October 8, 2006 (San Dimas, CA) Police-Writers.com, a website dedicated to police officers turned authors added three police officers turned authors: Debra Shinder, Bernard Kerik and Rosanna Filippello.
Debra Shinder, a former Police Officer with the Roanoke Police Department; and instructor at the North Central Texas Regional Police Academy and the Criminal Justice Training Center at Eastfield College, has written two books "Computer Networking Essentials" for Cisco Press and "Scene of the Cybercrime."
The NYPD 40th Police Commissioner, Bernard Kerik's, pens his personal story which is interesting and inspiring. As a young man, he is often in trouble and even quits school. Ultimately, he gains a sense of purpose in the military and embarks on a career in law enforcement that culminates in his becoming NYPD’s Police Commissioner. Bernard Kerik’s book takes the read from the sagging row houses of New Jersey to the cocaine fields of Colombia; from the razor wire of Rikers Island to the streets of New York City.
In “The Lost Son: A Life in Pursuit of Justice” Bernard Kerik details his life as a jail warden with a black belt in martial arts and a background in international security and anti-terrorism; taking a substantial pay cut to become a New York Police Department beat cop on the streets of Times Square. As a fearless narcotics detective, he went undercover to buy drugs in Harlem, seized millions of dollars of cocaine from the druglords of the Cali cartel, and was awarded the New York Police Department's Medal of Valor. As New York City's 40th Police Commissioner, Kerik directed the largest municipal police force in the world, and his battles continued. And yet Bernard Kerik's greatest battle was not pitched on tough city streets, but within himself. The greatest unsolved case of his life: the tragic mystery of his own mother, who abandoned her young son 41 years ago.
Rosanna Filippello was born and raised in Philadelphia and graduated from Cardinal Dougherty High School in 1986. She then attended Temple University for a time before joining the police department in 1993. Filippello works as a patrol officer in the "Fighting" Fourteenth District of the city. Of her five books, the Angelo Mystery Series is likely the most interesting. In the third of the series, “Angel of Death,” A known pedophile is found murdered and mutilated in North Philadelphia. Angelo, Philadelphia’s top Homicide detective (and the series namesake) is assigned the case. Soon the body count starts piling up and the only common link is the fact that the victims were ritualistically killed ex-convicts.
Police-Writers.com hosts 146 police officers (representing over 70 police departments) and their 425 books in six categories.
Sunday, October 08, 2006
Police-Writers.com adds “A Cop's Guide to Occult Investigations”
October 8, 2006 (San Dimas, CA) Police-Writers.com, a website dedicated to police officers turned authors added Tony M. Kail to the listings of police writers.
Tony M. Kail is Founder and Director of World View Intelligence. Tony has served as a consultant and law enforcement trainer for numerous regional, state and federal agencies. He has over fifteen years of experience in research and training on the subject of magico-religious cultures and crime.
Tony has performed fieldwork with a number of religious traditions throughout the United States. He has observed and documented a number of ceremonies and rituals of various religious cultures. His primary expertise is in the area of African Traditional religions and Neo-Paganism. Kail has received specialized training in the field of ritualistic crime investigation from the Miami Police Department.
Kail has served as a Sheriff's Deputy with the Madison County Sheriff's Department as well as Animal Cruelty Officer with the Madison County Humane Society. He has served as adjunct instructor in the Police Sciences Division of the Nashville State Community College since 2000.
Kail is author of the book A Cop's Guide to Occult Investigations from Paladin Press. He is also the author of several articles on religious culture for such law enforcement publications as Law and Order, Police Quarterly and The Backup.
Kail is also a member of the following professional associations: American Society of Law Enforcement Trainers; Tennessee Chapter of the International Association for Identification and the Public Safety Writers Association of America
In Tony Kail’s book, “Cop's Guide to Occult Investigations: Understanding Satanism, Santeria, Wicca, and Other Alternative Religions,” the reader finds out how to interpret rituals, develop contacts in the occult community, recognize signs of juveniles dabbling in the occult, conduct investigations into an occult-related crime and more. The reader will see how gangs and hate groups use occult symbolism to empower members and terrify victims and learn to identify ritual tools with the illustrated field guide.
Police-Writers.com hosts 142 police officers and their 424 books in six categories.
Tony M. Kail is Founder and Director of World View Intelligence. Tony has served as a consultant and law enforcement trainer for numerous regional, state and federal agencies. He has over fifteen years of experience in research and training on the subject of magico-religious cultures and crime.
Tony has performed fieldwork with a number of religious traditions throughout the United States. He has observed and documented a number of ceremonies and rituals of various religious cultures. His primary expertise is in the area of African Traditional religions and Neo-Paganism. Kail has received specialized training in the field of ritualistic crime investigation from the Miami Police Department.
Kail has served as a Sheriff's Deputy with the Madison County Sheriff's Department as well as Animal Cruelty Officer with the Madison County Humane Society. He has served as adjunct instructor in the Police Sciences Division of the Nashville State Community College since 2000.
