"News that's not known, or not known enough."
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"News that's not known, or not known enough." |
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Viccione was driving on Route 95 on Nov. 6 when he pulled up to the busload of girls near Allens Avenue, the state police said, and fondled himself. He was not wearing pants, the police said. Viccione, who has been a correctional officer since 1999, remains on active duty status but is currently on family leave, said Tracey Poole, a spokeswoman for the Department of Corrections. Poole said Viccione's case "is being reviewed by internal affairs. It is possible a pre-disciplinary hearing will be convened but nothing has been scheduled yet. The report was just completed and handed over to human resources." Poole said Viccione remains on active duty because "it was not a work-related incident, and [is] a misdemeanor."
"I would like to see the police receive some kind of training to deal with somebody who has problems like I have," said Stalker. His mother, Cynthia said that at the time, Stalker's father, who has since died of cancer, was terminally ill. She said her son had suffered a seizure at the house that day. But while she was overwhelmed with caring for her husband, she couldn't drive her son to the hospital. She was trying to find somebody who could. And the next thing she knew he was gone. After he left, she said she waited hours and then grew anxious and called the hospital as well as Darby police, but to no avail. "I didn't know where he was. I called state police and they said if he didn't come home overnight, to go to the (Darby) police station the next day to file a missing person's report." She said it was only when she went to the station the next day she learned he had been in jail. She then became doubly concerned, because he hadn't taken his medicine. She said he was then transported to Delaware County prison because the family didn't have the necessary money to bail him out. A friend finally came forward and posted the bail, after Stalker had been behind bars for about a week, she said. "When he was released, I took him immediately right to the University of Pennsylvania (hospital). There were no traces of medication in his system. He was having seizures. He also suffered broken ribs," she said. Greto said that while Stalker was in Darby police custody, his ribs were injured. An affidavit of probable cause states that while Stalker was in a jail cell in Darby, he became unruly, clogged the toilet and began screaming, banging and kicking the cells walls. "When the officers informed Mr. Stalker to stop what he was doing he began to throw wet balls of toilet paper and throw water at the officers," according to the affidavit of probable cause. "The key was obtained so they (officers) could restrain Mr. Stalker. A brief struggle was encountered while Mr. Stalker continued to yell at the officers," according to the document. Greto said Darby Borough has video camera setup that should have captured that incident if it took place. Police have told him that the camera equipment was not working at that time, he said. Lawrie said that Darby's police video recording system was not working at the time. "The repairman was there in March and April. There were ongoing problems with it," said Lawrie. He described the police action as "more unfortunate than intentional. He (Stalker) was manifesting quite a bit of aggression not only toward the police officers but toward the victims earlier just prior to his arrest. And it was reasonable to assume that he was not only conscious but acting in an intentional manner," said Lawrie. "The police did nothing wrong and they are satisfied that was an appropriate resolution," said the prosecutor. Stalker said if his friend hadn't come through with the bail money, he could still have been in jail when his father passed away that year. His mother thanked God and Greto that they are out from under the cloud of the charges, especially over the holiday season. "I prayed and prayed," she said choking back tears. "We wouldn't have had any peace if it wasn't for Mr. Greto." The feelings are mutual. "They are really a nice family," said Greto. "They have a lot of crosses to bear. Hopefully people if they are aware of what he is going through will become more understanding." Cops blow up old man's house Dec. 23, 2006 East Valley Tribune Phoenix — Salvador Celaya, a 73-year-old with Alzheimer's disease, wore black rubber boots, dirty blue jeans and a flannel shirt Friday as he rummaged through the charred remains of the Phoenix home where he and his wife raised six children. From under his gray hooded sweatshirt, the retired mechanic looked in despair at the burned furniture, piles of clothing and exposed walls. From the rubble he recovered a brown case containing his prized electric guitar and set it in the driveway as drizzling rain fell on the home where for decades the family had spent Christmas. The future for Salvador Celaya and his 69-year-old wife, Carlota, was uncertain two days after police serving a search warrant pried open the front door and launched a diversionary grenade through a bedroom window that started a fire that destroyed the house. "We're still kind of in shock and disbelief right now," said their son, Oscar Celaya, 47. "You're supposed to be afraid of criminals breaking into your house, not the police." Scottsdale and Gilbert police defended Wednesday night's search, saying they expected to find evidence linked to a Scottsdale home invasion that occurred Sunday and suspect Erasmo Ruiz Villarreal, 23, of Phoenix. "This is not a botched search warrant," said Gilbert police spokesman Lt. Joe Ruet. "It's not the wrong house, and it's a very serious criminal that we're after." Gilbert police had linked Villarreal to a carjacking in late October. The Celaya family, who don't have homeowners insurance, said they are now waiting for Gilbert to repair the wrongs they say have been done. "I want to hear from the town of Gilbert," Oscar Celaya said. "I want them to make reparations for what they did." Gilbert Town Manager George Pettit said that once all the information is available, the report will be forwarded to an independent claims adjustor who makes a recommendation for settlement. The fire caused an estimated $150,000 in damage to the home at 6802 S. Eighth St. Gilbert police said firefighters and police were unable to extinguish the blaze because Salvador Celaya was shooting at them. Oscar Celaya said his father, who had a .22-caliber revolver, was shooting out the front window so smoke and fire could escape. A Phoenix fire investigator has ruled the fire was accidental because the diversionary grenade landed on a bed and set it on fire, said fire division chief Mike Sandulak. "The