Greetings!

What follows is a small assortment of the calls for service and various cases RPD personnel were involved in recently.  As you can see, there is no such thing as a "routine call."  Police-work in Richmond remains challenging and certainly interesting!  I feel very fortunate to have such a dedicated group of both sworn and civilian employees at the PD.  There's a lot of outstanding work being done and I believe it is making our community safer.  As we head into the holiday season, please encourage your friends and neighbors to be extra mindful about property crimes:  Don't leave packages in vehicles; let your neighbors know when you're going to be out of town; and encourage everyone to call in anything they see going on that appears suspicious or that just "looks wrong."  We value our partnerships with the community and depend on those partnerships to keep everyone safe.  If you have any questions about anything you read below, please don't hesitate to write or call.

Regards,

Chief Chris Magnus
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Saturday, Nov. 10, 2012, 7:30 p.m., 2400 block of Roosevelt--Officers were dispatched to the area of 24th Street and Roosevelt Ave. to conduct a Man With a Gun investigation.  An alert resident observed a black male adult, wearing dark clothing, standing in the intersection pointing a gun at passing vehicles.  Several officers responded to the area, locating the suspect near a residence in the 2400 block of Roosevelt Ave.  The suspect attempted to elude the officers by running down a narrow dark path to the rear of the residence, while grabbing into the front area of his waistband.  Fearing that the suspect was retrieving a firearm, Officer Caine released his canine partner, resulting in a canine contact to the suspect’s arm.  The 32 year-old suspect was taken into custody and treated at Doctors Medical Center.  He was later booked into the Contra Costa County Jail in Martinez.  Officers located a large amount of suspected methamphetamines near the suspect; however after a lengthy search they were unable to locate his weapon.  

Saturday, Nov. 10, 2012, 9:15 a.m., 2600 block of Center St.--Three cats were stranded in an apartment at this location due to their owner’s death earlier in the week.  The location was sealed at the direction of, and was under the control of, the Contra Costa County Coroner’s Office (which is part of the Sheriff’s Department).  Several residents were alerted to the cats’ situation and wanted them rescued, however the Coroner’s Office had not given permission to break the seal and make entry into the residence.  Upon notification of this predicament, North District Captain Sappal interacted extensively with the Coroner’s Office and other Sheriff’s Department personnel to finally obtain the required permission to enter the residence.  Animal Control authorities were notified.   They responded and rescued the cats with the assistance of RPD Officer T. Miles.  The residence was secured and resealed.

Friday, Nov. 9, 2012, 10:30 p.m., 400 block of S. Marina Way--Officer Ricchiuto was patrolling the Coronado neighborhood when he observed two individuals holding baseball bats challenging each other to fight.  The 45 year-old victim said he was walking in the area of the 1500 block of Cutting Blvd., when he was approached by a male who challenged him to a fight. The victim left the area toward Marina Way S., when he realized that the suspect was following him, armed with a bat.  The victim ran to 432 Marina Way S., where he grabbed a metal pipe to defend himself.  The victim said the suspect swung the bat at him; however he was able to use the pipe to deflect the strike.  The 24 year-old suspect was placed under arrest and taken to the Contra Costa County Jail in Martinez, where he was booked into custody.  The victim refused medical treatment.

Friday, Nov. 9, 2012, 12:30 a.m., 3200 block of Klose Way--Investigators from the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) observed a 39 year-old male suspect surreptitiously recording the new James Bond movie inside of the Century 16 Hilltop theaters.  They detained him and placed him under citizen’s arrest per 653z PC-Video Piracy.  Officer Bridgeman booked the suspect into the RPD Jail.

