul and

campaign co-chairman Jeffrey

Katzenberg, to try to improve

Biden’s faint, raspy tone. Oth-


er staffers removed negative

reports from Biden’s stack of

news for the day, misleading

him about the public’s opinion

of his job performance — which

reached a 70-year low in 2024.

The signs were always

there-throughout his term in the

Oval Office. He frequently relied

on note cards, was spotted having

large directions printed for

him, often mixed up the names

of foreign dignitaries or other

facts and gaffed when he went

off-script or ignored his teleprompter.

Biden even forgot the

year his son Beau Biden died of

brain cancer.

Campaign staff were also concerned

that first lady Jill Biden

would outshine the president,

even during the 2020 primary,

according to the Journal.

During her husband’s term, the

first lady even tried to stop him

from going it alone too long at

press conferences, fearing he’d

be caught flat-footed by questions

as the events dragged on.

And through all this, Karine

Jean-Pierre just lied, and lied

and covered it all up. Come January

20, 2025, I’ll guarantee that

she’s hired on at CNN or CSNBC

and will continue to lie to the

American public every single

day.

Meanwhile, once Trump takes

office, we will once again have a

real honest to God White House

Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt.

Leavitt, at age 27, will be the

youngest White House press

secretary in American history.

Previously that distinction went

to Ronald Ziegler, who was 29

when he took the position in

1969. in Richard Nixon’s administration.

ALL FIRST RESPONDERS & VETERANS

10% OFF A NEW INTERIOR

FOR YOUR CAR,TRUCK OR SUV

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ADS BACK IN THE DAY

130 The Blues BLUES - January -- JANUARY ‘24‘25

The Blues BLUES - January - - JANUARY ‘24‘25 ‘25 131

ADS BACK IN THE DAY



THERE ARE

parting shots...


NO WORDS


THERE ARE

parting shots...


NO WORDS


PRIORITY BOLO

NOW HIRING

ISD PD JOB LISTINGS

IS YOUR ISD PD

HIRING?

YOUR DEPARTMENT’S RECRUITING AD

CAN BE LISTED HERE FOR ONLY $250

bluespdmag@gmail.com


ALDINE ISD

POLICE DEPARTMENT

JOIN OUR TEAM

EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS

• Sick Leave

• Paid Vacation

• Paid Holidays

• Personal Days

• Teacher Retirement System

TCOLE CERTIFICATION INCENTIVE

• Intermediate PO: $2,400

• Advanced PO: $4,800

• Master PO: $7,200

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

• Must be 21 Years Of Age

• Must Hold an Active Tcole Peace Officer License

• Must Complete the Following:

• Pass Physical Agility Test

• Background Investigation

• Psychological Evaluation

• Drug Screening

DEPARTMENT BENEFITS

• Uniforms Provided, Including Duty Weapon

• Department Provided Training

• Starting Pay Depends on

Qualifications / Experience

• TCOLE Certification / Education Pay

• Most Officers work Day Shift with Weekends Off

(INCENTIVE PAY FOR DETECTIVES, K-9 HANDLERS, AND

FIREARM INSTRUCTORS.)

FOR MORE INFO CONTACT

SGT. HALL AT 281.442.4923

OR VISIT ALDINEISD.ORG

APPLY AT

ALDINEISD.ORG

STARTING SALARY $55,000 WITH NO EXPERIENCE

UP TO $85,000 DEPENDING ON EXPERIENCE

ALDINE ISD PD OFFERS

SPECIALIZED DIVISIONS

• Criminal Investigations

• Emergency Response Team

• Honor Guard

• Gang Task Force

• Community Outreach Division

• K-9 Division

• Firearm Instructor

$1,000 SIGNING BONUS

Want to make a difference?

225 work days

$28 -$37.02 Hourly

(Commensurate with experience)

5 years experience preferred

Benefits including:

Family Time/Leave

Most weekends off

Thanksgiving break

Christmas break

Spring and Summer breaks

Teacher Retirement System

Apply at

www.alvinisd.net/careers

Certification Pay:

Master $4,000 annually

Advanced $3,000 annually

Intermediate $2,000 annually

Insurance & Benefits

Many Overtime Opportunities

Generous Training Opportunities

Take home vehicle program


PRIORITY BOLO

NOW HIRING

ISD PD JOB LISTINGS

FIND YOUR ISD

POSITION HERE

140 The BLUES - - JANUARY ‘25

Now Hiring

School District Police Officer

Must be TCOLE Certified

www.pfisd.net/police

226 day work schedule with starting

salary between $52,884 and $60,821

depending on experience

Overtime Opportunities Available

Stipends for TCOLE Advanced & Master

Licenses, MHO Certification, College

Degrees, and Bilingual Proficiency

Thanksgiving, Winter, &

Spring Breaks off

Take Home Vehicle Program

Great Insurance & Benefits

Package with TRS

Retirement

SPRING BRANCH ISD POLICE DEPARTMENT

WE’RE

HIRING

Patrol & Onsite Officers (HS/MS)

Gang Officer

Mental Health Officers

Community Relations Officer

Emergency Management

Criminal Investigations

K-9 programs

*All equipment provided including duty weapon

**Training opportunities available

DEPARTMENT

HIGHLIGHTS

55 officer department

44 square mile district

47 schools

35,000 population

24/7 Patrol

We want you to preserve, protect, and defend our future.

