The Greenville Police Department is scheduled for an on-site assessment as part of a program to achieve accreditation by verifying it meets nationally accepted professional standards.

This assessment is administered by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (CALEA). The accreditation program requires agencies to comply with state-of-the-art standards in four basic areas: policy and procedures, administration, operations, and support services.

As part of the on-site assessment, agency employees and members of the community are invited to offer comments at a public information session on Monday, December 15, 2008 at 7:00pm. This session will be conducted in the First Floor Conference Room at City Hall located at 206 South Main Street.

The community is also invited to offer comments by calling 467-5091 on Monday, December 15, 2008 between the hours of 3:00 and 5:00pm. Comments will be taken by the assessment team.

Telephone comments as well as appearances at the public information session are limited to 10 minutes and must address the agency’s ability to comply with CALEA’s standards. A copy of the standards is located at the Police Department at 4 McGee Street. The local contact is Captain Michael Gambrell.

Anyone interested in submitting written comments about the Greenville Police Department’s ability to comply with the standards for accreditation may send them to the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc.(CALEA), 10302 Eaton Place, Suite 100, Fairfax, Virginia, 22030-2201

 

Congratulations to Greenville Police Detective Robert Bradford who is the recipient of the Woodruff Road Exchange Club’s 2008 Outstanding Law Enforcement Officer of the Year Award, representing the Greenville Police Department.

Detective Bradford has been a juvenile investigator for 16 years. Despite the change in his schedule and addition to his duties, when the need arose for a School Resource Officer (SRO) at Beck Academy, he stepped up to fill that need and has made a positive impact at Beck.

Greenville Police Detective Detective Bradford was honored at the First Responders Dinner Tuesday, October 14, 2008 where he received well-deserved accolades and a statue of a police officer uplifting a child.

Pictured left to right Chief Terri Wilfong, Detective Bobby Bradford and Exchange Club President, Captain Phillip Brown

 

From May/June 2008 Issue of Greenville Magazine
Every Day Heroes by Elisabeth Parrish, Photos by Ashley Fulmer

Fox, like any dog, loves to play. But because of his job, his “games” help enforce Greenville laws. As a canine member of the Greenville Police Department’s K9 Unit, Fox helps fight crime in a number of ways – from trapping dangerous suspects to tracking down drugs and missing persons.

His partner, Officer Mike Austin, has been training the German Shepherd since May 2006, when the police purchased him as a 16-week-old “green” puppy, and Austin says it’s like having another kid in the family.

Fox lives at Austin’s home in a backyard kennel provided by the city. Almost inseparable, the pair spends every workday together, which, in police work, often extends to nights as well.

Together, they spend ten hours each week in training to keep Fox at top form – running drills like returning objects, running searches and apprehending mock suspects. As Fox runs a search in Cleveland Park, Austin says, “it looks like there’s no method to his madness, but there is.” And sure enough, Fox finds the bagged marijuana Austin hid earlier in a matter of minutes, wagging his tail eagerly and dog-grinning over his accomplishment.

When people ask Austin about Fox, the officer says that most often, they just want to know if they can pet him. Austin rarely says ‘yes’, but it’s not because Fox is dangerous.

“We like for the dogs to be social, but not too social,” he said, referring to those used by the police force. “It would be bad if [Fox] thought everyone was his friend.”

For example, Austin explained, it would be dangerous if during an arrest Fox playfully rolled over.

“We don’t need him thinking, ‘This guy’s a friend. I don’t have to bite him,’” Austin said.

All police dogs that work in the county – only two work inside the City of Greenville – are trained by their partnering officers, and each is trained in a different, typically Russian-based language so suspects aren’t as likely to mimic the commands themselves. Austin admits, however, that because of his accent, the commands he uses are probably more of an Eastern European-South Carolina hybrid.

The work is hard, and Austin makes it clear that having the additional officer in the house takes the support of his whole family. Together, Austin and Fox have to work weird hours, often doing dangerous police work, but his family understands that it’s all just a part of a job he loves, and they love Fox like any family pet. At around 5-8 years old (depending on when he slows down), when this everyday hero retires, he’ll spend the rest of his days at home, a beloved pet to Officer Austin and his family – albeit one who knows a few extra tricks.

Click to read entire article online

 

 

Family, friends, fellow officers and members of the public gathered yesterday at the LEC to honor and remember the 40 officers who have fallen in the line of duty within Greenville County since 1797.

