Month: March 2015

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Did You Know Him?

By Vail Bello, retired Sonoma County Sheriff’s Deputy

 

It’s inevitable. For that last 35 years, whenever a cop in the Bay Area dies, someone asks me “Did you know him?” It’s not out of ignorance; it’s almost always out of care. It’s usually from a friend or family member, and as of late, as my virtual community grows, it can come from a Facebook acquaintance. Usually my answer is no. But that’s not a real answer. The truth is, yes, I did. I may not have ever met the man, but I know him.
I know what he did. I know what it took for him to even be in that patrol car, the selection process, the testing, the academy, the hiring process. I know that part. And I know the sacrifices he made to do that job. I know how people said to him, and say now “Well, you CHOSE that job, you KNOW the risks”.
I know that. I know the countless birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays with family’s he missed, and he will now never have again. I know the drifting apart from friends who will always be friends, but can’t, …don’t understand the job, the shift work, the mandatory overtime. It’s inevitable. I know how the circle becomes smaller, because frankly, good, caring people don’t know how it is, don’t understand.
They can’t.
I know how he did his job for more than a paycheck. I know he did it to protect those who can’t protect themselves, who aren’t big enough or strong enough to help themselves. I know how he would go to countless, unsolvable situations, and solve them. Or at least de-escalate them for a night, just to keep the peace.
I know the times he had to look a grieving mother in the eyes and tell her there was no hope for her daughter, that her child was never coming home. I know how he had to stay strong when everyone else around him was panicking, or fighting, or grieving.
I know how he stood tall. I know what it means to run to the gunfire when everyone else is running away. I know what kind of fortitude that took.
I know the sheepdog. I know what it was like for him to put on armor, a gun, a Taser, and 20 other pounds of defensive tools to prepare for the possibility of a life and death battle EVERY DAY….and I know how his brothers and sisters feel today when they know he lost that last battle.
I know he won’t be forgotten. I know his deeds will live on through his brothers and sisters in Blue, Green, and Tan. I know that his sacrifice wasn’t necessary, that it should never happen, but happen it does.
So did I know him? I believe I did.

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Ramblings by Hal

Ramblings: Court 2

By Hal Collier

We are happy that 35-year veteran Hal Collier is sharing his ‘stories behind the badge’ with us.

The following story is true. In my first chapter I described how inconvenient it was going to court. I don’t ever remember enjoying a case I had in court. I guess that 95% of the time I spent in court was on my own time. You don’t just show up, you have to prepare. Nothing more embarrassing than making a fool of yourself on the witness stand.

In fact, I’ve heard of judges writing a letter to a captain describing how an officer was not prepared. It didn’t happen to me, but I was close once. Before arriving at court, you had better make a copy of the arrest report and review it.

I used to play good lawyer, bad lawyer. What’s the prosecuting attorney (good lawyer) going to ask me and what’s the defense attorney (bad lawyer) going to ask? What are the weak spots and what might be their defense? In felony prelims, Department policy said the investigating detective brings the evidence and attended the court hearing. In reality, some detectives never went to court. In narcotics cases, the arresting officer brought the evidence.

In some of my past Ramblings, I described Hollywood Characters. The court house is full of them. Some of the more colorful ones are judges. Yep, that’s right—the pillars of the judicial system. Two of the most infamous judges I’ll talk about were removed from the bench by the Commission of Judicial Performance. You have to be a real old timer to know these judges. Then later I’ll tell a few stories about trials I testified in that were amusing. One was even bizarre.

Judge Leland Geiler was rumored to be a former LAPD motor cop. I only testified in his court once but it was interesting. Sometimes when you had a case in another court room and were told to wait, you would wander into Geiler’s court to watch the circus. He was gruff, rude and his speech was laced with profanity. He ran his court room with an iron hand, but then most judges think of themselves as a notch below a god.

Lawyers who angered a judge could be found sharing a cell with their client. No kidding. I was in court more than once when a judge held a lawyer in contempt of court and ordered the bailiff to take custody of the offender. A few times I saw a judge order a lawyer to get out his check book and pay a fine for contempt. I shudder to think what might happen if the check bounced.

I was testifying in a felony prelim and glanced over at Judge Geiler, he was reading a Playboy Magazine. Ok, he was really looking at the pictures. As I describe a location in Hollywood, the defense attorney objected. Geiler told the attorney to sit down because he knew Hollywood like the back of his hand. Judge Geiler actually lived in Hollywood, on Los Feliz Boulevard. It was rumored that Geiler arrested a public defender in his court room for possession of a controlled drug and being under the influence. I would have loved to see that. Judge Geiler was removed from the bench in 1973 for judicial misconduct.

Noel Cannon, there’s a name that struck fear in the hearts of everyone and I mean everyone, cops, lawyers, defendants. If an officer had court in Cannon’s courtroom, you had better not be late or unprepared.