label says: 'Warning to not be deployed onto flammable objects,' " Sandulak said. A Gilbert Police Department search warrant shows officers had the right to search Villarreal, the home and a truck that they believed was used in the home invasion. They sought $7,000 in cash, electronics, weapons, a pit bull and rims from a Cadillac Escalade, the document said. All they found was a bank statement for Sonia Celaya, the Celayas' daughter, inside a truck on the property, according to a returned search warrant. Sonia Celaya, 43, lives at the Celayas' home with their grandson, Ronnie Vance, 26. Gilbert and Scottsdale police insist they were at the right home. A Scottsdale Police Department report on the home invasion states that a Chevrolet pickup truck used to carry away stolen merchandise is registered to 6802 S. Eighth St. The truck was in the Celayas' driveway when the warrant was served, said Scottsdale police spokesman Sgt. Mark Clark. Sonia Celaya's Chevrolet Silverado was in the shop when the warrant was served, Oscar Celaya said. His mother's truck was in the driveway, he said. The family insists that they don't know Villarreal. "First time I saw his picture was on the news last night," Oscar Celaya said. Phoenix police have not arrested Salvador Celaya, and many details of the case are still under investigation. Spokesman Sgt. Joel Tranter said they must determine why Celaya was firing his gun. Local officers just 'lazy,' not racists Dec. 28, 2006 Lexington Herald-Ledger Richmond, Kentucky — The problems with the Richmond Police Department stem from officers who are "lazy and incompetent" The report, filed Dec. 21 with the Madison County circuit clerk, said some cases presented to the grand jury from the police department were incomplete and plagued with bad judgment and insufficient follow-up work. Officers procrastinated and were not prepared to present their cases, the report said. "Some officers did an excellent job with their cases; other officers, either from ignorance, laziness or attitude, presented poor cases that resulted in dismissals, amended charges or required extensive efforts to make the case prosecutable," the report said. Commonwealth's Attorney David Smith said there are instances in the past six months where officers didn't complete police reports, interview key people or take evidence to the lab in a timely manner to be processed. He said at least 25 cases were negatively affected because of incomplete investigations or poor police work. Some of those charges were amended or dismissed. Smith said the jurors "When these same type of problems No one could say yesterday why the problems still exist in the department. "I wish I knew the answer," Richmond City Manager David Evans said. "I know that any time the grand jury has talked to the city, we have gone back and talked to the police department and told them what the concerns are. I really don't know where the gap has been." The grand jury's blistering report comes just weeks after city officials asked Police Chief Robert Stephens to resign from his top spot at the department. Officials said yesterday that they did not know if Stephens ignored jurors' concerns or if he tried to address the issues but couldn't. Stephens' tenure was filled with a multitude of problems, including several lawsuits and allegations of racism and excessive force. Some city officials Singleton has said she wants the department to practice community policing, where officers spend time getting to know the people who live in the neighborhoods they patrol. She says state police officers have a wide area to patrol and the expectations are not the same for them in regard to building a relationship with the community. Singleton has said that changing the department's policing style and the officers' attitudes will improve public perception and eliminate many of the department's problems. But in its report, the grand jury "It is hard to fix a problem you do not understand," the report said. Singleton did not return Herald-Leader phone messages yesterday. In the report, jurors also addressed the tension between the black community and the police department that has developed after several high-profile incidents. In May, a teenager filed a brutality complaint against police after he was beaten in the legs several times with a baton. Travis Parks, 17, was highly agitated and cursed at police as he tried to get their attention to help his mother, who had been hit by a car. Two independent investigators found that police used excessive force. And in May 2004, the department was criticized after an officer body-slammed a young woman to the ground after a handgun fell out of her boyfriend's clothing. Officers used pepper spray on angry bystanders. Seven people, all black, were arrested during the incident on Orange Street, near downtown. Some accuse the department, which is about 91 percent white, of being aggressive toward blacks and tolerating a culture of racism. But, in the final report, jurors said they have not seen examples of racism. "From our perspective of reviewing criminal cases over the past six months, the problems are not racial in nature but go to the competence of the department," the report said. "We have not seen racism, we have seen incompetence." Although jurors didn't make specific recommendations to solve these issues, they said many of the problems would be eliminated if officers were properly supervised. Administrators should have high expectation for officers, monitor their police work and hold them accountable when their investigation is incomplete or poor. Evans and city commissioners said yesterday that the report will be taken seriously and the problems will be fixed. They said the grand jury's concerns will be discussed with the new chief and made a top priority. Mayor Connie Lawson was out of town and could not be reached for comment. The city plans to advertise the chief position in coming weeks. In the meantime, Singleton and her ranking officers are expected to meet with Smith, the commonwealth's attorney, to begin fixing the problems now. "We don't ever want a charge to be reduced or dropped because of something that we did here," Evans said. "We need to get to the root of these problems and address them quickly." Police roadblock harassment caught on tape Dec. 30, 2006 The Newspaper St Louis, Missouri — A teenager harassed by police in St. Louis, Missouri caught the incident on tape. Brett Darrow, 19, had his video camera rolling last month as he drove his 1997 Maxima, minding his own business. He approached a drunk driving roadblock where he was stopped, detained and threatened with arrest when he declined to enter a conversation with a police officer about his personal travel habits. Now Darrow is considering filing suit against St. Louis County Police.
