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Community Relations
Division...............................................February
2003Edition |
Sheriff's Report: We are YOUR Law Enforcement Agency
Welcome to the
Sheriff's Office Community News, our new monthly on-line
newsletter for the citizens of Monroe County. With this
newsletter, we will be able to communicate directly with the
citizens of our county, bringing you crime prevention and
safety tips, bulletins about crime trends, crime statistics
and other information we hope you all find useful in your
daily lives.
We at the
Sheriff's Office work hard to keep our community safe, and we
want to make sure everyone knows who we are, and
how to reach us.
We want to be responsive to the issues that concern you, so
make sure you let us know what you consider to be a priority
for law enforcement in our county. If you have any questions
or concerns, feel free to contact me directly at
rickroth@keysso.net,
or any one of the employees in the Sheriff's Office.
We offer many easy
ways to let us know what you think. On our web site,
www.keysso.net, we offer
survey forms for
residents and
non-residents, as well as an "Issues
of the Week" page where you can send us your comments, and
read other peoples comments as well.
The Sheriff's
Office is organized by Sectors and Zones, and you can find
specific information about each area of the Keys by visiting
our Jurisdiction page, including the address of each
substation in the Keys, the names and contact information for
each sector commander as well as the names and
contact information for each Zone Commander. Please feel free
to contact any one of them if you have questions or concerns
about your particular neighborhood.
We work for you,
but we can't do our job without the cooperation and assistance
of everyone. If you see a crime happening, or have information
you think might help us stop a crime before it takes place,
call us immediately. We'd much rather prevent crime than have
to investigate it after the fact.
Take care,
and stay safe.
Sheriff, Monroe
County
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A two day, 16 hour Community Policing course will be
offered three times in March to law enforcement officers and Monroe County
residents who wish to gain a better understanding of the fundamental
elements of the community policing philosophy, and its implications for
police operations and for the community. The course will be sponsored by
The Florida Regional Community Policing Institute at St. Petersburg
College, and will take place in the middle Keys to accommodate all of
those who wish to attend.
Click here for flyer in
PDF format
Seating in the course is limited. The course will be
taught the following three dates and places:
1. March 3rd and 4th - Key Colony Beach City Hall
2. March 5th & 6th - KCB City Hall
3. March 7th & 8th - Marathon Government Center
Classes are from 8:00 am - 5:00 pm.
Participants will: Develop an understanding of the importance of engaging community
residents in collaborative partnerships for the purpose of identifying
and resolving community problems; Become familiar with the nature of
police-community partnerships and suggested methods of developing
partnerships. Develop an understanding of a nationally accepted model for solving
community problems; Use the problem solving process to address several
example community problems to enhance their understanding; Recognize the
importance and benefits of documenting their problem-solving projects.
Course Objectives:
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Police-Community Partnerships
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Introduction to Problem-Solving Policing
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Problem Solving Practical Exercises
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Action Planning
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Crime Prevention
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Community Policing Resource Development
Who can attend:
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Any Law enforcement officer (community policing patrol, crime
prevention, campus police), civilian employees, probation officers, and
social service agencies.
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Community leaders and citizens
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Chiefs and Sheriffs who are interested in starting and maintaining
community policing in their communities
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Business managers, Executives and employees
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Mayors, City Managers, Council Members, trustees and government
leaders.
Dress: Casual Clothing is recommended. Shorts, tank tops and/or offensive
t-shirts are not acceptable.
The Instructor: Sgt. Jake Walker began his law enforcement career with the North Palm
Beach Police Department in 1992. He served as a Patrol Officer, community
policing officer and a police explorer advisor. In 1994 Sgt. Walker began
working with the Collier County Sheriff's Office in Naples, Florida. He
has served in several units at the Sheriff's Office including field
training, street gang task force and S.W.A.T. as well as a patrol officer
and a supervisor. Sgt. Walker currently supervises a domestic violence
detective unit.
Call Sergeant Dennis Cain at
289-2430 for reservations and commitment, or email him at
dcain@keysso.net.
