Assistant Manager of Gambrills Mortgage Company Sentenced to Over Four Years in Prison in $4.9 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme

BALTIMORE—U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake sentenced Todd R. Bettin, age 42, of Crofton, Maryland, to 51 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with a five-year scheme to divert or hold mortgage payoff funds from clients’ closings on 17 Maryland properties. Judge Blake also ordered Pierce to pay restitution of $3,392,047.51.

The sentence and guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Richard A. McFeely of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Special Agent in Charge Joseph Clarke of the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General-Office of Investigations; and Howard County Police Chief William McMahon.

According to his plea agreement, Bettin was the assistant manager of At Home Mortgage, owned by co-conspirator Gary Pierce, who also owned and managed At Home Settlements LCC, in Gambrills, Maryland. At Home Settlements provided settlement services and sold title insurance policies to clients who were buying homes or refinancing existing properties.

In 2007 Bettin refinanced the mortgage on his home. Pierce acted as the settlement agent. Rather than paying off the original mortgage as required, Bettin kept the payoff amount and never informed the original lender that he had refinanced the property. Also in 2007, Pierce obtained a mortgage loan on a property in Edgewater that he did not own. Bettin acted as the loan officer on the transaction. Bettin and Pierce created false documents purporting to show that Pierce owned the property and provided those fraudulent documents to the lender. Bettin and Pierce used the funds obtained from the lender to perpetuate the scheme and each personally diverted $50,000 to themselves. The true owner of the property had no knowledge that documents had been created purporting to show that the property had been sold to Pierce.

Beginning in 2007, Bettin and Pierce diverted or held mortgage payoff funds from clients’ closings for a matter of days, weeks, and sometimes years. Pierce falsely represented on HUD-1 forms sent to the borrower’s lender that the payoff was made, when, in fact, Pierce intended to divert the funds. Bettin and Pierce fabricated wire confirmation reports, which purported to be a bank record of the transfer, to include in loan files. These were created in advance of audits in order to deceive the title insurers. Additionally, to forestall discovery by the lenders, Bettin and Pierce contacted the mortgage lender who should have been paid off and posed as the borrower/homeowner. Bettin would either create an online profile for the borrower and stop any mail from being sent to the borrower, or he would tell the lender that his, the borrower’s, address had changed and would re-direct the lender to send all correspondence to a post office box owned by Pierce. Bettin would then make monthly mortgage payments to the existing lender. Believing that the bank had been paid off as a result of the settlement, the borrower stopped making monthly payments on that mortgage. And since that lender was receiving monthly payments, it had no reason to notify the borrower of any delinquency. With no delinquency in the account, the scheme went undetected.

Because the existing mortgages were not paid off, the liens against the property were not removed and clear title could not be passed to the new lender and borrower. The total amount of diverted or otherwise improperly obtained funds totals $4,971,380.

Judge Blake previously sentenced Gary Pierce, age 44, of Edgewater, Maryland, to six years in prison and ordered Pierce to pay restitution of $4,174,044.41.

The Maryland Mortgage Fraud Task Force was established to unify the agencies that regulate and investigate mortgage fraud and promote the early detection, identification, prevention, and prosecution of mortgage fraud schemes. This case, as well as other cases brought by members of the task force, demonstrates the commitment of law enforcement agencies to protect consumers from fraud and promote the integrity of the credit markets. Information about mortgage fraud prosecutions is available www.justice.gov/usao/md/Mortgage-Fraud/index.html.

This law enforcement action is part of President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch and, with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes.

United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein thanked the FBI, HUD-OIG, and Howard County Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein commended Assistant U.S. Attorney Leo J. Wise, who prosecuted the case.

PROSECUTOR WISHES RAPIST WELL

By James H. Lilley

Eugene A. Marriott raped, sodomized and brutally beat a woman outside a Best Western Motel in Fairfax City on January 14, 2006. He was pulling up his pants, with the woman still lying at his feet, when police arrived and arrested him. An eyewitness to the crime said he was in an adjacent parking lot and saw Marriott standing over top of the woman and, “just pounding away on her.” He yelled at Marriott, but he continued his attack on the woman.