Kail is author of the book A Cop's Guide to Occult Investigations from Paladin Press. He is also the author of several articles on religious culture for such law enforcement publications as Law and Order, Police Quarterly and The Backup.
Kail is also a member of the following professional associations: American Society of Law Enforcement Trainers; Tennessee Chapter of the International Association for Identification and the Public Safety Writers Association of America
In Tony Kail’s book, “Cop's Guide to Occult Investigations: Understanding Satanism, Santeria, Wicca, and Other Alternative Religions,” the reader finds out how to interpret rituals, develop contacts in the occult community, recognize signs of juveniles dabbling in the occult, conduct investigations into an occult-related crime and more. The reader will see how gangs and hate groups use occult symbolism to empower members and terrify victims and learn to identify ritual tools with the illustrated field guide.
Police-Writers.com hosts 142 police officers and their 424 books in six categories.
Police-Writers.com adds Leach Consulting to list of Police Officer Websites
October 8, 2006 (San Dimas, CA) Police-Writers.com, a website dedicated to police officers turned authors includes a comprehensive listing of Police Officer Websites and Police Officer Blogs. Police-Writers.com has added Leach Consulting to the website listings.
LEACH CONSULTING, LLC
Tad Leach was born and raised in the Chicago area. After graduating from college with a B.S. Degree in Business Administration and working in the banking field, he joined the Wheeling (IL) Police Department. His experience includes Patrol, Juvenile, Detectives, Watch Commander, Records and Communications Supervisor, Administrative Sergeant and Acting Deputy Chief in charge of the Support Services Division. He then joined the Lincolnwood (IL) Police Department as Deputy Chief and was subsequently appointed Chief of Police. In that capacity he was responsible for the total police operation in a multi-ethnic suburb of Chicago, including joint dispatching for Police, Fire and Emergency Medical Services. Lincolnwood is bordered on three sides by the City of Chicago and experiences a disproportionate amount of crime, traffic and calls for service activity to population due to location, socio-economic standing and business/commercial base
Leach Consulting offers: Personnel needs assessments; Organizational structure analysis; Police Department formation (new agency); Communications needs assessments; Policy and procedures analysis; Total organization analysis; Training needs assessment; Internal investigations review (procedures and/or individual case assessment); Personnel assessment, including Chief of Police/Command Officer evaluation; Chief of Police selection process; Testing/selection process evaluation (initial hiring, specialized positions and/or promotions).
Police-Writers.com hosts 142 police officers and their 424 books in six categories.
LEACH CONSULTING, LLC
Tad Leach was born and raised in the Chicago area. After graduating from college with a B.S. Degree in Business Administration and working in the banking field, he joined the Wheeling (IL) Police Department. His experience includes Patrol, Juvenile, Detectives, Watch Commander, Records and Communications Supervisor, Administrative Sergeant and Acting Deputy Chief in charge of the Support Services Division. He then joined the Lincolnwood (IL) Police Department as Deputy Chief and was subsequently appointed Chief of Police. In that capacity he was responsible for the total police operation in a multi-ethnic suburb of Chicago, including joint dispatching for Police, Fire and Emergency Medical Services. Lincolnwood is bordered on three sides by the City of Chicago and experiences a disproportionate amount of crime, traffic and calls for service activity to population due to location, socio-economic standing and business/commercial base
Leach Consulting offers: Personnel needs assessments; Organizational structure analysis; Police Department formation (new agency); Communications needs assessments; Policy and procedures analysis; Total organization analysis; Training needs assessment; Internal investigations review (procedures and/or individual case assessment); Personnel assessment, including Chief of Police/Command Officer evaluation; Chief of Police selection process; Testing/selection process evaluation (initial hiring, specialized positions and/or promotions).
Police-Writers.com hosts 142 police officers and their 424 books in six categories.
Friday, October 06, 2006
Law Enforcement News Summary
NLECTC Law Enforcement & Corrections Technology News Summary
Thursday, October 5, 2006
"Lost in Musty Files, Police Turning to Web for Cold Case Help"
Associated Press (09/30/06); Barrouquere, Brett
The Kentucky State Police recently posted online information about close to 130 unsolved murders in the state's last 50 years in hopes of attracting people with additional information. Kentucky's gambit is not uncommon, as law enforcement in Alaska and Texas have done the same. Baltimore County Police Department's William Toohey says the Internet is a great tool to reach people who might know something about a case, but since the incident in question have left the state. "If you're going to do law enforcement these days, you've got to use the Internet," says Toohey. The Kentucky State Police did receive significant information in one case after they posted it online. A sister-in-law located in Wisconsin was performing an Internet search for her husband's brother, who disappeared in 1993, when she and then her husband recognized the artist's sketch of the unidentified man in a Kentucky found-body case. http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com
/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061001
/NEWS02/610010302
"Police Chief Weighs a Stun Gun Tryout"
Washington Post (09/28/06) P. T3; Hernandez, Nelson
The Howard County, Md., Police Department intends to evaluate the possibility of using electric stun guns to disable unruly suspects. At present, a county law bans their use, so the police department would first need to convince the Howard County Council to lift the ban. Upwards of 7,000 of the country's 18,000 police agencies use stun guns, according to Amnesty International. The weapons are viewed as a nonlethal way to subdue suspects, but they have been associated with in-custody deaths, and critics also claim that police officers could misuse the weapons. There are several other types of nonlethal weapons being used across the country, including pepper balls, beanbag shotguns, and pepper spray. However, unruly suspects, especially those on drugs, are sometimes capable of withstanding the effects of these weapons. This is rarely the case with stun guns, which typically cause people to collapse after two or three seconds as their neuromuscular system is shut down. Stun gun victims usually regain their muscle movements in 15 minutes, providing police with plenty of time to handcuff the suspect. Doug Ward, deputy director of Johns Hopkins University's Division of Public Safety Leadership, explains that stun guns sometimes have unintended, fatal results, especially if the suspect has health issues or falls down and becomes injured.