Officers had to be in court at 8:30 A.M. The officers would talk to the DA (District Attorney) and review their case. Most judges took the bench at about 9:30/10:00 to see what cases were ready for a hearing. I once saw an officer get on the witness stand and admit that he hadn’t read his arrest report before court. Judge Cannon ordered him to read his report on the witness stand, while the whole court room waited.

Noel Cannon would take the bench at a little after 8:00 A.M. She would sit on the bench in a pink judge’s robe, sometimes with her small dog on her lap and she was rumored to carry a handgun. She would order the attorneys to get cases ready, “forthwith.” (That means “right now”) I had a case that was heard fourth in her court one morning. I got out before 8:40 A.M. Cool, I got my three hours in ten minutes.

I walked into her court room one morning at 8:15. The court room was silent, I got two steps inside and she demanded to know what case I was on. I replied and she ordered the DA to get my case ready, “forthwith.” I slid into a seat next to my partner, who advised that Judge Cannon was on a rampage.

Judge Cannon, the day before, had ordered a deputy sheriff back in her courtroom at 8:15. A.M. When he hadn’t arrived at 8:25 she issued a bench warrant for his arrest, bail set at $50,000 dollars. I didn’t need to check my wallet, I knew I didn’t have that much lunch money. I testified and almost ran out of her court to the smell of freedom.

I had another case where I testified, the DA finished questioning me and now it’s the PD (Public Defenders) turn to cross examine. Judge Cannon tells the PD to sit down, “There’s no defense for this case. Defendant is held to answer. Next case.” Actually Judge Cannon held just about every defendant over for trial. The U.S. Constitution didn’t exist in Noel Cannon’s court.

Last Noel Cannon court story. I have court on December 24, 1972or 73. That’s right, Christmas Eve. My partner, Jim Tomer and I have worked all night. When were done with this court case, we can go home and share Christmas Eve with our family. It’s a simple case, one officer testifying, ten minutes maximum and we’re out of there. We arrested a drag queen on Hollywood Boulevard for possession of drugs. The defendant is in custody. He needs his case heard today [this is mandated by case law relating to speedy trial] or bail out and he’s not likely to have bail money.

We’re not assigned to Noel’s court, but we’re next door. The courts break for lunch at noon. Damn, we come back at 1:30 and the DA tells us that the judges have all gone home for Christmas. All but one, Noel Cannon. She’s going to take everyone’s held over cases. Last year she held court until 10 P.M. Does anyone else see the irony—Noel—Christmas!!!

I look at Jim and he smiles. I’m thinking he’s suffering from sleep deprivation. He asks our DA, “If I get the defendant to promise to show up for his next court appearance will you release him?” The DA agrees. He wants to go home too. Jim walks back into the lock up and returns ten minutes later. Jim tells the DA, he’ll show up for court. The DA’s happy, Jim and I are happy and the drag queen is happy. The DA, Jim and I are going home for Christmas, the drag queen is going where ever they go for the holidays. If we had ended up in Cannon’s court, no one would have gone home before dark.

A month later we go to court on the same defendant. I’m hoping he shows up. Guess what—he appears and pleads guilty to the drug charge. He thanks us for letting him out for Christmas. Yea, we had his interests in mind.

Noel Cannon was removed from the bench in 1975 for judicial misconduct. Another Character.

One day I have court after working all night. It’s my third day in court and I’m guessing that I have had a total of eight hours sleep in three days. I’m sitting in the officers’ waiting room when they break for lunch. I seldom tried to sleep at the court house because when I was suddenly awakened, I was a poster model for dementia patients.

So on this day I’m so tired I lie down just for an hour. I am suddenly jolted awake by a ringing telephone. I sit upright and I’m in this strange room with some other man. He looks over at me and asks, “What case are you on?” I reply ah, ah, ok that’s right I’m at court. My mind is racing what case am I on? After a few seconds the man says, “Well then what’s your name?” I reply, “ah, ah,” crap I can’t even remember my name. I hope I’m wearing the underwear with my name in them. The fog clears just enough for me to blurt out “Collier.” He tells me my case has been disposed of, I can go home.

I walk out of the court building and discover that it’s past four o’clock. I walk four blocks up the hill to the Music Center where my truck is parked. I enter the parking structure and stop dead in my tracks. Oh double crap. What level did I park on this morning? Lucky I drove my truck. I only had to walk down a ramp and look left and right. If I didn’t see the roof of “Old Blue” I walked down another ramp. I find my truck. Now I only have to remember where I live. I never went to sleep at court again.

My next segment, I’ll talk about the more bizarre court cases and characters.

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A Matter of Life and Death

Fr. David R. Powell

 

Fr. David R. Powell
Fr. David R. Powell
Father David Powell will head the the Santa Rosa Police Chaplaincy Program; he is a former Oakland cop.