Marriott, who is married, is also a minister in The Ebenezer African Methodist Episcopal Church in Fort Washington. After his arrest he told detectives investigating the case that he’d dated the woman and what happened on January 14th was simply a matter of their sadomasochistic role-playing. The woman, however, told detectives they’d broken up weeks earlier. But, during the course of his interview with police he admitted that even if it had been role-playing that what he did that night was wrong.

Marriott entered a plea to charges of abduction with intent to defile and unlawful wounding, with the abduction with intent charge carrying a minimum sentence of 20 years. With his agreement to plead to those charges, prosecutors dismissed the rape and sodomy counts. But during trial proceedings prosecutors amended the charges to simple adduction, which carried no minimum sentence and a maximum of 10 years. They also added two misdemeanor sexual battery charges, to which Marriott agreed to plead guilty.

By pleading guilty to the two misdemeanor charges he escaped having to register as a sex offender, which would have been required by the “intent to defile” charge.

Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Toni Fay presented the case and said that what happened that night was criminal behavior, and showed photos of the victim to Circuit Court Judge Stanley Klein. Pictures offered into evidence showed that the victim had sustained cuts and bruises over her body from her lower legs to the top of her head. The victim said that she’d been beaten with fists and a belt buckle, raped and sexually assaulted. But, according to the Washington Post, Fay concluded her case by saying, “I wish Mr. Marriott well. I hope that his wife takes him back. I am very glad to see his church and his community are still supporting him.”

I’m surprised that she didn’t invite him out for dinner and drinks. Perhaps I missed something in the translation of all of this, but I was under the impression that Eugene A. Marriott was the accused in this instance, not the victim. Yet, it seems that the Fairfax County Prosecutor’s Office, or at least Toni Fay, went out of her way to assist him in eluding prosecution for the most serious crimes.

Marriott’s capacity as a minister at the Ebenezer AME Church doesn’t entitle him to preferential treatment when he stands accused of a serious crime, or any crime for that matter. He said he was sorry, but showed no emotion when he apologized. He went on to say that he’d lost everything he’d worked his whole life for, but continued to have the support of his church and his wife. The victim admitted she had dated him for about three months and their break up had been amicable. Although the victim dated her attacker for a time and agreed to meet him to go dancing on the night of the attack, it doesn’t qualify him for leniency. Indeed the court saw otherwise and sentenced him to only 16 months for his crimes immediately after sentencing two burglars to 18 and 20 months in prison. First, the prosecutor slaps the victim across the face by wishing her attacker well, and then the court puts its stamp of approval on the slap with a kick in the stomach and a sentence of only 16 months for a violent crime. Yet, Judge Klein said Marriott’s behavior wouldn’t be tolerated.

I don’t understand how a brutal beating and rape warrants less time in prison than a property crime. What was the court saying not only to the victim in this case, but also to the thousands of victims of rape and sexual assault across the country? Was the court sending a message that forcibly violating a woman’s body will get a suspect less jail time than a break in of a home or business?

Like it or not, there are many times when there is no real justice for the victim in the judicial system. But in this case far more went on behind the scenes than anyone was aware of. Toni Fay reduced the charges without consulting with the victim, the detective who investigated the allegations or her boss, Commonwealth’s Attorney Robert F. Horan.

The victim had already agreed with a deal struck by the prosecutor that Marriott would plead guilty to abduction with intent to defile and should have been consulted by Fay prior to any change in that deal. According to Mr. Horan, and anyone familiar with the justice system knows contacting the victim regarding any changes to the agreement is rule number one. Horan said the original plea agreement made sense and that lawyers who have defended accused rapists agreed, as did the victim in this instance.

Some time before the hearing, Marriott’s attorney, Bobby Stafford, contacted Fay and told her that Marriott did not want to have to register as a sex offender, which would have been required under the “intent to defile” charge. Fay was then in touch with Judge Klein, telling him that she and Stafford had been in contact to resolve the matter, but without informing him of just what that matter was. But at the time of sentencing neither the judge nor the attorneys made mention of the fact that the charges had been altered.