http://www.washingtonpost.com
/wp-dyn/print/community/loud
oun/index.html
"Iris Scanning Now Used to Track Sexual Offenders"
Sheriff (10/06) Vol. 58, No. 5, P. 24; O'Reilly, Kevin
In July, the Mecklenburg County (N.C.) Sheriff's Department became the first in the country to install BI2 Technologies' Sex Offender Registry and Identification System (SORIS), which registers and positively identifies convicted sexual predators using iris recognition biometric technology. The system uses a special high-resolution camera to capture a digital photograph of each of the sex offender's eyes and create a unique iris code for each individual enrolled in the system. Once a convicted sex offender is registered in the national SORIS system, their location and identity is verified within seconds from any participating agency simply by looking in the camera. SORIS is portable and can be used on a wireless network, which means law enforcement agencies who use it have the ability to go to the homes of suspected offenders and identify them immediately, said Mecklenburg County Sheriff Jim Pendergraph. Iris recognition has a number of advantages over other types of biometric systems. The human iris is absolutely unique--even between identical twins or a person's right and left eyes--and its physical characteristics do not change with age. In addition, fingerprints, facial identification, retina scan, and voice recognition do not provide the level of accuracy, speed, or cost-effectiveness found with iris recognition technology.
http://www.sheriffs.org
"Surveying the Scene"
Government Technology (09/06) Vol. 19, No. 9, P. 58; McKay, Jim
The Smart Station survey device by Leica Geosystems enables police officers in Sparks, Nev., to chart a motor vehicle accident scene within 30 minutes or less, compared to the previous tape-measure and hand-diagramming method that took three hours. The Sparks police department purchased the machine for $41,000, and they are still training police officers to use it. "We get our roadways open a lot faster," says Sparks Traffic Officer Shane Minick. The SmartStation records all accident data at the scene with a global positioning system (GPS) called a GPS rover, and then overlays those points onto a city map of the scene, creating a more accurate and much faster map of the accident wreckage. Before in Sparks, the plotting of the points was done by hand, and it was overlaid onto aerial photos for a composite of the accident.
http://www.govtech.net
/magazine/story.php?id=100901
"NIST Experiments Test Frangibles Against Vests"
Police (09/06) Vol. 30, No. 9, P. 19
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is analyzing the trajectories of bullet fragments that occur when frangible bullets impact sturdy material. Concerns have increased about the damage potential of frangible bullets because of the relative softness of body armor used by first-responders and law enforcement officers. The research being conducted by NIST relies on a device developed by the association to determine the affect of "frangible bullets" when striking metal. The Kolsky bar device focuses on the metal's reaction to the impact. Frangible bullets are made to break apart when striking a hard material, which raises concerns about injuries caused by ricochets. The institute will use the data obtained from its research to serve as the foundation for additional studies. The Department of Justice will examine the conclusions of the various studies to assess the existing body-armor performance standard. http://www.policemag.com
"FDA Approves Treatment for Nerve-Poisoning Agents for Use by Trained Emergency Medical Services Personnel"
Medical News Today (10/02/06)
The FDA has approved Duodote by Meridian Medical Technologies for use by emergency medical service providers to treat people affected by nerve gas attacks, which can include exposure to sarin, certain insecticides, and any organophosphorus life-threatening nerve agents. Duodote combines atrophine and pralidoxime chloride in an injection formulation. This combination was first approved in 2002 under acronym ATNAA for military use only. "Today's approval facilitates the stockpiling of the product so that it can be used to treat civilians in an emergency," says FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research deputy director Dr. Douglas Throckmorton. He adds that "Duodote may be administered only by well-trained emergency medical personnel."
