INSIDE the Lakeland Police Department

Lakeland PD Forensic Artist Featured in The Ledger

In case you missed this morning's edition of The Ledger, the newspaper featured a story in its Lifestyle section on LPD's forensic artist, Darlene Melius. Darlene is a Public Safety Aide as well as an artist who is called upon to use her talents to help create forensic drawings of suspects. She is the only forensic artist in Polk County who produces suspect drawings by hand rather than using kits or computer software. Creating a drawing by hand allows for subtle modifications to the rendering that make them very life-like.

Though she was a very accomplished artist when she joined LPD in 2002, Darlene has been creating forensic drawings for two years now. Here is a recent drawing Darlene did of a subject who robbed the Bob Evans Restaurant on March 7, 2007. We featured this drawing as a BOLO in a posting a couple of days later.

By the way, we are still looking for this robbery suspect if anyone recognizes him or has information about this crime. Call the Lakeland Police Department at 863-834-6900 or Detective Nicole Cain at 863-834-8955.

We are fortunate to have a talented individual like Darlene on our team. Her ability to transform descriptive information from a victim or witness to a life-like drawing has helped identify suspects and led to arrests. We look forward to many more similar success stories thanks to Darlene's skills as an artist.

-Asst Chief Bill LePere

Lakeland Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics

Runners from law enforcement agencies in Polk County participated in the Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics this past Thursday. The Torch Run is an international program by law enforcement agencies to promote fundraising and awareness of Special Olympics. Lakeland's annual run has been coordinated by LPD Captain Tom Day for more years than we can remember.

Torches begin a month-long journey throughout Florida, carried by law enforcement officers and Special Olympians, to convene in Tampa in time for the annual games. In case you are interested, Florida's Special Olympics are currently underway this weekend at the University of South Florida in Tampa.

The Special Olympics of Collier County said it best...

"The Mission of Special Olympics is to provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of well-coached, Olympic-type sports for persons with Intellectual Disabilities providing them with continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness and prepare for entry into school and community sport programs. Athletes experience courage, sharpen their skills, and enjoy new friendships with other Special Olympic Athletes, volunteers, and the community. Special Olympics dwells on what these athletes CAN do, not what they can’t do. It is truly a moving experience to watch an athlete perform their best and meet their personal goal. Sometimes we lose a handle on the real world, and seeing these athletes brings us back to what sharing, giving, and happiness is all about."

The Special Olympics Athlete’s Oath is one that we should all live by...
“Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.”

Lakeland's Torch Run was a leisurely jog around Lake Hollingsworth Thursday evening. Approximately 50 people jog, biked, or in some cases just walked in support of Special Olympics. Special Olympian Clinton carried a torch and led part of the run.

Clinton leading the way!

In addition to the runners, volunteers from the Lakeland Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association and the Community Services Unit were on hand to register participants and distribute water at the half way point. We appreciate the assistance of our volunteers!

Photo Gallery

 

-Asst Chief Bill LePere

Lakeland K-9 Unit Wins 4-man Team Award at Regional Trials

Sgt. Ed Cain, LPD K-9 Supervisor, submits the final report from the USPCA Region One Field Trials in Marion County, Florida.

The Lakeland Police K-9 Unit claimed the 4-man Team Trophy for the second year in a row at the just completed USPCA Region One Trials in Marion County and placed three officers in the top ten scores for individual handlers n the Patrol Dog competition.

The 4-man Team Trophy is considered by many to be the most prestigious award given at the trails because it represents the overall quality of K-9 skills for an agency's team. The award is not based on a single officer and K-9 but rather the combined excellence of the team.

Winning the trophy once again is a mixture of pride and humbleness for the trophy was renamed this year to the "Matt Williams and DiOiGi 4-Man Team Trophy" in honor of slain Polk County Deputy Sheriff Matt Williams and his K-9 partner DiOiGi.

The 2007 LPD Regional Trials Team

The individual scores for LPD K-9 Handlers for all events are listed below. The maximum possible score is a 700. A total of 59 K-9 handlers participated in the Patrol Dog competition.

Ofc. Ted Sealey and K-9 Bodo - 687.17 (2nd place overall finish)
Ofc. Jeff Barrett and K-9 Benno - 686.33 (3rd place overall finish)
Ofc. Rob Manrow and K-9 Bask - 670.83 (10th place overall finish)
Ofc. Aaron Peterman and K-9 Tuffy - 653.00
Ofc. Charlie Dallas and K-9 Dynx - 623.67

-Sgt. Ed Cain

Lakeland PD Hosts Violent Crime Analysis Training

"I knew long before I started killing that I was going to be killing, that it was going to end up like that. The fantasies were too strong. They were going on for too long and were too elaborate."

