THE NY YANKEES AND NYPD � AN HISTORICAL LOOK
The following information is provided thanks to Retired Sgt. Michael Bosak, and provides a very interesting picture of the Yankees history.
NOTE: THIS ITEM IS COPYRIGHTED BY MICHAEL BOSAK.
�For the longest time, any official N.Y. Yankees reference to their history began with the purchase of the N.Y. Yankees by Colonels Tillinghast L�Hommediu Huston and Jacob Rupert, for the sum of $460,000 in January of 1915. The Yankees have never mentioned the significant influence that the NYPD and Chief of Police William S. Devery have had on Yankee tradition.
Many articles have appeared in various N.Y.C. newspapers, touting a history dating back to 1903, and proclaiming 2003 as the 100 Year Anniversary of the New York Yankees. And we�ll have to go back even farther, to January of 1877 to get an even truer picture of Yankee tradition.
But let�s not get ahead of ourselves. We�ll start with the original purchase of the American League Baltimore ball club. On January 9, 1903, Tammany Democrat leader, Frank Farrell, and NYPD retired �Chief of Police� and former First Deputy Police Commissioner, William �Big Bill� Devery, purchased the defunct and bankrupt Baltimore American League franchise for the measly sum of $18,000.
Being two of the most powerful Tammany politicians in New York City at this time, approval for any and all NYC permits for a professional ball club and park was a foregone conclusion. Franchise approval by the American League was granted on March 12, 1903, and construction on an all-wood ballpark was started at 168th Street and Broadway on the grounds of what is now Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital. Because the ballpark was constructed on one of the highest spots in Manhattan, Farrell and Devery named it �Hilltop Park� and called the team the �N.Y. Highlanders.�
However, during the 1905 baseball season, the name "Yankees" began to appear in many newspapers. And by the time Devery and Farrell moved the ball club from decaying Hilltop Park to the Polo Grounds in 1913, the club�s official name had been changed to the now commonly used "New York Yankees."
The interlocking "NY" made its first appearance on the uniforms of the New York Yankees in 1909 at the bequest of �Big Bill� Devery. The design actually comes from the Patrolman John McDowell Medal or, as �Boss� George Steinbrenner would later name it, �The Thurmon Munson Yankees� Captain�s Medal of Valor.�
Louis B. Tiffany created the original silver medal in 1877 for Ptl. John McDowell, who had been shot early in the morning on January 8, 1877. Today, the original silver medal, having been mistakenly bronzed by the Department, can be seen at the Police Museum�.
PATROLMAN JOHN MCDOWELL
NOTE: The following information is also copyrighted by Retired Sgt Michael Bosak, and is provided here as a great historical anecdote from the NYPD files.
�On January 8, 1877, at 2:45 AM in the morning, a burglar by the name of George, a/k/a James, Flint, an Irishman, along with two other burglars (who were not apprehended), came in through the skylight of Bernard Courtney�s Saloon, located at 315 7th Avenue with the intention of stealing whatever they could.
Patrolman John McDowell and Detective Max Schmittberger, along with Capt. Alexander �Clubber� Williams, were all in civilian clothes and had been drinking heavily. In all probability, McDowell and Schmittberger, as the 29th Precinct�s detectives, were Captain Williams� bagmen.
According to sworn testimony given in court, all three had passed out from drink and were sleeping in various positions in the saloon, when the burglars came in thru the skylight. When McDowell came to, he realized what was going on and he began to struggle with the skells. In the struggle, McDowell was shot behind his left ear by a ball fired from a black powder flintlock pistol. He survived his injuries and helped make the arrest.
He was awarded the silver medal in question for his efforts. A few years later, McDowell retired as a �Roundsman� from the 22nd Precinct. (Today�s Midtown North Pct.) to work security in the Federal Reserve Bank�s Sub Treasury in lower Manhattan.
Max Schmittberger would later be caught taking a bribe of $500 from the French Steamship Company. He then rolled over, and in sworn testimony in front of the Lexow Commission, admitted to being �Clubber�s� bagman and running a pad for him. This sworn testimony caused many police officers to lose their jobs and go to jail. Because of his testimony, Teddy Roosevelt, then President of the Board of Police Commissioners pardoned Schmittberger. Catching religion, he went on to hold the position of what today is titled �Chief of Department�.
Alexander �Clubber� William was promoted to Inspector, and as X.O. to Superintendent of Police Thomas Byrnes, he retired as second in command of the NYPD. When given command of the 29th Precinct in Manhattan, he coined the name �The Tenderloin� for this area of over 3,000 French and Irish prostitutes and more than 300 after-hour bars and illegal saloons. Later, he and �Big Bill� Devery went on to become close and longtime personal friends�.
�SEND THE STENOGRAPHER�
I noted some duties that were designated in the 1956 Department Manual of Procedure, pertaining to Homicide cases, that I found of interest.
It is noted that, at a homicide crime scene, the department photographer will respond to take photos of the deceased, the scene, etc.
Also, the photographer is responsible to take the fingerprints of the victim, while still at the scene, as well as the fingerprints of any other people that may have had access to the location that the victim is found at. There was no waiting for the body to be taken to the morgue � fingerprints taken right there.
Also, at homicide scenes, the ranking Detective MOS at the scene would �dictate to the stenographer from the homicide squad, a detailed description of the surroundings, layout of the premises, description of the body��
I was just wondering: whatever happened to this stenographer? Couldn�t you use one at your crime scene today? Try and get someone else you work with to take notes for you, and see how far that goes.
INFO FOR THE INVESTIGATOR: READING SIM CARDS
A device has recently been developed that reads SIM cards from mobile phones.
This will certainly be something we�d like to see TARU get access to.
The new program can recall all deleted messages in the card. As long as there is memory available, the program will show what is in the card. The information can be copied to a spreadsheet for future reports and analysis.
Some police agencies have already started using the device, which originated in Europe.
Sound interesting? You can check the company�s web site at:
www.verdisikring.as
Or you can e-mail them direct at: post@verdisikring.as
MORE ON BROOKLYN POLICE PRECINCTS
Here�s some more information on the location of old Brooklyn Police precincts, continued from a previous posting to this site.
In 1887, the Brooklyn Population was estimated as 765,000, and the police force consisted of 930.
Location of Brooklyn Police Station Houses 1887.
Pct: Location:
1st Adams St. near Myrtle Ave. (1st floor of Police Court House.)
2nd York & Jay Sts.
3rd Butler St. just off Court St.
4th Corner of Myrtle & Vanderbilt Aves.
(One of oldest S.H. in Brooklyn, was 44th Pct. in Metro. P.D.)
5th Corner of North 1st St. & Bedford Ave. This was a 3 story brick building, built 1859/1860 by Cornelius Woglon- a carpenter, who later joined the Brooklyn P.D. and was Captain of this Precinct.
6th S/E corner of Stagg St. & Bushwick Ave. This building was erected about 1860 for a court house.
6th-Sub. Graham Ave., between Frost & Richardson Sts.
7th Corner Greenpoint & Manhattan Aves.
8th Corner 5th Ave. & 16th St.
8th-Sub. 3rd Ave. near corner of 35th St.
9th Near corner of Gates & Marcy Aves.
10th N/W corner of Bergen St. & 6th Ave. (Red Hook)
11th Corner of Van Brunt & Seabring Sts. This was built as a 4 story brick dwelling house, made into a S.H. on April 19, 1876.
12th South side of Fulton St., just above Schenectady Ave.
13th Bartlett St. & Flushing Ave.
14th No location given. This was an old 2 story wooden building: In July 1887, a new S.H. at 16 Ralph Ave. was opened.
15th Congress St. near Columbia St.
16th Clymer St. near Kent Ave. This was built as a tenement house, later became the 5th-Sub. Pct. S.H; then became 16th Pct. S.H. July 15, 1885.)
17th Bradford St. near Atlantic Ave., New Lots. This was a 2 story brick building, and was originally occupied by the New Lots Police Department on Dec. 11, 1873. On Aug. 1, 1886, the New Lots Police Department was annexed (merged in today�s term) to the Brooklyn Police Department, and became the 26th Ward; the S.H. became 17th Pct.
YOU CAN�T MAKE THIS UP
Some more from the files of �truth is stranger than fiction�.
A story reported recently in news sources � and documented as a true story � takes place in California.
I�m sure some of our boaters will get a real kick out of this; something Steve Stemmler or Mike McWilliams can certainly relate to � those crazy new boat owners!
It seems that down on Lake Isabella, located in the high desert, an hour east of Bakersfield, CA, some folks, new to boating, were having a problem. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't get their brand new 22 foot boat, going.
It was very sluggish in almost every maneuver, no matter how much power they applied. After about an hour of trying to make it go, they putted into a nearby marina, thinking someone there may be able to tell them what was wrong.
A thorough topside check revealed everything in perfect working condition. The engine ran fine, the out-drive went up and down, and the propeller was the correct size and pitch.
So, one of the marina guys jumped in the water to check underneath. He came up choking on water, he was laughing so hard.(Now, remember...THIS IS TRUE.)
Under the boat, still strapped securely in place, was the trailer!
�LEST WE FORGET�� THE NYPD MEMORIAL
October 13, 1968 Ptl David Turman, TPF, Shot-mistaken ID, off duty
October 13, 1970 Ptl Maurice Erben, Harbor, Boat accident
October 13, 1996 PO Brian Jones, PSA4, Shot-off duty dispute
October 15, 1932 Ptl John Fink, 71 Pct, Fire rescue
October 15, 1964 Det James Donegan, 71 Squad, Shot effecting arrest
October 15, 1964 Det Salvatore Potenza, 71 Sqd, Shot effecting arrest
October 15, 1994 PO William Kennedy, Info unavailable
October 17, 1989 PO Anthony Dwyer, MTS, Pushed from roof, burglary
October 18, 1938 Ptl Martin Hanke, 68 Pct, Shot-accidental
October 18, 1988 PO Christopher Hoban, MN Narco, Shot-warrant execution
October 18, 1988 PO Michael Buczek, 34 Pct, Shot-Investigation
October 18, 1996 Lt Federico Narvaez, 70 Pct, Shot-Investigation
October 19, 1929 Ptl Charles Saver, 76 Pct, Shot-robbery in progress
October 20, 1967 Ptl James Dandridge, 32 Pct, Shot:Accidental by MOS
MY ERROR OF OMISSION:
DET. ROBERT PARKER AND DET PATRICK RAFFERTY
I omitted the entry of these two Detectives, from the 67 Squad, who gave their lives on September 10, 2004 effecting an arrest.
I apologize to all, and ask that you keep their families in your prayers. May they rest in peace.
Thursday, October 13, 2005
Wednesday, October 05, 2005
THE CITY'S TOUGHEST COP: JOHNNY BRODERICK
I came across an old newspaper article from June 18, 1966, from the New York Herald-Tribune, that had some interesting NYPD information.
Titled �The City�s Toughest Cop�, it discussed Detective Johnny Broderick, and a time in New York City that will be quite foreign to today�s officers.
I am including it for its information. I found it interesting, and sure that many of you will too. As with much in history, understanding your past is helpful in understanding how you got to where you are.
�Even the fat dictionary doesn't have such a word, but for a 20 year period until 1947, a common expression heard around town, especially in and around the Times Square area was "To Broderick".
It meant to " rough Up, clout, belt, clobber." And the underworld coined it in grudging respect for a bulldog faced cop who rarely used his service revolver, preferring to go in with his fists. While there have been apocryphal stories about Johnny Broderick, who signed his name John J., it is a hard fact that his knuckles were so badly bent from banging the heads of bad guys that Bellevue Hospital once used him as a live exhibit to show what the human fist can endure.
Johnny Broderick who died in 1966 (this article was an obituary to Broderick) would be miserable in today's Police Force. He retired as a first grade Detective in 1947 after more than 24 years on the job.
In all probability, he'd be pelted with constant criticism from groups accusing him of brutality--and in all likelihood he would have quit.
His view was "Legalismo is a lot of bunk". For instance, he once walked into a cafeteria looking for a murder suspect. He saw him. The man identified himself, as requested. Johnny picked up a fully loaded sugar bowl and knocked the suspect cold. As Johnny picked him up off the marble floor, the detective pulled a loaded .38 Caliber revolver out of the man�s pocket. "Case closed." said Johnny.
Fellow officers regarded him as brave, all right, but also fierce and foolish. Along Duffy Square, "Broadway Rose" and bookies were laying 9 to 5 that their pal Johnny would be knocked off any day, in all probability by the likes of Jack (Legs) Diamond; the notorious Legs Diamond was one of the many hoodlums whom Johnny Broderick whacked on the chin, picked up and dumped into an ash can head first, legs flopping.
But Johnny fooled them all. He died of natural causes in the bucolic surroundings of his home in Middletown, on his 70th birthday. Surviving are his wife, a daughter 3 sisters and a brother.
To the end, he kept in touch with his New York, which he found distasteful in recent years. He felt that fists and nightsticks would clean up the town.
Young Broderick was born in the old East-side Gashouse District, which now house Stuyvesant Town. His father died when Johnny was 12, and he went to work driving a truck to support his mother. As a member of the Teamsters Union he somehow met Samuel Gompers, president of the AFL, at a convention and Gompers took a fancy to the husky youth, and made him a bodyguard.
After serving in the Navy during WW1, where he excelled as a boxer, he spent nine months as a fireman. He then, in 1922, found the firematic career tame and donned a Police uniform in January 1923. With the right connections, he was a First Grade Detective within 5 years. He soon became the best known officer on the force.
He worked out of the so called "Main Office Squad" which meant he could go anywhere he pleased. He liked Midtown, where he became as much of a part of the scenery as Madison Square Garden, The Palace, and Lindy's. Inevitably he became the bosom buddy of the greats of the fight game, especially of Jack Dempsey, who once reportedly remarked, "I'd take Johnny on in the ring under Marquis of Queensbury rules--but not in an alley."
The cop with the thin lips and full round face stood only 5' 9" and weighed 175 but he had a mania for physical fitness and worked out almost every day at Stillman�s gym. He shunned tobacco and booze.
It was Johnny Broderick who in 1931, went in and pulled James (two gun ) Crowley out of a West Side building after hundreds of fellow cops laid down a siege and tried to smoke him out. By then, Johnny's knuckles were beginning to ache, so he developed the method of grabbing the tie-wearing gangsters by the knot and twisting until the felon fell back, almost choked to death.
In 1926 three inmates escaped killing the warden and a keeper. Scores of police surrounded the prison. Johnny got there late. He picked up the top of an ash can, weaved his way into the Tombs courtyard, crawled on his belly to where the three convicts were hiding behind a coal bin. He had emptied his revolver by the time he got to where he found them dead. The apocryphal story is that Johnny killed them. He did not-they had committed suicide, possibly because they saw him coming.
He knew all the big-time rum runners-and they knew him. As long as they behaved themselves, they were not Brodericked. Old timers along Times Square recall how Johnny picked up three punks who were misbehaving in a restaurant and threw them through the plate glass window- and charged them with the breakage.
It was amazing too, to see hoodlums slink out of eating places when he came sauntering in with his tight, custom tailored light-weight suit, wearing monogrammed shirts, handkerchiefs and underwear.
Oh there were times when he got his lumps. Before he made detective a thug he had once beaten up telephoned and invited him to have it out. Johnny showed up -and walked into a room loaded with 16 gangsters. He broke a few noses before he emerged-bloody but in one piece, and he hung around until reinforcements came, when he got back at the thug that had invited him.
Besides the Main Office Squad, he was at times assigned to other squads known as the Broadway Squad, Strong-arm Squad and the Industrial Squad. On occasion he served as body guard for Dempsey and Queen Marie of Romania, and he was really honored when in 1936 President Roosevelt specifically asked that Johnny Broderick be close to him on his New York visit.
He had detective partners who made names for themselves too, such as the famed Johnny Cordes.
Johnny Broderick was busted from first grade detective to patrolman, back to uniform, in 1934, during the LaGuardia regime. In a few months, though, he was a detective again driving around in his Cadillac.
In 1949, two years after retiring he took a fling at politics seeking the Democratic leadership of the Times Square area. He got clobbered but Hollywood paid him in excess of $100,000 to do his life story the film being called "Bullets for Ballots" which, inevitably, Edward G. Robinson played the part of the one man anti-crime force.
He vehemently denied that he quit the Police Force under pressure to avoid a scandal. His political foes so charged, saying he had been forced to retire because he had accompanied underworld figures to places such as Hot Springs for the Baths.
The detective who had won eight citations, always cringed when he heard this story: That Johnny Broderick walked into a funeral parlor where a Hudson Duster gangster was laid out and spit in the thugs eye. �I Brodericked him when he was alive," Johnny would say, "But it's against my religion to do anything like that to the dead."
He had a sense of humor and would tell stories on himself:
"One day I was in a detective squad and I started to ride a rookie cop; he told me to cut it out, but I refused. We went at it right there in the squad room. He knocked me out. When he learned who he had done this to, the rookie fainted. He didn't know that I was THE "tough " Johnny Broderick".
BROOKLYN PRECINCTS
With a thank-you to Ret Det1 John Reilly, here�s a listing of old Brooklyn police precinct�s that you may find of interest. Initially police by the Metropolitan Police Department, the following is a breakdown of the Brooklyn Precinct�s along with their manpower.
METROLITAN Police Department:
Brooklyn Police Station Houses- 1868.
Pct: Strength: Location:
41st 47 Washington St. near Johnson.
42nd 41 York & Jay Sts.
43rd 56 Butler
44th 51 Myrtle Ave. corner Vanderbilt Ave.
45th 55 North 1st St. corner 4th St.
46th 46 Wyckoff St. near Ewen St.
47th 24 Franklin St. corner Union Ave.
48th 27 19th St. & 4th Ave. (Gowanus)
49th 39 Fulton & Bedford Aves. Later this Pct. moved to a new S.H. at Gates & Marcy Aves, becoming the 9th Pct. of the Brooklyn Police Department. (Later, the 79 Pct!)