Starting Pay $63,000 (TCOLE Basic Peace Officer certification with no experience)

Language pay

Shift differential pay

Intermediate, Advanced and

Master Peace Officer

certificate pay

Paid time off

Ample overtime opportunities

Apply online today. springbranchisd.com/join-our-team


NOW HIRING

LE job positions

GRIMES COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE Get Info Patrol Deputy 01/06/2025

Bruceville-Eddy Police Department Get Info School Resource Office 01/05/2025

Bruceville-Eddy Police Department Get Info Patrol Officer 01/05/2025

Liberty County Fire Marshal Get Info Fire Marshal 01/06/2025

Buda Police Department Get Info Police Officer 01/06/2025

Alamo College Police Department Get Info Peace Officer 01/07/2025

Harris County Sheriff’s Office Get Info Detention Officer 01/09/2025

Harris County Sheriff’s Office Get Info Deputy Sheriff’s Cadet 01/09/2025

Harris County Sheriff’s Office Get Info Deputy Sheriff - Lateral 01/09/2025

Seagraves Police Department Get Info Police Officer 01/10/2025

Oak Point Police Department Get Info Police Officer 01/12/2025

Fort Worth Marshal’s Office Get Info Deputy Marshal 01/12/2025

Needville Police Department Get Info Peace Officer 01/03/2025

Martin County Sheriff’s Office Get Info Deputy Sheriff 01/03/2025

Santa Anna Police Department Get Info Police Officer - Multiple Positions 01/02/2025

Dallas County Marshal Service LEO Get Info Peace Officer – Corporal 01/04/2025

Dallas County Marshal Service Level IIIGet Info GLOA Security Officer/Screener 01/04/2025

Point Comfort Police Department Get Info Part Time / Full Time Patrol Officers 01/08/2025

Department of Public Safety Get Info Police Officer 01/15/2025

Whitewright ISD Police Department Get Info Peace Officer 01/20/2025

Port Aransas Police Department Get Info Patrol Officer 01/20/2025

Overton Police Department Get Info Patrol Officer 01/20/2025

Chandler Police Department Get Info Patrol Officer 01/20/2025

West University Place Police Dept Get Info Police Officer 01/03/2025

Katy ISD Police Department Get Info Police Chief 02/10/2025

Duncanville Police Department Get Info Peace Officer (Non-Certified) 01/11/2025

Duncanville Police Department Get Info Peace Officer (Certified) 01/11/2025

Whitney Police Department Get Info Police Officers - Multiple Positions 02/10/2025

Bruceville-Eddy Police Department Get Info Full-Time Patrol Officer 01/05/2025

Alamo Colleges Police Department Get Info Captain 01/02/2025

Austin Police Department Get Info Police Cadets 02/01/2025

Southwestern University Police Department Police Officer 01/19/2025

Saginaw Police Department Get Info Police Officer 02/15/2025

Tarrant Regional Water District Get Info Patrol Officer 01/20/2025

Big Spring Fire Department Get Info Police Officer 01/13/2025

New Braunfels Police Department Get Info Certified Officers (including Lateral) 01/17/2025

El Paso Police Department Get Info Police Trainee 02/28/2025

Nolan County Sheriff’s Office Get Info Patrol Deputy 02/15/2025

Bexar County Sheriff’s Office Get Info Law Enforcement Deputy 03/01/2025

San Saba County Sheriff’s Office Get Info Deputy 02/28/2025


NOW HIRING

LE job positions

WELCOME ABOARD PASADENA PD


JOIN MPD

TEXT "JOINMPD" TO

TO APPLY OR SPEAK

WITH A RECRUITER

SALARY

Up to $20,000 lateral officer signing bonus

Police officer entry-level: $6,883 monthly

Custody officer salary range: $5,970–$7,132 monthly

EDUCATION INCENTIVE

90 quarter credits/ 60 semester credits/ AA: 6%

BA/ BS: 8%

RETIREMENT PENSION

Police officers: LEOFF 2

Custody officers: PERS 2

VACATION

Police officer range: 200 hours annually, up to 320

hours annually depending on years of service

Custody officer range: 192 hours annually, up to 312


SPECIALIZED UNITS

Police officer: Investigations, Traffic, Pro-Act

(N.I.T.E.) and K9

Custody Officer: Court Security Unit


HEALTH COVERAGE

Medical, Dental and Vision covered 100% for

employees and 90% for dependents

WELCOME OUR NEWEST DEPARTMENTS

JOIN MPD

TEXT "JOINMPD" TO

TO APPLY OR SPEAK

WITH A RECRUITER

SALARY

Up to $20,000 lateral officer signing bonus

Police officer entry-level: $6,883 monthly

Custody officer salary range: $5,970–$7,132 monthly

EDUCATION INCENTIVE

90 quarter credits/ 60 semester credits/ AA: 6%

BA/ BS: 8%

RETIREMENT PENSION

Police officers: LEOFF 2

Custody officers: PERS 2

VACATION

Police officer range: 200 hours annually, up to 320


Custody officer range: 192 hours annually, up to 312


SPECIALIZED UNITS

Police officer: Investigations, Traffic, Pro-Act

(N.I.T.E.) and K9

Custody Officer: Court Security Unit

HEALTH COVERAGE

Medical, Dental and Vision covered 100% for

employees and 90% for dependents

NOW HIRING

Lateral Police Officers

GARDEN RIDGE

POLICE DEPARTMENT

NOW HIRING!

Garden Ridge Police Department

9400 Municipal Parkway · Garden Ridge · Texas · 78266

Office: 210-651-6441· Fax: 210-651-1639

QUALIFICATIONS

• MUST BE A CERTIFIED TEXAS PEACE

OFFICER

• MUST PASS DRUG SCREEN AND PHYSICAL

• MUST POSSESS A VALID TEXAS DRIVER

LICENSE WITH A GOOD DRIVING RECORD

• MUST PASS ALL INTERVIEWS

• MUST PASS CRIMINAL BACKGROUND

CHECK

SALARY AND BENEFITS

• PATROL OFFICER ANNUAL SALARY

5,000

HIRING PROCESS

• PHYSICAL FITNESS TESTING

• SCENARIO TESTING

• CRIMINAL BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION

• FORMAL ORAL BOARD

• CHIEF’S INTERVIEW

$67,045

• STEP/LATERAL PAY

• HIRING INCENTIVE LUMP SUM PAY $________________

• INSURANCE: COMPREHENSIVE MEDICAL, DENTAL, VISION PAID BY CITY

• SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM DISABILITY INSURANCE PAID BY CITY