        From: Sexual Homicide: Patterns and Motives, Ressler, R. K., et. al. (1998)

These chilling comments give you a peek into the week-long criminal investigative analysis training class at Lakeland PD that wraps up on Friday. We have played host to investigators and crime analysts from the United States, Canada, and the Grand Cayman Islands who came to Lakeland for advanced training in violent serial crimes. Crime Analysts from Lakeland who attended the training include Sgt. Terri Smith, Ms. Sue Eberle, Ms. Olivia Escobedo, Ms. Rebecca Swick, and Ms. Brenda Wallace.

An International class of Investigators and Analysts

Our instructor for the week has been Mr. Wayne Porter, a former FDLE Agent and an FBI certified criminal profiler. Mr. Porter is one of 50 sworn police-fellow profilers in the world. He has worked on numerous sensational cases involving serial killers, probably the most famous being the Gainesville murders for which Danny Rolling was convicted and later executed.

The class curriculum focused on patterns of behavior exhibited by sexual deviants, serial killers, and violent crimes against the elderly. The class also included a visit from FBI Supervisory Special Agent Michael Harrigan and FBI Crime Analyst Christine T. DePoyster who presented a segment on the FBI's ViCAP program.

ViCAP stands for Violent Criminal Apprehension Program, an effort to coordinate the sharing of data related to serial violent crimes across the country. ViCAP operates a data warehouse that collects information from law enforcement agencies across the United States about violent crime. ViCAP queries the data for similarities that may link crimes to each other indicating a common perpetrator. In this way, serial offenders are discovered and investigators in different jurisdictions are able to share information and evidence to make arrests.

We appreciate the opportunity to host this training and to share our beautiful city with our international guests. Though we hope the skills learned in this training will never be needed in Lakeland, our analysts have a deeper understanding of the behavioral traits exhibited by sexual deviants and serial killers.

 

- Sgt. Terri Smith
  Crime Analysis Supervisor

Week Crime Stats~ April 16 - April 22, 2007

The below link will lead you to our weekly crime stats.

Download weekly_crime_report_april_16_april_22_2007.pdf

Here's the weekly crime map...

April Do The Right Thing Winners Announced

The final bi-monthly awards ceremony for this year's "Do The Right Thing" program was held last week with six local students receiving recognition for various acts of positive behavior. Mr. Frank O'Reilly, Polk County School Board District One, was the Guest Speaker. He encouraged the students to not only do the right thing but always do your best and treat others with dignity and respect.

The overall winner was Jorge Poz, Jr., a 6th grader at Southwest Middle School, who was recognized for his heroic actions during a home invasion at his residence. Jorge's father was attacked by an intruder. Jorge remained calm and shepherded his younger brother to a safe location away from the intruder and then called 911 to summon aid. Jorge was noted as being particularly calm and level-headed during this traumatic incident.

Chief Boatner and Jorge Poz, Jr.

Other nominees included:

Rachel Cumberledge, an 8th grader at Southwest Middle School, nominated for her actions when she found a class ring on the campus of Florida Southern College. The ring had the year "1999" inscribed on it but no student's name. Along with having the school name, school authorities were able to locate the owner who had lost her class ring back in 1999 on the FSC campus and thought she would never see it again.

Jessica Haley, a 6th grader at Blake Academy, was honored for her actions in reporting a burglary to her neighbor's house by a kid she knew from the area. Jessica watched the subject break into the house three times one afternoon and take various small items. Even though the subject told her not to tell anyone, Jessica reported her observations to the police who were able to make an arrest.

Kayla McClellan, a senior at Kathleen High School,  developed what she calls  "Kayla's Closet", a  collection of prom gowns for special needs students. Kayla feels that everyone should look good on the outside to help them feel good about themselves on the inside. She collected prom gowns and suits and gave them to students with special needs for their big prom night.

Colin Tyrone, an 8th grader and Lawton Chiles Middle Academy, was nominated for his efforts to be a positive mentor to a student needing special attention. Colin eagerly accepted his role as a mentor and worked with the student to teach him appropriate behavior in the school. He even got other students to help teach the right way to behave, in essence increasing his positive influence many times over.