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com
/medicalnews.php?newsid=53094&nfid=rssfeeds
"Just Hit Record: TiVo Goes on Patrol"
Washington Technology (10/02/06) Vol. 21, No. 19, P. 21; Beizer, Doug
The Rockville (Maryland) Police Department (RPD) is deploying new in-car video equipment in its squad cars that starts recording in 60-second segments as soon as it is turned on, says the department's Cpl. Kenneth Matney. The system consists of a control panel, a forward-facing camera, and a low-light infrared camera, and continuously records and re-records in 60-second intervals until the entire system is activated. At that point, recording takes place on the hard drive, but the most recent 60-second segment is stored. This provides police officers with a better chance of retaining crucial evidence. RPD opted to migrate to ICOP Digital's 20/20 digital system because of the technology's advantages over standard tape, according to Matney. "It helps us out, it provides us evidence in court, and it has beaten several false complaints on officers," he notes. The new digital system has a 20G hard drive that can hold eight hours of higher quality footage or 16 hours of extended-play footage, and can also be placed into a docking system to download footage to a server. Laura Owen, ICOP's president and chief operating officer, says the best arrangement for a police department is to have a separate server for storing and overseeing video files, but this is not mandatory. The 20/20 model is compatible with additional devices like the NOPTIC thermal imaging camera by Autoliv and license plate recognition technology from PIPS Technology; by December, new software will also allow the sharing of files among agencies via Web protocols, according to Owen.
http://www.washingtontechnology.com
"Camera Lets Law Enforcement Stand Back for a Closer Look"
Beaumont Enterprise (09/28/06); Myers, Ryan
Beaumont, Texas, police are in the process of obtaining a VideoProbe XL PRO device that will enable them to inspect inside containers without opening them, which will minimize hazardous exposure to police officers. The VideoProbe XL PRO by General Electronics Inspection Technologies is a camera mounted within the thin end of a flexible tube. Beaumont Police Department Sgt. Tim Ocnaschek says it will help police officers reduce their exposure to container contents. He says the department may use it for narcotics operations as well as for any suspicious container inspections. The $33,465 instrument also can detect and record sound. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security provided $27,800 in grant funding for it.
http://www.beaumontenterprise.com
"Alabama Police Department Runs 100 Percent E-85 Fleet"
Police (09/06) Vol. 30, No. 9, P. 17; Knight, Cheryl
The Hoover Police Department (HPD) uses E-85 to fuel its entire fleet of Chevrolet Tahoe Police cars, which ranks the department as the national leader among law enforcement agencies using the fuel. The Hoover Public Safety Facility houses refueling equipment for the vehicles, which average 24,000 gallons of fuel consumption each month. The HPD distributed E-85 fueling cards to its officers that provide important information, such as how many miles the vehicles travel before stopping for more fuel. The information is used when conducting analysis of the vehicles' value to the Alabama-based police department. Dave Lindon, fleet management director for the City of Hoover, said the 2005 Tahoe is an excellent vehicle for police applications. He reports that using E-85 to power the vehicles has provided environmental benefits, plus lessened dependence on imported oil. Lindon adds that officers have praised the E-85 Tahoes. http://www.policemag.com
"Looking Toward the "Agency of the Future""
Law Enforcement Technology (09/06) P. 52; Ruderman, Jan
Jan Ruderman, a senior director for Panasonic Solutions Co.'s Public Sector operations, said that technology vendors are collaborating with law enforcement officials in designing future tools. Ruderman adds that law enforcement have always used the latest technological developments to enhance their ability to apprehend suspects and discourage law breaking. Today's police officers can access more content than ever before via mobile data terminals and pagers. High-speed data transmission and solutions using wireless technology provide officers with immediate access to data. Having mobile access to data has emerged as a cornerstone for law enforcement agencies interested in fully utilizing the latest technology. Officers that are still without mobile technology believe that not having wireless capabilities keeps them isolated from the public by confining them to their vehicles most of the time to carry out tasks, like making reports. Surveillance technologies, such as video recording devices placed in high-crime areas, can effectively enable officers to patrol more territory than ever before without having to be at each location. However, adoption of high-tech tools face potential obstacles as the result of budgetary concerns, departmental policies, and other obstacles. http://www.officer.com/magazines/let/
"Next Generation 911 Systems"
Police and Security News (09/06) Vol. 22, No. 5, P. 47; Scott, Mike
Upgrading E911 systems has now become a big priority for public safety departments. Courtney McCarron at the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials (APCO) agrees with public safety agencies that E911 systems as money savers are more effective than ever. "These new systems can handle so much more data and the investment can be worth it in the future," says McCarron. McCarron says now is a good time to purchase new 911 systems because of the rapidly changing technology and the high cost of 911 technology. 911 systems are always changing, which poses a challenge to customers. Intrado CTO Stephen Meer says communication centers should not have to keep adding equipment to their center. Lt. Don Huckabee admires E911 systems that are user-friendly and fully integrated. Huckabee says he looks for vendors that offer free upgrades. Intrado is developing a software program that directs 911 calls to the right area. Public safety vendors such as Meer and Paul Guest at Positron Public Safety Systems want to offer a more efficient flow of communication and better operability. "We need to make sure that, as many refinements are being made to the new E911 systems, there are no sacrifices to the actual product," says Guest. "I think there is a pent up demand for VoIP as people move toward increasing the intelligence they get from their systems." Many systems now offer public safety agencies the ability to communicate through a wired or wireless system across several networks.