• OVERTIME & COMPTIME OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE

• RETIREMENT: TMRS 2:1 CONTRIBUTIONS, WITH 20-YEAR RETIREMENT

• LONGEVITY: $120 ANNUALLY FOR EACH FULL YEAR OF SERVICE

• PAID TIME OFF (PTO) ACCRUAL BEGINS IMMEDIATELY AT 4.50 HRS. PER PAY PERIOD

• 15 CITY HOLDAYS PER YEAR

• LICENSE PAY (MONTHLY): INTERMEDIATE - $25, ADVANCED - $50, MASTER - $100

• WEAPONS: DEPARTMENT FURNISHES ALL OFFICERS WITH A GLOCK HANDGUN & AR-15

RIFLE W/SUPPRESSOR, WEAPON LIGHTS, TASER AND LESS-LETHAL IMPACT WEAPON

• UNIFORMS: DEPARTMENT FURNISHES ALL OFFICERS WITH CLASS B, CLASS A AND

TRAINING UNIFORMS, RAIN GEAR, BOOTS AND WINTER APPAREL

• EQUIPMENT: DEPARTMENT FURNISHES ALL OFFICERS WITH BALLISTIC HELMET & SHIELD,

SOFT ARMOR, RIFLE PLATE ARMOR, DUTY BELTS, AND BODY CAMERAS

• PATROL VEHICLES: THE DEPARTMENT SUPPLIES OFFICERS WITH SUV PATROL UNITS

EQUIPPED WITH LAPTOP, IN-CAR VIDEO, AND RADARS

• SHIFT SCHEDULE: PATROL OFFICERS WORK A PANAMA STYLE 12-HOUR SHIFT

• EXTENSIVE ANNUAL TRAINING BUDGET ALLOWS THE DEPARTMENT TO SUPPLY ADVANCED

TRAINING CLASSES TO OFFICERS INCLUDING A POLICEONE ONLINE TRAINING ACCOUNT

• BEARD AND VISIBLE TATTOOS ARE ALLOWED

• ENVIRONMENT WITH STRONG COMMUNITY SUPPORT AND PROFESSIONAL, GROWTH-

MINDED COMMAND STAFF


GARDEN RIDGE

POLICE DEPARTMENT

NOW HIRING!

Garden Ridge Police Department

9400 Municipal Parkway · Garden Ridge · Texas · 78266

Office: 210-651-6441· Fax: 210-651-1639


NOW HIRING

Lateral Police Officers

QUALIFICATIONS

• MUST BE A CERTIFIED TEXAS PEACE

OFFICER

• MUST PASS DRUG SCREEN AND PHYSICAL

• MUST POSSESS A VALID TEXAS DRIVER

LICENSE WITH A GOOD DRIVING RECORD

• MUST PASS ALL INTERVIEWS

• MUST PASS CRIMINAL BACKGROUND

CHECK

SALARY AND BENEFITS

• PATROL OFFICER ANNUAL SALARY

5,000

HIRING PROCESS

• PHYSICAL FITNESS TESTING

• SCENARIO TESTING

• CRIMINAL BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION

• FORMAL ORAL BOARD

• CHIEF’S INTERVIEW

$67,045

• STEP/LATERAL PAY

• HIRING INCENTIVE LUMP SUM PAY $________________

• INSURANCE: COMPREHENSIVE MEDICAL, DENTAL, VISION PAID BY CITY

• SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM DISABILITY INSURANCE PAID BY CITY

• OVERTIME & COMPTIME OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE

• RETIREMENT: TMRS 2:1 CONTRIBUTIONS, WITH 20-YEAR RETIREMENT

• LONGEVITY: $120 ANNUALLY FOR EACH FULL YEAR OF SERVICE

• PAID TIME OFF (PTO) ACCRUAL BEGINS IMMEDIATELY AT 4.50 HRS. PER PAY PERIOD

• 15 CITY HOLDAYS PER YEAR

• LICENSE PAY (MONTHLY): INTERMEDIATE - $25, ADVANCED - $50, MASTER - $100

• WEAPONS: DEPARTMENT FURNISHES ALL OFFICERS WITH A GLOCK HANDGUN & AR-15

RIFLE W/SUPPRESSOR, WEAPON LIGHTS, TASER AND LESS-LETHAL IMPACT WEAPON

• UNIFORMS: DEPARTMENT FURNISHES ALL OFFICERS WITH CLASS B, CLASS A AND

TRAINING UNIFORMS, RAIN GEAR, BOOTS AND WINTER APPAREL

• EQUIPMENT: DEPARTMENT FURNISHES ALL OFFICERS WITH BALLISTIC HELMET & SHIELD,

SOFT ARMOR, RIFLE PLATE ARMOR, DUTY BELTS, AND BODY CAMERAS

• PATROL VEHICLES: THE DEPARTMENT SUPPLIES OFFICERS WITH SUV PATROL UNITS

EQUIPPED WITH LAPTOP, IN-CAR VIDEO, AND RADARS

• SHIFT SCHEDULE: PATROL OFFICERS WORK A PANAMA STYLE 12-HOUR SHIFT

• EXTENSIVE ANNUAL TRAINING BUDGET ALLOWS THE DEPARTMENT TO SUPPLY ADVANCED

TRAINING CLASSES TO OFFICERS INCLUDING A POLICEONE ONLINE TRAINING ACCOUNT

• BEARD AND VISIBLE TATTOOS ARE ALLOWED

• ENVIRONMENT WITH STRONG COMMUNITY SUPPORT AND PROFESSIONAL, GROWTH-

MINDED COMMAND STAFF


$10,000

H I R I N G B O N U S

Ready for a career change?

Join our team at Spring Creek Correctional

Center in Seward today!

Located in the stunning city of Seward,

surrounded by glaciers and forests in

southern Alaska, Spring Creek Correctional

Center spans 328 acres. This facility houses

up to 535 sentenced male inmates and serves

communities across Alaska. Join us in

making a difference!


WE ARE

Hiring!

Scan the QR code

to join the DOC

team today!