50th 27 Flatbush Ave. near 5th Ave.
INTERESTING WEB SITES
http://www.soople.com/
A more �intense� google-search system. Try it out!
SURVEILLANCE TIP: SHAVING CREAM?
Surveillance during inclement weather can create a host of problems for the investigator.
Keeping your windows clear, if your surveillance is inside a car, is certainly problematic. Try this next time.
Keep your vehicle windows fog-free by smearing a light coat of shaving cream on the interior of each window. Wipe it away with toilet tissue or paper towels and buff out the streaks. Do the same thing with eyeglasses, camera lenses, etc.
In addition, a wax coat on the outside of car windows also precludes moisture runs and allows quick wipes.
NADDIS
You�ve probably used it countless of times. �Check the address in NADDIS�, or �Run the name through NADDIS�.
This was a common check conducted on shootings and homicides, especially when there was a suspected drug connection.
HIDTA was the source for the info in the past; now we run the records via the Real Time Crime Center.
What is NADDIS?
It stands for the Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Information System. A centralized automated file of summaries of reports on subjects of interest to DEA, consisting of over 3,500,000 individuals, businesses, vessels and selected airfields identified through the DEA investigative reporting system, and related investigative records. It probably goes back to the agency which preceded the DEA, which was then known as the BNDD � Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs.
YOU CAN�T MAKE THIS UP
Here are some more from the files of the moronic.
Are we communicating?
A man spoke frantically into the phone. "My wife is pregnant and her contractions are only two minutes apart!""Is this her first child?" the doctor asked. "No," the man shouted, "This is her husband!"
Certainly not the sharpest tool in the shed.
In Modesto, CA, Steven Richard King was arrested for trying to hold up a Bank of America branch without a weapon. King used a thumb and a finger to simulate a gun.
Unfortunately, he failed to keep his hand in his pocket.
�LEST WE FORGET�" THE NYPD MEMORIAL
October 1, 1963 Ptl John Donovan, GCP-Hwy3, Motorcycle accident on patrol
October 2, 1960 Ptl Philip Curtin, 19 Pct, Info not available
October 2, 1969 Ptl Salvatore Spinola, ESU, Asphyxiation during rescue
October 3, 1913 Sgt Joseph McNierney, 29 Pct, Stabbed during arrest
October 3, 1929 Ptl William McCaffrey, Traffic Div, Auto accident on patrol
October 4, 1928 Ptl John Gibbons, Mcy1, Motorcycle accident on patrol
October 6, 1864 Ptl Charles Curren, 42 Pct Brooklyn, shot during arrest
October 7, 1968 Ptl John Varecha, 18 Pct, Shot-investigation
October 7, 1989 PO William Chisolm, 45 Pct, Shot-off duty incident
October 8, 1900 Ptl Charles Horn, 58 Pct Brooklyn, Stabbed
October 8, 1928 Ptl William Stoeffel, 4 Pct, auto accident on patrol
October 8, 1956 Det William Christmas, 92 Sqd, Shot-off duty incident
October 8, 1966 Ptl James Cosgrove, Mcy4(Hwy3), Auto accident on patrol
October 8, 1993 PO John Williamson, HA-PSA6, head injury-bucket from roof
October 9, 1866 Ptl John Hipwell, 45 Pct Brooklyn, Shot,burglary
October 9, 1928 Ptl Thomas Wallace, Mcy2, Motorcycle accident on patrol
October 9, 1965 Ptl Philip Shultz, HA-B/SI, Shot-off duty arrest
October 10, 1973 PO George Mead, 42 Pct, Shot-off duty robbery
October 10, 1975 PO Walter Tarpey, MSTF, Auto accident on patrol
October 12, 1946 Ptl George Hunter, 30 Pct, Shot-robbery
I came across an old newspaper article from June 18, 1966, from the New York Herald-Tribune, that had some interesting NYPD information.
Titled �The City�s Toughest Cop�, it discussed Detective Johnny Broderick, and a time in New York City that will be quite foreign to today�s officers.
I am including it for its information. I found it interesting, and sure that many of you will too. As with much in history, understanding your past is helpful in understanding how you got to where you are.
�Even the fat dictionary doesn't have such a word, but for a 20 year period until 1947, a common expression heard around town, especially in and around the Times Square area was "To Broderick".
It meant to " rough Up, clout, belt, clobber." And the underworld coined it in grudging respect for a bulldog faced cop who rarely used his service revolver, preferring to go in with his fists. While there have been apocryphal stories about Johnny Broderick, who signed his name John J., it is a hard fact that his knuckles were so badly bent from banging the heads of bad guys that Bellevue Hospital once used him as a live exhibit to show what the human fist can endure.
Johnny Broderick who died in 1966 (this article was an obituary to Broderick) would be miserable in today's Police Force. He retired as a first grade Detective in 1947 after more than 24 years on the job.
In all probability, he'd be pelted with constant criticism from groups accusing him of brutality--and in all likelihood he would have quit.
His view was "Legalismo is a lot of bunk". For instance, he once walked into a cafeteria looking for a murder suspect. He saw him. The man identified himself, as requested. Johnny picked up a fully loaded sugar bowl and knocked the suspect cold. As Johnny picked him up off the marble floor, the detective pulled a loaded .38 Caliber revolver out of the man�s pocket. "Case closed." said Johnny.
Fellow officers regarded him as brave, all right, but also fierce and foolish. Along Duffy Square, "Broadway Rose" and bookies were laying 9 to 5 that their pal Johnny would be knocked off any day, in all probability by the likes of Jack (Legs) Diamond; the notorious Legs Diamond was one of the many hoodlums whom Johnny Broderick whacked on the chin, picked up and dumped into an ash can head first, legs flopping.
But Johnny fooled them all. He died of natural causes in the bucolic surroundings of his home in Middletown, on his 70th birthday. Surviving are his wife, a daughter 3 sisters and a brother.
To the end, he kept in touch with his New York, which he found distasteful in recent years. He felt that fists and nightsticks would clean up the town.
Young Broderick was born in the old East-side Gashouse District, which now house Stuyvesant Town. His father died when Johnny was 12, and he went to work driving a truck to support his mother. As a member of the Teamsters Union he somehow met Samuel Gompers, president of the AFL, at a convention and Gompers took a fancy to the husky youth, and made him a bodyguard.
After serving in the Navy during WW1, where he excelled as a boxer, he spent nine months as a fireman. He then, in 1922, found the firematic career tame and donned a Police uniform in January 1923. With the right connections, he was a First Grade Detective within 5 years. He soon became the best known officer on the force.
He worked out of the so called "Main Office Squad" which meant he could go anywhere he pleased. He liked Midtown, where he became as much of a part of the scenery as Madison Square Garden, The Palace, and Lindy's. Inevitably he became the bosom buddy of the greats of the fight game, especially of Jack Dempsey, who once reportedly remarked, "I'd take Johnny on in the ring under Marquis of Queensbury rules--but not in an alley."
The cop with the thin lips and full round face stood only 5' 9" and weighed 175 but he had a mania for physical fitness and worked out almost every day at Stillman�s gym. He shunned tobacco and booze.
It was Johnny Broderick who in 1931, went in and pulled James (two gun ) Crowley out of a West Side building after hundreds of fellow cops laid down a siege and tried to smoke him out. By then, Johnny's knuckles were beginning to ache, so he developed the method of grabbing the tie-wearing gangsters by the knot and twisting until the felon fell back, almost choked to death.
In 1926 three inmates escaped killing the warden and a keeper. Scores of police surrounded the prison. Johnny got there late. He picked up the top of an ash can, weaved his way into the Tombs courtyard, crawled on his belly to where the three convicts were hiding behind a coal bin. He had emptied his revolver by the time he got to where he found them dead. The apocryphal story is that Johnny killed them. He did not-they had committed suicide, possibly because they saw him coming.
He knew all the big-time rum runners-and they knew him. As long as they behaved themselves, they were not Brodericked. Old timers along Times Square recall how Johnny picked up three punks who were misbehaving in a restaurant and threw them through the plate glass window- and charged them with the breakage.
It was amazing too, to see hoodlums slink out of eating places when he came sauntering in with his tight, custom tailored light-weight suit, wearing monogrammed shirts, handkerchiefs and underwear.
Oh there were times when he got his lumps. Before he made detective a thug he had once beaten up telephoned and invited him to have it out. Johnny showed up -and walked into a room loaded with 16 gangsters. He broke a few noses before he emerged-bloody but in one piece, and he hung around until reinforcements came, when he got back at the thug that had invited him.
Besides the Main Office Squad, he was at times assigned to other squads known as the Broadway Squad, Strong-arm Squad and the Industrial Squad. On occasion he served as body guard for Dempsey and Queen Marie of Romania, and he was really honored when in 1936 President Roosevelt specifically asked that Johnny Broderick be close to him on his New York visit.
He had detective partners who made names for themselves too, such as the famed Johnny Cordes.
Johnny Broderick was busted from first grade detective to patrolman, back to uniform, in 1934, during the LaGuardia regime. In a few months, though, he was a detective again driving around in his Cadillac.
In 1949, two years after retiring he took a fling at politics seeking the Democratic leadership of the Times Square area. He got clobbered but Hollywood paid him in excess of $100,000 to do his life story the film being called "Bullets for Ballots" which, inevitably, Edward G. Robinson played the part of the one man anti-crime force.
He vehemently denied that he quit the Police Force under pressure to avoid a scandal. His political foes so charged, saying he had been forced to retire because he had accompanied underworld figures to places such as Hot Springs for the Baths.
The detective who had won eight citations, always cringed when he heard this story: That Johnny Broderick walked into a funeral parlor where a Hudson Duster gangster was laid out and spit in the thugs eye. �I Brodericked him when he was alive," Johnny would say, "But it's against my religion to do anything like that to the dead."
He had a sense of humor and would tell stories on himself:
"One day I was in a detective squad and I started to ride a rookie cop; he told me to cut it out, but I refused. We went at it right there in the squad room. He knocked me out. When he learned who he had done this to, the rookie fainted. He didn't know that I was THE "tough " Johnny Broderick".
BROOKLYN PRECINCTS
With a thank-you to Ret Det1 John Reilly, here�s a listing of old Brooklyn police precinct�s that you may find of interest. Initially police by the Metropolitan Police Department, the following is a breakdown of the Brooklyn Precinct�s along with their manpower.
METROLITAN Police Department:
Brooklyn Police Station Houses- 1868.
Pct: Strength: Location:
41st 47 Washington St. near Johnson.
42nd 41 York & Jay Sts.
43rd 56 Butler
44th 51 Myrtle Ave. corner Vanderbilt Ave.
45th 55 North 1st St. corner 4th St.
46th 46 Wyckoff St. near Ewen St.
47th 24 Franklin St. corner Union Ave.
48th 27 19th St. & 4th Ave. (Gowanus)
49th 39 Fulton & Bedford Aves. Later this Pct. moved to a new S.H. at Gates & Marcy Aves, becoming the 9th Pct. of the Brooklyn Police Department. (Later, the 79 Pct!)
50th 27 Flatbush Ave. near 5th Ave.
INTERESTING WEB SITES
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SURVEILLANCE TIP: SHAVING CREAM?
Surveillance during inclement weather can create a host of problems for the investigator.
Keeping your windows clear, if your surveillance is inside a car, is certainly problematic. Try this next time.
Keep your vehicle windows fog-free by smearing a light coat of shaving cream on the interior of each window. Wipe it away with toilet tissue or paper towels and buff out the streaks. Do the same thing with eyeglasses, camera lenses, etc.
In addition, a wax coat on the outside of car windows also precludes moisture runs and allows quick wipes.
NADDIS
You�ve probably used it countless of times. �Check the address in NADDIS�, or �Run the name through NADDIS�.
This was a common check conducted on shootings and homicides, especially when there was a suspected drug connection.
HIDTA was the source for the info in the past; now we run the records via the Real Time Crime Center.
What is NADDIS?
It stands for the Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Information System. A centralized automated file of summaries of reports on subjects of interest to DEA, consisting of over 3,500,000 individuals, businesses, vessels and selected airfields identified through the DEA investigative reporting system, and related investigative records. It probably goes back to the agency which preceded the DEA, which was then known as the BNDD � Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs.
YOU CAN�T MAKE THIS UP
Here are some more from the files of the moronic.
Are we communicating?
A man spoke frantically into the phone. "My wife is pregnant and her contractions are only two minutes apart!""Is this her first child?" the doctor asked. "No," the man shouted, "This is her husband!"
Certainly not the sharpest tool in the shed.
In Modesto, CA, Steven Richard King was arrested for trying to hold up a Bank of America branch without a weapon. King used a thumb and a finger to simulate a gun.
Unfortunately, he failed to keep his hand in his pocket.
�LEST WE FORGET�" THE NYPD MEMORIAL
October 1, 1963 Ptl John Donovan, GCP-Hwy3, Motorcycle accident on patrol
October 2, 1960 Ptl Philip Curtin, 19 Pct, Info not available
October 2, 1969 Ptl Salvatore Spinola, ESU, Asphyxiation during rescue
October 3, 1913 Sgt Joseph McNierney, 29 Pct, Stabbed during arrest
October 3, 1929 Ptl William McCaffrey, Traffic Div, Auto accident on patrol
October 4, 1928 Ptl John Gibbons, Mcy1, Motorcycle accident on patrol
October 6, 1864 Ptl Charles Curren, 42 Pct Brooklyn, shot during arrest
October 7, 1968 Ptl John Varecha, 18 Pct, Shot-investigation
October 7, 1989 PO William Chisolm, 45 Pct, Shot-off duty incident
October 8, 1900 Ptl Charles Horn, 58 Pct Brooklyn, Stabbed
October 8, 1928 Ptl William Stoeffel, 4 Pct, auto accident on patrol
October 8, 1956 Det William Christmas, 92 Sqd, Shot-off duty incident
October 8, 1966 Ptl James Cosgrove, Mcy4(Hwy3), Auto accident on patrol
October 8, 1993 PO John Williamson, HA-PSA6, head injury-bucket from roof
October 9, 1866 Ptl John Hipwell, 45 Pct Brooklyn, Shot,burglary
October 9, 1928 Ptl Thomas Wallace, Mcy2, Motorcycle accident on patrol
October 9, 1965 Ptl Philip Shultz, HA-B/SI, Shot-off duty arrest
October 10, 1973 PO George Mead, 42 Pct, Shot-off duty robbery
October 10, 1975 PO Walter Tarpey, MSTF, Auto accident on patrol
October 12, 1946 Ptl George Hunter, 30 Pct, Shot-robbery
Friday, September 23, 2005
DECISION LOGS: GREAT BRITAIN CASE MANAGEMENT FOR POLICING
I mentioned in a recent posting, concerning our brothers and sisters in the Metropolitan Police in London, how case documentation takes place to record the decision making of London�s counterpart to our �squad commander�, the Senior Investigating Officer, who may be a Detective Chief Inspector or such similar rank.
In any event, the idea of the �Decision Log�, is to record what decisions are being made at the time, and what information these decisions are being based on.
Not a small task at all.
With the assistance of Detective Chief Inspector Matthew Horne, of the Metropolitan Police, I present some information to our investigators and squad commanders on �this side of the pond�.
The Decision Log, also known as a �Policy File�, is intended to accurately reflect the strategic and important tactical decisions made by supervising detectives as they relate to the investigation. All strategic and important tactical decisions should be recorded with the rationale behind the decisions.
The investigative plan is referred to in British police terms as the investigative strategy.
�There is no absolutes as to what should be included and that is very much left to the individual senior investigating officer (SIO)� notes DCI Horne. �But you would include any theories and hypotheses as to what and how things happened, suspect strategies i.e. who is regarded as a suspect and why as well as who may not be. We are big in recording what we do. Yes, it is often quite onerous and the last thing you want to do it write everything down when you should be catching the guy. We have a saying here and it goes 'if it isn't written anywhere, it didn't happen.'� Sound familiar?
In the past, policy files were subjected to scrutiny by criminal courts, civil courts, inquests and reviews. Scrutiny now may also include judicial reviews and public inquiries. If Decision Logs are skillfully prepared, they can serve as a critical record supporting the accurate management of crime investigation.
SIOs must be mindful that this log is the definitive record upon which they will rely when subsequently asked to account for their decisions.
�Where these decision logs have really assisted is where things haven't gone as well as we had hoped they would and two years down the line we are in court having to justify something that at the time didn't seem so controversial. Recording a decision and documenting the reasons shows why it was done (or wasn't done)and why it was reasonable in the circumstances helps down the line. We now included other things that might be happening at the time such as another big case whereby resources and manpower were taken away and therefore some of the obvious things were done late, or even pressures being placed on the SIO by the community such as a need to make quick arrests to prevent disorder or revenge type attacks�, explains DCI Horne.
Probably the most important aspect of managing any major investigation is the systematic recording of the SIO's decisions. The recording of why various lines of enquiry and tactical decisions were, or were not, pursued is critical.
DCI Matt Horne explains further that, while this is a rather tedious procedure, it seems to work in the British legal system � which he is quick to advise differs from our legal system in many respects.
The other difference that is quickly observed? When our British counterparts relax after a long days work, they often do so over a � warm � beer!
WHAT IS THIS SH*T???
Thanks to Retired Det.Capt. FRANK BOLZ for the following contribution on sh*t.
Now, they can't say you don't know S_ _ _.
Subject: Manure
In the 16th and 17th centuries, everything had to be transported by ship, and this was also before the invention of commercial fertilizer. Large shipments of manure were common.
It was shipped dry, because in dry form it weighed a lot less than when wet, but once water (at sea) hit it, it not only became heavier, but the process of fermentation began again, of which a by product is methane gas. As the stuff was stored below decks in bundles you can see what could (and did) happen. Methane began to build up below decks and the first time, someone came below at night with a lantern, BOOOOM! Several ships were destroyed in this manner before it was determined just what was happening.