http://www.policeandsecuritynews.com
"Greenfield Police Stepping Up Crime Fighting With Technology"
Californian (09/27/06) P. 1A; Vijayan, Sunita
The Greenfield, Calif., police department continues to invest in new technology. A month after purchasing a remote-controlled inspection robot, the police department is rolling out Taser Cams that are designed to record sound and video whenever electronic stun guns are deployed. The small video camera attaches to the bottom of a Taser, and uses rechargeable batteries that last up to 90 minutes. Greenfield purchased eight of the Taser Cams, which hit the market two months ago, using a $3,200 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice. The unit also produces a flash to warn police officers when the lens is obstructed. "My expectation is that the Taser Cams will vindicate the policies and training we have, and it will also be physical proof of what happened" when stun guns were in use, says Greenfield Police Chief Joe Grebmeier. Greenfield's investment comes at a time when nearby police departments and the local sheriff's office have had suspects die after receiving electrical jolts from Tasers. Meanwhile, the $5,000 MMP-8 robot will be used to stake out dangerous areas that police officers are unable to reach.
http://www.californianonline.com
"Police, Banks Not in Sync on Identity Crime?"
American Banker (09/27/06); Wolfe, Daniel
Banking and financial-services officials who have put enormous amounts of resources into combating online fraud are complaining about the difficulty of getting law enforcement agencies to pursue cases, with Fair Isaac Corp.'s Ted Crooks saying, "The relative ineffectiveness of law enforcement in dealing with fraud has become a critical issue." The problem stems both from different methods--investigators can be uncomfortable working with information from highly automated banking systems--and the fact that law enforcement often sees cases involving only tens of thousands of dollars, as opposed to millions of dollars, as much lower priority than banking officials consider them to be.
http://americanbanker.com
/article.html?id=20060926
E4FB1ZKX&from=technology
"Scan System to Mend Gap in Crime Files: Sheriff Fingerprinting for Petty Offenses"
Columbia Daily Tribune (MO) (09/27/06); Luecke, Jacob
Boone County, Mo., has invested in a new digital fingerprint scanner, and the Sheriff's Department plans to use the technology in the county courthouse to ensure that people who are charged with minor offenses will be fingerprinted. In the past, officers often wrote court summons at the scene for suspects instead of bringing them in for fingerprinting, which meant that people's criminal records were not always accurate. Once the county has a fingerprint, it can forward the fingerprint and new crimes to the state criminal database. By installing the digital fingerprint system at the courthouse, the county now can fingerprint suspects whenever they show up for court hearings. The county used a grant from the Department of Justice to obtain the digital technology, which would have cost $50,000. The Columbia Police Department also hopes to take advantage of the new digital fingerprint scanner. "I'm hoping to be up and operating with all the agencies involved by November or December, somewhere in that range," says Boone County Sheriff Dwayne Carey. http://www.columbiatribune.com
"Los Angeles Counterterrorism Center Goes Live"
Law Enforcement Technology (09/06) Vol. 33, No. 9, P. 99
California's Los Angeles Joint Regional Intelligence Center (LAJRIC) is now up and running, a joint center for officers from the FBI, Homeland Security, Los Angeles Police Department, and Los Angeles County Terrorist Early Warning Group. LAJRIC has over 200 desktop PCs and a Memex data-crunching system for cross-pollinating data, tips, and leads among all these agencies. LAJRIC will also help them coordinate with local California law enforcement, and provide an unclassified data environment to local law enforcement.
http://www.officer.com/magazines/let/
Thursday, October 5, 2006
"Lost in Musty Files, Police Turning to Web for Cold Case Help"
Associated Press (09/30/06); Barrouquere, Brett
The Kentucky State Police recently posted online information about close to 130 unsolved murders in the state's last 50 years in hopes of attracting people with additional information. Kentucky's gambit is not uncommon, as law enforcement in Alaska and Texas have done the same. Baltimore County Police Department's William Toohey says the Internet is a great tool to reach people who might know something about a case, but since the incident in question have left the state. "If you're going to do law enforcement these days, you've got to use the Internet," says Toohey. The Kentucky State Police did receive significant information in one case after they posted it online. A sister-in-law located in Wisconsin was performing an Internet search for her husband's brother, who disappeared in 1993, when she and then her husband recognized the artist's sketch of the unidentified man in a Kentucky found-body case. http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com
/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061001
/NEWS02/610010302
"Police Chief Weighs a Stun Gun Tryout"
Washington Post (09/28/06) P. T3; Hernandez, Nelson
The Howard County, Md., Police Department intends to evaluate the possibility of using electric stun guns to disable unruly suspects. At present, a county law bans their use, so the police department would first need to convince the Howard County Council to lift the ban. Upwards of 7,000 of the country's 18,000 police agencies use stun guns, according to Amnesty International. The weapons are viewed as a nonlethal way to subdue suspects, but they have been associated with in-custody deaths, and critics also claim that police officers could misuse the weapons. There are several other types of nonlethal weapons being used across the country, including pepper balls, beanbag shotguns, and pepper spray. However, unruly suspects, especially those on drugs, are sometimes capable of withstanding the effects of these weapons. This is rarely the case with stun guns, which typically cause people to collapse after two or three seconds as their neuromuscular system is shut down. Stun gun victims usually regain their muscle movements in 15 minutes, providing police with plenty of time to handcuff the suspect. Doug Ward, deputy director of Johns Hopkins University's Division of Public Safety Leadership, explains that stun guns sometimes have unintended, fatal results, especially if the suspect has health issues or falls down and becomes injured.