WELCOME OUR NEWEST DEPARTMENT

Spring Creek Correctional Center

$10,000

H I R I N G B O N U S

Ready for a career change?

Join our team at Spring Creek Correctional

Center in Seward today!

Located in the stunning city of Seward,

surrounded by glaciers and forests in

southern Alaska, Spring Creek Correctional

Center spans 328 acres. This facility houses

up to 535 sentenced male inmates and serves

communities across Alaska. Join us in

making a difference!

WE ARE

Hiring!

Scan the QR code

to join the DOC

team today!


ADCRR is Hiring

Correctional Officers

1-888-545-RUSH


This Is How We Serve

Serve With Us

Idaho State Police

Apply now through

March 3rd

To Serve and protect

the citizens

of Idaho

K9 Teams

Commerical Vehicle Safety

Investigations

www.isp.idaho.gov

Capitol Protective Services

SWAT

Crash Reconstruction




Want to make a difference?

225 work days

$28 -$37.02 Hourly

(Commensurate with experience)

5 years experience preferred

Certification Pay:

Master $4,000 annually

Advanced $3,000 annually

Intermediate $2,000 annually

Benefits including:

Family Time/Leave

Most weekends off

Thanksgiving break

Christmas break

Spring and Summer breaks

Teacher Retirement System

Insurance & Benefits

Many Overtime Opportunities

Generous Training Opportunities

Take home vehicle program

Apply at

www.alvinisd.net/careers


ALDINE ISD

POLICE DEPARTMENT

JOIN OUR TEAMAPPLY AT

EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS

• Sick Leave

• Paid Vacation

• Paid Holidays

• Personal Days

• Teacher Retirement System

TCOLE CERTIFICATION INCENTIVE

• Intermediate PO: $2,400

• Advanced PO: $4,800

• Master PO: $7,200


• Must be 21 Years Of Age

• Must Hold an Active Tcole Peace Officer License

• Must Complete the Following:

• Pass Physical Agility Test

• Background Investigation

• Psychological Evaluation

• Drug Screening

ALDINEISD.ORG

STARTING SALARY $55,000 WITH NO EXPERIENCE

UP TO $85,000 DEPENDING ON EXPERIENCE

ALDINE ISD PD OFFERS

DEPARTMENT BENEFITS

• Uniforms Provided, Including Duty Weapon


• Starting Pay Depends on

Qualifications / Experience

• TCOLE Certification / Education Pay

• Most Officers work Day Shift with Weekends Off

(INCENTIVE PAY FOR DETECTIVES, K-9 HANDLERS, AND

FIREARM INSTRUCTORS.)

FOR MORE INFO CONTACT

SGT. HALL AT 281.442.4923

OR VISIT ALDINEISD.ORG

SPECIALIZED DIVISIONS

• Criminal Investigations

• Emergency Response Team

• Honor Guard

• Gang Task Force

• Community Outreach Division

• K-9 Division

• Firearm Instructor

$1,000 SIGNING BONUS





BUDA POLICE DEPARTMENT

NOW HIRING - POLICE OFFICER

Starting Salary

$64.5K to $74.8K

*TCOLE Licensed Only

We are proud to be one of the safest cities in the State of Texas

and have tremendous support from our community.

Benefits

Retirement

2-1 City Match with TMRS

Medical/Dental/Vision

100% Medical Coverage

Offsetting Copays

Educational Pay

$50- $150 Per Month

Incentive Pay

$75-$150(max) per Month for

assignments such as:

FTO, Bike Patrol, SWAT

Annual Leave Accruals

15 Paid Holidays

80 Hours Vacation

120 Hours Sick Leave

Bilingual Pay

Shift Differential Pay

Lateral Entry Program

On-site Gym

Officer Wellness Program

www.budatx.gov/92/Employment




NOW

HIRING

BIG SPRING PD IS NOW HIRING POLICE OFFICERS

• 100% PAID ACADEMY TRAINING FOR

NON-CERTIFIED CADETS

• EQUIPMENT AND UNIFORMS ARE PROVIDED

INCLUDING TAKE HOME VEHICLES

• TMRS RETIREMENT (2:1 CITY MATCH)

• 100% EMPLOYEE MEDICAL AND LIFE

INSURANCE PREMIUM PAID BY THE CITY

• PAID VACATION AND HOLIDAYS

• PAID SICK LEAVE


• LONGEVITY PAY FOR YEARS OF SERVICE

• EMPLOYEE WELLNESS PROGRAM

• PROGRESSIVE ANNUAL IN-SERVICE

TRAINING AND EXTERNAL TRAINING

OPPORTUNITIES.

• OPPORTUNITIES FOR DIVERSE

EXPERIENCE IN ASSIGNMENTS SUCH AS

SWAT, NARCOTICS, TRAFFIC, AND CRIMINAL

INVESTIGATIONS DIVISION

• $1500 ACADEMY REIMBURSEMENT AND

$2400 RELOCATION PAY FOR CERTIFIED

OFFICERS

$55,900 STARTING ANNUAL SALARY FOR CERTIFIED POLICE OFFICERS.

ENTRY LEVEL TESTING ON AUGUST 1, 2023

APPLICATION DEADLINE IS JULY 26, 2023

APPLY NOW AT WWW.MYBIGSPRING.COM

THE CITY OF BIG SPRING IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER




Bellaire Police Department


Hiring

Police Officers

Annual Salary $57,592 - $62,899 range + Benefits | Certification Pay | Longevity Pay | Bilingual

Certification by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE)

Pay 12 Hour Shift Schedule - Alternating weekends off and good life/work balance

All equipment/uniform provided | Take home patrol car program | Visible tattoo & beard policy

Benefits at NO COST TO EMPLOYEE:

• Education Reimbursement Program

• 80 hours of Vacation (accrued annually)

• 96 hours of sick leave annually (accrued annually)