This article appeared in my local newspaper, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat on Sunday, March 22, 2015. It adds a dimension to police officer training that isn’t often publicized. I consider this an insightful scrap of information to the help the public make informed decisions about police involved shooting. What he doesn’t say is what every law enforcement officer knows, “If a cop gets killed/shot/disabled, he won’t be able to help citizens who are in need.”

–Thonie

The training involved facing realistic filmed reproductions of actual situations in which life and death decisions were made by police officers in the past. The trainee was provided with a police sidearm from which electronically accurate laser beams could be fired at the projected simulations so one could see where the “bullets” actually hit the life-sized images on the screen. Also, the simulator “suspects” fire back at the trainees.

The volunteer chaplain candidates going through this ordeal were compassionate folk, but they regularly killed dozens of civilians during sessions in the simulator. They all failed to turn in perfect scores and, more often than not, were shot themselves.

We might examine some of the forces that influence a typical police officer who encounters a situation that compels a decision whether or not to use deadly force.

First, there is the paradox that in a peaceful community police don’t react well because they lack the experience of incidents of violence as an officer in a large city.

Second, Andy Lopez, the victim of the deputy- involved shooting near Santa Rosa on Oct. 22, 2013, was a teenager. In America today, where would you expect to encounter a teenager with an assault rifle? The rifle looked especially real because the orange plastic cap that was meant to identify it as a toy had been gone. Also, a common experience of police is that if a suspect is a teenager, he or she is more likely to shoot than an adult.

Third, what are the moral priorities among the choices open to an officer? Popular opinion is that the officer should hold his fire until the suspect fires first. This is the legacy of a century of Hollywood. In any Hollywood drama, the villain shoots first, and the hero has to hold his or her fire until he or she is shot at. But is that a morally defensible policy for real-life situations? Isn’t a police officer’s first moral concern to stay alive so he can come home to his wife and kids and return to the job the next day? His second priority is the protection of citizens. His third priority is to try to avoid deadly force in achieving the first two priorities. All three priorities must reflect obedience to the laws of the land.

The emotional burden this moral choice puts on officers is enormous. If Deputy Erick Gelhaus’ case is typical, he has only a 20 percent chance of lasting in his career more than two years. My heart goes out to Andy and his family, but I also pray that God will give this deputy some peace.

When I was a police officer in Oakland in the late 1950s and early ’60s, youth still had some respect for police officers. Today, that is less the case. Peer pressure on youth today is to defy authority. In the language of teens it’s called “attitude.”

Peer pressure heavily weighs on teens to demonstrate bravado (attitude) when encountered by police. But police fear losing control when confronted by a teen with a defiant attitude. It is a dangerous situation that has become all too common.

The Rev. David R. Powell of Sebastopol, former executive director of Sonoma County’s Law Enforcement Chaplaincy Service, has 30 years of law enforcement experience.

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A Commentary from a Friend

By Joe Mariani, a retired Marin and Sonoma County teacher and administrator

re-posted from Facebook, with permission 

 

First of all, I love to read your Hal Collier stories.

But what sad news last night!

As a school administrator for SRCS [Santa Rosa City Schools] I regularly worked with the SRPD [Santa Rosa Police Department] & SO [Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office] and Probation. Several years before I retired in ’99 and then for the following decade when I was an on-call substitute administrator at all of the secondary schools in SRCS, we finally got 5 campus based PD officers who would split their time between our five high schools and their five feeder middle schools. As a building administrator I also attended the monthly Sonoma County gang- related meetings with the the same three groups at the SRPD main, where we would discuss the previous month’s gang activities & share intelligence.

Most regular citizens don’t have a clue about the dangerous and hard job that police & sheriff officers face every day, and how much we rely on them for our safety.

Also, it was always so great to see the paramedics & fire truck roll up – please no code 3! – when we had a badly injured or really sick student down. I go crazy when I see all if the bad press that today’s cops are getting, when I know from personal experience that all of the people who I worked with were good guys & ladies. And I also know that there is a “rest of the story” about the people who cops deal with every day/night that usually gets glossed over in the news. I dealt with middle & high school kids, non-students coming on campus, and adults for over 3 decades in a zillion “rest of the story” situations. It was so great to call or finally have a designated police officer to help with my 1056 [suicide/attempt], 415 [peace disturbance- can be a domestic or dog barking and everything in between], 242 [battery], H&W [Health and Welfare Code-known also as Welfare and Institutions Code-violation usually pertains to laws specifically to protect children’s welfare] , & even occasional 245 [assault with a deadly weapon], et al!

So my heart & prayers also go out to one more member of our “thin blue line, his Department, and his family.