After that, the bundles of manure were always stamped with the term "Ship High In Transit" on them, which meant for the sailors to stow it high enough off the lower decks so that any water that came into the hold would not touch this volatile cargo and start the production of methane.
Thus evolved the term "S.H.I.T " , (Ship High In Transit) which has come down through the centuries and is in use to this very day.
You probably did not know the true history of this word. Neither did I. I always thought it was a golf term, or the last word on the cockpit tape just before the aircraft crashes.
NOTORIOUS NEW YORK
NATHAN HALE: 44 Street and Vanderbilt Avenue
Nathan Hale, hanged for spying on the British during the Revolutionary War, is most famous for his last words, uttered just before the Brits slipped a noose around his neck: � I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country.�
Great quote; it got him a statue outside City Hall, only trouble is that it seems he never said it.
British troops caught the blond, blue-eyed soldier snooping around Brooklyn around the time of September 21, 1776. They charged that he was spying on British military installations. Nathan, with pen and paper in hand, claimed he was a schoolteacher doing research. The Brits smiled, put a bayonet in his face and took him captive. The following day British commanders, prided on being civilized, executed Hale possibly at a site where the United Nations now stands.
Besides the statue at City Hall, there is also a fresco, located at Hale House on East 51 Street, that depicts his trial (a very short one) and death, as well as a plaque at the yale Club at 44 Street and Vanderbilt Avenue. Hale attended Yale.
MORE ON THE POLICE TARGET: WHO IS THAT MAN?
Several different versions of a story exist regarding just who that man is on the police target. Here�s another one.
This one is from a Retired Captain, Thomas J. O�Connell, who wrote a letter to the Wilmington, NC Morning Star newspaper. He apparently saw a story that paper ran, which was from a NY Times newswire story, on this subject.
�Several editions ago you published an article on the front page regarding the identity of the individual on the New York City Police Department pistol rangetarget. Let me clear something up. There was a first-class detective named Jim McShane who was a real classy guy. An ex-fighter, he knew his way around New York City. He knew all the right peopleand all the wrong people. He was a friend of Rocky Marciano, the now deceased heavy weight champ.
One day Mr. McShane's photo was on the front page of the New York Daily News, holding anumbrella over Rocky's head after he had been at a weigh in or whatever. Unfortunately, for Jim McShane, the police commissioner Steve Kennedy, who was a real stiff and alleged disciplinarian, thought Mr. McShane's action inappropriate, and Jim went from a first grade detective to a patrolman in uniform.
Later Bobby Kennedy, as the attorney general, made Mr. McShane the boss of the United States Marshal Service.Mr. Kennedy sent him down South to supervise the integration of the school system during the turbulent 1960s. It was there that Jim McShane gained his most notoriety.
So, that's who is on that target, none of the other guys mentioned in the article. I was on the job then, and that was everybody's opinion. ...�
A NOTE TO INVESTIGATORS
Remember, your work product � and your reports � are a direct reflection of who you are.
Sloppy written reports reflect poorly on your investigation; a jury will be led to believe that a sloppy report reflects a sloppy investigation. Just think embarrassment on the witness stand.
Spelling errors in a report reflect poorly on your investigation. Some detectives have turned to the word processor to help in this aspect, but keep this in mind � spell check is different from intent-check.
Spell check can fix, or even highlight, misspellings, but cannot identify what you meant to say. It does not know the difference between the word �to, two and too� and which word should have been used in the context of the sentence. If you misspell a word but your misspelling is actually another word, it is not going to be corrected and if left in the report that way, looks sloppy and unprofessional. It also shows that you do not proofread your work.
If you have pre-set wording for common tasks, such as for an interview of the complainant, or photo viewing, you need to make sure that the wording is proper; otherwise you�ll be duplicating the error every time you utilize it.
If you prepared a pre-set wording text and left items out to be filled in, make sure you fill them in.
A common example would be a sentence wording where you �fill in the blank� appropriately, i.e. �On the above date I xxx the complainant for an interview�, wherein you would appropriately enter �called�, or �visited� in place of the xxx.
If you fail to do this, your report will most certainly be brought up for review � and potential embarrassment - at trial. Proofread your pre-set wording!
Remember � a detective writes reports � be sure your reports properly reflect your work.
CRIME SCENE TEXT FROM ONE OF THE EXPERTS
Illustrated Guide To Crime Scene Investigation
By Nicholas Petraco, Hal Sherman
Hardcover / 470 Pages / July 2005 / List Price $79.95
One of the true crime scene experts, Retired Det. Hal Sherman, has co-authored a textbook on Crime Scene Investigations.
Many of you will recall working a case that Hal responded to from CSU, or you may have sat in on one of his fantastic crime scene lectures. Truly an expert, Hal is one of the losses this department has seen in the past few years.
The book is described as a crime scene investigation book that provides instruction and review in a pictorial format useful to both professional crime scene investigators and those in law enforcement who may be required to process a scene in the absence of certified technicians.
Using hundreds of photographs and a minimum of text, the guide takes the reader through one continuous case study. Each module illustrates with photographs, diagrams, and short lists of instructions, detailing each step of the crime scene processing function.
Illustrated Guide to Crime Scene Investigation covers all steps necessary to recognize, document, process, collect, package, preserve, and safeguard potential evidence.
I believe you can find the text at Barnes & Noble, or through their web site, www.bn.com, for approximately $58.00
�LEST WE FORGET�� THE NYPD MEMORIAL
September 25, 1895 Ptl John Delehanty, 21 Pct, assaulted
September 25, 1953 Ptl Harry Widder, GCP-Hwy3, Auto accident
September 25, 1971 PO Arthur Pelo, HA-BkSI, Shot-robbery arrest
September 25, 1995 PO David Willis, 10 Pct, Auto accident, radio run
September 26, 1977 PO Vito Chiaramonte, HA-CCU, Shot
September 27, 1945 Det Frank McGrath, 2 Sqd, Shot-investigation
September 27, 1992 PO William Gunn, 67 PDU, Shot-investigation
September 28, 1921 Ptl Joseph Reuschle, 42 Pct, Shot by prisoner
September 28, 1934 Ptl John Fraser, 4 Div, Shot-robbery in progress
September 29, 1854 Ptl James Cahill, 11 Ward, Shot-Burglary **
September 29, 1965 Ptl Donald Rainey, Auto Crime, Shot-Mistaken ID, off duty
September 29, 1983 PO Joseph McCormack, ESU, Shot-barricade situation
I mentioned in a recent posting, concerning our brothers and sisters in the Metropolitan Police in London, how case documentation takes place to record the decision making of London�s counterpart to our �squad commander�, the Senior Investigating Officer, who may be a Detective Chief Inspector or such similar rank.
In any event, the idea of the �Decision Log�, is to record what decisions are being made at the time, and what information these decisions are being based on.
Not a small task at all.
With the assistance of Detective Chief Inspector Matthew Horne, of the Metropolitan Police, I present some information to our investigators and squad commanders on �this side of the pond�.
The Decision Log, also known as a �Policy File�, is intended to accurately reflect the strategic and important tactical decisions made by supervising detectives as they relate to the investigation. All strategic and important tactical decisions should be recorded with the rationale behind the decisions.
The investigative plan is referred to in British police terms as the investigative strategy.
�There is no absolutes as to what should be included and that is very much left to the individual senior investigating officer (SIO)� notes DCI Horne. �But you would include any theories and hypotheses as to what and how things happened, suspect strategies i.e. who is regarded as a suspect and why as well as who may not be. We are big in recording what we do. Yes, it is often quite onerous and the last thing you want to do it write everything down when you should be catching the guy. We have a saying here and it goes 'if it isn't written anywhere, it didn't happen.'� Sound familiar?
In the past, policy files were subjected to scrutiny by criminal courts, civil courts, inquests and reviews. Scrutiny now may also include judicial reviews and public inquiries. If Decision Logs are skillfully prepared, they can serve as a critical record supporting the accurate management of crime investigation.
SIOs must be mindful that this log is the definitive record upon which they will rely when subsequently asked to account for their decisions.
�Where these decision logs have really assisted is where things haven't gone as well as we had hoped they would and two years down the line we are in court having to justify something that at the time didn't seem so controversial. Recording a decision and documenting the reasons shows why it was done (or wasn't done)and why it was reasonable in the circumstances helps down the line. We now included other things that might be happening at the time such as another big case whereby resources and manpower were taken away and therefore some of the obvious things were done late, or even pressures being placed on the SIO by the community such as a need to make quick arrests to prevent disorder or revenge type attacks�, explains DCI Horne.
Probably the most important aspect of managing any major investigation is the systematic recording of the SIO's decisions. The recording of why various lines of enquiry and tactical decisions were, or were not, pursued is critical.
DCI Matt Horne explains further that, while this is a rather tedious procedure, it seems to work in the British legal system � which he is quick to advise differs from our legal system in many respects.
The other difference that is quickly observed? When our British counterparts relax after a long days work, they often do so over a � warm � beer!
WHAT IS THIS SH*T???
Thanks to Retired Det.Capt. FRANK BOLZ for the following contribution on sh*t.
Now, they can't say you don't know S_ _ _.
Subject: Manure
In the 16th and 17th centuries, everything had to be transported by ship, and this was also before the invention of commercial fertilizer. Large shipments of manure were common.
It was shipped dry, because in dry form it weighed a lot less than when wet, but once water (at sea) hit it, it not only became heavier, but the process of fermentation began again, of which a by product is methane gas. As the stuff was stored below decks in bundles you can see what could (and did) happen. Methane began to build up below decks and the first time, someone came below at night with a lantern, BOOOOM! Several ships were destroyed in this manner before it was determined just what was happening.
After that, the bundles of manure were always stamped with the term "Ship High In Transit" on them, which meant for the sailors to stow it high enough off the lower decks so that any water that came into the hold would not touch this volatile cargo and start the production of methane.
Thus evolved the term "S.H.I.T " , (Ship High In Transit) which has come down through the centuries and is in use to this very day.
You probably did not know the true history of this word. Neither did I. I always thought it was a golf term, or the last word on the cockpit tape just before the aircraft crashes.
NOTORIOUS NEW YORK
NATHAN HALE: 44 Street and Vanderbilt Avenue
Nathan Hale, hanged for spying on the British during the Revolutionary War, is most famous for his last words, uttered just before the Brits slipped a noose around his neck: � I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country.�
Great quote; it got him a statue outside City Hall, only trouble is that it seems he never said it.
British troops caught the blond, blue-eyed soldier snooping around Brooklyn around the time of September 21, 1776. They charged that he was spying on British military installations. Nathan, with pen and paper in hand, claimed he was a schoolteacher doing research. The Brits smiled, put a bayonet in his face and took him captive. The following day British commanders, prided on being civilized, executed Hale possibly at a site where the United Nations now stands.
Besides the statue at City Hall, there is also a fresco, located at Hale House on East 51 Street, that depicts his trial (a very short one) and death, as well as a plaque at the yale Club at 44 Street and Vanderbilt Avenue. Hale attended Yale.
MORE ON THE POLICE TARGET: WHO IS THAT MAN?
Several different versions of a story exist regarding just who that man is on the police target. Here�s another one.
This one is from a Retired Captain, Thomas J. O�Connell, who wrote a letter to the Wilmington, NC Morning Star newspaper. He apparently saw a story that paper ran, which was from a NY Times newswire story, on this subject.
�Several editions ago you published an article on the front page regarding the identity of the individual on the New York City Police Department pistol rangetarget. Let me clear something up. There was a first-class detective named Jim McShane who was a real classy guy. An ex-fighter, he knew his way around New York City. He knew all the right peopleand all the wrong people. He was a friend of Rocky Marciano, the now deceased heavy weight champ.
One day Mr. McShane's photo was on the front page of the New York Daily News, holding anumbrella over Rocky's head after he had been at a weigh in or whatever. Unfortunately, for Jim McShane, the police commissioner Steve Kennedy, who was a real stiff and alleged disciplinarian, thought Mr. McShane's action inappropriate, and Jim went from a first grade detective to a patrolman in uniform.
Later Bobby Kennedy, as the attorney general, made Mr. McShane the boss of the United States Marshal Service.Mr. Kennedy sent him down South to supervise the integration of the school system during the turbulent 1960s. It was there that Jim McShane gained his most notoriety.
So, that's who is on that target, none of the other guys mentioned in the article. I was on the job then, and that was everybody's opinion. ...�
A NOTE TO INVESTIGATORS
Remember, your work product � and your reports � are a direct reflection of who you are.
Sloppy written reports reflect poorly on your investigation; a jury will be led to believe that a sloppy report reflects a sloppy investigation. Just think embarrassment on the witness stand.
Spelling errors in a report reflect poorly on your investigation. Some detectives have turned to the word processor to help in this aspect, but keep this in mind � spell check is different from intent-check.
Spell check can fix, or even highlight, misspellings, but cannot identify what you meant to say. It does not know the difference between the word �to, two and too� and which word should have been used in the context of the sentence. If you misspell a word but your misspelling is actually another word, it is not going to be corrected and if left in the report that way, looks sloppy and unprofessional. It also shows that you do not proofread your work.
If you have pre-set wording for common tasks, such as for an interview of the complainant, or photo viewing, you need to make sure that the wording is proper; otherwise you�ll be duplicating the error every time you utilize it.
If you prepared a pre-set wording text and left items out to be filled in, make sure you fill them in.
A common example would be a sentence wording where you �fill in the blank� appropriately, i.e. �On the above date I xxx the complainant for an interview�, wherein you would appropriately enter �called�, or �visited� in place of the xxx.
If you fail to do this, your report will most certainly be brought up for review � and potential embarrassment - at trial. Proofread your pre-set wording!
Remember � a detective writes reports � be sure your reports properly reflect your work.
CRIME SCENE TEXT FROM ONE OF THE EXPERTS
Illustrated Guide To Crime Scene Investigation
By Nicholas Petraco, Hal Sherman
Hardcover / 470 Pages / July 2005 / List Price $79.95
One of the true crime scene experts, Retired Det. Hal Sherman, has co-authored a textbook on Crime Scene Investigations.
Many of you will recall working a case that Hal responded to from CSU, or you may have sat in on one of his fantastic crime scene lectures. Truly an expert, Hal is one of the losses this department has seen in the past few years.
The book is described as a crime scene investigation book that provides instruction and review in a pictorial format useful to both professional crime scene investigators and those in law enforcement who may be required to process a scene in the absence of certified technicians.
Using hundreds of photographs and a minimum of text, the guide takes the reader through one continuous case study. Each module illustrates with photographs, diagrams, and short lists of instructions, detailing each step of the crime scene processing function.
Illustrated Guide to Crime Scene Investigation covers all steps necessary to recognize, document, process, collect, package, preserve, and safeguard potential evidence.
I believe you can find the text at Barnes & Noble, or through their web site, www.bn.com, for approximately $58.00
�LEST WE FORGET�� THE NYPD MEMORIAL
September 25, 1895 Ptl John Delehanty, 21 Pct, assaulted
September 25, 1953 Ptl Harry Widder, GCP-Hwy3, Auto accident
September 25, 1971 PO Arthur Pelo, HA-BkSI, Shot-robbery arrest
September 25, 1995 PO David Willis, 10 Pct, Auto accident, radio run
September 26, 1977 PO Vito Chiaramonte, HA-CCU, Shot
September 27, 1945 Det Frank McGrath, 2 Sqd, Shot-investigation
September 27, 1992 PO William Gunn, 67 PDU, Shot-investigation
September 28, 1921 Ptl Joseph Reuschle, 42 Pct, Shot by prisoner
September 28, 1934 Ptl John Fraser, 4 Div, Shot-robbery in progress
September 29, 1854 Ptl James Cahill, 11 Ward, Shot-Burglary **
September 29, 1965 Ptl Donald Rainey, Auto Crime, Shot-Mistaken ID, off duty
September 29, 1983 PO Joseph McCormack, ESU, Shot-barricade situation
Saturday, September 17, 2005
WHAT ABOUT THAT BRONZE STATUE?
Ever notice the bronze statue of the police officer, holding the flag with a young boy standing next to him, in the lobby of 1PP?
Ever wonder where that came from?
I remember first seeing the statue at the entrance of the Police Recreation Centre, which was located in Platte Cove � outside of Tannersville � in upstate New York. A popular summer retreat for members� and their families, providing many fond memories to those who ever attended, the statue was on the right side of the road as you turned into the Police Camp (as everyone called it).
The statue is a memorial to all policemen killed in the line of duty. The late Martin J. Gillen, a retired detective, was chosen in 1939 to model for the statue with the eight year old son of the late Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia.
The bronze group, showing Mr. Gillen in uniform, holding a furled flag with his hand on the boy�s shoulder, was executed by the late Attilio Piccirilli.
After it was completed, it was kept in storage for fifteen years awaiting the decision on where it was to be placed. The statue, turning green and gathering dust, was eventually placed at the grounds of the Police Recreation Centre.
It stood there until the Centre was closed up, in the early 70�s.
Detective Gillen was the Second Vice President of the Honor Legion before he retired, and died at 77 years of age.
While on the topic, another bronze bust was also famed at the Police Centre.
Sculptured in 1925, a huge bronze bust honoring former Police Commissioner Enright was placed in the main hotel of the Police Centre, after it was moved there from the Centre�s Lodge building. Apparently, while in the Lodge, it was not under constant attention � and very popular to be marked up by children in all sorts of way; it was common to see a pair of sunglasses or a hat propped on the statue by a passing guest.
INTERVIEW OF WHO?
A Retired Brooklyn North Detective passed on the following quip regarding an old homicide investigation.
It seems that back in the '60s, a woman was murdered in her apartment during a burglary in the 87 Pct.
The case was going nowhere, even though Det. Dorney of Bklyn North Homicide Sqd documented several attempts to elicit a statement from the woman's pet parrot.
You never know what may work!