• 14 Paid Holidays

• Life Insurance 2x annual base salary

• Employee Assistance Program

• Paid Training Opportunities

Additional Benefits

• TMRS retirement system - 5% employee

contribution - City matches 2:1 at retirement

• Medical Insurance: - United Health Care

† Ask about our Lateral Transfer Program

requirements

Questions? Contact Lt. Kelvin Raven at kraven@cityofbrenham.org | 979-337-7363

jobs.cityofbrenham.org





DALLAS POLICE department

WE aRE HIRING

Lateral Entry Police officers

INCENTIVE PAYS

Education Pay Up to $2,880/yearly

Bachelor’s Degree $3,600/yearly

Intermediate Cert. $600/yearly

Advanced Cert. $4,800/yearly

Master Peace Officer $7,200/yearly

Shift Differential 3.5% - 6.5%

FTO Pay

$1,200/yearly

Language Pay Up to $1,800/yearly

3 years experience

$80,431

4 years experience

$82,736

5 years experience

$85,109

BENEFITS

Assistance with state licensing

endorsement

15 paid vacation days/year (does

not expire)

Relocation assistance

No residency requirement

Wellness Unit and Peer Support

6 Weeks maternity/paternity leave

Health/Vision/Dental/Life

Insurance

Load Bearing Vests

All Equipment provided at no cost

Minimum Qualifications:

Subject to same hiring process as all other police officer applicants

Will have college credit hours substituted

Must have 36 months certified, full-time, law enforcement experience

Must not have any pending disciplinary actions or investigations

Out of state applicants will complete state licensing process prior to entry into the lateral

academy

DALLAS POLICE RECRUITING

Apply now at

1400 Botham Jean Blvd., Dallas, TX 75215

170 www.dallaspolice.gov

The BLUES - JANUARY (214) ‘25 671-4409

Hiring

Police Officers

Annual Salary $57,592 - $62,899 range + Benefits | Certification Pay | Longevity Pay | Bilingual

Certification by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE)

Pay 12 Hour Shift Schedule - Alternating weekends off and good life/work balance

All equipment/uniform provided | Take home patrol car program | Visible tattoo & beard policy

Benefits at NO COST TO EMPLOYEE:

• Education Reimbursement Program

• 80 hours of Vacation (accrued annually)

• 96 hours of sick leave annually (accrued annually)

• 14 Paid Holidays

• Life Insurance 2x annual base salary

• Employee Assistance Program

• Paid Training Opportunities

Additional Benefits

• TMRS retirement system - 5% employee

contribution - City matches 2:1 at retirement

• Medical Insurance: - United Health Care

† Ask about our Lateral Transfer Program

requirements

Questions? Contact Lt. Kelvin Raven at kraven@cityofbrenham.org | 979-337-7363

jobs.cityofbrenham.org






GALVESTON

COUNTY

SHERIFF’S OFFICE

Seeking Individuals Who Are Interested in a Rewarding Career in Corrections

Begin Your Career Today!

GALVESTON COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE ESTABLISHMENT OF ELIGIBILITY

Position: Corrections Deputy I

Bureau/Division: Corrections/Jail

Title/Rank: Corrections Deputy/Deputy I

Reports to: Sergeant - Corrections

Starting Salary: $51,250.00

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

Maintains the security of the facility by conducting security checks, settling disputes, and performing cell searches and

inspections; conducts outside perimeter checks.

Preparation and proper completion in the documentation of inmate records.

Issues inmate meals, clothing, linens, and personal items.

Supervise inmate programs (recreational, legal, health care, visitation and religious services)

Prepares reports on jail and inmate activities, enforce inmate handbook rules.

Supervises inmates performing such assignments as cleaning and maintaining the jail facility and continuously observe

locations and activities of inmates.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• High School / GED Certificate and must be at least 18 years of age.

• Must be a U.S. Citizen and resident of the contiguous United States for a period of time sufficient to conduct a

background investigation.

• Must be able to work days, nights, weekends, holidays and mandatory shifts when needed.

• Must be able to work during natural disasters and or under declarations.

• Must possess a valid Texas driver's license and an acceptable driving record as determined by the Galveston County

Sheriff's Office in effect at the time of application.

• Must have favorable employment history. All information given regarding past employment will be thoroughly checked.

• Must have a stable credit history.

• Must possess good computer skills and demonstrate comprehensive reading and comprehension skills.

• No conviction above a Class B Misdemeanor or a Class B misdemeanor within the last 10 years nor have been on or

currently on court-ordered community supervision or probation for any criminal offense and no Family Violence

convictions of any level.

• Applicant must pass all phases of the required testing.

• Must be eligible for licensing by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE) for the position applied for, if not

presently licensed.

TO APPLY

An applicant interested in any of GCSO position shall first download, complete and return

the Application Packet, per the instructions on the downloadable form.

The Application Packet can be found at SHERIFF.GALVESTONCOUNTYTX.GOV

JOIN US

VISIT SHERIFF.GALVESTONCOUNTYTX.GOV TO APPLY!


The Galveston County Sheriff’s Office is an Equal Opportunity Employer

CONTACT US

409.763.7585 : SO.EMPLOYMENT@GALVESTONCOUNTYTX.GOV



GOOSE CREEK CISD PD

NOW RECRUITING

POLICE OFFICERS !

POSITION DETAILS:

Provides law enforcement services to the school district to prevent and protect all students, personnel,

and visitors from physical harm and prevent property loss due to theft or vandalism. Enforce all

laws including municipal ordinances, county ordinances, and state laws.

●

●

●

●

240 or 202 Duty Day Schedule

Competitive Salary - MTD9* Starting

Stipends available for Intermediate, Advanced and Master TCOLE License

Various opportunities including K9, Patrol, Investigations, FTO, Instructor and more

REQUIREMENTS:

●

●

●

Current TCOLE Peace Officer License

Ability to pass comprehensive background

Ability to pass medical, drug and psychological

exams

HIRING PROCESS:

●

●

●

●

●

●

Online Application

Complete preliminary interview

Complete background investigation

Complete Oral Board Interview

Conditional Job Offer

Complete Medical, Psychological and Drug Screen

PREFERRED:

●

●

●

●

Intermediate TCOLE Peace Officer License

Bilingual

Previous ISD PD experience

Background in law enforcement

Contact us at 281-422-6461 to speak with a recruiter.