Speakers at the service included Greenville County Sheriff Steve Loftis and Greenville Police Major Gary McLaughlin. Invocation was by Greenville County Deputy Greg Thornhill. South Carolina Highway Patrol Captain Neal Brown read the Memorial Roll Call. Lowering of the U.S. flag was performed by the South Carolina Highway Patrol Honor Guard with Taps played by trumpeter Dan Robinson, Chaplain with the County Sheriff's Office.

A special music selection was performed by Captain Terrance Brooks of the Greenville County Sheriff's Office and Police Chaplain, Father Tom Pistolis offered the closing Prayer.

 

Me Minus You

Nothing can change that one fateful night,
For once in our lives, we lost the fight.

We spoke about this, and it somehow came true.
I was hurt pretty bad, but nothing like you.

The night should have ended like the rest of them did,
With a pat on the shoulder and a farewell bid.

We didn’t have a chance to say our goodbyes,
I knew you were gone when I looked in your eyes.

What brought us together is what ripped us apart.
I can’t keep my mind straight, and it’s hurting my heart.

From two different worlds we came to be Blue.
It’s hard to move on, with me minus you.

Not much at all feels the same anymore,
Each day I wish you would walk through the door.

My wounds have all healed on the surface it’s true,
Yet it tears me apart just thinking of you.

I couldn’t go to your service that day.
The world’s not allowed to see me this way.

You were my partner then, and my angel now.
I need to carry on, I’m just not sure how.

Give me the same strength you did here on earth.
Your weight in gold is what you were worth.

I beg you to help me from Heaven above.
Please send me a piece of your brotherly love.

Written by:
Eric DeRenzis, Philadelphia Police Department

Dedicated to Partners of Fallen Officers

 

 

by Craig W. Floyd, American Police Beat,

Mellie McDaniel was on her way home from the grocery store, talking with her husband, Jackson County (FL) Sheriff John P. McDaniel, on her mobile phone. It was a little before 5 p.m. on January 30, 2007. As she pulled into her driveway, she suddenly became concerned; another car had pulled in behind her. She reported this suspicious activity to her husband, and then she let out a long scream.

Sheriff McDaniel immediately radioed for officers in the area to respond to the scene. Within two minutes Deputy Harold Michael "Mike" Altman, 42, arrived at the Sheriff's residence. He called in a Michigan license plate to the dispatcher and then was heard to say over the radio, "Get off me!" There was no further radio communication. Two minutes later Sheriff McDaniel arrived, along with Captain Joey Rabon and Corporal Billy Dozier. They were confronted by two men, one of them wearing camouflage clothing, who stepped out from behind the home and started shooting at the Sheriff. In the ensuing gun battle the two assailants were killed.

When the gunfire had ended, Sheriff McDaniel and his two colleagues made a grisly discovery. In the driveway, laying next to one another, were the bodies of Mrs. McDaniel and Deputy Altman. They had both been shot and killed execution-style in the horrifying few minutes following Mrs. McDaniel's scream for help. One of the assailants was suspected in the unsolved murder of his wife in 2001, and the Jackson County Sheriff's Office had been investigating the case. Some have speculated that the attack may have been related to the murder investigation, and the recent dismissal of a life insurance claim, but the deaths of the two assailants left their motives uncertain.

Mike Altman was one of 181 federal, state and local law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty last year, one of the highest fatality figures in recent memory. The total is 30 more than the 151 officers who made the supreme sacrifice in 2006, and is the highest since 2001, when 240 officers were killed, including 72 during the terrorist attacks on September 11. All of their names will be officially added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C., at the 20th annual Memorial candlelight vigil on May 13. When those names are added, along with 177 newly discovered line-of-duty deaths from earlier years, there will be 18,274 names inscribed on the Memorial walls.

For the 10th straight year, traffic-related incidents claimed the lives of more officers (83) than any other cause of death. In fact, there were more officers killed in traffic-related incidents in 2007 than during any other year in our nation's history. Sixty of those officers died in automobile crashes, 14 were struck and killed by vehicles and nine died in motorcycle crashes. Among that latter group was Rio Rancho (NM) Police Officer Germaine F. Casey, who was killed in a motorcycle crash on August 27 while escorting President Bush's motorcade to Kirtland Air Force Base.