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San Jose, Ca. Officer Down

OFFICER DOWN-SAN JOSE POLICE DEPARTMENT-
San Jose Mercury News Staff writers Eric Kurhi and Mark Gomez contributed to this report.

Law enforcement officers have an area blocked off as they search for a suspect who shot and killed a San Jose police officer Tuesday, March 24, 2015, in an exchange of gunfire in San Jose, Calif. Police were searching in an area near Senter and Umbarger roads. (Josie Lepe/Bay Area News Group)
Photos: San Jose police officer killed in exchange of gunfire

SAN JOSE — A 14-year veteran San Jose police officer was killed Tuesday evening in a dramatic series of events that began with a call about a suicidal man and ended when police used explosives and a robot to breach the suspect’s apartment, but found him dead.
The killing of Officer Michael Johnson was the department’s first line-of-duty death in 14 years. He was fatally wounded as he responded to an apartment complex in the 2600 block of Senter Road around 6:48 p.m. Tuesday.
Johnson was the 12th SJPD officer killed in the department’s 166-year history. He was a field training officer at the time of his death.
Now, the SJPD community is reeling from an experience it has been spared from for nearly a decade and a half: mourning the loss of a comrade who gave his life to protecting the public.
“Officers are obviously crying, grieving, they will obviously do so for some time. Our hearts, our prayers go out with the family of Michael, our brother. This is a very difficult time right now,” police spokesman Officer Albert Morales said early Wednesday. “Rest assured we’ll keep him in our memories as we go out there and continue to do the job we loved to do and I’m sure that he loved to do.”
Adding to the heartache was the fact Johnson came from the same police academy class as Jeffrey Fontana, the last officer killed in the line of duty. Fontana was in his rookie year on the force when he was shot to death during a high-risk vehicle stop in South San Jose on October 28, 2001.

“As a chief this is not something we would ever want to do,” San Jose police Chief Larry Esquivel said at a news conference late Tuesday. “It’s a sad day for law enforcement and for the police department and the community.”
A statement from the San Jose Police Officers Association said all officers were grieving for Johnson.
“Our thoughts and prayers go out to Officer Johnson’s family and friends,” the union said. “(Johnson) was tragically struck down in the prime of his life protecting and serving the residents of San Jose.”

Scott Dunham, 57, of San Jose, is being sought in connection with the shooting death of a San Jose police officer on Tuesday, March 24, 2015. (San Jose Police) ( SAN JOSE POLICE )
Mayor Sam Liccardo, who added that he offered condolences to the slain officer’s family on behalf of the city, said, “This is San Jose’s darkest hour. This strikes the heart of all of us in San Jose and throughout the region.”
Liccardo said in a tweet that Johnson was engaged to be married.
Police identified the suspect in Johnson’s slaying late Tuesday as Scott Dunham, 57. Officials launched a massive manhunt after the attack with a detail consisting of dozens of officers and the MERGE (SWAT) unit, who all swarmed the area of Senter and Umbarger roads to find the gunman.
Nearby homes were evacuated as officers and equipment — including armored vehicles and a helicopter — were summoned from neighboring police agencies, including the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office, Santa Clara and Sunnyvale police, and the California Highway Patrol.

San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo, center, speaks during a press conference regarding the San Jose police officer killed earlier in the day in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, March 24, 2015. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) ( Nhat V. Meyer )
The manhunt continued for hours, with police eventually converging on the building that housed Dunham’s apartment. Officials said around 11 p.m. that they believed that Dunham might still be inside the apartment, but they were also chasing down leads that indicated he might be elsewhere.
Police breached his apartment using explosives around 1:30 a.m., then began a slow, exhaustive search using a robot with a camera. Officers at the scene confirmed that Dunham had been found dead on the apartment’s balcony shortly before 3:30 a.m.

It was not immediately clear how Dunham had died, though police said he had suffered at least one gunshot wound. Police reported earlier that he may have been wounded during the exchange of gunfire that killed Johnson. Esquivel acknowledged the possibility that Dunham might have been dead for most of the standoff, as officers never made contact with him after the initial clash, and there was no subsequent gunfire.
San Jose officers were initially called at 6:48 p.m. Tuesday by a female family member who said that Dunham was intoxicated, despondent and possibly meant to harm himself or others, Esquivel said. As the officers approached the apartment building on Senter Road and spotted a person on a balcony, they were fired upon without warning.
Police dispatch recordings show that officers told dispatchers they believed the man they were searching for had one or two handguns in the apartment.