Apply online @ https://www.gccisd.net/page/employment.home


ARE WE

HIRING

Criminal Background

Pass

proficiently

Type

Nights, Weekends & Holidays

Work

Speaking Preferred

Spanish

11th Street

1015

Texas

Hempstead,

Hour work schedule

12-

every other weekend

off

THE CITY OF

TELECOMMUNICATIONS DIVISION

HEMPSTEAD POLICE DEPARTMENT

Dispatchers

QUALIFICATIONS

18 years of age

Minimum

Starting Salary: $41,600

B E N E F I T S

BlueCross Blue Shield

Vision & Dental Insurance

Longevity Pay > 1 year

Certificate Pay

Uniform Shirts Provided

77445


www.hempsteadcitytx.gov (job opportunities)

JOIN OUR TEAM

Place your department’s recruiting ad

in The BLUES for only $250 for an

BECOME entire A HEMPSTEAD year, only $20 a POLICE month. OFFICER

Hempstead's Finest

Starting Salary: $57,750

- BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD

- VISION & DENTAL INS

- CERTIFICATE PAY

- WEAPONS ISSUED

- OFF EVERY OTHER WEEKEND

- CONTINUING TRAINING

NOW HIRING 3 POLICE OFFICERS

HPD BOASTS:

- Training Provider

- Canine Program

- Narcotics Investigation

- Crash Investigators

- Telecommunications

Division

1015 11th St Hempstead, TX

hpdrecruing@hempsteadcitytx.gov

Or call us at: (979) 826-3332



LATERAL DEPUTY


WE ARE

HIRING!

LATERAL DEPUTY

REQUIREMENTS

• Must be a licensed Peace Officer by the Texas Commission on

Law Enforcement (TCOLE) in good standing

• Must be currently employed as a Peace Officer (any break in

service will be considered on a case-by-case basis)

• Must have a minimum of 12 consecutive months experience as a

Peace Office at any one agency

• Must successfully pass the HCSO Physical Abilities Test (PAT)

• Meet HCSO firearms qualification standard

• Must pass a thorough background investigation (criminal

background check, fingerprinting, personal interview, etc.) as

required by TCOLE

• Must pass a physical and psychological evaluation as required by

TCOLE

• Valid driver’s license and liability insurance (Texas by start date)

• Eyesight must be correctable to 20/20, normal color, and

peripheral vision

• Correctable normal audible range in both ears

• A two (2) year minimum commitment to Patrol before being

eligible to transfer to other Bureaus

For additional information contact

Harris County Sheriff’s Office

Recruitment Unit

(713) 877-5250


TO APPLY

www.harriscountyso.org | www.hcsojobs.com

SCAN

THIS CODE Harris County

@HCSOTexas

Sheriff’s Office

HCSOTexas HCSOTexas @HCSOTexas

WE ARE

HIRING!

DEPUTY CADET

REQUIREMENTS

• At least 60 college credit hours and/or 2 years of military

experience with an honorable discharge

• At least 21 years of age (by start date)

• Valid driver’s license and liability insurance (Texas by start date)

• Must successfully pass the HCSO Physical Abilities Test (PAT)

• Eyesight must be correctable to 20/20, normal color, and

peripheral vision



background check, fingerprinting, personal interview, etc.)

• Must pass a medical and psychological evaluation as required by

TCOLE

• Must pass all required testing

YOUR LAW ENFORCEMENT CAREER

STARTS HERE, JOIN OUR ACADEMY!

• Must pass all required testing upon completion of the Basic

Peace Officer Course (BPOC), sworn Deputies must successfully

complete the Field Training Program (FTP) before receiving a

Patrol assignment

• A two (2) year minimum commitment to Patrol before being

eligible for other Bureaus



Recruitment Unit

(713) 877-5250

TO APPLY


SCAN


@HCSOTexas

Sheriff’s Office



WE ARE

HIRING!

DETENTION OFFICER

REQUIREMENTS

Ask About Our Hiring Incentive

• High School Diploma or G.E.D

• U.S. Citizen

• At least 18 years of age (by start date)

• Eyesight must be correctable to 20/20, normal color,

and peripheral vision


• Must pass all pre-employment testing


background check, fingerprinting, personal interview, etc.)

as required by TCOLE

• Must pass a medical and psychological evaluation as required

by TCOLE

Lateral Detention Officer:

If you have verifiable experience as a correctional officer or a

jailer from any correctional facility, we will pay you up to 14

years for your experience.



Recruitment Unit

(713) 877-5250


TO APPLY


SCAN


@HCSOTexas

Sheriff’s Office





THE KILLEEN POLICE DEPARTMENT

IS NOW

Hiring

FOR THE POSITION OF

Police Officer

Online Applications

will open:

July 31, 2023

Application Deadline:

September 15, 2023

Civil Service Exam will

be:

September 24, 2023

To apply, go to:

www.killeentexas.gov/16

8/Job-Opportunities

Wear The Badge,

Make a Difference

D

b

th

a

Officer De'Vonte Johnson

Recruiter

254-200-7987

DJohnson@killeentexas.gov

The Killeen Police Department is an

190 Equal The Opportunity BLUES - JANUARY Employer ‘25

Starting pay - $57,889

Paid: Vacation, Holiday & Sick Leave

$15K Sign-on incentive for TCOLE

certified Peace Officers

College Degree pay incentive

7% retirement plan through TMRS

with a 2:1 match ratio

Comprehensive Benefits Package

Opportunity to work in various

specialized units

The Killeen Police

epartment is dedicated to

uilding a partnership with

e community to fight crime

nd improve every citizen's

quality of life.

Follow us at:

KilleenPD

KilleenPolice

JoinKilleenPD

Visit www.KilleenPD.com for further The BLUES - details

JANUARY ‘25 191





WE’RE HIRING POLICE OFFICERS!