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Happy New Year! I am looking
forward to communicating with everyone through this monthly
email newsletter, another idea of Becky Herrin’s. As our
public information officer and web author, Becky is always
searching for ways to keep the public informed and keep them
in touch with what’s happening in our community. It helps us,
too, by quickly getting important information out so that
people know about crimes we’re trying to solve. It’s another
great crime prevention tool as well. She is to be
congratulated for all her great ideas. This also happens to
mesh perfectly with one of the goals we’ve set for ourselves
in Sector 7 for 2003, which is to use all our resources to
communicate crime prevention information to the public.
Sector 7 is the sheriff’s office
district covering the north end of Tavernier Creek bridge to
the county line on US1 and Card Sound Road. Our staff
consists of 36 people, including one captain and lieutenant,
five sergeants, 25 deputies, one records supervisor and two
records clerks. There is also a Detective Sergeant, Corey
Bryan, seven detectives, and one detective secretary, who work
cases in the upper Keys, including Islamorada, but who report
to the special operations commander, Captain Ross Thomson.
Our sector is split into three
patrol zones and each zone has a commander. Sgt. Lou Caputo
covers the area from Tavernier to mm 101; Sgt. Don Fanelli is
responsible for Key Largo, and Sgt. David Stark for Ocean
Reef. Additionally, Tavernier and Key Largo each have one zone
sergeant, Sgt. Deborah Ryan in Key Largo and Sgt. Jerry
Leathers in Tavernier. A zone commander is much like a chief
of police for his zone. He is responsible for all activity
which occurs in the zone. Deputies and sergeants are
permanently assigned to these areas. In this way they become
more familiar with what belongs and doesn’t belong in an area,
and there is a better opportunity for residents to come to
know the deputy assigned to their area. This closeness with
the community fosters good two-way communication. We can solve
and prevent crime when residents know their neighborhood
deputy because people are more inclined to report suspicious
incidents and provide other information to people they see on
a regular basis.
I’d like to now touch on our law
enforcement philosophy in Sector 7. We believe that law
enforcement should operate just as profit-making businesses
do. We have a product that the public pays for – the safety
and security of residents and visitors. We profit when the
crime rate is low. It’s just that simple. The tactics and
strategies that we use to accomplish a low crime rate are many
– and every one of them can be made stronger and more
effective when the public participates in our efforts.
Solving problems is a large part
of what we do on a daily basis. Deputies are encouraged to
actively seek out problem areas and apply whatever resources
necessary to resolve the problem. Such problems can run the
gamut from serious law enforcement offenses (like drug dealing
in a neighborhood) to quality of life issues (an abandoned
building being used as a place for people to party). Whenever
a deputy responds to a location more than two or three times
he or she is required to determine why the police continue to
be called and to take proactive measures to resolve the
problem.
One of our strategies this year is
to focus heavily on crime prevention education. Many crimes
are committed because the perpetrator saw an easy target. If
we can reduce the attractiveness of those targets we can
reduce crime even more. One of the ways to do that is through
the Neighborhood Crime Watch program. Statistics prove year
after year that this is one of the most effective crime
prevention programs. The numbers of crimes committed in
non-crime watch neighborhoods are exponentially higher than
that of participating neighborhoods. The program is free,
requires very little time and effort and the payoff is
tremendous. If you are a member of a homeowner’s association
that does not participate in Neighborhood Crime Watch, please
encourage your membership to do so. You call me or any of the
zone commanders at 853-3211, or Deputy Emil LaVache, who is
our crime watch coordinator, at 292-7116. There is a Business
Crime Watch program also. Our goal is to have at least 10
more neighborhoods participating in this program by the end of
the year. We’d love to have more – please let us hear from
you.
Another focus in 2003 will be to
emphasize the link between crime and disorder. Much can be
said about the message a community sends to its visitors and
its potential criminals in terms of the way a community looks.
Neighborhood streets littered with abandoned vehicles and
debris, missing street and traffic signs, overgrown
properties, buildings in disrepair, are all attractive to
criminals because this clearly says the people who live there
don’t care about their neighborhood and probably won’t be too
aware if someone’s house or business is being burglarized.
Likewise, visitors we want to have here will bypass the area
looking for a more cared-for community. Keeping a
neighborhood and a community free from debris and disorder is
an easy crime prevention tool and economy-booster.
We’re open to input from our most
important resource – you! Please feel free to contact any one
of us for ways in which we can continue to improve our service
to you. I look forward to hearing from you.