The 35-year-old victim in this case said she was shocked to learn that the charges had been reduced without notifying her, and was further angered by the lenient sentence. Her outrage was supported by May Lou Leary, executive director of the National Center for Victims of Crime. Leary said that when offenders are allowed to avoid responsibility for their crimes it has an effect on all victims, and especially victims of sex crimes. Sexual assault is a violent crime that is about domination and control of the victim, and what happened in this case reinforces that.

In some ways Judge Klein’s hands were tied when he sentenced Marriott, but if he wanted to give the victim some measure of satisfaction and justice he had options available to him. At sentencing he ordered Marriott to serve four years on each of the abduction and unlawful wounding counts, but then suspended all but 16 months of the terms. He then passed six-month sentences down on the two sexual battery counts and ordered all time to be served concurrently. If he so desired, he could have ordered those sentences to be served consecutively in lieu of concurrently and Marriott would have been given at least nine years behind bars. Still, even the nine years would have been a far cry from the minimum of 20 demanded by the abduction with intent to defile charge.

There was a grave miscarriage of justice in this case and another black eye for the judicial system as a whole. Commonwealth’s Attorney Robert Horan, who has always seemed to be a cut above when it came to fairness throughout the judicial process, is now faced with having to conduct damage control to repair the harm done to the reputation of his office.

Still, what happened in this case leaves me, and I’m certain hundreds of others, wondering just went on behind the scenes to cause such a lucrative deal to be struck. The flag of suspicion should be waving, and rightly so, because of the actions of Defense Attorney Bobby Stafford and Commonwealth’s Attorney Toni Fay. There are many questions in this case and I’m certain that Mr. Horan will live up to his reputation for fairness and honesty and demand the answers. Unfortunately, the damage has already been done to Mr. Horan’s office and not only the victim in this case, but also the countless other victims across the country have been slapped in the face.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
James H. Lilley is a former Marine and Police Sergeant with the Howard County Police Department (Maryland). He worked in the Uniformed Patrol Division, criminal Investigations Division, Forensic Services (CSI) and Drug Enforcement Division. His Street Drug Unit was featured in the book "Undercover" by Hans Halberstadt and published by Simon and Schuster. Some of his awards include The Medal of Valor, Four Bronze Stars, Four Unit Citations and the Governor's Citation. He is also an 8th Degree Black Belt in Shorin Ryu Karate and the first American to be promoted to the rank of Black Belt by Mr. Takeshi Miyagi. James H. Lilley is the author of six books: A Question of Honor; The Eyes of the Hunter; The Far Side of the Bridge; Just Retribution; A Miracle for Tony Clements; and, Death Knocks Twice.

MORE ABOUT JAMES H. LILLEY
http://www.police-writers.com/james_lilley.html

Hunter Adopted by Hopkins

July 29, 2008, (San Dimas, CA) Police-Writers.com is a website that lists state and local police officers who have written books. James H. Lilley, the Police-Writer.com Author of the Year (2008), has had his book, The Eyes of the Hunter, adopted by Johns Hopkins University.

James H. Lilley is a former Marine and Police Sergeant with the Howard County Police Department (Maryland). He worked in the Uniformed Patrol Division, Criminal Investigations Division, Forensic Services (CSI) and Drug Enforcement Division. His Street Drug Unit was featured in the book "Undercover" by Hans Halberstadt and published by Simon and Schuster. Some of his awards include The Medal of Valor, Four Bronze Stars, Four Unit Citations and the Governor's Citation. He is also an 8th Degree Black Belt in Shorin Ryu Karate. James Lilley is the author of seven books: A Question of Honor; The Eyes of the Hunter; The Far Side of the Bridge; Just Retribution; A Miracle for Tony Clements; Death Knocks Twice, and, A Tony Clements Christmas Miracle.

According to Sheldon Greenberg, Ph.D. (Associate Dean, School of Education, Johns Hopkins University), “The Eyes of the Hunter will be used as a text for the Communications course in the Master of Science in Intelligence Analysis degree program at Johns Hopkins University.” Dr. Sheldon continued that Lilley’s book will help the students “focus on creativity and critical thinking, research, understanding the audience, and formulating meaningful written documents.”