Lockhart has always been a favorite in Central Texas. With the steady planned growth of our region we stand ready to welcome

more families looking for an escape from the hassles and fast pace of the big city. With a small town quality of life (population

17,146) and a charming historical downtown square, many public parks connected with walking paths, a State Park, golf course,

community theatre, museums, shopping and much more, Lockhart has a community feel that can’t be beat. We have several

events and festivals throughout the year Chisholm Trail Roundup, Al Hopkins Tolbert Texas State Chili Championship, 4th of July

Extravaganza, Texas Monthly BBQ Fest, Taste of Lockhart Cultures and A Dickens Christmas in Lockhart, just to name a few.

Lockhart is a great community to live and work!

The Lockhart Police Department is seeking qualified applicants to meet the needs of our growing and diverse community. The City

of Lockhart administers a Civil Service Exam in order to establish an eligibility list for hiring Police Officers. This eligibility list

remains in effect for a period of one year from test date or until the list has been exhausted, whichever comes first. The Lockhart

Police Officer Entrance Exam is governed by the Local Government Code, Chapter 143 (Civil Service Law).

$10,000 Hiring Incentive for TCOLE Certified Officers*

• Competitive Salary ($30.60/hr.—

$37.17/hr.)

• Lateral Transfer Pay

• Certification Pay

• Cadet Pay

• Education Pay

• Civil Service Benefits

• Assignment Pay for Detectives

• Field Training Officer

• Bailiff/Warrant Officer

• K9 Officer

• Shift Differential Pay

• Uniforms, Equipment and Firearm

Provided

• Uniform Allowance for Detectives

• 3 Weeks Vacation Leave Annually

• 3 Weeks Sick Leave Annually

• 12 Paid Holidays Annually

• 1 Personal Holiday Annually

• TMRS Retirement

• Life Insurance

• Health Insurance

• 12Hour Shifts

• Beards & Tattoos Allowed

* Certain conditions apply to be eligible for the hiring incentive. Please refer to the Application Packet or the Civil Service Director

for further information.

PLEASE CONTACT Cpt. WILLIAMS, dwilliams@ps.lockharttx.org OR 5123984401, FOR MORE

INFORMATION.





STARTING SALARY $66,497.60 WITH NO EXPERIENCE

BENEFITS

• Competitive pay with scheduled increases every 2 years

• Friday/Saturday or Sunday/Monday days off

• Flexible work schedules

• Overtime available

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance

• Tuition Reimbursement - $5000/yr

• Paid vacation, employee days, well day, sick days, and holidays

• Uniforms and Equipment


TCOLE CERTIFIED POLICE OFFICER POSITIONS

FULL TIME

INCENTIVE PAY

• Bilingual

• TCOLE Certificate

Intermediate $1,560

Advanced $3,420

Master $6,000

• Education

Associate $1,320

Bachelor $3,180

Master $4,500

$8,000.00 HIRING INCENTIVE*


21 YEARS OF AGE

HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA OR GED

MUST HOLD AN ACTIVE TCOLE PEACE OFFICER LICENSE

VALID DRIVER’S LICENSE

MUST PASS BACKGROUND CHECK, PSYCHOLOGICAL,

DRUG AND MEDICAL SCREENING

*$2000.00 after 3 months, $2000.00 after 6 months, $4000.00 after 1 year


Patrol Officer

The City of Manvel Police Department is looking to find qualified candidates to fill the ranks of the patrol

division.

The City of Manvel is a rapidly growing and diverse community. The current population is estimated at a

little over 16000 and is located in the northern part of Brazoria County along the State Highway 288

corridor approximately 4 miles South of the City of Houston.

The Manvel Police Department has a competitive pay structure for cities of the same size. Salary is based

on experience and certification levels.

Requirements:

High school diploma or GED

Valid Texas Driver’s License

with good driving record

TCOLE certified OR currently

enrolled in Academy

program

Preference for LE experience

Hiring Process Includes :

Written test

Oral board interview

Physical agility test

Thorough background

investigation

Accelerated Field Training

Program for experienced officers

One year probationary period

Pay and Benefits:

Competitive pay with an employment

improvement step program

TMRS retirement up to 7% with 2:1 match

by city

Retirement vested after 5 years of service

Medical Insurance covered 100% for

employees and 100% paid for employees

and dependent by the city after 3 years

12 hour shifts (DuPont Schedule)

Personal time off - Vacation and Holiday

accruals

Paid sick time

Lateral transfers

For more information you can contact

The City of Manvel Police Department at

281-489-1212

Rochelle Carr-Lacy

rcarrlacy@manvelpd.org


MEMORIAL VILLAGES POLICE DEPARTMENT

Serving Bunker Hill, Piney Point, and Hunters Creek Villages

Hiring

Communications/Dispatcher

(2+ Years Experience)

Starting Pay:

$52,440 - $73,100 DOQ

Hiring Bonus $1,500

Night Shift Differential $3,600

Bi-Lingual Pay

Education Pay

Intermediate, Advanced, and Master

Telecommunicator Pay

Health Care, Dental and Vision Insurance: 100%

Employee, 75% Spouse/Dependents

Paid Long-Term Disability and Life Insurance for

Employee, additional life insurance available for

Spouse/Dependents

Health Savings Account with department

contributions up to $2,400 annually

TMRS Retirement 7%

Updated Service Credits/Colas 50%

457 Deferred Compensation Plan with Employer

Contribution of 2.5% Annual Salary

Tuition Reimbursement for Continuing Education

Longevity Pay up to a maximum of $2,400

annually at 10 years of service

New Modern Communications Center

EOE/M/F/D

Memorial Villages Police Department – Houston, Texas 77024


MEMORIAL VILLAGES POLICE DEPARTMENT

Serving Bunker Hill, Piney Point, and Hunters Creek Villages

Hiring

Police Officers

(5+ Years Patrol Experience Required)

Starting Pay:

$90,178 - $96,461 DOQ

Top Officer Pay: $120,331

$1,500 Hiring Bonus

$3,600 Night Shift Differential

$1,300 Emergency Care Attendant Certification (we train)

Bi-Lingual Pay

Education Pay

Peace Officer Certification Pay up to 7.5%

Health, Dental, and Vision Insurance – 100% employee and

75% Spouse/Dependents

Paid Long-Term Disability and Life Insurance for Employee.