At one point, as they approach the apartment, an officer says “we have movement from the blinds at the apartment.”
An officer calmly reports that a male has stepped out onto the balcony, describing him as having gray hair, a gray mustache and a black T-shirt. Seconds later, the “shots fired” call can be heard, followed almost immediately by the “officer down” call.
Dispatchers immediately called for the area to be secured and put out a citywide call for assistance. Another officer reported that shots were fired at the suspect, and that he possibly “went down as well.” Esquivel confirmed the gunfire exchange and the possibility that Dunham was wounded.
“This person had the nerve, the audacity, to shoot at our officers who were on a call for assistance,” Esquivel said.
An outpouring of grief flowed from both members of the public and law enforcement agencies throughout California and across the nation Tuesday night. Hundreds of social media users sent their condolences to San Jose police through the department’s Twitter account.
“It’s extremely painful and shocking,” said Councilman Tam Nguyen, who represents District 7, where the shooting occurred. “I’m worried for the safety of other officers, he’s still at large and still very dangerous.”
Tam said he lived in the neighborhood and was not going home because of the manhunt, but driving around and waiting to hear more from police.
“I want to let them concentrate on their own safety and the safety of others,” he said.

 

 

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Ramblings by Hal

Ramblings: Court 1

By Hal Collier, Retired LAPD

We are happy that 35-year veteran Hal Collier is sharing his ‘stories behind the badge’ with us.

I’m going to shift gears from my Characters Ramblings. I received a lot of positive comments and I still have a few more Characters stories. I noticed that some officers were afraid that they might be remembered for an incident that they thought was long ago forgotten. Ha ha, no one is safe. I’m very careful about civil rights issues, statute of limitations, but revenge by another officer is forever.

The following stories are true. In the past I’ve talked about the fun and disappointments of working the streets. For every good arrest you make, there is a downside—court. The bad arrests never see a court room. Court is a part of the job that they don’t tell you about in those join the LAPD flyers. When you receive a subpoena to be in court, it’s never at your convince. You must appear.

It doesn’t matter what your work schedule is, or if you’re on a day off. Plan a four day trip out of town, have pre-paid tickets, non-refundable of course, and you’ll get a subpoena for one of the middle days of your trip. You work six days straight, you get one day off and then work another five days. You plan your day off, you’re going to sleep late and then sit around in your underwear all day. Wrong, you have court on your only day off in two weeks. Guaranteed, Murphy’s Law. Court was hit and miss. Some weeks you were in court four out of five days and other times no court for two weeks.

Court for four of the five watches is a nightmare. These are before the compressed work schedules. I spent thirty years under the old eight hour work day. If you work PM’s, you get off at midnight and have to be in court at 8:30 A.M. If you live sixty miles from the court house, do you drive home, grab a few hours’ sleep in your own bed, or do you try to sleep on a cot at the station for six hours and hope the desk officer wakes you?

If you work mid PM’s, you get off at 3:00 A.M. Do you try to sleep for four hours and then go to court or hope for three hours overtime? If you’re on AM’s you get off around 7 A.M., drink a couple cups of coffee, and then go to court. If you’re on day watch or mid days, you go to court on duty with a city car, have breakfast at the courthouse–it’s no sweat. You’re also not in as much of a hurry to get out early. If you’re held over after the noon break you can have a second meal on the city—that is, if you can afford two meals.

Speaking of money, they had a waiting room on the third floor for officers. Some officers would sleep if they just got off work. Some would read and a few would play cards. Not poker, just a friendly game of hearts. I watched one officer lose over a hundred dollars in a friendly game of hearts.

In the early days, if you’re off duty, you were compensated for three hours, no matter how long you were there. Some days you got out in thirty minutes and other days you help close the court room at 5:30 P.M. You only got three hours either way.

Court can be a one hour appearance or a nine hour marathon. Sometimes you can figure if you’re going to need to testify. You still have to show up or run the risk of getting a complaint. A failure to appear complaint can cost you days off without pay. Ouch. You also could have an angry judge issue a bench warrant for your arrest. Double ouch. When the judge is through with your butt, the department has its turn. It’s a kind of double jeopardy.

For over nineteen years, I’ve worked all night. I really want to go home and sleep before I have to go back to work. One of my last court appearances, I was working Day Watch. I walk into court and the DA isn’t there yet. I sit down and when the DA walks in, he declares, “I’ll take Morning Watch Officers first.” When he’s done talking to the sleepy cops. I walk up. I ask the DA, “Where the hell were you when I worked Morning Watch for nineteen years?” He tells me his dad was a cop and worked morning watch and knew that officers who worked all night needed to testify then go home and sleep. My kind of lawyer.

I show up for work after three days off. In Roll Call they give me a “be in court subpoena” for the next morning. Crap! My mind races, which dirt bag is this that I have to go to court for? Double crap, I remember this jerk, I found the evidence–I’ll have to testify. Triple crap, I didn’t bring my suit, I’ll have to go to court in uniform.

I’m proud of my uniform but walking to court in uniform, you become an information booth. “Officer, can you tell me where, this or that building is?” The questions were endless, I hated going to court in uniform. Some officers had an extra suit in their locker. I only owned one for weddings, funerals and court.