HOMELAND SECURITY MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE
Long Island University�s Homeland Security Management Institute has announced a 15-credit graduate level certificate program in Homeland Security Management, which can be taken on-line.
The Homeland Security Management Institute, in addition to offering a 15-credit graduate-level online Advanced Certificate in Homeland Security Management, also offers a full Masters in Homeland Security expected to begin in January 2006.
The program is entirely online, and all faculty are practitioners with PhDs or JD degrees � and include some names that are well known to this department.
You can check the LIU website for a lot more information � www.southampton.liu.edu/homeland
You will also be pleased to know that they are offering a 1/3 tuition discount to all MOS.
MORE RESTLESS SLEEP
As I mentioned in a previous posting, I enjoyed Stacy Horn�s new boo, THE RESTLESS SLEEP, and it�s portrait of the Cold Case Squad. I noted the rather negative review this book received in a recent Time Out New York magazine, but in fairness � and because I liked the book � I�d like to post some of the positive reviews.
NEWSDAY reviewed on July 31 that �The Restless Sleep has enough forensic science to satisfy "CSI" fans and a series of intricate whodunits sure to hook people spending their summer vacation watching reruns of "Law & Order." Also, �Horn has turned nobodies into somebodies�.
The BALTIMORE SUN notes �There is rarely a dull page as Horn portrays her colorful band as they challenge the perplexing past."
And the KIRKUS REVIEWS wrote that �Horn captures with crackling intensity the work of cops who investigate long-unsolved homicides."
All this despite the absence of Dennis Bootle to any of these stories. Maybe Dennis can play a part in the author�s next text on ghosts? Maybe you were omitted from the stories, Dennis, but at least it didn�t note your only contribution to the investigation being the creation of an overtime tracking form.
USING A CAMERA FOR SURVEILLANCE?
Here are some tips on using a camera on surveillance, provided by the California Association of Licensed Investigators.
If you have cause to use a camera, you might want to keep these tips in mind as ways to prevent your camera lens from fogging:
*Keep the camera wrapped in a towel to absorb moisture.
*Be careful of changing temperatures too rapidly; inside vs. outside temperature changes can fog the lens quickly, at a time you may need it the most.
*Keep the camera on charger when it�s in the car. The charger will heat the battery and help eliminate moisture.
CHANGING TIMES
On a recent ride up the Harlem River Drive, I noted how close Yankee Stadium stood to the former Polo Grounds, home of the New York Giants (baseball!) team. Two major league stadiums so close to each other � you wonder if you couldn�t hear the roar of the crowd from one stadium to the other?
That was at a time when people attended ball games in a suit and tie (we now have trouble getting detectives to wear a suit and tie at work!), women wore dresses, and both wore hats. What else has changed?
There was a time when New York was home to not only one, but several, beer breweries.
Brooklyn alone was home to the beer manufacturers of Trommers, Schlitz, Pabst, Rheingold and Shaeffer Brewery. Another New York brewery, Ballantine, also shared the attention of New Yorker�s.
Can you remember any of their jingles? If you�re a Mets fan, I�m sure you remember the Rheingold commercials (�My beer is Rheingold, the dry beer��).
IN MEMORIAM: PTL THOMAS SPARKS, JULY 3, 1857
When the Metropolitan Police Department took over the policing of New York City on July 1, 1857 their numbers were low. In part this was because they would not take anyone who had been on the old Municipal Police Department.
On July 3, 1857, the Board of Police Commissioner, expecting trouble from gangs, appointed 300 citizens as Special Policemen for the upcoming 4th of July holiday.
Thomas Sparks was one of those appointed a special patrolman.
On July 4, 1857, during the "Dead Rabbit Riots" Sparks arrested a man for assault. While taking his prisoner to the White Street station house he was hit over the head with a club. He was taken to his home at 100 East 16th Street where he died on July 8, 1857 from his injuries. Special Patrolman Sparks was 40 years old.
The Dead Rabbit riots occurred between the Dead Rabbits a Irish gang from the Five Points area of Manhattan and the Bowery Boys, a Native American gang from the Bowery. The riot lasted over the course of three days, and at least 12 people were killed in fights between the two gangs, who used firearms, brickbats and clubs.
The police were not armed with firearms, only their clubs, which did very little to stop the fighting. It was only when three regiments of the National Guard were called out and marched into the battle area that the riot ended.
�LEST WE FORGET�� THE NYPD MEMORIAL
September 12, 1968 Ptl John Madden, 104 Pct, LOD Heart attack
September 12, 1991 PO Hector Fontanez, 47 Pct, Shot during investigation
September 13, 1928 Ptl Jeremiah Brosnan, 24 Pct, Shot by perp
September 14, 1931 Sgt Timothy Murphy, 8 Pct, Shot-robbery in progress
September 14, 1974 PO Bruce Anderson, 32 Pct, Auto accident on patrol
September 15, 1931 Ptl William Eberhardt, 15 Pct, auto accident on patrol
September 15, 1979 PO Melvin Hopkins, 77 Pct, Shot, robbery, off duty
September 16, 1927 Ptl Henry E.A. Meyer, 54 Pct, shot-robbery arrest
September 16, 1975 PO Andrew Glover, 9 Pct, shot-assasination
September 16, 1975 Sgt Frederick Reddy, 9 Pct, shot-assasination
September 16, 1977 PO Daniel Nowomlynski, 23 Pct, shot-off duty
September 18, 1927 Ptl Jerome DeLorenzo, 4 Pct, Shot-accidental discharge
September 19, 1943 Sgt Mathew McCormick, 120 Pct, Auto accident on patrol
September 21, 1952 Det Philip Lamonica, 42 Sq, Shot during arrest
September 21, 1984 PO Irma Lozada, TPD D-33, Shot-robbery arrest (RIP, Fran!)
September 22, 1946 Ptl William Brophy, 109 Pct, Auto accident on patrol
September 22, 1983 PO Joseph Hamperian, TPD-SCU, Struck by auto
September 22, 1987 PO Robert Venable, TPD-D33, Shot during arrest
September 23, 1896 Ptl Thomas McIntyre, MTD, Horse accident
September 23, 1937 Det John Wilson, 1 Pct, Shot-robbery
September 23, 1941 Ptl James Schowers, 28 Pct, LOD heart attack
September 23, 1970 Ptl Michael Paolilo, IdentUnit, Stabbed-off duty investigation
My note: It�s been twenty-one years, how time passes by. In special memory for Fran Lozada. Rest in peace, Fran. From all your friends at District 33, the Transit Police Department, and the NYPD.
Ever notice the bronze statue of the police officer, holding the flag with a young boy standing next to him, in the lobby of 1PP?
Ever wonder where that came from?
I remember first seeing the statue at the entrance of the Police Recreation Centre, which was located in Platte Cove � outside of Tannersville � in upstate New York. A popular summer retreat for members� and their families, providing many fond memories to those who ever attended, the statue was on the right side of the road as you turned into the Police Camp (as everyone called it).
The statue is a memorial to all policemen killed in the line of duty. The late Martin J. Gillen, a retired detective, was chosen in 1939 to model for the statue with the eight year old son of the late Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia.
The bronze group, showing Mr. Gillen in uniform, holding a furled flag with his hand on the boy�s shoulder, was executed by the late Attilio Piccirilli.
After it was completed, it was kept in storage for fifteen years awaiting the decision on where it was to be placed. The statue, turning green and gathering dust, was eventually placed at the grounds of the Police Recreation Centre.
It stood there until the Centre was closed up, in the early 70�s.
Detective Gillen was the Second Vice President of the Honor Legion before he retired, and died at 77 years of age.
While on the topic, another bronze bust was also famed at the Police Centre.
Sculptured in 1925, a huge bronze bust honoring former Police Commissioner Enright was placed in the main hotel of the Police Centre, after it was moved there from the Centre�s Lodge building. Apparently, while in the Lodge, it was not under constant attention � and very popular to be marked up by children in all sorts of way; it was common to see a pair of sunglasses or a hat propped on the statue by a passing guest.
INTERVIEW OF WHO?
A Retired Brooklyn North Detective passed on the following quip regarding an old homicide investigation.
It seems that back in the '60s, a woman was murdered in her apartment during a burglary in the 87 Pct.
The case was going nowhere, even though Det. Dorney of Bklyn North Homicide Sqd documented several attempts to elicit a statement from the woman's pet parrot.
You never know what may work!
HOMELAND SECURITY MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE
Long Island University�s Homeland Security Management Institute has announced a 15-credit graduate level certificate program in Homeland Security Management, which can be taken on-line.
The Homeland Security Management Institute, in addition to offering a 15-credit graduate-level online Advanced Certificate in Homeland Security Management, also offers a full Masters in Homeland Security expected to begin in January 2006.
The program is entirely online, and all faculty are practitioners with PhDs or JD degrees � and include some names that are well known to this department.
You can check the LIU website for a lot more information � www.southampton.liu.edu/homeland
You will also be pleased to know that they are offering a 1/3 tuition discount to all MOS.
MORE RESTLESS SLEEP
As I mentioned in a previous posting, I enjoyed Stacy Horn�s new boo, THE RESTLESS SLEEP, and it�s portrait of the Cold Case Squad. I noted the rather negative review this book received in a recent Time Out New York magazine, but in fairness � and because I liked the book � I�d like to post some of the positive reviews.
NEWSDAY reviewed on July 31 that �The Restless Sleep has enough forensic science to satisfy "CSI" fans and a series of intricate whodunits sure to hook people spending their summer vacation watching reruns of "Law & Order." Also, �Horn has turned nobodies into somebodies�.
The BALTIMORE SUN notes �There is rarely a dull page as Horn portrays her colorful band as they challenge the perplexing past."
And the KIRKUS REVIEWS wrote that �Horn captures with crackling intensity the work of cops who investigate long-unsolved homicides."
All this despite the absence of Dennis Bootle to any of these stories. Maybe Dennis can play a part in the author�s next text on ghosts? Maybe you were omitted from the stories, Dennis, but at least it didn�t note your only contribution to the investigation being the creation of an overtime tracking form.
USING A CAMERA FOR SURVEILLANCE?
Here are some tips on using a camera on surveillance, provided by the California Association of Licensed Investigators.
If you have cause to use a camera, you might want to keep these tips in mind as ways to prevent your camera lens from fogging:
*Keep the camera wrapped in a towel to absorb moisture.
*Be careful of changing temperatures too rapidly; inside vs. outside temperature changes can fog the lens quickly, at a time you may need it the most.
*Keep the camera on charger when it�s in the car. The charger will heat the battery and help eliminate moisture.
CHANGING TIMES
On a recent ride up the Harlem River Drive, I noted how close Yankee Stadium stood to the former Polo Grounds, home of the New York Giants (baseball!) team. Two major league stadiums so close to each other � you wonder if you couldn�t hear the roar of the crowd from one stadium to the other?
That was at a time when people attended ball games in a suit and tie (we now have trouble getting detectives to wear a suit and tie at work!), women wore dresses, and both wore hats. What else has changed?
There was a time when New York was home to not only one, but several, beer breweries.
Brooklyn alone was home to the beer manufacturers of Trommers, Schlitz, Pabst, Rheingold and Shaeffer Brewery. Another New York brewery, Ballantine, also shared the attention of New Yorker�s.
Can you remember any of their jingles? If you�re a Mets fan, I�m sure you remember the Rheingold commercials (�My beer is Rheingold, the dry beer��).
IN MEMORIAM: PTL THOMAS SPARKS, JULY 3, 1857
When the Metropolitan Police Department took over the policing of New York City on July 1, 1857 their numbers were low. In part this was because they would not take anyone who had been on the old Municipal Police Department.
On July 3, 1857, the Board of Police Commissioner, expecting trouble from gangs, appointed 300 citizens as Special Policemen for the upcoming 4th of July holiday.
Thomas Sparks was one of those appointed a special patrolman.
On July 4, 1857, during the "Dead Rabbit Riots" Sparks arrested a man for assault. While taking his prisoner to the White Street station house he was hit over the head with a club. He was taken to his home at 100 East 16th Street where he died on July 8, 1857 from his injuries. Special Patrolman Sparks was 40 years old.
The Dead Rabbit riots occurred between the Dead Rabbits a Irish gang from the Five Points area of Manhattan and the Bowery Boys, a Native American gang from the Bowery. The riot lasted over the course of three days, and at least 12 people were killed in fights between the two gangs, who used firearms, brickbats and clubs.
The police were not armed with firearms, only their clubs, which did very little to stop the fighting. It was only when three regiments of the National Guard were called out and marched into the battle area that the riot ended.
�LEST WE FORGET�� THE NYPD MEMORIAL
September 12, 1968 Ptl John Madden, 104 Pct, LOD Heart attack
September 12, 1991 PO Hector Fontanez, 47 Pct, Shot during investigation
September 13, 1928 Ptl Jeremiah Brosnan, 24 Pct, Shot by perp
September 14, 1931 Sgt Timothy Murphy, 8 Pct, Shot-robbery in progress
September 14, 1974 PO Bruce Anderson, 32 Pct, Auto accident on patrol
September 15, 1931 Ptl William Eberhardt, 15 Pct, auto accident on patrol
September 15, 1979 PO Melvin Hopkins, 77 Pct, Shot, robbery, off duty
September 16, 1927 Ptl Henry E.A. Meyer, 54 Pct, shot-robbery arrest
September 16, 1975 PO Andrew Glover, 9 Pct, shot-assasination
September 16, 1975 Sgt Frederick Reddy, 9 Pct, shot-assasination
September 16, 1977 PO Daniel Nowomlynski, 23 Pct, shot-off duty
September 18, 1927 Ptl Jerome DeLorenzo, 4 Pct, Shot-accidental discharge
September 19, 1943 Sgt Mathew McCormick, 120 Pct, Auto accident on patrol
September 21, 1952 Det Philip Lamonica, 42 Sq, Shot during arrest
September 21, 1984 PO Irma Lozada, TPD D-33, Shot-robbery arrest (RIP, Fran!)
September 22, 1946 Ptl William Brophy, 109 Pct, Auto accident on patrol
September 22, 1983 PO Joseph Hamperian, TPD-SCU, Struck by auto
September 22, 1987 PO Robert Venable, TPD-D33, Shot during arrest
September 23, 1896 Ptl Thomas McIntyre, MTD, Horse accident
September 23, 1937 Det John Wilson, 1 Pct, Shot-robbery
September 23, 1941 Ptl James Schowers, 28 Pct, LOD heart attack
September 23, 1970 Ptl Michael Paolilo, IdentUnit, Stabbed-off duty investigation
My note: It�s been twenty-one years, how time passes by. In special memory for Fran Lozada. Rest in peace, Fran. From all your friends at District 33, the Transit Police Department, and the NYPD.
Thursday, September 08, 2005
FROM THE DETECTIVE�S BOOKSHELF
THE RESTLESS SLEEP: INSIDE NEW YOR CITY�S COLD CASE SQUAD
By Stacy Horn
It�s often been said that you can�t tell a book by it�s cover. It�s also true hat you can�t often tell a book by it�s review, either.
This book chronicles the few years this writer spent with the Cold Case Squad, spanning from early 2001 to early 2005, and documents the efforts of some of the detectives from this squad in solving cold cases. For true crime fans, this is a worthwhile book to read. You may even pick up some investigative tips along the way. It certainly does a good job explaining the intricacies of DNA and its application to homicide investigations � for that alone I recommend it.
While I enjoyed the book, finding it to be a very easy read (2 days cover to cover), not everyone agrees.
According to a review in TIME OUT NEW YORK, they found the book to be a �snooze with amateurish turgid prose�, and they �wonder why the NYPD gave access t such a shoddy writer in the first place�. Well, be that as it may, it still merits a �Recommend� reading from The Minister of Investigation.
If you know Vito Spano, you can hear the words coming out of his mouth as they are recalled in the book. Vito has a large part in the book, as he was the C.O. during the main part of the book�s time frame. Eloquent, for sure.
I learned a lot personally from Vito about DNA and its application to homicide investigations, and his true dedication to this comes very clear while reading this text.
Perhaps the book is a better read for those who know some of the players. The author did a great job in revealing the hard work and tenacity of the Cold Case detective�s, highlighting Lt Phil Panzarella, Lt Joe Pollini, Lt Bob McHugh (but only briefly, Bob), and the investigations of Detective�s Wendell Stradford, Steve Kaplan, and Tommy Wray. She also hits a lot of the department �politics� on the head as well.
Brooklyn North Detective�s will probably find the investigation that led to the arrest in the murder of P.O. Ronald Stapleton, from the 77 Precinct, who was killed in 1977 outside a Brooklyn bar. Detective Steve Kaplan handled this investigation, that was hampered by Stapleton�s attorney � Robert Race � who made a false statement at the time of the murder that had detective�s looking in the wrong direction. Yes, Brooklyn North Detective�s, Mike Race�s brother the lawyer � sound familiar?
You�ll have to read the book (or perhaps you can figure it out on your own) who the author was referring to when she described one of the bosses there as �crusty�, and �unreceptive to authority�. Then there was also the boss she referred to simply as �a dick�. Any guesses? (If you�re really stumped, drop me an e-mail).
What can I say. I liked the book, and think you will too. And Vito, I�m holding my copy on the side for an autograph!
NYPD CULTURE: FROM THE RESTLESS SLEEP
I enjoyed a passage from the book, THE RESTLESS SLEEP, about NYPD culture. If you�re here, you know it all too well.
�The NYPD is not the place to go out on a limb� No one in the NYPD could ever conceivably utter these words: �We just spent a million dollars and it didn�t work� (My note � what about MISD?). To make sure that never happens, a culture has evolved that is openly and effectively hostile to risk and gleefully punishes failure. Few commanders are willing to try anything that hasn�t already been clearly demonstrated � by someone else � to work� Traditionally, careers in the NYPD are not made by trying new things. Careers are made b y never making mistakes. Keep your head down and do your job�.