Released Nov. 8, 2012 from the Bureau of Justice Statistics, Washington, D.C.--About 1.4 million firearms were stolen during household burglaries and other property crimes over the six-year period from 2005 through 2010, according to a report released today by the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). This number represents an estimated average of 232,400 firearms stolen each year— about 172,000 stolen during burglaries and 60,300 stolen during other property crimes.
These estimates are based on data from the annual National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) which has collected information from victims of crime since 1973. Of the guns stolen each year during burglaries and other property crimes, at least 80 percent, or an annual average of 186,800 firearms, had not been recovered up to six months after being stolen.
From 2005 through 2010, firearms were stolen in about four percent of the 2.4 million household burglaries and in less than one percent of the 13.6 million other property crimes involving a completed theft that occurred during the period. Longer trends from 1994 to 2010 show a 49 percent decline in the total number of victimizations involving the theft of at least one firearm, from about 283,600 victimizations in 1994 to about 145,300 in 2010.
Handguns were the most commonly stolen firearm from 2005 through 2010. At least one handgun was stolen in 63 percent of household burglaries and 68 percent of other property crimes involving firearm theft. More than one gun was stolen in 39 percent of burglaries and 15 percent of other property crimes involving gun theft.
Household burglaries involving stolen firearms were more likely to be reported to police (86 percent) than burglaries involving the theft of other items (62 percent) of comparable value ($500-$999). When a handgun was stolen, about 90 percent of burglaries were reported to the police.

So . . . this from RPD:  The “take-away” from all this data is—if you have firearms in your home, make sure they have a trigger-lock on them and that they are safely secured when you are gone, preferably in a gun safe.  If you have firearms that you no longer want or that you do not know how to use properly, consider turning them into the Police Department for destruction.
 
Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2012, 10:30 p.m., Bissell Ave.--Officer J. Tong responded to an address on Bissell Ave. regarding a despondent woman who had ingested multiple prescription drugs in an apparent attempt suicide.  Upon arrival, he contacted the husband of the despondent woman, then the woman herself.  Officer Tong determined that the woman was extremely depressed and had ingested approximately 90 pills, consisting of a variety of medications, in an attempt to commit suicide.  Officer Tong placed a psychiatric hold on the woman per 5150 W&I and had her transported to the hospital via AMR EMS.

Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2012, 11:00 a.m., 3200 block of Roosevelt Ave.—A concerned neighbor in the area observed what she felt was a suspicious person hanging around the neighborhood, so she decided to watch him for awhile from inside her residence.  She called RPD Dispatch and advised that she lost sight of the suspect, however, a short time later she heard thumping sounds coming from the side of the residence, which is next to her home.  Upon checking to see the source of the noise, she observed the suspect prying and then lifting the sliding glass door open—and then gaining entry into the victim’s residence.

The neighbor stated the suspect quickly began ransacking the residence, which she relayed to the dispatcher.  Officer Vinson was the first to arrive on scene.  As he was waiting for units to assist him, he observed an elderly female arrive home at the residence being burglarized, get out of her vehicle, and start to go inside the residence.  Officer Vinson quickly stopped the victim, and moved her back to a safe location.

At this point, the suspect sprinted out from the side of the residence and attempted to flee.  Officer Vinson pursued the suspect and apprehended him after a short foot chase. The neighbor was transported to the location of the detention and she confirmed the detained 16 year-old was, in fact, the suspect observed inside the residence.  The suspect was taken into custody, transported to RPD where Det. Rivera conducted an investigation, and later transported to Juvenile Detention in Martinez.

Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2012, 1:35 p.m., 3700 Northridge Dr.—The reporting party was in front of his residence when he saw a male in his early 20s acting suspiciously near an address on Northridge Dr.   The neighbor saw the male jump the rear fence to this address.  The neighbor then armed himself with his Walther PPK handgun and walked to rear area of 3811 Northridge Dr.  He saw the suspect force open the sliding door with a knife.  The neighbor detained the suspect at gunpoint until officers arrived.  Officers DeJesus and Middleton arrived on scene and took custody of the suspect.  Officer DeJesus advised that the suspect fit the description and that the modus operandi matched previous burglaries in the area.  Investigations was advised of the arrest.  The suspect was booked for burglary and a no bail warrant.

Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2012, 8:20 p.m., S. 2nd and Ohio St.—Officer Clark conducted a pedestrian stop on a 50 year-old suspect who she was aware had recently threatened to kill two females, and had allegedly left a “Molotov Cocktail” behind one of the victim’s vehicles.  The suspect was upset at the victims because they had accused him of a sexual assault.  The suspect was taken into custody and served with an Emergency Protective (Stay Away) Order. 

Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2012, hours polls were open for the election--Officers responded to 18 separate disturbance calls for service at a variety of polling locations throughout the City.  Day shift supervisors responded as well and assisted in mediating various conflicts to the satisfaction of all parties involved.  Chief Magnus and Deputy Chief Ed Medina did spot-checks for election law compliance at multiple locations and coordinated information-providing services with the City Clerk’s Office.

Monday, Nov. 5, 2012, 9:00 a.m., Home Depot Store, San Pablo Ave.—The 45 year-old suspect  was seen in Home Depot by an employee leaving the store with a shopping cart full of merchandise he hadn’t purchased.  The employee attempted to look at the suspect’s receipt, but the suspect showed her an old shopping receipt.  The employee asked again to see a receipt for the current merchandise, but the suspect said he was in a hurry and that he would hurt the employee if she didn’t let him go.
The suspect then grabbed the employee’s arm and pushed her away.  He left out the front of the business with the merchandise.  Arriving officers located the suspect in a nearby parking lot with the stolen merchandise still in the shopping cart.  An in-field line up was conducted with the employee, who positively identified the detained party as the suspect.  The total value of the stolen merchandise was $1,100.00.  The suspect was also found in possession of a small quantity of suspected narcotics along with a needle and spoon (hype kit).

Update from Armed Robbery at Metro PCS Store (12800 block of San Pablo Ave.) earlier this fall:  Det. Brian Gard developed suspect information and was ultimately able to identify a suspect who was believed to have committed this Armed Robbery.  A search/arrest warrant was served near the end of October by the Department’s SWAT Team, resulting in the suspect’s arrest.  The suspect is a 3-striker with multiple robbery convictions.  The search warrant resulted in the collection of significant evidence.  The work on this case is ongoing and a warrant was issued by the District Attorney’s Office.

Update from the Department’s Special Investigations Section (SIS):  During October, the SIS executed 47 tactical investigative searches.  This included 10 search warrants, 14 parole searches, and 23 probation searches.  These investigations resulted in the arrest of 25 suspects and the seizure of 8 firearms, cocaine, methamphetamine, MDMA pills, marijuana—as well as cash (to be forfeited).

On a separate note, SIS personnel and other Police Department personnel (including Deputy Chief Allwyn Brown and Captain Anthony Williams) assisted with two “Ceasefire—Lifelines to Healing” call-ins.  Thirteen individuals at high risk for criminal activity participated in the call-ins.  The Ceasefire program is recognized nationally as a best practice for reducing gun violence.

CA Dept. of Justice (DOJ) Audit Results:  Near the end of the summer, the Audits, Inspections, & Training Section of the State DOJ’s Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigative Services performed an audit of RPD’s use of the Automated Criminal History System (ACHS).  Access to individual’s criminal histories is tightly controlled with “need to know” criteria stringently enforced by the DOJ.  Even law enforcement agencies that violate these criteria can have their ACHS access taken away.
           
Margaret Frid, of RPD’s IT Unit, assisted the manager from the State with this audit (and was thanked by the auditor for her assistance).  The results of the audit are as follows:

·   A random sample of 240 inquires was selected and the “need to know” was verified by DOJ and RPD for each inquiry;
·   As mandated by DOJ, RPD staff are providing the required information in the mandated ACHS format.  This indicates an awareness of the importance of documenting the “need to know” when accessing ACHS.  The Audits, Inspection, & Training Section commends RPD’s compliance with the statues and regulations governing the use of this resource.

Use of Force Analysis for October:  The Department’s Use of Force Review Committee met and reviewed the use or force incidents that occurred during the month of October.  There were a total of 15 use of force incidents.  Of those, all 15 were found to have been “Within Policy.”  Five of these incidents involved a Taser—although only 2 of the 5 actually involved Taser contact with a suspect.  Two of the other incidents were resolved by the officer simply displaying the Taser and one incident involved a Taser “miss.”  It should be noted that one incident in which the Taser was used in October likely saved the life of a suicidal subject.

The Use of Force Review Committee meets monthly and makes recommendations about training, policy, and equipment issues related to use of force incidents.  When the committee determines that a use of force incident is outside of Department policy, the matter is typically referred to the Department’s Professional Standards Office for follow-up and further investigation.  The Committee is made up of the Field Services Bureau captains, the lieutenant from the Professional Standards Office, and a sergeant who is an expert in use of force matters.
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