Additional Life Insurance available for Spouse/Dependents

Health Savings Account with Department Contributions up to

$2,400 yr

7% TMRS with 2:1 and 20-year Retirement

Updated Service Credits / 50% COLA

457 Deferred with 2.5% Employer Contributions

Tuition Reimbursement for Continuing Education

Longevity Pay up to a maximum of $2,400 yr at 10 years of

service

12 Hour Shifts with Every Other Fri/Sat/Sun Off

EOE/M/F/D

Memorial Villages Police Department – Houston, Texas 77024


STARTING SALARY $66,497.60 WITH NO EXPERIENCE

BENEFITS

• Competitive pay with scheduled increases every 2 years

• Friday/Saturday or Sunday/Monday days off

• Flexible work schedules

• Overtime available

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance

• Tuition Reimbursement - $5000/yr

• Paid vacation, employee days, well day, sick days, and holidays

• Uniforms and Equipment


TCOLE CERTIFIED POLICE OFFICER POSITIONS

FULL TIME

INCENTIVE PAY

• Bilingual

• TCOLE Certificate

Intermediate $1,560

Advanced $3,420

Master $6,000

• Education

Associate $1,320

Bachelor $3,180

Master $4,500

$8,000.00 HIRING INCENTIVE*


21 YEARS OF AGE

HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA OR GED

MUST HOLD AN ACTIVE TCOLE PEACE OFFICER LICENSE

VALID DRIVER’S LICENSE

MUST PASS BACKGROUND CHECK, PSYCHOLOGICAL,

DRUG AND MEDICAL SCREENING

*$2000.00 after 3 months, $2000.00 after 6 months, $4000.00 after 1 year







MAKE A

DIFFERENCE

IN YOUR

COMMUNITY

We are looking for outstanding individuals to

join our team! As a Pearland Police Officer your

mission will be to prevent crime and disorder, build

partnerships within the community, and positively

impact the quality of life for all our residents.

CITY OF PEARLAND, TEXAS

• Competitive Salary • Outstanding Training

• Career Advancement • Exceptional Benefits

The City of Pearland is one of the fastest growing

communities within the region. Pearland is located

approximately 20 minutes south of Downtown Houston

and the current population is approximately 130,000

residents.

JOIN OUR TEAM

HIRING POLICE OFFICERS AND CADETS

$5,000 Hiring Incentive for T.C.O.L.E Certified Police

Officers who qualify with at least 2 years of experience.

TEST DATE:

SATURDAY, APRIL 24, 8:30 A.M.

Register by: April 12.

Pearland Recreation Center & Natatorium

4141 Bailey Road, Pearland, TX 77584.

Doors Open: 7:15 a.m. No admittance after 7:45 a.m.

Candidates must park in the north parking lot.

SOCIAL DISTANCING MEASURES WILL APPLY

• Attendance limited to first 150 arrivals

• Mandatory temperature checks

• Masks required, hand sanitizer available

• Candidates seated 6 feet apart

For additional information and to register for an upcoming Civil Service Exam, visit

pearlandtx.gov/PDCareers



PORT HOUSTON

POLICE DEPARTMENT

WE ARE

HIRING

SIGN UP TODAY!

www.porthouston.com/careers-2

STARTING PAY*

$60,000 up to $71,000

* Salary depends on experience

Are you looking for a career with

meaning? Do you want to make

a difference in a highly supportive

community? Join our team at

Port Houston!

REQUIREMENTS

• Must be 21 years old

• Must have 2+ years of po

experience

• Must have valid Texas Dr

• Must be a U.S. Citizen

• Must have an honorable

from the military (if applic

• Must never have been co

Class A Misdemeanor or

• Not been convicted of a

misdemeanor within the

• Must have a GED or high


BENEFITS:

• Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance

eligible first day of employment

• Wellness Program

(can earn up to $600 credit per year if requirements met)

• Enrollment with Calm App for Wellbeing

• Defined contribution plan (401a)

– Employer Sponsored

• Deferred Compensation Plan (457 Plan)

– Employee Contributions

• Vacation

• Sick Leave

• Paid Holiday 12 days/year

• Life and Accidental Death and

Dismemberment Insurance

• Short Term and Long-Term Disability Benefits

• Flexible spending account (FSA)

• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

• Pet Insurance

• Legal and Identity Theft Protection

• Tuition Reimbursement

Up to the IRS annual limit and a maximum lifetime

reimbursement of $25,000

• Onsite Credit Union

– Port of Houston Credit Union

lice officer

iver’s License

discharge

able)

nvicted of a

above

Class B

last 10 years

school diploma

EMPLOYMENT

TESTING

Employment is contingent on passing

any post-offer pre-employment

screening as listed below:

• Criminal background check

• Motor Vehicle Record check

• Drug screening

• Physical exam

• Psychological exam

• Additional as required

SCAN

QR CODE

TO APPLY








SPRING BRANCH ISD POLICE DEPARTMENT

WE’RE

HIRING

DEPARTMENT

HIGHLIGHTS

55 officer department

44 square mile district

47 schools

35,000 population

24/7 Patrol

We want you to preserve, protect, and defend our future.

Starting Pay $63,000 (TCOLE Basic Peace Officer certification with no experience)

Patrol & Onsite Officers (HS/MS)

Gang Officer

Mental Health Officers

Community Relations Officer

Emergency Management

Criminal Investigations

K-9 programs

Language pay

Shift differential pay

Intermediate, Advanced and

Master Peace Officer

certificate pay

Paid time off

Ample overtime opportunities

*All equipment provided including duty weapon

**Training opportunities available

Apply online today. springbranchisd.com/join-our-team









Walker County Sheriff


JIMMY CARTER

39TH PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

1924-2024


JAN. 2025. Blues Vol 41 No. 1

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