And, what about a passage on the forces we always seem to be fighting? I particularly liked the following, and got a little bit of a chuckle, as I�m sure Al Meller will, at one particular point that was made:
�Between their own (NYPD) culture and an unsympathetic public and press, they can�t seem to win. When they�re aggressive they�re doing too much, but when crime goes up they�re not doing enough. It discourages trying and fosters insularity, discontent, and bickering, The result is that cops do things the way they always have, and that change, which is hard enough to bring about as it is, is so violently resisted and so slow within the NYPD that some police department annual reports from a hundred years ago read as if they were written today.
�For instance, the NYPD�s enemies have remained constant: the press, the public, and the FDNY. �Judging from past experience�, Police Commissioner Richard Enright wrote in 1921, �it is quite useless to expect the press to publish anything about the Police Department except sensational nonsense and scandalous falsehoods, unless it serves some ulterior motive of the management to tell the truth.� � The NYPD has been complaining about the fire department even longer. �Perhaps if the members of the fire department were paid�, the 1864 Annual Report suggests, �firemen wouldn�t be so violent and rowdy. That and the fact that too many of them live in the firehouse and not at home. Such a course of life is fatal to the men and fearfully mischievous to society�.
POLICE DEPARTMENT FIRSTS
The first police department to utilize bullet comparison as an investigative aid was Scotland Yard.
Using fingerprints in criminal investigations was first suggested by a microscopist in the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1877, but he was ignored. Tokyo was the first to give it a try in 1880.
The Sorbonne produced the first truly serious study of hairs in 1910, and the first police lab was established in France.
DNA was first used forensically in England.
The lifting of trace evidence with tape was developed by a Swiss criminalist lab.
Superglue fuming for latent prints was developed by the National Police Agency in Japan.
What about the NYPD Lab?
A 1948 NYPD lab chart lists items like blood examinations, gas analysis, and photomicrography alongside some rather unusual technologies such as retrieving magnets (maybe used to recover guns from water?).
A 1963 NYPD report notes an image-maker known as the Variable Image Reflector was developed for producing pictures of suspects based on eyewitness descriptions. In 1967, the idea of photographing latent prints with a modified Polaroid camera was introduced. This �one on one� camera quickly was deployed as a quick way for detectives to make copies of mug shots when additional copies were made � and most detectives today know that as the sole reason for this camera.
In 1905 Detective Joseph Faurot went to Scotland Yard to learn about fingerprinting, and while his newfound skills were initially treated with skepticism, in 1911 the first conviction in the US based solely on fingerprint evidence was gained through evidence and testimony supplied by Faurot.
And it was the NYPD that had the first airborne unit in the world, which was put into place in 1929.
DNA: TESTING, TIME AND MONEY
Author Stacy Horn does a good job reviewing the workings of the Medical Examiner�s DNA Lab, and explaining some common pitfalls.
For example, did you know that a DNA test can cost anywhere from about thirty dollars, to analyze a pristine sample taken from a convicted felon under the best possible circumstances, to five hundred to two thousand dollars, t test evidence gathered at a crime scene. The cost of processing the DNA comes from the ME�s budget, so you can understand the sometimes-battle we encounter.
The turnaround time for a DNA test at the ME�s lab is currently around fifty-four days, which is faster than every large forensic lab in the country, which typically takes three to six months to come back with a report. Small, private labs have short intervals because they don�t analyze as many samples. The actual test result time is approximately three to four days; the volume of work causes the turnaround time to increase.
FOR THE INVESTIGATORS KNOWLEDGE
The Medical Examiner is tasked with determining the cause and manner of death. What�s the difference?
Cause is a medical distinction. Some examples of a cause of death would be �blunt force trauma�, or �strangulation�, etc.
Manner of death is a legal distinction. Manner of death include homicide, accidental, and suicide.
What about a CUPPI? That stands for �Cause Undetermined Pending Police Investigation�. The ME needs you to tell them more about what happened.
DNA UPDATE
Advances in DNA testing has resulted in a process referred to as PCR helping to type smaller samples.
PCR, polymerase chain reaction, allows scientists to develop DNA profiles from only a few skin cells. This process was first introduced in 1985, but it wasn�t until 1992 that it began to be used forensically in New York, when the lab was equipped with the necessary equipment.
It is this PCR testing that ha detectives reviewing old cases for evidence that may contain DNA that was not previously able to be detected.
DNA, once a profile is obtained, is submitted to a database for comparison.
The Medical Examiner in New York City, which is the designated DNA source, enters the DNA profiles they process into the LDIS database, or Local DNA Index System.
If there is �no hit�, it is then sent, and processed, into the New York State Database, the SDIS, which is maintained at the New York State Police Forensic Investigation Center.
After that, if still �no hit�, it is sent to be processed through the FBI�s National Database � CODIS � the Combined DNA Index System.
The FBI started collecting DNA samples in 1990, and Congress passed the DNA Identification Act in 1994, allowing them to formally begin a national database. This database did not become operational until 1998.
New York State�s Database went live in March 2000.
The NYC Medical Examiner began collecting profiles in 1990, and started its own local database in 1996, then joined CODIS in 2000.
When you consider how new these database systems are, you can understand how it will take some time to accumulate samples for profiles to realize the potential of DNA profiling. As of August 2004, there were 12,460 DNA profiles in the NYC database; 139,344 in the New York State collection; and 1,945,163 combined profiles at the national level. As the samples grow, the results improve.
Local samples are uploaded to the state monthly, and the state samples are uploaded to the national level every week. NYC�s OCME generates approximately 1,500 DNA profiles a month, and because not all 1,500 tests produce unique profiles, they end up uploading around 500 of those to the state. Individual state laws, which limit whose DNA can be collected, stored, and shared, are preventing CODIS from growing as quickly as many of us would prefer.
SORBONNE?
Referenced earlier as taking part in one of the "First's", and just in case you were wondering, I thought I'd add the following piece of information.
Dating back to 1253, Sorbonne is frequently used as a name for the University of Paris.
The Sorbonne University is located in the center of the famous Latin Quarter of Paris on the Left Bank. Founded in the 13th century, The Sorbonne University today houses the Arts and Human Sciences faculties of the University of Paris.(From the site where you get more than just buff stuff!)
FROM THE MINSTER: ABOUT THE FORMAT
I have been having increasing difficulty in preparing a posting at the same frequency I had been able to for the past several years.
I am now trying to adhere to the format of posting something at least once a month (alright, I�d really like to say it would be twice a month, but I�m trying to be realistic), but include more items in greater detail.
It�s a plan, anyway.
If you come across any interesting items, you can forward them to me. Any help I can get is appreciated. Find something you find of value, and would like to share with others? Send it off to me at:
Ltjac77@yahoo.com
�LEST WE FORGET�� THE NYPD MEMORIAL
September 1, 1891, Ptl John Sherman, 26 Pct, Stabbed during arrest
September 1, 1923 Ptl John Egan, 51 Pct, Shot by perp
September 1, 1954 Ptl Anthony Balga, PBBklyn, Auto accident on patrol
September 2, 1953 Sgt Saul Starett, 50 Pct, Electrocution
September 2, 1956 Ptl William Long, 103 Pct, Shot-arrest
September 2, 1982 PO Robert Seton-Harris, 122 Pct, Heart attack LOD
September 3, 1932 Ptl Peter DeCarlo, 32 Pct, Shot-Robbery in progress
September 3, 1967 Ptl John Darcy, 28 Pct, Auto accident on patrol
September 4, 1961 Ptl Francis Walsh, 32 Pct, Shot-robbery
September 4, 1962 Ptl Robert Byrnes, 94 Pct, Shot by EDP
September 7, 1970 Ptl Patrick Canavan, PA, Stabbed, off-duty incident
September 9, 1979 PO Edwin Fogel, Hwy1, Shot-car stop
September 10, 1951 Det James Daggett, Safe,Loft&Truck Sqd, Explosion
September 10, 1964 Ptl Anthony Esposito, 66 Pct, LOD Hear attack
September 11, 1976 PO Brian Murray, Bomb Sq, Explosion investigation
WTC Victims of Attack:
Sgt John Coughlin #3751, ESS4
Sgt Michael Curtin #3256, Ess2
Sgt Rodney Gillis, #1889, ESS8
Sgt Timothy Roy #2926, STED
Det Claude Richards #244, Bomb Squad
Det Joseph Vigiano #4511, ESS3
PO John Dallara #4011, ESS2
PO Vincent Danz #2166, ESS3
PO Jerome Dominguez #10003, ESS3
PO Stephen Driscoll #17482, ESS4
PO Mark Ellis #11441, TD4
PO Robert Fazio #6667, 13 Pct
PO Ronald Kloepfer #22403, ESS7
PO Thomas Langone #14356, ESS10
PO James Leahy #8943, 6 Pct
PO Brian McDonnell #6889, ESS1
PO John Perry #3266, 40 Pct
PO Glen Pettit #3815, PA
PO Moira Smith #10467, 13 Pct
PO Ramon Suarez #12671, TD4
PO Paul Talty #28907, ESS10
PO Santos Valentin #21630, ESS7
PO Walter Weaver #2784, ESS3
THE RESTLESS SLEEP: INSIDE NEW YOR CITY�S COLD CASE SQUAD
By Stacy Horn
It�s often been said that you can�t tell a book by it�s cover. It�s also true hat you can�t often tell a book by it�s review, either.
This book chronicles the few years this writer spent with the Cold Case Squad, spanning from early 2001 to early 2005, and documents the efforts of some of the detectives from this squad in solving cold cases. For true crime fans, this is a worthwhile book to read. You may even pick up some investigative tips along the way. It certainly does a good job explaining the intricacies of DNA and its application to homicide investigations � for that alone I recommend it.
While I enjoyed the book, finding it to be a very easy read (2 days cover to cover), not everyone agrees.
According to a review in TIME OUT NEW YORK, they found the book to be a �snooze with amateurish turgid prose�, and they �wonder why the NYPD gave access t such a shoddy writer in the first place�. Well, be that as it may, it still merits a �Recommend� reading from The Minister of Investigation.
If you know Vito Spano, you can hear the words coming out of his mouth as they are recalled in the book. Vito has a large part in the book, as he was the C.O. during the main part of the book�s time frame. Eloquent, for sure.
I learned a lot personally from Vito about DNA and its application to homicide investigations, and his true dedication to this comes very clear while reading this text.
Perhaps the book is a better read for those who know some of the players. The author did a great job in revealing the hard work and tenacity of the Cold Case detective�s, highlighting Lt Phil Panzarella, Lt Joe Pollini, Lt Bob McHugh (but only briefly, Bob), and the investigations of Detective�s Wendell Stradford, Steve Kaplan, and Tommy Wray. She also hits a lot of the department �politics� on the head as well.
Brooklyn North Detective�s will probably find the investigation that led to the arrest in the murder of P.O. Ronald Stapleton, from the 77 Precinct, who was killed in 1977 outside a Brooklyn bar. Detective Steve Kaplan handled this investigation, that was hampered by Stapleton�s attorney � Robert Race � who made a false statement at the time of the murder that had detective�s looking in the wrong direction. Yes, Brooklyn North Detective�s, Mike Race�s brother the lawyer � sound familiar?
You�ll have to read the book (or perhaps you can figure it out on your own) who the author was referring to when she described one of the bosses there as �crusty�, and �unreceptive to authority�. Then there was also the boss she referred to simply as �a dick�. Any guesses? (If you�re really stumped, drop me an e-mail).
What can I say. I liked the book, and think you will too. And Vito, I�m holding my copy on the side for an autograph!
NYPD CULTURE: FROM THE RESTLESS SLEEP
I enjoyed a passage from the book, THE RESTLESS SLEEP, about NYPD culture. If you�re here, you know it all too well.
�The NYPD is not the place to go out on a limb� No one in the NYPD could ever conceivably utter these words: �We just spent a million dollars and it didn�t work� (My note � what about MISD?). To make sure that never happens, a culture has evolved that is openly and effectively hostile to risk and gleefully punishes failure. Few commanders are willing to try anything that hasn�t already been clearly demonstrated � by someone else � to work� Traditionally, careers in the NYPD are not made by trying new things. Careers are made b y never making mistakes. Keep your head down and do your job�.
And, what about a passage on the forces we always seem to be fighting? I particularly liked the following, and got a little bit of a chuckle, as I�m sure Al Meller will, at one particular point that was made:
�Between their own (NYPD) culture and an unsympathetic public and press, they can�t seem to win. When they�re aggressive they�re doing too much, but when crime goes up they�re not doing enough. It discourages trying and fosters insularity, discontent, and bickering, The result is that cops do things the way they always have, and that change, which is hard enough to bring about as it is, is so violently resisted and so slow within the NYPD that some police department annual reports from a hundred years ago read as if they were written today.
�For instance, the NYPD�s enemies have remained constant: the press, the public, and the FDNY. �Judging from past experience�, Police Commissioner Richard Enright wrote in 1921, �it is quite useless to expect the press to publish anything about the Police Department except sensational nonsense and scandalous falsehoods, unless it serves some ulterior motive of the management to tell the truth.� � The NYPD has been complaining about the fire department even longer. �Perhaps if the members of the fire department were paid�, the 1864 Annual Report suggests, �firemen wouldn�t be so violent and rowdy. That and the fact that too many of them live in the firehouse and not at home. Such a course of life is fatal to the men and fearfully mischievous to society�.
POLICE DEPARTMENT FIRSTS
The first police department to utilize bullet comparison as an investigative aid was Scotland Yard.
Using fingerprints in criminal investigations was first suggested by a microscopist in the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1877, but he was ignored. Tokyo was the first to give it a try in 1880.
The Sorbonne produced the first truly serious study of hairs in 1910, and the first police lab was established in France.
DNA was first used forensically in England.
The lifting of trace evidence with tape was developed by a Swiss criminalist lab.
Superglue fuming for latent prints was developed by the National Police Agency in Japan.
What about the NYPD Lab?
A 1948 NYPD lab chart lists items like blood examinations, gas analysis, and photomicrography alongside some rather unusual technologies such as retrieving magnets (maybe used to recover guns from water?).
A 1963 NYPD report notes an image-maker known as the Variable Image Reflector was developed for producing pictures of suspects based on eyewitness descriptions. In 1967, the idea of photographing latent prints with a modified Polaroid camera was introduced. This �one on one� camera quickly was deployed as a quick way for detectives to make copies of mug shots when additional copies were made � and most detectives today know that as the sole reason for this camera.
In 1905 Detective Joseph Faurot went to Scotland Yard to learn about fingerprinting, and while his newfound skills were initially treated with skepticism, in 1911 the first conviction in the US based solely on fingerprint evidence was gained through evidence and testimony supplied by Faurot.
And it was the NYPD that had the first airborne unit in the world, which was put into place in 1929.
DNA: TESTING, TIME AND MONEY
Author Stacy Horn does a good job reviewing the workings of the Medical Examiner�s DNA Lab, and explaining some common pitfalls.
For example, did you know that a DNA test can cost anywhere from about thirty dollars, to analyze a pristine sample taken from a convicted felon under the best possible circumstances, to five hundred to two thousand dollars, t test evidence gathered at a crime scene. The cost of processing the DNA comes from the ME�s budget, so you can understand the sometimes-battle we encounter.
The turnaround time for a DNA test at the ME�s lab is currently around fifty-four days, which is faster than every large forensic lab in the country, which typically takes three to six months to come back with a report. Small, private labs have short intervals because they don�t analyze as many samples. The actual test result time is approximately three to four days; the volume of work causes the turnaround time to increase.
FOR THE INVESTIGATORS KNOWLEDGE
The Medical Examiner is tasked with determining the cause and manner of death. What�s the difference?
Cause is a medical distinction. Some examples of a cause of death would be �blunt force trauma�, or �strangulation�, etc.
Manner of death is a legal distinction. Manner of death include homicide, accidental, and suicide.
What about a CUPPI? That stands for �Cause Undetermined Pending Police Investigation�. The ME needs you to tell them more about what happened.
DNA UPDATE
Advances in DNA testing has resulted in a process referred to as PCR helping to type smaller samples.
PCR, polymerase chain reaction, allows scientists to develop DNA profiles from only a few skin cells. This process was first introduced in 1985, but it wasn�t until 1992 that it began to be used forensically in New York, when the lab was equipped with the necessary equipment.
It is this PCR testing that ha detectives reviewing old cases for evidence that may contain DNA that was not previously able to be detected.
DNA, once a profile is obtained, is submitted to a database for comparison.
The Medical Examiner in New York City, which is the designated DNA source, enters the DNA profiles they process into the LDIS database, or Local DNA Index System.
If there is �no hit�, it is then sent, and processed, into the New York State Database, the SDIS, which is maintained at the New York State Police Forensic Investigation Center.
After that, if still �no hit�, it is sent to be processed through the FBI�s National Database � CODIS � the Combined DNA Index System.
The FBI started collecting DNA samples in 1990, and Congress passed the DNA Identification Act in 1994, allowing them to formally begin a national database. This database did not become operational until 1998.
New York State�s Database went live in March 2000.
The NYC Medical Examiner began collecting profiles in 1990, and started its own local database in 1996, then joined CODIS in 2000.
When you consider how new these database systems are, you can understand how it will take some time to accumulate samples for profiles to realize the potential of DNA profiling. As of August 2004, there were 12,460 DNA profiles in the NYC database; 139,344 in the New York State collection; and 1,945,163 combined profiles at the national level. As the samples grow, the results improve.
Local samples are uploaded to the state monthly, and the state samples are uploaded to the national level every week. NYC�s OCME generates approximately 1,500 DNA profiles a month, and because not all 1,500 tests produce unique profiles, they end up uploading around 500 of those to the state. Individual state laws, which limit whose DNA can be collected, stored, and shared, are preventing CODIS from growing as quickly as many of us would prefer.
SORBONNE?