http://www.washingtonpost.com
/wp-dyn/print/community/loud
oun/index.html
"Iris Scanning Now Used to Track Sexual Offenders"
Sheriff (10/06) Vol. 58, No. 5, P. 24; O'Reilly, Kevin
In July, the Mecklenburg County (N.C.) Sheriff's Department became the first in the country to install BI2 Technologies' Sex Offender Registry and Identification System (SORIS), which registers and positively identifies convicted sexual predators using iris recognition biometric technology. The system uses a special high-resolution camera to capture a digital photograph of each of the sex offender's eyes and create a unique iris code for each individual enrolled in the system. Once a convicted sex offender is registered in the national SORIS system, their location and identity is verified within seconds from any participating agency simply by looking in the camera. SORIS is portable and can be used on a wireless network, which means law enforcement agencies who use it have the ability to go to the homes of suspected offenders and identify them immediately, said Mecklenburg County Sheriff Jim Pendergraph. Iris recognition has a number of advantages over other types of biometric systems. The human iris is absolutely unique--even between identical twins or a person's right and left eyes--and its physical characteristics do not change with age. In addition, fingerprints, facial identification, retina scan, and voice recognition do not provide the level of accuracy, speed, or cost-effectiveness found with iris recognition technology.
http://www.sheriffs.org
"Surveying the Scene"
Government Technology (09/06) Vol. 19, No. 9, P. 58; McKay, Jim
The Smart Station survey device by Leica Geosystems enables police officers in Sparks, Nev., to chart a motor vehicle accident scene within 30 minutes or less, compared to the previous tape-measure and hand-diagramming method that took three hours. The Sparks police department purchased the machine for $41,000, and they are still training police officers to use it. "We get our roadways open a lot faster," says Sparks Traffic Officer Shane Minick. The SmartStation records all accident data at the scene with a global positioning system (GPS) called a GPS rover, and then overlays those points onto a city map of the scene, creating a more accurate and much faster map of the accident wreckage. Before in Sparks, the plotting of the points was done by hand, and it was overlaid onto aerial photos for a composite of the accident.
http://www.govtech.net
/magazine/story.php?id=100901
"NIST Experiments Test Frangibles Against Vests"
Police (09/06) Vol. 30, No. 9, P. 19
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is analyzing the trajectories of bullet fragments that occur when frangible bullets impact sturdy material. Concerns have increased about the damage potential of frangible bullets because of the relative softness of body armor used by first-responders and law enforcement officers. The research being conducted by NIST relies on a device developed by the association to determine the affect of "frangible bullets" when striking metal. The Kolsky bar device focuses on the metal's reaction to the impact. Frangible bullets are made to break apart when striking a hard material, which raises concerns about injuries caused by ricochets. The institute will use the data obtained from its research to serve as the foundation for additional studies. The Department of Justice will examine the conclusions of the various studies to assess the existing body-armor performance standard. http://www.policemag.com
"FDA Approves Treatment for Nerve-Poisoning Agents for Use by Trained Emergency Medical Services Personnel"
Medical News Today (10/02/06)
The FDA has approved Duodote by Meridian Medical Technologies for use by emergency medical service providers to treat people affected by nerve gas attacks, which can include exposure to sarin, certain insecticides, and any organophosphorus life-threatening nerve agents. Duodote combines atrophine and pralidoxime chloride in an injection formulation. This combination was first approved in 2002 under acronym ATNAA for military use only. "Today's approval facilitates the stockpiling of the product so that it can be used to treat civilians in an emergency," says FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research deputy director Dr. Douglas Throckmorton. He adds that "Duodote may be administered only by well-trained emergency medical personnel."