The death of Gary (IN) Patrolman Benjamin Wilcher, Jr., illustrates the tremendous dangers an officer faces every time they chase down a fleeing felon or respond to an emergency call. On August 11, he was responding to an assault and carjacking call when Officer Wilcher's patrol car collided with another officer's vehicle at an intersection. He died the next day.

The number of officers shot and killed during 2007 was 68, which was a 31 percent increase over the 52 officers killed by gunfire during 2006. One of the main reasons for this increase was the high number of multiple-death shooting incidents in 2007. Six times last year more than one officer was fatally gunned down in the same incident. One of those multiple-death incidents occurred last April in charlotte (NC) when Police Officers Sean Clark and Jeffrey Shelton were shot and killed during a domestic disturbance call.

Among the other causes of death, 13 died of job-related illnesses, five were killed in terrorist attacks, four drowned, three died in aircraft accidents, three fell to their death, one died in a boating accident, and one was struck by a falling object. On average, the officers who sacrificed their lives were 39 years old and had served for 11 years. The youngest of the officers to die last year was 19-year-old Eugene Marshalik, a New York City auxiliary police officer. On March 14, Auxiliary Police Officers Marshalik and Nicholas T. Pekearo were shot and killed while pursuing a suspect who had murdered two people in a downtown Greenwich Village pizza shop.

The oldest officer to die in 2007 was Paul Rein, a deputy sheriff with the Broward County (FL) Sheriff's Office. On November 7, 2007, Deputy Rein was shot and killed by a prisoner he was transporting to court. He was 76 years old. Deputy Rein was one of 16 Florida officers to make the ultimate sacrifice last year, which was the second highest total among the states. Only Texas, with 22 fatalities in 2007, had more. Seventeen officers serving with federal and military law enforcement agencies were killed in the line of duty in 2007, compared to five in 2006.

Five correctional officers were killed in the line of duty in 2007. They included: Cecil A. Smith, Sr. of the New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety; Macon County (MO) Deputy Sheriff David L. Gwin; Utah Corrections Officer Stephen R. Anderson; Susan Canfield of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice; and Alabama Corrections Officer Elizabeth G. Franklin. Correctional Officers Canfield and Franklin were two of six female law enforcement professionals killed in the line of duty in 2007.

Freak acts of nature claimed the lives of two officers in 2007. In May, Macksville (KS) Patrol Officer Robert T. Buckman was killed when a tornado lifted his squad car off the ground and flung it down 300 yards away into a field. The following month, Saint Tammany Parish (LA) Sergeant Linden A. "Beau" Raimer was killed when a pine tree that was toppled by strong winds from a storm fell on his patrol car. In a tragic twist of fate, Sergeant Raimer was struck by the tree while riding in a funeral procession for another officer from his department and close friend, Deputy First Class Hilery Mayo, Jr., who had been killed in the line of duty four days earlier.

FBI Special Agent Barry Bush became the 54th member of his agency to be killed in the line of duty. His shooting death occurred on April 5 while attempting to arrest a gang of serial bank robbers in Readington, New Jersey. Recently, his wife, Karen, said she found a National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial brochure in one of his coat pockets. She recalled that he made a special point of visiting the Memorial while he was in the area for training. "I just remember his phone call telling me how beautiful it was and he was glad he finally located it," she said. "So it's sort of bittersweet, actually, that he'll be added this year. It's an honor."

"Reprinted with permission of the author, Craig W. Floyd and AMERICAN POLICE BEAT."

 

U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge William W. Wilkins, Jr. presented the Billy Wilkins Award for Excellence in Law Enforcement to Detective Collis H. Flavell of the Greenville Police Department.

The award began in 1984 in honor of former Thirteenth Circuit Solicitor Billy Wilkins and is made each year to individual law enforcement officers who have exhibited outstanding attributes in performance of his or her duties both in the field and in the courtoom.

Collis Herbert Flavell joined the Greenville Police Department in July, 1992. He was assigned to the Uniform Patrol working west Greenville. In 1996 he was promoted to Corporal and became a field training officer. In 1997, he was reassigned to the Detective Division and in 2000 he became a Detective with the Violent Crimes Unit. Since that time, he has been involved in several high profile cases including the double homicide on Montclair Avenue in 2000 and most recently, the death of Javeon Mayes.

 

On March 14, 2008, Lieutenant Randy Evett, a twenty-five year veteran of the Greenville Police Department, graduated from the 232nd Session of the F.B.I. National Academy. The 232nd Session of the National Academy consisted of 280 men and women from fifty states, 22 international countries, and four military organizations.