Referenced earlier as taking part in one of the "First's", and just in case you were wondering, I thought I'd add the following piece of information.
Dating back to 1253, Sorbonne is frequently used as a name for the University of Paris.
The Sorbonne University is located in the center of the famous Latin Quarter of Paris on the Left Bank. Founded in the 13th century, The Sorbonne University today houses the Arts and Human Sciences faculties of the University of Paris.(From the site where you get more than just buff stuff!)
FROM THE MINSTER: ABOUT THE FORMAT
I have been having increasing difficulty in preparing a posting at the same frequency I had been able to for the past several years.
I am now trying to adhere to the format of posting something at least once a month (alright, I�d really like to say it would be twice a month, but I�m trying to be realistic), but include more items in greater detail.
It�s a plan, anyway.
If you come across any interesting items, you can forward them to me. Any help I can get is appreciated. Find something you find of value, and would like to share with others? Send it off to me at:
Ltjac77@yahoo.com
�LEST WE FORGET�� THE NYPD MEMORIAL
September 1, 1891, Ptl John Sherman, 26 Pct, Stabbed during arrest
September 1, 1923 Ptl John Egan, 51 Pct, Shot by perp
September 1, 1954 Ptl Anthony Balga, PBBklyn, Auto accident on patrol
September 2, 1953 Sgt Saul Starett, 50 Pct, Electrocution
September 2, 1956 Ptl William Long, 103 Pct, Shot-arrest
September 2, 1982 PO Robert Seton-Harris, 122 Pct, Heart attack LOD
September 3, 1932 Ptl Peter DeCarlo, 32 Pct, Shot-Robbery in progress
September 3, 1967 Ptl John Darcy, 28 Pct, Auto accident on patrol
September 4, 1961 Ptl Francis Walsh, 32 Pct, Shot-robbery
September 4, 1962 Ptl Robert Byrnes, 94 Pct, Shot by EDP
September 7, 1970 Ptl Patrick Canavan, PA, Stabbed, off-duty incident
September 9, 1979 PO Edwin Fogel, Hwy1, Shot-car stop
September 10, 1951 Det James Daggett, Safe,Loft&Truck Sqd, Explosion
September 10, 1964 Ptl Anthony Esposito, 66 Pct, LOD Hear attack
September 11, 1976 PO Brian Murray, Bomb Sq, Explosion investigation
WTC Victims of Attack:
Sgt John Coughlin #3751, ESS4
Sgt Michael Curtin #3256, Ess2
Sgt Rodney Gillis, #1889, ESS8
Sgt Timothy Roy #2926, STED
Det Claude Richards #244, Bomb Squad
Det Joseph Vigiano #4511, ESS3
PO John Dallara #4011, ESS2
PO Vincent Danz #2166, ESS3
PO Jerome Dominguez #10003, ESS3
PO Stephen Driscoll #17482, ESS4
PO Mark Ellis #11441, TD4
PO Robert Fazio #6667, 13 Pct
PO Ronald Kloepfer #22403, ESS7
PO Thomas Langone #14356, ESS10
PO James Leahy #8943, 6 Pct
PO Brian McDonnell #6889, ESS1
PO John Perry #3266, 40 Pct
PO Glen Pettit #3815, PA
PO Moira Smith #10467, 13 Pct
PO Ramon Suarez #12671, TD4
PO Paul Talty #28907, ESS10
PO Santos Valentin #21630, ESS7
PO Walter Weaver #2784, ESS3
Tuesday, August 02, 2005
NOTE TO READERS:
Sorry for the lapse in contributions to this site. For a very long time I was trying to make two postings a week; that was reduced to approx one per week, which was reduced even less these past few months. Trying to keep the quality, at the expense of quantity � but what can I expect for a one-man operation? If you have any interesting stories, insights, investigative bookmarks or interesting sites � pass them along! I could use the help!
Ltjac77@yahoo.com
POLICING- GREAT BRITAIN AND THE CITY OF LONDON
These past several weeks � unfortunately � we have seen a lot in the news regarding policing in the city of London. For all the wrong reasons, for sure.
I�d like to help add a little policing history for readers. We are all bound together in this brotherhood, throughout the world, regardless of the country or the language you may speak � policing is policing.
WHY IS IT CALLED SCOTLAND YARD?
The original headquarters of the Metropolitan Police was a house at 4 Whitehall Place, not far from Trafalgar Square, but the rear entrance, which the public used, was in Scotland Yard.
Great Scotland Yard still exists as a street today, and the building is used as stables for some of the Metropolitan Police Mounted Branch.
When the Metropolitan Police were being established in 1829, one of the first tasks was to find a building to act as the new headquarters. The building was at 4 Whitehall Place.
The new building was adjacent to the Public Carriage Office where a Commissioner was already responsible for the licensing of taxi cabs. When the public went to see the new Commissioners, they used the back entrance of 4 Whitehall Place the rear of which was converted into a police station. The reception area soon became known as "Back Hall", an expression still used today in the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police. This entrance was in Great Scotland Yard, off Whitehall, and the building soon became known as Scotland Yard.
By 1890 a new headquarters had been needed for many years, and the Metropolitan Police moved into a new building, designed by Norman Shaw, on Embankment. The building was to have been the site of an opera house, but the project had been abandoned when partly built. the new building was faced with granite quarried by prisoners on Dartmoor, and a female body, the victim of an unsolved murder, was found in the basement of the building, which became known as New Scotland Yard.
In 1967, the Metropolitan Police again moved headquarters to their current address of 10 Broadway, London, SW1H 0BG, on a site which also borders on Victoria Street. The name "New Scotland Yard" was retained.
THE METROPOLITAN POLICE OF GREAT BRITAIN
In 1829, when Sir Robert Peel was Home Secretary, the first Metropolitan Police Act was passed and the Metropolitan Police Force was established.
This new force superseded the local Watch in the London area but the City of London was not covered. Even within the Metropolitan Police District there still remained certain police establishments, organised during the eighteenth century, outside the control of the Metropolitan Police Office.
The Metropolitan Police Service is famed around the world and has a unique place in the history of policing. It is by far the largest of the police services that operate in greater London (the others include the City of London Police and the British Transport Police).
The Royal Parks Constabulary have now become part of the Metropolitan Police Service.
Founded by Sir Robert Peel in 1829, the original establishment of 1,000 officers policed a seven-mile radius from Charing Cross and a population of less than 2 million.
Today, the Metropolitan Police Service employs 30,235 officers, 11,966 police staff, 493 traffic wardens and 1392 Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs), and, since the realignment of police boundaries in April 2000, it covers an area of 620 square miles and a population of 7.2million.
The Met works in conjunction with neighbouring forces but has particularly close relationships with the other forces that police in London:
The British Transport Police, who are responsible for policing on the rail and tube systems.
The City of London Police, who cover the area within the 1-square mile boundaries of the Corporation of London.
The City of London Police is responsible for the safety of everyone in London's 'Square Mile'. There are about 6,000 residents in the City of London although this number is swelled daily by an influx of some 350,000 commuters, as well as people traveling through and tourists.The Force is organized into six command areas. The two territorial divisions, based at Snow Hill and Bishopsgate, are responsible for the day-to-day policing of the City.
Fifty per cent of Force staff work from these police stations, and their functions include giving crime prevention advice, investigating crime, patrolling, staffing the traffic and environmental zone, and dealing with public enquiries.
About 1,200 people work for the City of London Police. Around one third of these are civilian support staff performing a wide range of professional, administrative and some operational support roles.
The Term �Scotland Yard� refers to the officers of the Metropolitan Police Department.
THE HOMICIDE COMMAND
The Homicide Command is split geographically into three units (West, East and South), each led by a Detective Chief Superintendent.
Each of the Command Units has nine Major Investigation Teams (MITs), consisting of 33 staff, led by a Detective Chief Inspector (DCI), who performs the role of �senior investigating officer' (SIO) as well as Homicide Task Force per unit. The Detective Chief Inspector is similar to our NYPD Squad Commander.
The MPS is the only police service in the UK to have a Chief Officer nominated to oversee all homicide investigations and develop policy in this area.
The Homicide Command is responsible for the investigation of homicide and other serious crimes in London.
The work of the Homicide Command is supported by several specialized teams. These include:
The Murder Review Group Joint Trials Unit Coroners Officers and pathologists Forensic Science Services Other specialist support units
The Major Investigation Teams investigate:
* Murder, manslaughter and infanticide offences.
* Attempted murder, where the evidence of intent is unambiguous or where a risk assessment identifies substantive risk to life.
* Missing persons or abductions, where there is a substantive reason to suspect life has been taken or is under threat.
* Other investigations identified for specialist needs.
In addition, the teams provide advice for the MPS and other police forces on 'High Risk' situations such as missing people.
The Homicide Task Forces proactively conduct work in terms of murder suppression and 'man hunts' for murder suspects.
The Murder Review Group acts as an oversight on murder investigations, as well as a catalyst for the �Cold Case� investigation.
They review undetected murder investigations, with the objective of increasing public trust and confidence in the way the MPS investigates murders.
This Unit employs a mixture of serving and retired experienced detectives to undertake detailed reviews of undetected murders, looking for investigative opportunities that may lead to a breakthrough.
The MRGs achieve this by identifying, introducing and sustaining best practice. The focus of reviews is twofold:
� to ensure that all investigative opportunities are identified and progressed;
� to ensure compliance with the Murder Investigation Manual.
Think of it as the Compstat Review for murder investigations on a regular basis!
Reviews of new undetected homicide investigations are undertaken four weeks after commencement. The unit also undertakes �cold case reviews', examining old cases for new investigative opportunities, particularly taking into account advances in forensic science.
Note that retired detectives serve on the Murder Review Group as well � certainly a suitable use of experienced talent!
RANK STRUCTURE OF THE METROPOLITAN POLICE
The prefix detective; is given to officers who have been assigned to investigative work after completing the appropriate selection and training. Detective ranks parallel uniformed ranks and range from Detective Constable to Detective Chief Superintendent.
The entry level, Constable, is followed by Sergeant then Inspector, with Chief Inspector next up on the chain of command.
THE DETECTIVE COMMANDER�S INVESTIGATIVE PLAN: GREAT BRITAIN STYLE
During a recent visit to New York by some visiting Metropolitan Police investigators (Scotland Yardies, or just Yardies, as they�re known), I had the opportunity to discuss homicide investigations, and the role of the Squad Commander in London policing.
I learned that the major task of the Squad Commander (the Detective Chief Inspector) was to commit to writing his/her �Investigative Plan�.
Enacted several years ago, this is intended to be used to show at what stage an investigation is currently in, and what facts are being utilized to determine the next stages of an investigation.
This task consumes the majority of the commander�s time � even more than we spend providing Compstat updates to the armies that require them!
The Detective Commander must, in writing, indicate what course of action he has directed the Detective Inspector to pursue, and what his reason for this is based on.
Try and think what that would involve on your investigations, and you can get a small understanding of the magnitude of this task.
In this manner, the reason why a particular person may be brought in for an interview must be delineated, what the basis of this interview will be about, and what is hoped to be obtained � all committed to a written report by the Commander.
A cumbersome task for sure!
THE DEFINITION OF POLICING
The word "Police" means, generally, the arrangements made in all civilised countries to ensure that the inhabitants keep the peace and obey the law. The word also denotes the force of peace officers (or police) employed for this purpose.
In 1829 Sir Richard Mayne wrote:
"The primary object of an efficient police is the prevention of crime: the next that of detection and punishment of offenders if crime is committed. To these ends all the efforts of police must be directed. The protection of life and property, the preservation of public tranquillity, and the absence of crime, will alone prove whether those efforts have been successful and whether the objects for which the police were appointed have been attained."
In attaining these objects, much depends on the approval and co-operation of the public, and these have always been determined by the degree of esteem and respect in which the police are held. One of the key principles of modern policing in Britain is that the police seek to work with the community and as part of the community.
JUST WHAT ABOUT THOSE BOBBIES?
London police officers are commonly referred to as "bobbies".
Where did this come from?
The first organised police agency in Great Britain was the Metropolitan Police Force, in London, that was begun in 1829. The founder of the agency was the Home Secretary for Great Britain, Sir Robert Peel.
These officers, who worked for Sir Robert Peel, were affectionately called "Bobbies" in his honor.
EVACUATION DAY
While we�re discussing policing in Great Britain, I came across this following item, put together by John Reilly, that seems to be a nice segue from London to America.
Have you ever heard of Evacuation Day?
Evacuation Day was established on November 25, 1783. This was the First Day of American Law Enforcement in New York City and the United States.
What does it refer to?
The name alone is enough to make some people squirm. But few anniversaries are of greater historical worth here, or offer more reason to give thanks.
On that date in 1783, British forces finally left American soil. They sailed out of New York Harbor, abandoning the city that was their headquarters during the American Revolution and clearing the way for George Washington's troops to move in uncontested from the north. That, one could say, was the start of full independence for the United States.
Today, not only is it no longer observed, but for most people it�s never even been heard of. For many decades, though, Evacuation Day was a huge deal in this city, bigger even than Thanksgiving.
INTERESTING WEB SITES
Investigative Books and Manuals
http://www.pimall.com/nais/bkp.menu.html
Investigative Software
http://www.pimall.com/nais/softw.html
�LEST WE FORGET�� THE NYPD MEMORIAL
Aug 1, 1913 Ptl Bernard O�Rourke, 146 Pct, Dragged by horse
Aug 2, 1922 Lt Albert Duffy, HQDiv, Explosion investigation
Aug 2, 1966 Ptl Edward Monzillo, Mcy2, Auto pursuit
Aug 2, 1979 Sgt Michael Russell, 75 Pct A/C, Shot:Off duty arrest
Aug 4, 1913 Ptl Patrick Cotter, 65 Pct, Shot making arrest
Aug 4, 1928 Ptl Arthur Fash, 52 Pct, Electrocuted
Aug 4, 1953 Ptl Henry Ergen, 79 Pct, Assaulted
Aug 5, 1927 Ptl Hubert Allen, 52 Pct, Auto accident on patrol
Aug 6, 1861 Ptl David Martin, 2 Pct, Stabbed during burglary
Aug 6, 1917 Ptl Robert Holmes, 38 Pct, Shot, robbery in progress
Aug 6, 1925 Det Richard Heneberry, DD, Shot-GLA arrest
Aug 6, 1926 Ptl Oscar Oehlerking, 9 Pct, Shot-robbery in progress
Aug 6, 1935 Ptl Thomas Burns, 5 Pct, Injured on patrol
Aug 7, 1927 Ptl. William Goddy, 7 Pct, Line of duty injury
Aug 7, 1928 Sgt James Barry, 9A Pct, Auto accident on patrol
Aug 8, 1926 Ptl Frank Murphy, Mcy Dist, Shot-GLA arrest
Aug 9, 1930 Det Harry Bloomfield, 44 Sq, Shot by prisoner
Aug 11, 1926 Det John Singer, DD, Shot by prisoner
Aug 11, 1937 Det Isadore Astel, MODD, Shot � Robbery in Progress
Aug 11, 1937 Ptl John Bosworth 43 Pct, Trolley Car accident
Aug 11, 1937 Ptl Joseph McBreen ESS10, Building collapse
Aug 11, 1949 Ptl George Connelly 19 Pct, Line of duty accident
Aug 12, 1952 Ptl James McGillion 34 Pct, Shot during investigation
Aug 12, 1966 Ptl Harold Levine Mcy2, Motorcycle accident
Aug 14, 1924 Ptl Frederick Thomas 9 Pct, Shot-robbery investigation
Aug 14, 1980 PO Harry Ryman 60 Pct, Shot-investigation
Sorry for the lapse in contributions to this site. For a very long time I was trying to make two postings a week; that was reduced to approx one per week, which was reduced even less these past few months. Trying to keep the quality, at the expense of quantity � but what can I expect for a one-man operation? If you have any interesting stories, insights, investigative bookmarks or interesting sites � pass them along! I could use the help!
Ltjac77@yahoo.com
POLICING- GREAT BRITAIN AND THE CITY OF LONDON
These past several weeks � unfortunately � we have seen a lot in the news regarding policing in the city of London. For all the wrong reasons, for sure.
I�d like to help add a little policing history for readers. We are all bound together in this brotherhood, throughout the world, regardless of the country or the language you may speak � policing is policing.
WHY IS IT CALLED SCOTLAND YARD?
The original headquarters of the Metropolitan Police was a house at 4 Whitehall Place, not far from Trafalgar Square, but the rear entrance, which the public used, was in Scotland Yard.
Great Scotland Yard still exists as a street today, and the building is used as stables for some of the Metropolitan Police Mounted Branch.
When the Metropolitan Police were being established in 1829, one of the first tasks was to find a building to act as the new headquarters. The building was at 4 Whitehall Place.
The new building was adjacent to the Public Carriage Office where a Commissioner was already responsible for the licensing of taxi cabs. When the public went to see the new Commissioners, they used the back entrance of 4 Whitehall Place the rear of which was converted into a police station. The reception area soon became known as "Back Hall", an expression still used today in the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police. This entrance was in Great Scotland Yard, off Whitehall, and the building soon became known as Scotland Yard.
By 1890 a new headquarters had been needed for many years, and the Metropolitan Police moved into a new building, designed by Norman Shaw, on Embankment. The building was to have been the site of an opera house, but the project had been abandoned when partly built. the new building was faced with granite quarried by prisoners on Dartmoor, and a female body, the victim of an unsolved murder, was found in the basement of the building, which became known as New Scotland Yard.
In 1967, the Metropolitan Police again moved headquarters to their current address of 10 Broadway, London, SW1H 0BG, on a site which also borders on Victoria Street. The name "New Scotland Yard" was retained.
THE METROPOLITAN POLICE OF GREAT BRITAIN
In 1829, when Sir Robert Peel was Home Secretary, the first Metropolitan Police Act was passed and the Metropolitan Police Force was established.