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com
/medicalnews.php?newsid=53094&nfid=rssfeeds
"Just Hit Record: TiVo Goes on Patrol"
Washington Technology (10/02/06) Vol. 21, No. 19, P. 21; Beizer, Doug
The Rockville (Maryland) Police Department (RPD) is deploying new in-car video equipment in its squad cars that starts recording in 60-second segments as soon as it is turned on, says the department's Cpl. Kenneth Matney. The system consists of a control panel, a forward-facing camera, and a low-light infrared camera, and continuously records and re-records in 60-second intervals until the entire system is activated. At that point, recording takes place on the hard drive, but the most recent 60-second segment is stored. This provides police officers with a better chance of retaining crucial evidence. RPD opted to migrate to ICOP Digital's 20/20 digital system because of the technology's advantages over standard tape, according to Matney. "It helps us out, it provides us evidence in court, and it has beaten several false complaints on officers," he notes. The new digital system has a 20G hard drive that can hold eight hours of higher quality footage or 16 hours of extended-play footage, and can also be placed into a docking system to download footage to a server. Laura Owen, ICOP's president and chief operating officer, says the best arrangement for a police department is to have a separate server for storing and overseeing video files, but this is not mandatory. The 20/20 model is compatible with additional devices like the NOPTIC thermal imaging camera by Autoliv and license plate recognition technology from PIPS Technology; by December, new software will also allow the sharing of files among agencies via Web protocols, according to Owen.
http://www.washingtontechnology.com
"Camera Lets Law Enforcement Stand Back for a Closer Look"
Beaumont Enterprise (09/28/06); Myers, Ryan
Beaumont, Texas, police are in the process of obtaining a VideoProbe XL PRO device that will enable them to inspect inside containers without opening them, which will minimize hazardous exposure to police officers. The VideoProbe XL PRO by General Electronics Inspection Technologies is a camera mounted within the thin end of a flexible tube. Beaumont Police Department Sgt. Tim Ocnaschek says it will help police officers reduce their exposure to container contents. He says the department may use it for narcotics operations as well as for any suspicious container inspections. The $33,465 instrument also can detect and record sound. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security provided $27,800 in grant funding for it.
http://www.beaumontenterprise.com
"Alabama Police Department Runs 100 Percent E-85 Fleet"
Police (09/06) Vol. 30, No. 9, P. 17; Knight, Cheryl
The Hoover Police Department (HPD) uses E-85 to fuel its entire fleet of Chevrolet Tahoe Police cars, which ranks the department as the national leader among law enforcement agencies using the fuel. The Hoover Public Safety Facility houses refueling equipment for the vehicles, which average 24,000 gallons of fuel consumption each month. The HPD distributed E-85 fueling cards to its officers that provide important information, such as how many miles the vehicles travel before stopping for more fuel. The information is used when conducting analysis of the vehicles' value to the Alabama-based police department. Dave Lindon, fleet management director for the City of Hoover, said the 2005 Tahoe is an excellent vehicle for police applications. He reports that using E-85 to power the vehicles has provided environmental benefits, plus lessened dependence on imported oil. Lindon adds that officers have praised the E-85 Tahoes. http://www.policemag.com
"Looking Toward the "Agency of the Future""
Law Enforcement Technology (09/06) P. 52; Ruderman, Jan
Jan Ruderman, a senior director for Panasonic Solutions Co.'s Public Sector operations, said that technology vendors are collaborating with law enforcement officials in designing future tools. Ruderman adds that law enforcement have always used the latest technological developments to enhance their ability to apprehend suspects and discourage law breaking. Today's police officers can access more content than ever before via mobile data terminals and pagers. High-speed data transmission and solutions using wireless technology provide officers with immediate access to data. Having mobile access to data has emerged as a cornerstone for law enforcement agencies interested in fully utilizing the latest technology. Officers that are still without mobile technology believe that not having wireless capabilities keeps them isolated from the public by confining them to their vehicles most of the time to carry out tasks, like making reports. Surveillance technologies, such as video recording devices placed in high-crime areas, can effectively enable officers to patrol more territory than ever before without having to be at each location. However, adoption of high-tech tools face potential obstacles as the result of budgetary concerns, departmental policies, and other obstacles. http://www.officer.com/magazines/let/
"Next Generation 911 Systems"
Police and Security News (09/06) Vol. 22, No. 5, P. 47; Scott, Mike
Upgrading E911 systems has now become a big priority for public safety departments. Courtney McCarron at the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials (APCO) agrees with public safety agencies that E911 systems as money savers are more effective than ever. "These new systems can handle so much more data and the investment can be worth it in the future," says McCarron. McCarron says now is a good time to purchase new 911 systems because of the rapidly changing technology and the high cost of 911 technology. 911 systems are always changing, which poses a challenge to customers. Intrado CTO Stephen Meer says communication centers should not have to keep adding equipment to their center. Lt. Don Huckabee admires E911 systems that are user-friendly and fully integrated. Huckabee says he looks for vendors that offer free upgrades. Intrado is developing a software program that directs 911 calls to the right area. Public safety vendors such as Meer and Paul Guest at Positron Public Safety Systems want to offer a more efficient flow of communication and better operability. "We need to make sure that, as many refinements are being made to the new E911 systems, there are no sacrifices to the actual product," says Guest. "I think there is a pent up demand for VoIP as people move toward increasing the intelligence they get from their systems." Many systems now offer public safety agencies the ability to communicate through a wired or wireless system across several networks.