Once, I was in my suit walking to court. This guy comes up to me and asks for advice on a charge he was arrested for. He must have thought I was an attorney. Damn, I hate to think that I looked like one of those bottom feeders. I told him he needed to speak to his attorney or the Public Defender (PD). He persisted as we wait for the traffic light to change. I told him three times he needed to talk with his PD. Finally I told him, “I can’t advise you because I’m the officer that arrested you.” The snickers from the crowd around us were priceless. An hour later I testified against him. Dumb ass, no wonder he got arrested.

I worked with a sharp training officer during my probation. One time we were looking for a knife used in an ADW (Assault with a Deadly Weapon). I was searching on one side of the street and he was on the other side. He called me over and told me to look around here, pointing to the ground in front of him. I looked down and there was the knife. He smiled and said “you found it.” I was in court until after 3 P.M. He left after ten minutes. Valuable lesson learned—we both got three hours overtime.

Court parking was another story. All most all of my court was downtown. The first year or two I went to the old Hall of Justice. I remember walking past Charlie Manson’s girls during his murder trial. They had shaved heads and those swastika’s carved into their foreheads.

Parking changed over the years but free parking downtown for officers always involved a four to five block walk. Walk to court in the morning sun and walk back in the rain in the afternoon. The courts later moved to the Criminal Courts Building, a brand new building, but the wheels of justice didn’t turn any faster.

There are four different courts that I attended. Felony prelims, misdemeanor trials, felony trials, and civil trials. Prelims are a pretrial to see if there is enough evidence to hold a defendant over for trial. Misdemeanor trials are for minor offenses. Felony trials are for the real bad guys, robbery, murder, assaults anything that if convicted can send you to state prison for at least a year.

Civil trials can be something minor where one party is suing another party involved in a traffic accident you investigated. The other side is where someone is suing you for some act you committed or failed to commit. Being a defendant is not fun. Some officers had to homestead their house during a civil trial so they didn’t lose it to a low life who was suing them. Think about some career criminal sitting on your front porch smiling at your former neighbor’s daughter.

In my next court installments, I’ll describe some of the judges and court cases I was involved in. Some outside of law enforcement world think the court system is a well-oiled machine. My 1940 ringer/washing machine has more oil than our justice system. Yea, I really have one, pictures available for a minimal cash remittance. No checks or tokens to Angels Flight.

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Writer's Notes

An Unlikely Theologian–Russell Brand?

By Thonie Hevron

Click on the link to Simcha Fisher’s blog but be warned about language–this is after all, Russell Brand!

Russell Brand
Russell Brand

Russell Brand isn’t normally someone I would pick to articulate my feelings about “Fifty Shades of Grey.” When this post came through on a the blog of a Catholic writer who I read often and admire, Simcha Fisher, I had to spend over eight minutes reviewing it. Brand does a phenomenal job of probing the effects of pornography and the objectification of women, as well as the damage to male/female relationships. Needless to say, he’s also entertaining while he does it.

Whether you agree or disagree, it’s worth a visit.

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Ramblings by Hal

Ramblings, Characters 8, Last Characters Post

By Hal Collier, Retired LAPD

We are happy that 35-year veteran Hal Collier is sharing his ‘stories behind the badge’ with us.
The following story is true. The Character is real but for the life of me I can’t remember his name. My memory loss might be due to suppressed feelings about this strange person. Sometimes I sleep better when I try to put these characters out of my mind. I’m not sure what sparks these recollections but then I dropped out of my psychology class in college. That explains a lot, huh!

As you already know, I spent more than half of my career working morning watch, that’s the dark time when most sane people are sleeping. I loved catching burglars both business and residential. It didn’t matter to me as long as I could put a bad guy in jail. Most burglars working at night were breaking into closed businesses, but occasionally they will break into a house.

One night I get a call of a burglar there now at a residence in the Hollywood Hills on the west side of the division. These are extra nice homes usually owned by executives and celebrities. The person reporting (PR) states the burglar is tunneling in through the second floor roof. In all my years, I have never seen or heard of a burglar chopping a hole in the roof of a house to enter. I suspect the PR has missed his scheduled medication or is smoking some strange tobacco.

We arrive and the PR meets us out front. He seems normal as he tells us he was awaken by a noise on his roof. He says that someone is tearing off the wood shingles and attempting to enter. I look the PR in the eye and I’m thinking maybe he’s having a flashback to the 60’s. The PR tells us that the painters have left a ladder up against the house in the back yard. I give my partner a wink and tell the PR, “We’ll check it out.” I’m going to give this citizen my half-assed effort to placate him. After all he pays my salary.