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K-9 Unit
The
Islamorada Sheriffs Sector acquired a police canine dog
in 2002. The canine “Storm” a Belgium Malinous and his
handler / partner Sergeant Tim Hurd are graduates of
Canine Concepts training academy in Broussard, Louisiana.
“Storm” is trained in basic patrol, narcotics detection,
tracking and handler protection. Since coming to the
Village the K-9 team has assisted U.S. Customs and the
Sheriff's Office Special Investigations Unit in several
cases including the seizure of over $126,000 in
currency. “Storm” was
purchased for the Village by Sheriff Roth utilizing seized
drug moneys at a cost of $5,000.
For information on the K-9
Unit contact Sergeant Tim Hurd at
thurd@keysso.net. |
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Marine Patrol Unit
| One of the first goals
of the Village of Islamorada upon contracting with the
Sheriffs Office was to establish a full time police
presence on the near shore waters within the Village. This
goal was accomplished in 2002 with the purchase of a
24-foot Angler patrol boat. The vessel was purchased for
the Village by Sheriff Roth utilizing seized drug
proceeds. The Marine Unit became fully functional in October
of 2002 when the Village Council elected to fund a
full-time officer to be assigned specifically to marine
patrol duties. The Marine Unit operates with a philosophy
of eliciting compliance vs. enforcement promoting boating
safety through education. However, the unit is charged
with enforcing nautical laws and city ordinances and does
so rigorously when appropriate.
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Over the past several months
representatives of the Monroe County Sheriff's Office,
U.S. Coast Guard, Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission,
National Marine Sanctuary, Monroe County Marine Resources
and the Village of Islamorada have met to consider ways of
making the Whale Harbor Channel area safer. Also under
consideration are ways of dealing with the large groups of
boaters that flock to the sandbar on holiday weekends.
Currently there are plans
being made for a joint agency law enforcement presence for
the annual Hospitality Expo event (formerly Bartenders
Week) that is held by Holiday Isle. Also the Coast Guard
is looking at moving some channel markers to widen the
channel near the sandbar. Other actions being considered
are designating and posting the adjacent flats area ocean
side of Windley Key as a Non-Combustible Engine Exclusion
Zone or No Motor Zone. The County Commission may be asked
to consider an ordinance to designate the No Motor Zones.
The Village of Islamorada already has a city ordinance
that requires Minimum Wake from boats within 300 feet of
shore.
For marine law
enforcement related issues in Village waters contact
Deputy Nelson Sanchez at
nsanchez@keysso.net.
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A major portion of
Sectors 4 and
5 is the City of Marathon where our substation is located,
in the vicinity of 31st Street oceanside. Our Sectors also
include the City of Key Colony Beach, Grassy Key, Duck Key and
the City of Layton. So when I speak in general of the
conditions and activities in Marathon, this concerns all of
the area from the 7 Mile Bridge to the outskirts of Village of
Islamorada.
2002 was a banner year for
us in Marathon. We continued our focus on strict traffic
enforcement as requested by the Marathon City Council. We not
only cut the number of traffic crashes by 33.9%, but this
played an important part in cutting the overall crime in
Marathon by 5.3% with a drop in violent crimes and felonies of
12.5%. It stands to reason, and has been proven by scientific
study, that high police presence on the roadways effects
overall crime by decreasing its impact. It is important to
note that this was during a year where crime as a whole in the
State of Florida was up.
February 9th thru 15th is
Florida Child Passenger Safety Week. We are holding a Child
Seat Safety Check-up event on Wednesday, February 12th at the
Ramada Inn Oceanview, 13351 Overseas Highway in Marathon
across from the Quay. The event will be held from 3PM to 6PM
so that working parents will have an opportunity to attend. We
will have certified child seat technicians from the Sheriff's
Office as well as the Florida Highway Patrol on hand to
inspect and properly install your existing child seats in your
vehicles. Please bring the child seat you have and the vehicle
you intend on using it in and we will make sure it is
installed properly and make sure your child is getting the
most safety from the device. This service is free, please
attend and lets make the roads safer for us all, especially
our children.