The course The Eyes of the Hunter will be used in is “Communications: Fact, Opinion, Significance, and Consequence.” According to the course description, “Within the intelligence community, findings are of little value unless they are communicated well. Dissemination of findings is essential to the success of any analysis or research. Students learn to deliver written, oral, and visual presentations for maximum effect by considering factors such as intended outcome, timing, structure, and method. Working individually and in small groups, students address issues such as lack of time to plan and prepare, unfamiliarity with the customer (end user of analytical documents), disruption and change, and coping with the unexpected. Students receive ongoing feedback on their communication style and effectiveness.

The ability to justify and present an analytical conclusion in clear, succinct prose is essential to supplying policy makers with information they need to formulate decisions. Students consider traditional and innovative methods of intelligence writing and briefing, focusing on the difference between fact and opinion. Students prepare written reports and presentations on a variety of topics and, in doing so, construct narratives, establish project credibility, convey recommendations, and reinforce key messages.”

Police-Writers.com now hosts 1029 police officers (representing 431 police departments) and their 2189 criminal justice books in 33 categories, there are also listings of United States federal law enforcement employees turned authors, international police officers who have written books and civilian police personnel who have written books.

Author James H. Lilley

May 22, 2008, 2008 (San Dimas, CA) On May 28, 2008, Conversations with Cops at the Watering Hole will feature an interview with James H. Lilley.

Program Date: May 28, 2008
Program Time: 2100 hours, Pacific
Topic: An Interview with James H. Lilley
Listen Live: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/LawEnforcement

About the Guest
James H. Lilley was selected as the 2008 Police-Writers.com Author of the Year. The author of the year selection was based in part on writing ability and in part on career and community service.

James H. Lilley began his lifetime of public service as a United States Marine, in 1961. Shortly after his discharge, he joined the Howard County Police Department (Maryland), graduating first in his class. During his career his received numerous honors such as Medal of Valor, four Bronze Stars, four Unit Citations and the Governor’s Citation. James H. Lilley has published six novels, articles in Police Chief Magazine and authored an International Association of Chiefs of Police training key. Moreover, he began studying Martial Arts in the early 1960s and is a 8th Degree Black Belt in Shorin Ryu Karate; the first American to achieve this recognition and honor from Sensei Takeshi Miyagi.

James H. Lilley submitted, for the 2008 Police-Writers.com Author of the Year, as an example of his work, The Eyes of the Hunter (PublishAmerica 1997). One of the Police-Writers.com judges said of James’ writing, “He is a mature writer with strong plot, character and story development.” Another judge said, “easy to read, and it was very good escapism. The writer has some absolutely beautiful passages wherein he describes a sound or a vista. The sex scenes are pretty hot, too.”

James H. Lilley’s current project is a true crime book and he has entered two of his books in the upcoming Hollywood Book Festival.

About the Watering Hole
The Watering Hole is police slang for a location cops go off-duty to blow off steam and talk about work and life. Sometimes funny; sometimes serious; but, always interesting.
About the Host
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster was a sworn member of the Los Angeles Police Department for 24 years. He retired in 2003 at the rank of Lieutenant. He holds a bachelor’s from the Union Institute and University in Criminal Justice Management and a Master’s Degree in Public Financial Management from California State University, Fullerton; and, has completed his doctoral course work. Raymond E. Foster has been a part-time lecturer at California State University, Fullerton and Fresno; and is currently a faculty advisor and lecturer with the Union Institute and University. He has experience teaching upper division courses in law enforcement, public policy, law enforcement technology and leadership. Raymond is an experienced author who has published numerous articles in a wide range of venues including magazines such as Government Technology, Mobile Government, Airborne Law Enforcement Magazine, and Police One. He has appeared on the History Channel and radio programs in the United States and Europe as subject matter expert in technological applications in law enforcement.