I start to climb the ladder which reaches to the second floor roof. Just as I get to the edge of the roof I see something duck down on the other side of the roof. Oh shit. I grab my gun and alert my partner who is below me on the ladder. The adrenalin is now pumping and I’m swearing at myself for being a little complacent and not believing that this might be a dangerous situation. I’m looking for some kind of cover in case there’s a shooting. I’m also thinking I don’t want to get into a fight on a sloping second story roof. The fall will ruin your day and any chance of having kids.

Photo by roof.com
Photo by roof.com

My partner joins me on the roof. We deploy and approach the crest of the roof. Yep, there he is, with a burglar’s mask and all. It’s a raccoon, and pregnant as well. The raccoon jumps from the roof to a tree and flees. I know better than to mess with a pregnant woman so I let her get away. The raccoon was tearing a hole in the wood shake roof to get into the attic to have her babies. We climb down the ladder and give the PR the good news and bad news. No burglar, but you have a hole in your roof and the raccoon will probably come back. Nothing is simple or easy in Hollywood.

Hollywood Characters: Jack

Jack was one of those strange individuals that some officers stayed away from and others just had to stop and talk to him. Guess which group I belonged to? I might have been in the other group but remember—I didn’t finish that psychology class. Jack was usually hanging out in the area of Hollywood Boulevard and Western. If you saw Jack walking around and he had a suit case or other type of bag you just had to stop and see what was in it. Jack was a collector!!!

Once Dale Washburn stopped Jack with his suit case. Dale asked Jack, “What’s in the suit case?”

Jack replied, “My dog!”

Dale asked, “Can I see him?”

Jack said, “Sure.” He opened the suit case and sure enough it was a dog. Did I mention that the dog was dead? It was probably a road kill that suitcaseJack found and put in the suit case.

Another time Jack was carrying a bag similar to a carry-on bag for air travel. Officer: “Jack, what’s in the bag?”

Jack, “My shit!” Now that could mean anything, including his property, but with Jack you never knew. Guess what? It really was his shit!!!

Jack created the most attention when he was observed pushing a shopping cart down Western Avenue during morning rush hour traffic. Propped up in the cart was a dead goat. The phone calls came pouring in. I defy anyone to tell me where you get a goat in Hollywood. Well, maybe I don’t want to know how the goat died or why it was in Hollywood. The goat looked like it was being taken for a walk. It was a weird sight and thank goodness that PETA wasn’t around.

Imagine all these people arriving at their office, and starting the conversation, “You’ll never guess what I saw in Hollywood this morning on my way to work.” I’ll bet the boss recommended a pee test for that employee.

I once responded to a window smash burglary at Hollywood and Western. Witnesses said dozens of suspects helped themselves to property. I was taking a report when I spied Jack walking up Western with one leg straight, just like Chester in Gunsmoke.
“Jack, what’s in your pant leg?”
Jack: “Oh, hi officer, my new sword!” That’s right Jack took a four foot sword from the business.

Jack, like most of the Characters in Hollywood, just disappeared, but they left a lasting impression on old timers like me. Dale Washburn later told me the Jack’s name was Jack Harper.
Hope Dale didn’t lose any sleep trying to remember Jack’s name.

Categories
Ramblings by Hal

A Donut Story

A vignette from regular “Ramblings” author Hal Collier.

This had me laughing out loud so I thought I’d share it with you all.

By Hal Collier

 

It’s a Saturday morning and I’m sitting in my den with the newspaper and a cup of coffee. I also have the television on so I don’t miss any breaking news. Channel 5 KTLA has a show they call Burrous Bites. Chris Burrous is a KTLA reporter and people e-mail him good places to eat in Southern California. Chris visits these places and samples the food. Most don’t interest me as they are in outlying counties or the type of food that I don’t care for.

On this Saturday I’m half-paying attention when Chris visits a donut store. Now, despite common perception that cops eat a lot of donuts, I don’t. I use to eat about two a year when I was working morning watch. You stop at Winchell’s at 4 AM for a cup of coffee. The baker has just set out a tray of fresh cooked donuts. OK, maybe I’ll have a hot cinnamon roll. Two hours later, you remember why you don’t eat donuts. The cinnamon roll sits in the bottom of your stomach, which is now making noises that will alert the enemy of your presence.

A belly bomb if I ever saw one!
A belly bomb if I ever saw one!

Since I retired I haven’t eaten a donut in three years but that was about to change. My wife tells me that Chris Burrous is at the Donut Man http://www.thedonutmanca.com. in Glendora on Route 66. I set down the sports page and watch as they show donuts filled with fresh strawberries. (see attached photo) They also have peach filled donuts when in season. If you look at the web site they have all kinds of donuts and are open 24 hours a day.

I can barely find Glendora on a map but that’s also about to change. One fine Sunday morning, we finish our shopping at Wal-Mart in Duarte. If I’m going to watch sports for most of the day, I need to do something special for my bride. I can do the dishes, vacuum, or take my wife to The Donut Man. Bet you can guess where we went.