We are scheduling a
Community Oriented Policing class to be offered in Marathon
next month. This class is taught by St. Petersburg College and
is designed not only for police officers, but for private
citizens, with the goal being to enhance community
partnerships and teach problem solving techniques. It is a
two-day class which will be offered three separate times. It
will be offered at KCB City Hall on March 3rd and 4th,
followed by another class on March 5th and 6th. A third
session will be offered at the Monroe County Government Center
in Marathon (where the County Commission and City Council
meet) on March 7th and 8th. The class will be held daily from
8AM to 5PM and is completely free to citizens wishing to
attend . Reservations are required as seating is limited. Call
Sergeant Dennis Cain at 289-2430 for reservations and
commitment. We would like to see a good number of residents in
the class in order to continue working together to make our
community stronger and safer.
On a final note of
invitation, I would like to ask everyone to attend the
upcoming Sheriff’s Quarterly Awards Ceremony on Friday,
February 7th at 2PM at the Monroe County Government Center in
Marathon. One of your very own partners in crime prevention,
Deputy Louis Rivera of the Marathon Station, will be receiving
the Sheriff’s Medal of Valor for conspicuous bravery during a
violent arrest in November 2002. There will be many other
awards and recognitions given at that ceremony. Let's show
Deputy Rivera, and all of our law enforcement officers, that
we are thinking about them and supporting them. Be there to
experience this important moment in their lives and careers.
Thank you, and lets keep
working together to make this the greatest community it can
be, for all of our residents and visitors. |
Crime fighting volunteers
needed. Crime Stoppers of the Florida Keys is seeking new
board members to help in the fight against crime. Crime
Stoppers is a non-profit corporation that assists local law
enforcement through operation of an anonymous tip line.
The board raises
money to reward tipsters and also decides on the amount of
rewards given. Meetings are held quarterly. Most business is
conducted through e-mail. If you are interested in serving,
give Community Relations Director Greg Artman a call at
292-7116.
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Professional Standards:
Making sure the Sheriff's Office meets state and national
standards of professionalism
The Office of Professional Standards makes sure
all divisions within the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, and all members of
those divisions, are aware of Office policies and procedures and are in
compliance with them at all times. They draft policy, at the direction of the
Sheriff and in compliance with
Commission
for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditations (CFA), and
Commission
on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies
(CALEA). These policies
and procedures are the foundation of a modern, professional law enforcement
agency, and are also the foundation to being state and federally accredited.
Inspectors
from the office are charged with seeing that all policies and procedures are up
to date at all times, and being complied with by all members of the Monroe
County Sheriff's Office. To that end, they visit all offices on a regular basis,
inspecting records and making sure all procedures are being followed
appropriately.
Over the past year, the Monroe County
Sheriff's Office achieved National CALEA accreditation. The
Commission for Accreditation of Law Enforcement was designed
to:
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increase law enforcement agency capabilities
to prevent and control crime;
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increase agency effectiveness and efficiency
in the delivery of law enforcement services;
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increase cooperation and coordination with
other law enforcement agencies and with other agencies of
the criminal justice system;
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increase citizen and employee confidence in
the goals, objectives, policies and practices of the agency.
Basically CALEA gives the Monroe County
Sheriff's Office and other agencies an opportunity to
voluntarily demonstrate that we meet an established set of
professional standards.
The Sheriff's Office is also accredited by the
Commission for Florida Law Enforcement, and on March 12th, the
Monroe County Sheriff's Office will be having an on site
inspection to maintain that state accreditation. As with CALEA,
under state accreditation the Sheriff's Office must maintain
and comply with a specific set of standards.
Professional Standards is also working on a
Job Task Analysis project. This project is designed to update
all agencies job descriptions and will be used as a computer
based performance evaluation system. The Job Task
Analysis Project will be conducting training in March for all
agency supervisors and we hope to implement the program in
April.
If you have any questions concerning
Professional Standards Office please contact
Lieutenant Bruce Winegarden at 305-292-7034. Sheriff Roth
is committed to Accreditation and to maintaining a
professional and efficient agency. |
| Governor Jeb
Bush, in cooperation with the National Weather Service, the
Florida Department of Community Affairs, and the 67
Florida County Emergency Management Agencies will, during
the third week in February, be working to better educate
the public about Florida hazardous weather,
including the dangers of lightning, Hurricanes and
Flooding, tornados and thunderstorms, marine hazards and
temperature extremes and wildfires. For more information
on these topics, visit the
Hurricane
Preparation section of the Sheriff's Office web site,
or the Florida Department of Emergency
Management's
"Hazardous Weather: A Florida Guide". |
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Buckle Up Florida
February 10 - 23, 2003 is National
Child Passenger Safety Week
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Did you know that
it is against the law in Florida to drive without a safety
belt? If you or your kids ride unbuckled, you risk getting a
hefty ticket, or worse, injury or death in a crash. Drive
safely and buckle up your whole family. They will be thankful
you did. Buckle Up Florida, it's the law.