Listen, call, join us at the Watering Hole.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/LawEnforcement

Program Contact Information
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster, LAPD (ret.), MPA
editor@police-writers.com
909.599.7530

Public Safety Technology in the News

Hampshire Boosts Emergency Communications
The Courier News (03/08/08), Jeanie Mayer

To improve radio communication between various police and fire departments during an emergency, the village of Hampshire, Illinois, and the Hampshire Fire Protection District recently acquired two radio units capable of interfacing with the frequencies used by different departments. This technology will allow for improved coordination of emergency responder efforts.
www.suburbanchicagonews.com/couriernews/news/villages/831317,3_6_EL08_RADIO_S1.article

In the Year 2028
The Corrections Connection (03/10/08), Ann Coppola

The Northeast Technology and Product Assessment Committee (NTPAC) recently held its spring meeting, the purpose of which was to investigate new technologies and scenarios that may impact the field of corrections. The meeting highlighted the importance and utility of strategic planning by using the Federal Bureau of Prisons' Forward Thinking Initiative to create and analyze the potential impact that future changes might have on the field. Four new technologies were highlighted at the event, including a pair of contraband detection devices. Attendees stressed the need to promote greater collaboration between the scientific and corrections communities as a means of improving facility safety.
www.corrections.com/news/article/17986

Law Expands Texas Inmates' Access to Phones
The Dallas Morning News, (03/10/2008), Diane Jennings

Moving away from the conventional view that all contact for prisoners should be cut off during incarceration, Texas is going to begin allowing inmates the opportunity for greater access to telephones. This policy shift comes because the new belief is that an inmate's connection to family can impact recidivism. To ensure that inmates do not misuse the privilege, phones calls will be monitored and be either prepaid or collect calls only to preapproved landline phone numbers associated with particular inmates. To help regulate phone use and ensure that inmates contact only numbers associated and approved for them, the system will use "biometric identifiers" such as fingerprints or voice recognition to identify inmates and access their lists of numbers.
www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/texassouthwest/stories/DN-phones_10tex.ART.State.Ed! ition1.4660486.html

State and Local Police Unite To Share Information
The Frederick News-Post, (03/11/2008), Sarah Fortney

To better serve and protect the public, agencies are partnering up to boost information sharing and communication across all levels. Law enforcement leaders in the Western Maryland region announced their plans for the recently developed Western Maryland Information Center. The center, located in Frederick, Maryland, is a consortium of local, county, State, and Federal personnel that will capture criminal information for the region and use the information for analysis to identify trends and help reduce crime. This project will not result in additional costs to Frederick city or county residents, because staff will be paid by their respective agencies and equipment to this point has been donated.
www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/news/display.htm?StoryID=72291

LexisNexis Risk and Information Analytics Group Launches Solution for Law Enforcement to Proactively Monitor Sex Offenders Across Jurisdictions
LexisNexis, (03/11/2008), Business Wire

Law enforcement has a new tool that provides automated location information on sex offenders. In support of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act and law enforcement's efforts to enforce the law, the LexisNexis Risk and Information Analytics group developed and released Sex Offender Alert. The system provides law enforcement with location information on sex offenders, including transitions between jurisdictions. With the vast amount of known sex offenders in the United States, the daunting task of monitoring their location falls to law enforcement. Alerts will notify police when a sex offender enters into the jurisdiction, and find and locate both registered and nonregistered sex offenders. This technology will be of particular use to police departments during instances of large, rapid population shifts associated with natural disasters. This massive shift provides an advantaged to offenders because of the chaos associated with the upheaval.
www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20080311005382&newsLang=en

Spy-in-the-Sky Drone Sets Sights on Miami
Reuters, (03/26/2008), Tom Brown

A small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) manufactured by Honeywell International may soon be in use by the Miami Police Department to help the department fight crime. The drones, capable of hovering and vertical take off and landing, will be used initially in the Everglades. If use of the drone is approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) after testing, it would then be deployed in the urban areas of the city. With interest by the law enforcement community growing, the FAA has been developing procedures for the use of UAVs by police departments. It is hoped that the procedures would help guard against, or reduce the likelihood of, accidents involving civilians.
uk.reuters.com/article/scienceNews/idUKN1929797920080326

Port Neches Joins Other Area Towns in Upgrading Law Enforcement Technology
The Enterprise, (03/22/2008), Dennis Kutac