Internationally known for its academic excellence, the National Academy Program offers 10 weeks of advanced investigative, management, and fitness training. Only officers who have proven records as professionals within their respective agencies are considered by the academy. On average, these officers have nineteen years of law enforcement experience and usually return to their agencies to serve in executive-level positions.

Training for the program is provided by the F.B.I. Academy Instructional Staff, Special Agents, and other staff members holding advanced degrees, many of whom are recognized internationally in their fields of expertise. Since 1972, National Academy students have been able to earn undergraduate and graduate credits from the University of Virginia due to the accreditation by the university of the many courses offered.

F.B.I. Director Robert S. Mueller III was the principal speaker at the academy. The graduating officers were represented by the class spokesperson, Chief Inspector Alan Gall, Strathclyde Police, Glasgow, Scotland. A total of 41,000 graduates now represent the F.B.I. National Academy since it began in July 1935.

 

Communication Specialist Gary Brothers has received the Palmetto Award from the Association of Professional Communications Officials and the National Emergency Number Association.

This award is presented to an individual in recognition of their exceptional professionalism in the field of emergency communications, and acknowledges the special contributions of those whose daily performance of their duties is an inspiration and example to others in the field of emergency telecommunications.

CS Brothers has been employed as an Emergency 911 dispatcher since 1997.

 

On Thursday, October 11, 2007 Officer C. C. Reider of the Greenville Police Department, received the “Officer of the Year” award from the Woodruff Road Exchange Club during their 5th Annual First Responders Dinner in Mauldin, SC. Each year the club honors an outstanding Law Enforcement Officer, Firefighter, and Emergency Technician.

Officer Reider is a 3rd generation police officer and served in the US Marines. He has received numerous commendations for his performance and accomplishments, including (arrest of individuals responsible for using bb guns for shooting out vehicle windows on I385, arrest of 2 individuals in auto break-ins at Haywood Mall, and an arrest in conjunction with the SC Highway Patrol of an individual involved in a human trafficking case).

The Greenville Police Department is very proud that Officer Reider was honored as this year’s recipient. He is an asset to the department.

 

Columbia, S.C. – Attorney General Henry McMaster announced today that the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force has now arrested one hundred (100) suspected Internet Child Predators since the Criminal Solicitation of a Minor law was passed in April 2004.

McMaster made the announcement amid a host of law enforcement officers representing a number of the law enforcement agencies that have joined the Task Force since 2005.

Representative Murrell Smith of Sumter, the lead sponsor of the 2004 law that allows the Task Force’s undercover Internet sting operations, also joined McMaster.

“This milestone in our fight against Internet Child Predators in South Carolina is a testament to the professionalism and dedication of the seventy-five law enforcement officers in the state that work in daily cooperation with each other to make this Task Force a success,” said McMaster. 

“However, this day highlights a very dangerous problem in our state – that adults are constantly on the Internet seeking to harm our children.  No matter how many perverts are caught in our sting operations, we are confident that there are scores of children hurt that we never now anything about.  For those cases to go without prosecution is a terrible shame.”

With the help of Representative Murrell Smith of Sumter, the Criminal Solicitation of a Minor law (ten (10) year felony) passed quickly through the Legislature and became law in April 2004.  At that time, agents of the State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) provided all of the investigative work on the Internet. 

In 2005, McMaster sought to expand the Task Force to include local law enforcement agencies.  To date, thirty-seven (37) law enforcement agencies across the state have joined the Task Force.  In all, seventy-five (75) law enforcement officers are associated with the Task Force through these member agencies.

Through a grant from the U.S. Department of Justice, the Attorney General’s Office provides training for officers from each member agency, as well as computer equipment needed to conduct the undercover Internet sting operations.  The first of the member agencies’ officers began completing their training by March 2006, meaning the bulk of the arrests announced today have come from an intense effort that has spanned approximately seventeen (17) months.

The Attorney General’s Office has prosecuted thirty-three (33) of the individuals arrested, resulting in thirty-one (31) guilty pleas and two (2) guilty findings by jury.

For a complete summary of the one hundred (100) Task Force arrests, sentencing information, member agency information, etc., please view this link: http://www.scattorneygeneral.com/newsroom/pdf/predatorlist.pdf  

McMaster stressed that all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law.

Online Resources:

http://www.sckids.org/
http://www.scattorneygeneral.com/public/missing.php