This new force superseded the local Watch in the London area but the City of London was not covered. Even within the Metropolitan Police District there still remained certain police establishments, organised during the eighteenth century, outside the control of the Metropolitan Police Office.
The Metropolitan Police Service is famed around the world and has a unique place in the history of policing. It is by far the largest of the police services that operate in greater London (the others include the City of London Police and the British Transport Police).
The Royal Parks Constabulary have now become part of the Metropolitan Police Service.
Founded by Sir Robert Peel in 1829, the original establishment of 1,000 officers policed a seven-mile radius from Charing Cross and a population of less than 2 million.
Today, the Metropolitan Police Service employs 30,235 officers, 11,966 police staff, 493 traffic wardens and 1392 Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs), and, since the realignment of police boundaries in April 2000, it covers an area of 620 square miles and a population of 7.2million.
The Met works in conjunction with neighbouring forces but has particularly close relationships with the other forces that police in London:
The British Transport Police, who are responsible for policing on the rail and tube systems.
The City of London Police, who cover the area within the 1-square mile boundaries of the Corporation of London.
The City of London Police is responsible for the safety of everyone in London's 'Square Mile'. There are about 6,000 residents in the City of London although this number is swelled daily by an influx of some 350,000 commuters, as well as people traveling through and tourists.The Force is organized into six command areas. The two territorial divisions, based at Snow Hill and Bishopsgate, are responsible for the day-to-day policing of the City.
Fifty per cent of Force staff work from these police stations, and their functions include giving crime prevention advice, investigating crime, patrolling, staffing the traffic and environmental zone, and dealing with public enquiries.
About 1,200 people work for the City of London Police. Around one third of these are civilian support staff performing a wide range of professional, administrative and some operational support roles.
The Term �Scotland Yard� refers to the officers of the Metropolitan Police Department.
THE HOMICIDE COMMAND
The Homicide Command is split geographically into three units (West, East and South), each led by a Detective Chief Superintendent.
Each of the Command Units has nine Major Investigation Teams (MITs), consisting of 33 staff, led by a Detective Chief Inspector (DCI), who performs the role of �senior investigating officer' (SIO) as well as Homicide Task Force per unit. The Detective Chief Inspector is similar to our NYPD Squad Commander.
The MPS is the only police service in the UK to have a Chief Officer nominated to oversee all homicide investigations and develop policy in this area.
The Homicide Command is responsible for the investigation of homicide and other serious crimes in London.
The work of the Homicide Command is supported by several specialized teams. These include:
The Murder Review Group Joint Trials Unit Coroners Officers and pathologists Forensic Science Services Other specialist support units
The Major Investigation Teams investigate:
* Murder, manslaughter and infanticide offences.
* Attempted murder, where the evidence of intent is unambiguous or where a risk assessment identifies substantive risk to life.
* Missing persons or abductions, where there is a substantive reason to suspect life has been taken or is under threat.
* Other investigations identified for specialist needs.
In addition, the teams provide advice for the MPS and other police forces on 'High Risk' situations such as missing people.
The Homicide Task Forces proactively conduct work in terms of murder suppression and 'man hunts' for murder suspects.
The Murder Review Group acts as an oversight on murder investigations, as well as a catalyst for the �Cold Case� investigation.
They review undetected murder investigations, with the objective of increasing public trust and confidence in the way the MPS investigates murders.
This Unit employs a mixture of serving and retired experienced detectives to undertake detailed reviews of undetected murders, looking for investigative opportunities that may lead to a breakthrough.
The MRGs achieve this by identifying, introducing and sustaining best practice. The focus of reviews is twofold:
� to ensure that all investigative opportunities are identified and progressed;
� to ensure compliance with the Murder Investigation Manual.
Think of it as the Compstat Review for murder investigations on a regular basis!
Reviews of new undetected homicide investigations are undertaken four weeks after commencement. The unit also undertakes �cold case reviews', examining old cases for new investigative opportunities, particularly taking into account advances in forensic science.
Note that retired detectives serve on the Murder Review Group as well � certainly a suitable use of experienced talent!
RANK STRUCTURE OF THE METROPOLITAN POLICE
The prefix detective; is given to officers who have been assigned to investigative work after completing the appropriate selection and training. Detective ranks parallel uniformed ranks and range from Detective Constable to Detective Chief Superintendent.
The entry level, Constable, is followed by Sergeant then Inspector, with Chief Inspector next up on the chain of command.
THE DETECTIVE COMMANDER�S INVESTIGATIVE PLAN: GREAT BRITAIN STYLE
During a recent visit to New York by some visiting Metropolitan Police investigators (Scotland Yardies, or just Yardies, as they�re known), I had the opportunity to discuss homicide investigations, and the role of the Squad Commander in London policing.
I learned that the major task of the Squad Commander (the Detective Chief Inspector) was to commit to writing his/her �Investigative Plan�.
Enacted several years ago, this is intended to be used to show at what stage an investigation is currently in, and what facts are being utilized to determine the next stages of an investigation.
This task consumes the majority of the commander�s time � even more than we spend providing Compstat updates to the armies that require them!
The Detective Commander must, in writing, indicate what course of action he has directed the Detective Inspector to pursue, and what his reason for this is based on.
Try and think what that would involve on your investigations, and you can get a small understanding of the magnitude of this task.
In this manner, the reason why a particular person may be brought in for an interview must be delineated, what the basis of this interview will be about, and what is hoped to be obtained � all committed to a written report by the Commander.
A cumbersome task for sure!
THE DEFINITION OF POLICING
The word "Police" means, generally, the arrangements made in all civilised countries to ensure that the inhabitants keep the peace and obey the law. The word also denotes the force of peace officers (or police) employed for this purpose.
In 1829 Sir Richard Mayne wrote:
"The primary object of an efficient police is the prevention of crime: the next that of detection and punishment of offenders if crime is committed. To these ends all the efforts of police must be directed. The protection of life and property, the preservation of public tranquillity, and the absence of crime, will alone prove whether those efforts have been successful and whether the objects for which the police were appointed have been attained."
In attaining these objects, much depends on the approval and co-operation of the public, and these have always been determined by the degree of esteem and respect in which the police are held. One of the key principles of modern policing in Britain is that the police seek to work with the community and as part of the community.
JUST WHAT ABOUT THOSE BOBBIES?
London police officers are commonly referred to as "bobbies".
Where did this come from?
The first organised police agency in Great Britain was the Metropolitan Police Force, in London, that was begun in 1829. The founder of the agency was the Home Secretary for Great Britain, Sir Robert Peel.
These officers, who worked for Sir Robert Peel, were affectionately called "Bobbies" in his honor.
EVACUATION DAY
While we�re discussing policing in Great Britain, I came across this following item, put together by John Reilly, that seems to be a nice segue from London to America.
Have you ever heard of Evacuation Day?
Evacuation Day was established on November 25, 1783. This was the First Day of American Law Enforcement in New York City and the United States.
What does it refer to?
The name alone is enough to make some people squirm. But few anniversaries are of greater historical worth here, or offer more reason to give thanks.
On that date in 1783, British forces finally left American soil. They sailed out of New York Harbor, abandoning the city that was their headquarters during the American Revolution and clearing the way for George Washington's troops to move in uncontested from the north. That, one could say, was the start of full independence for the United States.
Today, not only is it no longer observed, but for most people it�s never even been heard of. For many decades, though, Evacuation Day was a huge deal in this city, bigger even than Thanksgiving.
INTERESTING WEB SITES
Investigative Books and Manuals
http://www.pimall.com/nais/bkp.menu.html
Investigative Software
http://www.pimall.com/nais/softw.html
�LEST WE FORGET�� THE NYPD MEMORIAL
Aug 1, 1913 Ptl Bernard O�Rourke, 146 Pct, Dragged by horse
Aug 2, 1922 Lt Albert Duffy, HQDiv, Explosion investigation
Aug 2, 1966 Ptl Edward Monzillo, Mcy2, Auto pursuit
Aug 2, 1979 Sgt Michael Russell, 75 Pct A/C, Shot:Off duty arrest
Aug 4, 1913 Ptl Patrick Cotter, 65 Pct, Shot making arrest
Aug 4, 1928 Ptl Arthur Fash, 52 Pct, Electrocuted
Aug 4, 1953 Ptl Henry Ergen, 79 Pct, Assaulted
Aug 5, 1927 Ptl Hubert Allen, 52 Pct, Auto accident on patrol
Aug 6, 1861 Ptl David Martin, 2 Pct, Stabbed during burglary
Aug 6, 1917 Ptl Robert Holmes, 38 Pct, Shot, robbery in progress
Aug 6, 1925 Det Richard Heneberry, DD, Shot-GLA arrest
Aug 6, 1926 Ptl Oscar Oehlerking, 9 Pct, Shot-robbery in progress
Aug 6, 1935 Ptl Thomas Burns, 5 Pct, Injured on patrol
Aug 7, 1927 Ptl. William Goddy, 7 Pct, Line of duty injury
Aug 7, 1928 Sgt James Barry, 9A Pct, Auto accident on patrol
Aug 8, 1926 Ptl Frank Murphy, Mcy Dist, Shot-GLA arrest
Aug 9, 1930 Det Harry Bloomfield, 44 Sq, Shot by prisoner
Aug 11, 1926 Det John Singer, DD, Shot by prisoner
Aug 11, 1937 Det Isadore Astel, MODD, Shot � Robbery in Progress
Aug 11, 1937 Ptl John Bosworth 43 Pct, Trolley Car accident
Aug 11, 1937 Ptl Joseph McBreen ESS10, Building collapse
Aug 11, 1949 Ptl George Connelly 19 Pct, Line of duty accident
Aug 12, 1952 Ptl James McGillion 34 Pct, Shot during investigation
Aug 12, 1966 Ptl Harold Levine Mcy2, Motorcycle accident
Aug 14, 1924 Ptl Frederick Thomas 9 Pct, Shot-robbery investigation
Aug 14, 1980 PO Harry Ryman 60 Pct, Shot-investigation
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
HORSE STORIES
Anyone who has ever been around mounted cops for any length of time will no doubt be regaled by some very funny �mounted stories�. Everyone on the job probably knows someone from Mounted who has at one time or another entertained them with one of those �never to be repeated� horse stories.
One such story involves a mounted officer and his horse sought refuge one night in a railroad yard. Seeking for a way to get some rest while being able to hide the horse, the railroad yard was a good choice, so he thought.
Getting himself and the horse into an empty box car, he soon found himself catching a much needed nap. He was awakened by the horse stepping on him, because the train was underway and was rocking & rolling!
The train didn't stop until it was at a small town upstate. Picture him going down the Street of this upstate town in his uniform riding a horse. I don't know what it cost him but he had to hire someone to drive him & his horse back to the city!
Since the origin of policing cops in uniform have sought ways to get out of the element for some hard earned rest � it�s just a little harder to do with that big horse you have to take around with you!
IN MEMORIAM � PTL. JOHN SKAGEN 1972
Ptl. John Skagen makes the ultilmate sacrifice 33 years ago JUNE 28
The NY TIMES reported on June 29, 1972 that an off-duty Transit Authority patrolman died the night before, four hours after being shot in a gun battle in a Bronx subway station. The patrolman had stopped a man who had a gun protruding from his belt.
John Skagen, while returning from a court appearance, was involved in a terrible quagmire of circumstances that proved fatal for him, life altering for the officers involved in his death and the catalyst, James Richardson, was ultimately set free.
The trouble began when Patrolman Skagen, dressed in civilian clothes, spotted a gun Mr. Richardson's waistband on the landing of the Hunts Point Avenue station of the IRT Pelham Bay Line. The patrolman ordered him to spread his hands against the wall, and the suspect whirled, drew his gun and fired two shots, striking the patrolman.
The shots were heard by two patrolmen from the 41st Precinct, John Jacobson and George Weiver, who were in a radio car on the street above.
Patrolman Jacobson grabbed the suspect as he reportedly ran up the stairs, while Patrolman Weiver ran into thestation.
Ptl. George Weiver, in a mistaken turn of events, shot and killed Skagen after the perpetrator ran up the subway stairs screaming that there was a crazy man with a gun downstairs. Skagen, already wounded by shots fired by Richardson, was confronted by Weiver, who emptied his revolver at Skagen, who perished at Lincoln Hospital a short time later.
Meanwhile, the suspect struggled free and ran across the street to the southeast corner of Bruckner Boulevard and Hunts Point Avenue.
At this point, the chase was joined by Patrolman John Pade of the Citywide Crime Control Unit. Patrolman Pade fired four shots at the fleeing figure, and Patrolman Jacobson fired three.
The suspect was struck twice and seized, but he succeeded in tossing away his revolver. Witnesses told police that he had thrown it over a fence onto the tracks of the New York Central, where it was retrieved by four unidentified youths who ran off with it.
Patrolman Skagen, with two bullets in him, was taken to Lincoln Hospital. He died shortly after 9 P.M., four hours after the shooting.
He had been on the force for two years, since July, 1970. He was married and the father of a son.
While the tragic, quick turn of events is a story unto itself, the trial that followed was equally unpredictable. In the end, Richardson was acquitted by the Bronx jury after hisattorney, the famous William Kunstler, convincingly told the jury that it was the officers' own actions that led to Skagen's murder.
A novel, written by the district attorney who tried the case, Steven Phillips, analyzes the case & prosecution. Titled "NO HEROES, NO VILLIANS: THE STORY OF A MURDER TRIAL", this book once graced my bookshelf (before being borrowed and never to be seen again).
Thanks to Sgt Mike Fanning, who reported this story on his Yahoo groups site.
POLICEWOMEN
Following an inquiry from a reader concerning Policewomen in the NYPD, the following information was passed on by Ret Det1 John Reilly.
In the March 1968 issue of Spring 3100, an article appeared concerning the assignment of policewomen to Patrol Commands effective Feb. 1, 1968.
In the article it was mentioned that the then current quota of policewomen was 352, and that there were 11 positions unfilled. This number included 62 detectives. There were also 2 female lieutenants and 16 female sergeants.
There were a number of female detectives in the Narcotics Bureau at that time, with a good number of the working undercover. The Pickpocket Squad also had a large complement of female detectives.
It is also interesting to note that the NYC Chatter had quotas for 1st and 2nd grade detectives. For First Grade, the number was 276 males and 8 female detectives.
Certainly a long way from the department of today!
INTERESTING WEB SITES
Area Code Finder
http://fonefinder.net/
Drug Index
http://www.rxlist.com/
Over 36,000 legal documents and forms, including wills, name change, real
estate and more.
http://www.uslegalforms.com/
The Coroner's Toolkit
http://www.linux-mag.com/content/view/1894/2297/
YOU CAN�T MAKE THIS STUFF UP�
WILL THE REAL DUMMY PLEASE STAND UP?
AT&T fired President John Walter after nine months, saying he lacked intellectual leadership. He received a $26 million severance package. Perhaps it's not Walter who's lacking intelligence.
WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM OUR FRIENDS:
Police in Oakland, CA spent two hours attempting to subdue a gunman who had barricaded himself inside his home. After firing ten tear gas canisters, officers discovered that the man was standing beside them in the police line, shouting, "Please come out and give yourself up."
WHAT WAS PLAN B???
An Illinois man, pretending to have a gun, kidnapped a motorist and forced him to drive to two different automated teller machines, wherein the kidnapper proceeded to withdraw money from his own bank accounts.
THE GETAWAY!
A man walked into a Topeka, Kansas Kwik Stop and asked for all the money in the cash drawer. Apparently, the take was too small, so he tied up the store clerk and worked the counter himself for three hours until police showed up and grabbed him.
NOTED OBITUARY: DET FIRST GRADE JOHN TARTAGLIA
It was reported in the NY Post on June 7, 2005 that an NYPD Titan passed away.
The name may mean something to Brooklyn North gumshoes. It was reported that Retired Detective First Grade John Tartaglia had passed away, at the age of 79, after a brief illness.
More recently, that name was noted for his sons, William Tartaglia, a recently retired Inspector, and Peter, a retired Lieutenant � Squad Commander.
Bill and Pete�s father, John Tartaglia, set their detective instincts from an early age.
You may not have been aware that their father, legendary NYPD Detective First Grade John Tartaglia,helped solve some of New York's most infamous crimes.
Among the cases he worked on were the murder of Kitty Genovese, a crime that shocked the city in 1964. She was killed as dozens of her neighbors in Kew Gardens, Queens, ignored her cries for help.
He also was involved in the probe of Alice Crimmins, who was accused of murdering her two young kids in 1965.
John Tartaglia � who served in the WWII Normandy invasion � is survived by his wife, Ann, and four sons.
William recently retired as an Inspector and the Commanding Officer of the Gang Division. He got his start as a Brooklyn North gumshoe, serving as a Detective, Sergeant in the 84 Squad, and through the ranks back into the Detective Bureau. His brother, Peter, was a legend as the 77 Squad Commander � and left some large shoes for me to try and fill in that squad. He now serves with the Suffolk County DA�s Office.
Our heartfelt condolences go out to the Tartaglia family on their loss.
WHO�S THE TARGET?
The police forms call him Advanced Silhouette SP-83A; in some gun shops, he is B-60. He is widely known in police and gun-club circles as the Thug, a life-size, two-dimensional paper target that every New York City police officer has shot at since the early 1960's.
He has not changed over the decades, a husky white guy, maybe a little German, maybe a little Italian, some Irish, with his pug nose and his thick head of dark, wavy hair. His hands are hairy, his jowls clean shaven. He favors a white-on-white track suit that is a little snug in the middle.
Whatever the Thug wants with that gun, he seems to be eating well.
As with many tools of police work, a certain lore has grown up around the Thug, giving birth to multiple theories on whether he is based on a real person, and just exactly who that man is. Each different theory attaches a different real name to the crouching bad guy.
He's the Worell. He's the Bruno. He's Ernest Borgnine.
The truth may surprise a few people who thought they knew the answer.