Using 2006 Port Security Grant funding, Port Neches Police will be adding laptops, night vision, mobile video, and other high-tech equipment to its list of tools to help fight crime. The laptops will help reduce the time officers spend filling out reports or performing warrant checks. For officers on the street it will provide fast access to files on record from other agencies. This wireless accessibility can also help officers receive actual images of suspects versus relying on descriptions provided over the radio. The night vision equipment can be used by the various tactical teams in resolving hostage or barricade situations that may occur at night or during instances of limited visibility.
www.southeasttexaslive.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=19414525&BRD=2287&PAG=461&dept_id=512588&rfi=6

Traffic Tickets To Go High-Tech
FBaltimore Sun, (03/21/2008), Tyeesha Dixon

Taking on average eight to 12 minutes to hand write a ticket will no longer be an issue for the Howard County Police Department. A $48,000 grant from the State has allowed the county to start purchasing the necessary equipment so that officers can issue electronic tickets. Prior to implementation, officers had to write out tickets for each offense relating to a traffic stop. The new system will capture drivers' information once from their licenses and generate citations accordingly. Additionally, the system can assist those receiving citations by reducing time spent on the roadside, and provide the individual with a citation that is easy to read.
www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/howard/bal-ho.citations21mar21,0,2450463.story

Book and Author of the Year Announced

February 4, 2008 (San Dimas, CA) Police-Writers.com is a website that lists state and local police officers who have written books. Police-Writers.com announced the 2008 Book of the Year and 2008 Author of the Year.

What Every Chief Executive Should Know: Using Data to Measure Police Performance, (Looseleaf Law Publications, 2007) by Captain Jon M. Shane (ret.), was selected as the 2008 Police-Writers.com Book of the Year. In December 1985, Jon Shane Joined the Newark Police Department (New Jersey) and was assigned to the South Police District. During his 20 year law enforcement career, he worked a variety of assignments and worked his way through the ranks of detective, sergeant and lieutenant, eventually reaching the rank of Captain.

Jon Shane’s book stood out among the entrants because it significantly advances management decision making in the field of law enforcement. The book provides models and mathematical approaches to management questions like: “How many officers do we need? Are we efficiently using the ones we have? Is there a relationship between the number of officers we have and our crime rate? What is the status of our patrol car fleet? Are citizens satisfied with our work? What is the cost of our special programs and what are the actual benefits?”

One Police-Writers.com judge noted that Jon Shane’s book “took a daunting subject and broke it down into pieces that anyone could understand and put to use. Not only did he give simple and easy to understand explanations, he also provides examples of types of data and how to work with that data to make intelligent decisions. Plus, he provides a CD with ready-to-use Excel spreadsheets for an executive to use right away.” A second judge noted, “Shane’s book goes beyond the use of math to solve management questions in policing. The hidden value in the work may be that it demonstrates new ways of thinking about crime. Potentially, it could help put the word “analysis” back into “crime analysis.”

James H. Lilley was selected as the 2008 Police-Writers.com Author of the Year. The author of the year selection was based in part on writing ability and in part on career and community service.

James H. Lilley began his lifetime as a United States Marine in 1961. Shortly after his discharge, he joined the Howard County Police Department (Maryland), graduating first in his class. During his career his received numerous honors such as Medal of Valor, four Bronze Stars, four Unit Citations and the Governor’s Citation. James H. Lilley has published six novels, articles in Police Chief Magazine and authored an International Association of Chiefs of Police training key. Moreover, he began studying Martial Arts in the early 1960s and is a 8th Degree Black Belt in Shorin Ryu Karate; the first American to achieve this recognition and honor from Sensei Takeshi Miyagi.

James Lilley submitted as an example of his work The Eyes of the Hunter (PublishAmerica 1997). One of the Police-Writers.com judges said of James’ writing, “He is a mature writer with strong plot, character and story development.” Another judge said, “easy to read, and it was very good escapism. The writer has some absolutely beautiful passages wherein he describes a sound or a vista. The sex scenes are pretty hot, too.”

Police-Writers.com now hosts 839 police officers (representing 382 police departments) and their 1772 law enforcement books in 32 categories, there are also listings of United States federal law enforcement employees turned authors, international police officers who have written books and civilian police personnel who have written books.

Contact Information:
Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster, LAPD (ret.), MPA
editor@police-writers.com
909.599.7530