We pull up in front of the Donut Man and see that it’s a busy place but not a cop in sight. Must be a lot of spouses making up for past or future indiscretions Terri comes back with two large boxes. I suspect that we’re buying donuts for all of Eagle Rock. The second box contained fresh strawberries dipped in chocolate for the grandchildren.

Well, I ate mine with a fresh cup of coffee. I’m retired I deserve this. It was good, but I broke my three year ‘no donut’ record.

A few hours later Terri asks, “Was that an earthquake?

“No it was my stomach!”

Hal

P.S. Stop at the ATM before you go to the Donut Man–a strawberry filled donut is $4.00. When do peaches come in season?

Categories
Ramblings by Hal

Ramblings, Characters, part 7

Hollywood Joe

By Hal Collier, Retired LAPD

We are happy that 35-year veteran Hal Collier is sharing his ‘stories behind the badge’ with us.
The following story is true and the character is real. It quite possible that this character, Joe Fierro, is still walking around Hollywood causing trouble for paramedics and police officers.

First my story.
For my non-police friends, your first day at the police academy they give you a serial number. That number will stay with you for the rest of your life—I mean it. When you die they list your serial number on the death and funeral notice published by the police department. They never re-issue a serial number and if you quit and come back at a later time you still have the same number.

I joined the Los Angeles Police Department in October of 1970. I was given a serial number of #16336. At the time that was a very high serial number. The serial numbers only go up and the higher the number, the less time you had on the job. It was common for a senior officer to ask “What’s your serial number?” When you told him he would scoff, and reply, not your social security number. Some of the old timers in my day had four digit serial numbers. I think serial numbers now days are over 40,000. Yikes!!!

When I got my badge, it said, “Policeman.” Female officer’s badges said, “Police Women.” Later when females became patrol officers, the badges all said, “Police Officer.” Older cops cherished their Policeman badges. I still have mine. I fondly remember the last time I qualified on the pistol range. You step up to the range window and give your serial number. I hear this young officer say, “16336, that must be at least thirty years.” I look back and say, “Thirty-four years and counting.” I saw him looking at my targets. Yea, I could still shoot.

On special occasions, officers wore class A uniforms. Those were long sleeves, tie and any ribbons or medals you earned throughout your career. On the left sleeve you had hash marks. One hash mark represented five years of police service. I had six hash marks and enjoyed watching younger officers trying to count my hash marks as I walked by.

I had a young probationer and we had to book a forgery suspect downtown. You were required to get booking approval at DHD (Detective Headquarters Division). They had a really old timer who worked the DHD desk, Detective Fowler, Serial #7602. We got a booking approval and Fowler told us call him back with the booking number after we processed the suspect. I wrote down Det. Fowler #7602 DHD.

Back then the city phones all started with 485- If you were on a city phone you dialed 5 and the last four digits. Example; 5-2504 connected you with DHD. I was finishing the arrest report and it was after 8 A.M. I told my probationer to call Fowler and give him the booking number. I overhear my probationer saying over and over, “No, I want to talk to Detective Fowler at Detective Headquarters Division.”
I asked my probationer, “What number did you dial?” He points to 7602. He had dialed Fowler’s serial number. He’d never seen a four digit serial number. I don’t know what city agency he was talking to. I just hung up the phone.
Rookies.

Hollywood Character: Joe Fierro aka Hollywood Joe

Hollywood Joe
Hollywood Joe
Ramb pic 2 char 7
Hollywood Joe, AKA Joe Fierro

Just about every cop and fireman in Hollywood knew Joe. Joe was on disability of some kind and lived somewhere around Hollywood Boulevard and Wilcox. Joe took some kind of medication for mental health issues. When Joe was on his medication he was not a problem and was cordial. He would often say hi to me and I had a pretty good relationship with him.

The problem came when Joe stopped taking his medication and started drinking beer. Joe would act bizarre and attract the attention of the police. Some days when no one paid attention to Joe he would go to a public phone and dial 911. He would tell the emergency operator that he wanted to commit suicide. Of course the paramedics and police would respond and haul Joe off to a mental facility. On some occasions Joe would make small cuts on his wrists or stomach to gain more attention. Joe would disappear from the streets for a few days, then reappear waving to the cops and firemen. Yea, Joe was back on his medication, at least for now.

I remember one day I walked into the rear door of the police station and I recognized Joe’s voice. He was in one of the holding tanks and yelling. I opened the tank door and told Joe to shut up and sit down. Joe replied, “Yes, officer.” See? I have a way with Hollywood Characters, I think they fear that I might be one of them. Joe has been arrested for abusing the 911 system, but never seems to serve any time. I know Joe is out on Hollywood Boulevard right now, I just don’t know if he’s on his medication.

Hal