Sergeant Roy Bogue will be
hosting a child safety seat check on Friday Feb. 14 at
Islamorada's Founders Park from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.. Trained
and certified officers will check to make sure your child's
safety seat is installed properly. If you would like to have
your child's safety seat checked free of charge, please stop
by! For more
information, visit
www.buckleupflorida.com.
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Pay attention to your child's phone calls!
| Law
Enforcement officers in Fort Lee, New Jersey say they are
investigating reports of a man who telephones residences claiming to
be from Children's Services or claims to be conducting a survey of
children aged 8 to 10 years old. He asks to speak to a young child
and, when they are on the phone with him, he engages the child in lewd
and obscene conversation. It appears that he does not restrict his
calls to the New Jersey area - phone records reportedly show calls to
other states as well. |
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No one in Monroe County has reported such an
incident, but it does serve to remind everyone to pay attention to the
phone calls your child receives. If someone calls your home asking to
speak to your child and you do not know who the person is, hang up the
phone or ask for a phone number where you can call the person back. If the
caller is legitimate, he or she should have no problem giving you such
information. As always, if something like this happens to your family,
call the Sheriff's Office immediately. |
The
Law Enforcement
Explorer/Cadet Program was started with the intention of providing the
youth of Monroe County the opportunity to explore a career in law
enforcement and develop a more positive relationship between youth and
law enforcement officers.
The program covers the
major areas of law enforcement, and strives to build character,
determination and life skills in its members. In addition, the program
provides each explorer the tools he/she needs in order to make a
decision about a possible career in law enforcement.
The Explorers
participate in a wide variety of community activities and service
projects throughout Monroe County. They work closely with a number of
non-profit groups trying to make a difference in our Keys communities.
The Explorers pride themselves on being courteous, dependable and
professional in everything that they do.
Membership Requirements:
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Young people between
the ages of 11 and 21.
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Maintain at least a
2.0 grade point average.
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No criminal history.
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Be of good moral
character.
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Willing to follow
federal, state and local laws.
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Abide by Monroe
County Sheriff’s Office Policies and Procedures and Explorer Post
bylaws.
If you are interested
in joining the program, or have a question about the program please
contact the Explorer Program Supervisor Sgt. John Barber at
jbarber@keysso.net
Explorer/Cadet
fundraiser. The three Sheriff's Explorer/Cadet posts in the
Keys are raffling off a 20 foot catamaran as a fundraiser. The
catamaran is valued at $30,000. Tickets are ten dollars. The
drawing is May 1st, 2003. The catamaran is provided by Port
Side Marina in Key Largo. For information, call
1-800-283-2677.
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| During the busy tourist
season in the Keys, we always see an increase in automobile
burglaries. These burglaries frequently take place at common
sightseeing spots throughout the Keys, such as beaches and bridges.
They also take place in front of homes and in driveways in our
residential neighborhoods.
Most often, thieves will simply walk or
drive down a residential street trying every car door until they find one
open. This should make the method of preventing such a crime obvious: lock
your car doors any time you aren't inside. The solution is a simple one,
but many people become victims because they fail to take this one simple
step to keep their belongings secure. |
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Sometimes, thieves are willing to do
physical damage to a vehicle to get to the valuable inside. This is
usually because the valuables are visible, sitting on the seat or
floorboards of the vehicle. When it comes to your computer, cell phone,
cash, camera, expensive sunglasses or other valuable items, it literally
pays to remove them from your car, or at least put them somewhere out of
site of a passer-by.
By following these simple steps to make
your automobile more secure, you could avoid becoming a victim, and you
could help reduce crime in the Keys.
For more Crime Prevention Tips, please
visit the Crime
Prevention Tips portion of our web site.
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