Officer fired for beating at traffic stop Dec. 31, 2006 Lansing State Journal Battle Creek, Michigan — One Battle Creek police officer was fired and a second suspended without pay after a department investigation concluded they used excessive force to arrest a motorist two weeks ago. Ryan LaPratt, an officer for 2 1/2 years, was fired Thursday. Andrew Olsen, who has been with the department two years, was suspended without pay for 30 working days and placed on probation for five years. Both were involved in the arrest about 4 a.m. Dec. 16 of Dejuan Rose, 44, on 23rd Street. Battle Creek Police Chief David Headings announced the discipline Friday afternoon and released a video taken by a camera in one of the police cars. In the video, Olsen and LaPratt exhibit what is considered to be excessive force to arrest Rose, who was stopped for several motor vehicle violations. "It would have been easy to terminate both of them," Headings said. "I agonized over that, but it didn't rise to the level of termination for Officer Olsen." Headings said the kick and forearm strike to Rose's head by LaPratt can't be defended. "Nothing that we saw was justified," Headings said.
Cop gets probation for theft Dec. 30, 2006 Bedford Times-Mail Bloomington, Indiana — A former Bedford police officer was sentenced Friday to one year of probation for stealing knives from a local business. Justin "Drew" Jackson, 37, Mitchell, also was sentenced to perform 100 hours of community service by Monroe Circuit Court Division 2 Judge Marc Kellams. Jackson was charged with a Class D felony count of theft in July 2005. He was employed as a uniformed officer and detective with the Bedford Police Department for nearly 10 years before resigning in May 2005. Kellams was assigned as the special judge in the case after Lawrence Superior Court I Judge Michael Robbins recused himself. Jackson pleaded guilty and was sentenced Friday in Kellams' Monroe County courtroom. "We expect police officers, prosecuting attorneys, judges ... to live the kind of life that promotes a good image and recommendation to others," Kellams said, in sentencing Jackson. He ordered Jackson to one year of probation with credit for one day already served. "Theft is obviously a serious offense," said Special Prosecutor Stanley Levco. "I think what compounds it in this case was that he was a police officer." At issue during the sentencing was whether Jackson took one or several knives from Cosner's Gun and Knife Shop. |
               
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Jackson admitted to putting a $140 Benchmade knife in his pocket, and leaving the store with it on April 15, 2005. "I didn't know that when I walked out, that I had it on me," Jackson told Kellams. Three days later he returned to the store and took 19 knives. Levko, along with the store owner, wasn't sure if all 19 were stolen from the store. Kellams agreed. "He (the store owner) knows better than that, because I bought the majority of those ... there," Jackson rebutted, regarding the rest of the knives. After Jackson left the police department, he started nursing school, and is expected to graduate in July. His GPA is 3.87. "My concern is this: Mr. Jackson has embarked upon a course of conduct since being arrested that is exemplary," said Jackson's attorney, John Boren. Kellams will let Jackson petition for the Class D felony conviction to be reduced to a Class A misdemeanor in six months. As for the 19 knives that were taken from Jackson, those were forfeited to the business. Probation for "respected officer" who Jan. 9, 2007 Times Herald-Record [Hudson Valley, NY] Monticello, New York Steven Duffy, 42, was a 17-year veteran at the jail, a respected officer who conducted training for new correction deputies. That ended on June 5. A 20-year-old inmate at the jail needed to use the phone in the booking room, something that's occasionally allowed. While the two men were alone in the room, Duffy performed the act. He pleaded guilty on Nov. 27 to third-degree criminal sex act, a felony; and misdemeanor officials misconduct.
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