Takarria Young, an 8th grader at Southwest Middle School, was honored for her willingness to assist officers in their efforts to locate a witness to a shooting. Takarria saw a BOLO sheet and gave her School Resource Officer information about the witness and the crime.

April 2007 DTRT Nominees with Officer Skinner

Congratulations to all of the nominees. The final DTRT banquet, where the year's overall winner will be announced, will be held on May 24, 2007. We will bring you those results once the winner is selected.

-Sgt. Melanie Dixon,
  Supervisor/School Resource Unit

Regional K-9 Trials: Day Two Results

Sgt. Ed Cain, LPD K-9 Supervisor, sent us the scores for LPD K-9 team members from the second day of competition at the USPCA Region One Field Trials in Marion County, Florida.

The K-9 Unit completed two phases of competition during the second day of Regional Field Trials with the following results:

Article Search (70 possible points)

Ofc. Barrett - 69.87
Ofc. Dallas - 69.33
Ofc. Sealey - 69.00
Ofc. Manrow - 69.00
Ofc. Peterman - 68.17

Suspect Search (110 possible points)

Ofc. Dallas - 110.00
Ofc. Sealey - 110.00
Ofc. Barrett - 109.50
Ofc. Peterman - 109.33
Ofc. Manrow - 108.17

Total Points (360 possible points so far)

Ofc. Barrett - 355.83
Ofc. Sealey - 355.66
Ofc. Dallas - 350.16
Ofc. Manrow - 350.00
Ofc. Peterman - 328.50

All five teams performed exceptionally well today. In a competition where one-hundredth of a point can make a big difference, our teams are doing very well. They participate in the criminal apprehension phase of the trials on Thursday.

-Sgt. Ed Cain

Regional K-9 Trials: Day One Results

Sgt. Ed Cain, LPD K-9 Supervisor, has sent us the scores for LPD K-9 team members from the first day of competition at the USPCA Region One Field Trials in Marion County, Florida.

The following results are from the Obedience and Agility phases of the field trials:

Obedience (120 possible points)

Ofc. Jeff Barrett - 118.83
Ofc. Ted Sealey - 117.33
Ofc. Rob Manrow - 114.00
Ofc. Aaron Peterman - 111.67
Ofc. Charlie Dallas - 111.50

Agility (60 possible points)

Ofc. Charlie Dallas - 59.33
Ofc. Ted Sealey - 59.33
Ofc. Rob Manrow - 58.83
Ofc. Jeff Barrett - 57.83
Ofc. Aaron Peterman - 39.33

Competitors will participate on Wednesday in the Evidence Search and Suspect Search phases of the Field Trials.

-Sgt. Ed Cain

Presidents' Roundtable Public Safety Awards

The 39th Annual Presidents' Roundtable Public Safety Awards were presented during a luncheon on Tuesday. The Presidents of the many civic and service clubs in the greater Lakeland area come together once a year to honor the heroic service of public safety personnel from the Lakeland Police Department, the Lakeland Fire Department, the Polk County Sheriff's Office, the Polk County Fire Department, the Polk County Emergency Medical Services, the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, and the Florida Highway Patrol.

Two Lakeland PD officers were recognized for their actions during the past year.

Detective Michelle Newsome was presented with the Lakeland PD Officer of the Year award for her investigative efforts in a particularly offensive sexual child abuse case. She began her investigation in Lakeland and followed the evidence to the suspect who had fled to Georgia. An arrest was made in the case thanks to the diligence and skills exhibited by Det. Newsome.

Officer Dale Deas was awarded Honorable Mention for his actions to rescue a driver entrapped in an overturned vehicle at a traffic crash scene. Officer Deas, who was off-duty at the time, climbed into the vehicle and released the driver who was still strapped into the seatbelt. He was able to remove the driver from the upside down car and get her to a safe location where she received medical treatment.

In a somber presentation at the end of the luncheon, the Presidents' Roundtable bestowed their Fallen Hero Award to the family of Deputy Sheriff Matt Williams who was killed by an armed assailant last September. Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with the Williams' family as they attend other local, state, and national memorial services during Police Memorial Month next month.

-Asst Chief Bill LePere

Weekly Crime Map for May 14 - 20

Here is the weekly crime map of significant events for the period of Crime Map - 05/14 to 05/20.
Our thanks to Chuck at LakelandLocal.com for producing the map.

- Asst Chief Bill LePere