The image was created in New York City, but over the years, police departments in other states, including Connecticut, have used it, and anyone can buy one in gun stores. It is the official target used by the Department of Homeland Security.
Just who is this man in the target?
First, the Worell Theory.
At the department's outdoor range in Rodmans Neck, officers with enough years remember a sergeant named Fred V. Worell, who taught thousands of New York City police officers how to shoot in his 35 years on the job. The resemblance to the Thug, they say, is too close to be coincidence.
"It was always alluded to, he was the one this target was modeled on," said Detective Stephen Albanese, 48, moments before pumping his 15 rounds into what he believed was the image of the man he once worked with.
Sergeant Worell retired in 1987, and died Feb. 8, 2003, at age 66. Pictures of him at work indeed bear a resemblance to the target, especially the hair.
"Up until the end, he still had it," said John Cerar, 60, a former commander at the range for nine years, until 1994. "Whenever he wrote a report, you saw the words 'vis-�-vis.' That was one of his trademarks, I guess."
Sergeant Worell spent so much time at work, the range became something of a day care center for his two sons. "My brother and I, we grew up at the outdoor range," said Kurt Worell. "The target definitely looked like him. He said, 'It does really look like me, huh?�
To this day, when officers at the range order new copies of the target, they refer to it as "Worell with gun," or "Worell with knife." (There is one bizarre version, with a woman's head atop the Thug's body, that is no longer in use.)
More theories on who the target is will be posted in the future.
IF I MAY TAKE A MOMENT
I don�t often sway from the investigative content on this site, but if I may � and I am the editor � I�d just like to take a moment for some personal acknowledgements.
I�d like to recognize the achievements of some graduating seniors at Villanova University. Three seniors, who stayed the course playing varsity women�s lacrosse for the Villanova Wildcats, have graduated. From a much larger freshman field, these three seniors stuck with the hard work and dedication needed to not only excel at this fine university, but to play a varsity sport for their four years there. I�d like to recognize my daughter, Kristen Cornicello, and her good friends Amy Rocap and Bess Hanley, and take a moment to proudly recognize them. Best wishes to all of you in your future endeavors!
Along the same line, I�d like to recognize (daughter #2) Rachael Cornicello, on her fine achievement this past year as a Junior at Lynbrook High School. Rachael was recognized in the local newspaper, The Herald, for making the New York State Team 1 in the National Women�s Lacrosse Tournament. She also topped off the season with her Second All-County Lacrosse award. Keep up the good work!
Unless I wish to invite problems at home, I should mention their brothers as well.
Andrew completed his first year of graduate studies at Queens College, where he works as the Assistant Athletic Trainer. Having played four years of lacrosse at Manhattanville College � two years as team Captain � he is completing his certification as an Athletic Trainer, and helps to keep his siblings healthy. John just finished his second year at Hartwick College and, yes, he too plays lacrosse! He will be stepping up to the lead face-off man this next season, and we�re looking forward to Hartwick moving further up the NCAA Division III ladder!
�LEST WE FORGET�� THE NYPD MEMORIAL
June 26, 1918 Ptl Joseph Nolan, 22 Pct, Assaulted with brick
June 26, 1930 Ptl Wilson Fields, 62 Pct, Auto accident on patrol
June 26, 1937 Ptl George Mahnken, Mcy Unit, Motorcycle accident
June 26, 1977 Det Henry McDevitt, 48 Pct, Assaulted
June 28, 1927 Ptl Andrew Grennan, 46 Pct, Drowned during rescue
June 28, 1931 Det William DeGive, MODD, Shot during GLA Arrest
June 28, 1963 Ptl. William Baumfield, 4 Div, Shot-Robbery
June 28, 1972 PO John Skagen, TD2, Shot chasing felon
June 28, 1986 PO Scott Gadell, 101 Pct, Shot during investigation
July 1, 1911 Ptl Michael Lynch, 22 Pct, Shot by perp
July 2, 1922 Det John Moriarty, Det Div, Shot:Robbery in progress
July 2, 1970 Ptl Paul Donadio, 75 Pct, Patrolwagon accident on patrol
July 3, 1857 Ptl Thomas Sparks, No info available
July 3, 1917 Ptl John Flood, 31 Pct, Assaulted
July 3, 1966 Ptl Willie Stephenson, HAPD, Drowned during rescue
July 4, 1940 Det Joseph Lynch, Bomb Squad, Explosion during investigation
July 4, 1940 Det Ferdinand Socha, Bomb Squad, Explosion during investigation
July 4, 1993 PO Rudolph Thomas, PSA3, Shot:Off duty
My Note: I remember the killing of PO Scott Gadell, as it fell on a family birthday which my father missed, as he was working that day with Queens Homicide. You may recall that, at that time, the use of �speed loaders� for revolvers was NOT an authorized piece of equipment. Sadly, after Scott�s death, the department authorized its use.
REMEMBER � TO CONTACT THE MINISTER OF INVESTIGATION�
Send me an e-mail at: Ltjac77@yahoo.com
HOPING ALL HAVE A SAFE, HEALTHY, AND JOYOUS HOLIDAY WEEKEND!
Anyone who has ever been around mounted cops for any length of time will no doubt be regaled by some very funny �mounted stories�. Everyone on the job probably knows someone from Mounted who has at one time or another entertained them with one of those �never to be repeated� horse stories.
One such story involves a mounted officer and his horse sought refuge one night in a railroad yard. Seeking for a way to get some rest while being able to hide the horse, the railroad yard was a good choice, so he thought.
Getting himself and the horse into an empty box car, he soon found himself catching a much needed nap. He was awakened by the horse stepping on him, because the train was underway and was rocking & rolling!
The train didn't stop until it was at a small town upstate. Picture him going down the Street of this upstate town in his uniform riding a horse. I don't know what it cost him but he had to hire someone to drive him & his horse back to the city!
Since the origin of policing cops in uniform have sought ways to get out of the element for some hard earned rest � it�s just a little harder to do with that big horse you have to take around with you!
IN MEMORIAM � PTL. JOHN SKAGEN 1972
Ptl. John Skagen makes the ultilmate sacrifice 33 years ago JUNE 28
The NY TIMES reported on June 29, 1972 that an off-duty Transit Authority patrolman died the night before, four hours after being shot in a gun battle in a Bronx subway station. The patrolman had stopped a man who had a gun protruding from his belt.
John Skagen, while returning from a court appearance, was involved in a terrible quagmire of circumstances that proved fatal for him, life altering for the officers involved in his death and the catalyst, James Richardson, was ultimately set free.
The trouble began when Patrolman Skagen, dressed in civilian clothes, spotted a gun Mr. Richardson's waistband on the landing of the Hunts Point Avenue station of the IRT Pelham Bay Line. The patrolman ordered him to spread his hands against the wall, and the suspect whirled, drew his gun and fired two shots, striking the patrolman.
The shots were heard by two patrolmen from the 41st Precinct, John Jacobson and George Weiver, who were in a radio car on the street above.
Patrolman Jacobson grabbed the suspect as he reportedly ran up the stairs, while Patrolman Weiver ran into thestation.
Ptl. George Weiver, in a mistaken turn of events, shot and killed Skagen after the perpetrator ran up the subway stairs screaming that there was a crazy man with a gun downstairs. Skagen, already wounded by shots fired by Richardson, was confronted by Weiver, who emptied his revolver at Skagen, who perished at Lincoln Hospital a short time later.
Meanwhile, the suspect struggled free and ran across the street to the southeast corner of Bruckner Boulevard and Hunts Point Avenue.
At this point, the chase was joined by Patrolman John Pade of the Citywide Crime Control Unit. Patrolman Pade fired four shots at the fleeing figure, and Patrolman Jacobson fired three.
The suspect was struck twice and seized, but he succeeded in tossing away his revolver. Witnesses told police that he had thrown it over a fence onto the tracks of the New York Central, where it was retrieved by four unidentified youths who ran off with it.
Patrolman Skagen, with two bullets in him, was taken to Lincoln Hospital. He died shortly after 9 P.M., four hours after the shooting.
He had been on the force for two years, since July, 1970. He was married and the father of a son.
While the tragic, quick turn of events is a story unto itself, the trial that followed was equally unpredictable. In the end, Richardson was acquitted by the Bronx jury after hisattorney, the famous William Kunstler, convincingly told the jury that it was the officers' own actions that led to Skagen's murder.
A novel, written by the district attorney who tried the case, Steven Phillips, analyzes the case & prosecution. Titled "NO HEROES, NO VILLIANS: THE STORY OF A MURDER TRIAL", this book once graced my bookshelf (before being borrowed and never to be seen again).
Thanks to Sgt Mike Fanning, who reported this story on his Yahoo groups site.
POLICEWOMEN
Following an inquiry from a reader concerning Policewomen in the NYPD, the following information was passed on by Ret Det1 John Reilly.
In the March 1968 issue of Spring 3100, an article appeared concerning the assignment of policewomen to Patrol Commands effective Feb. 1, 1968.
In the article it was mentioned that the then current quota of policewomen was 352, and that there were 11 positions unfilled. This number included 62 detectives. There were also 2 female lieutenants and 16 female sergeants.
There were a number of female detectives in the Narcotics Bureau at that time, with a good number of the working undercover. The Pickpocket Squad also had a large complement of female detectives.
It is also interesting to note that the NYC Chatter had quotas for 1st and 2nd grade detectives. For First Grade, the number was 276 males and 8 female detectives.
Certainly a long way from the department of today!
INTERESTING WEB SITES
Area Code Finder
http://fonefinder.net/
Drug Index
http://www.rxlist.com/
Over 36,000 legal documents and forms, including wills, name change, real
estate and more.
http://www.uslegalforms.com/
The Coroner's Toolkit
http://www.linux-mag.com/content/view/1894/2297/
YOU CAN�T MAKE THIS STUFF UP�
WILL THE REAL DUMMY PLEASE STAND UP?
AT&T fired President John Walter after nine months, saying he lacked intellectual leadership. He received a $26 million severance package. Perhaps it's not Walter who's lacking intelligence.
WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM OUR FRIENDS:
Police in Oakland, CA spent two hours attempting to subdue a gunman who had barricaded himself inside his home. After firing ten tear gas canisters, officers discovered that the man was standing beside them in the police line, shouting, "Please come out and give yourself up."
WHAT WAS PLAN B???
An Illinois man, pretending to have a gun, kidnapped a motorist and forced him to drive to two different automated teller machines, wherein the kidnapper proceeded to withdraw money from his own bank accounts.
THE GETAWAY!
A man walked into a Topeka, Kansas Kwik Stop and asked for all the money in the cash drawer. Apparently, the take was too small, so he tied up the store clerk and worked the counter himself for three hours until police showed up and grabbed him.
NOTED OBITUARY: DET FIRST GRADE JOHN TARTAGLIA
It was reported in the NY Post on June 7, 2005 that an NYPD Titan passed away.
The name may mean something to Brooklyn North gumshoes. It was reported that Retired Detective First Grade John Tartaglia had passed away, at the age of 79, after a brief illness.
More recently, that name was noted for his sons, William Tartaglia, a recently retired Inspector, and Peter, a retired Lieutenant � Squad Commander.
Bill and Pete�s father, John Tartaglia, set their detective instincts from an early age.
You may not have been aware that their father, legendary NYPD Detective First Grade John Tartaglia,helped solve some of New York's most infamous crimes.
Among the cases he worked on were the murder of Kitty Genovese, a crime that shocked the city in 1964. She was killed as dozens of her neighbors in Kew Gardens, Queens, ignored her cries for help.
He also was involved in the probe of Alice Crimmins, who was accused of murdering her two young kids in 1965.
John Tartaglia � who served in the WWII Normandy invasion � is survived by his wife, Ann, and four sons.
William recently retired as an Inspector and the Commanding Officer of the Gang Division. He got his start as a Brooklyn North gumshoe, serving as a Detective, Sergeant in the 84 Squad, and through the ranks back into the Detective Bureau. His brother, Peter, was a legend as the 77 Squad Commander � and left some large shoes for me to try and fill in that squad. He now serves with the Suffolk County DA�s Office.
Our heartfelt condolences go out to the Tartaglia family on their loss.
WHO�S THE TARGET?
The police forms call him Advanced Silhouette SP-83A; in some gun shops, he is B-60. He is widely known in police and gun-club circles as the Thug, a life-size, two-dimensional paper target that every New York City police officer has shot at since the early 1960's.
He has not changed over the decades, a husky white guy, maybe a little German, maybe a little Italian, some Irish, with his pug nose and his thick head of dark, wavy hair. His hands are hairy, his jowls clean shaven. He favors a white-on-white track suit that is a little snug in the middle.
Whatever the Thug wants with that gun, he seems to be eating well.
As with many tools of police work, a certain lore has grown up around the Thug, giving birth to multiple theories on whether he is based on a real person, and just exactly who that man is. Each different theory attaches a different real name to the crouching bad guy.
He's the Worell. He's the Bruno. He's Ernest Borgnine.
The truth may surprise a few people who thought they knew the answer.
The image was created in New York City, but over the years, police departments in other states, including Connecticut, have used it, and anyone can buy one in gun stores. It is the official target used by the Department of Homeland Security.
Just who is this man in the target?
First, the Worell Theory.
At the department's outdoor range in Rodmans Neck, officers with enough years remember a sergeant named Fred V. Worell, who taught thousands of New York City police officers how to shoot in his 35 years on the job. The resemblance to the Thug, they say, is too close to be coincidence.
"It was always alluded to, he was the one this target was modeled on," said Detective Stephen Albanese, 48, moments before pumping his 15 rounds into what he believed was the image of the man he once worked with.
Sergeant Worell retired in 1987, and died Feb. 8, 2003, at age 66. Pictures of him at work indeed bear a resemblance to the target, especially the hair.
"Up until the end, he still had it," said John Cerar, 60, a former commander at the range for nine years, until 1994. "Whenever he wrote a report, you saw the words 'vis-�-vis.' That was one of his trademarks, I guess."
Sergeant Worell spent so much time at work, the range became something of a day care center for his two sons. "My brother and I, we grew up at the outdoor range," said Kurt Worell. "The target definitely looked like him. He said, 'It does really look like me, huh?�
To this day, when officers at the range order new copies of the target, they refer to it as "Worell with gun," or "Worell with knife." (There is one bizarre version, with a woman's head atop the Thug's body, that is no longer in use.)
More theories on who the target is will be posted in the future.
IF I MAY TAKE A MOMENT
I don�t often sway from the investigative content on this site, but if I may � and I am the editor � I�d just like to take a moment for some personal acknowledgements.
I�d like to recognize the achievements of some graduating seniors at Villanova University. Three seniors, who stayed the course playing varsity women�s lacrosse for the Villanova Wildcats, have graduated. From a much larger freshman field, these three seniors stuck with the hard work and dedication needed to not only excel at this fine university, but to play a varsity sport for their four years there. I�d like to recognize my daughter, Kristen Cornicello, and her good friends Amy Rocap and Bess Hanley, and take a moment to proudly recognize them. Best wishes to all of you in your future endeavors!
Along the same line, I�d like to recognize (daughter #2) Rachael Cornicello, on her fine achievement this past year as a Junior at Lynbrook High School. Rachael was recognized in the local newspaper, The Herald, for making the New York State Team 1 in the National Women�s Lacrosse Tournament. She also topped off the season with her Second All-County Lacrosse award. Keep up the good work!
Unless I wish to invite problems at home, I should mention their brothers as well.
Andrew completed his first year of graduate studies at Queens College, where he works as the Assistant Athletic Trainer. Having played four years of lacrosse at Manhattanville College � two years as team Captain � he is completing his certification as an Athletic Trainer, and helps to keep his siblings healthy. John just finished his second year at Hartwick College and, yes, he too plays lacrosse! He will be stepping up to the lead face-off man this next season, and we�re looking forward to Hartwick moving further up the NCAA Division III ladder!
�LEST WE FORGET�� THE NYPD MEMORIAL
June 26, 1918 Ptl Joseph Nolan, 22 Pct, Assaulted with brick
June 26, 1930 Ptl Wilson Fields, 62 Pct, Auto accident on patrol
June 26, 1937 Ptl George Mahnken, Mcy Unit, Motorcycle accident
June 26, 1977 Det Henry McDevitt, 48 Pct, Assaulted
June 28, 1927 Ptl Andrew Grennan, 46 Pct, Drowned during rescue
June 28, 1931 Det William DeGive, MODD, Shot during GLA Arrest
June 28, 1963 Ptl. William Baumfield, 4 Div, Shot-Robbery
June 28, 1972 PO John Skagen, TD2, Shot chasing felon
June 28, 1986 PO Scott Gadell, 101 Pct, Shot during investigation
July 1, 1911 Ptl Michael Lynch, 22 Pct, Shot by perp
July 2, 1922 Det John Moriarty, Det Div, Shot:Robbery in progress
July 2, 1970 Ptl Paul Donadio, 75 Pct, Patrolwagon accident on patrol
July 3, 1857 Ptl Thomas Sparks, No info available
July 3, 1917 Ptl John Flood, 31 Pct, Assaulted
July 3, 1966 Ptl Willie Stephenson, HAPD, Drowned during rescue
July 4, 1940 Det Joseph Lynch, Bomb Squad, Explosion during investigation
July 4, 1940 Det Ferdinand Socha, Bomb Squad, Explosion during investigation
July 4, 1993 PO Rudolph Thomas, PSA3, Shot:Off duty
My Note: I remember the killing of PO Scott Gadell, as it fell on a family birthday which my father missed, as he was working that day with Queens Homicide. You may recall that, at that time, the use of �speed loaders� for revolvers was NOT an authorized piece of equipment. Sadly, after Scott�s death, the department authorized its use.
REMEMBER � TO CONTACT THE MINISTER OF INVESTIGATION�
Send me an e-mail at: Ltjac77@yahoo.com
HOPING ALL HAVE A SAFE, HEALTHY, AND JOYOUS HOLIDAY WEEKEND!