http://www.policeandsecuritynews.com
"Greenfield Police Stepping Up Crime Fighting With Technology"
Californian (09/27/06) P. 1A; Vijayan, Sunita
The Greenfield, Calif., police department continues to invest in new technology. A month after purchasing a remote-controlled inspection robot, the police department is rolling out Taser Cams that are designed to record sound and video whenever electronic stun guns are deployed. The small video camera attaches to the bottom of a Taser, and uses rechargeable batteries that last up to 90 minutes. Greenfield purchased eight of the Taser Cams, which hit the market two months ago, using a $3,200 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice. The unit also produces a flash to warn police officers when the lens is obstructed. "My expectation is that the Taser Cams will vindicate the policies and training we have, and it will also be physical proof of what happened" when stun guns were in use, says Greenfield Police Chief Joe Grebmeier. Greenfield's investment comes at a time when nearby police departments and the local sheriff's office have had suspects die after receiving electrical jolts from Tasers. Meanwhile, the $5,000 MMP-8 robot will be used to stake out dangerous areas that police officers are unable to reach.
http://www.californianonline.com
"Police, Banks Not in Sync on Identity Crime?"
American Banker (09/27/06); Wolfe, Daniel
Banking and financial-services officials who have put enormous amounts of resources into combating online fraud are complaining about the difficulty of getting law enforcement agencies to pursue cases, with Fair Isaac Corp.'s Ted Crooks saying, "The relative ineffectiveness of law enforcement in dealing with fraud has become a critical issue." The problem stems both from different methods--investigators can be uncomfortable working with information from highly automated banking systems--and the fact that law enforcement often sees cases involving only tens of thousands of dollars, as opposed to millions of dollars, as much lower priority than banking officials consider them to be.
http://americanbanker.com
/article.html?id=20060926
E4FB1ZKX&from=technology
"Scan System to Mend Gap in Crime Files: Sheriff Fingerprinting for Petty Offenses"
Columbia Daily Tribune (MO) (09/27/06); Luecke, Jacob
Boone County, Mo., has invested in a new digital fingerprint scanner, and the Sheriff's Department plans to use the technology in the county courthouse to ensure that people who are charged with minor offenses will be fingerprinted. In the past, officers often wrote court summons at the scene for suspects instead of bringing them in for fingerprinting, which meant that people's criminal records were not always accurate. Once the county has a fingerprint, it can forward the fingerprint and new crimes to the state criminal database. By installing the digital fingerprint system at the courthouse, the county now can fingerprint suspects whenever they show up for court hearings. The county used a grant from the Department of Justice to obtain the digital technology, which would have cost $50,000. The Columbia Police Department also hopes to take advantage of the new digital fingerprint scanner. "I'm hoping to be up and operating with all the agencies involved by November or December, somewhere in that range," says Boone County Sheriff Dwayne Carey. http://www.columbiatribune.com
"Los Angeles Counterterrorism Center Goes Live"
Law Enforcement Technology (09/06) Vol. 33, No. 9, P. 99
California's Los Angeles Joint Regional Intelligence Center (LAJRIC) is now up and running, a joint center for officers from the FBI, Homeland Security, Los Angeles Police Department, and Los Angeles County Terrorist Early Warning Group. LAJRIC has over 200 desktop PCs and a Memex data-crunching system for cross-pollinating data, tips, and leads among all these agencies. LAJRIC will also help them coordinate with local California law enforcement, and provide an unclassified data environment to local law enforcement.
http://www.officer.com/magazines/let/
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
CBR Weapons and WMD Terrorism News- October 4, 2006
Detectors hunt anthrax [Bacillus anthracis]
5 years after deadly attack “More than 1,000 biological detectors are sniffing mail across the country for dangerous contamination as the hunt goes on for whoever put anthrax [Bacillus anthracis spores] in letters and killed five persons just after the September 11 attacks. The U.S. Postal Service has taken action to prevent a repeat [of the attacks]. ‘We have fully deployed the fleet of bio-detection systems’ on canceling machines at 271 mail-processing locations, Postal Vice President Tom Day said. A modified version for larger, flat mail items will be put into service next year, he said.~Installation of the current system cost $800 million, provided by Congress, and the post office is spending about $70 million to operate it.
That annual cost is expected to climb to $120 million.” (The Washington Times; 04Oct06; Randolph E. Schmid and Michael J. Sniffen, AP) http://washingtontimes.com
/functions/print.php?StoryID
=20061003-103956-5418r
Complexity of N.J.’s [New Jersey’s] public health structure raises questions about its ability to respond
“New Jersey has one of the most complex local public health infrastructures in the nation. There are 115 local health departments and more than 500 local boards of health -- a third of all the local boards of health in the entire nation. ‘You have an incredibly intense, piecemeal infrastructure that is incredibly dysfunctional,’ said Laura Kahn, author of a recent two-year study of the public health systems in four states, including New Jersey. In her study, Kahn asked physicians whether they felt prepared to recognize unusual infectious diseases. Only half of the 155 respondents indicated they were ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ prepared.” (The Star-Ledger, 04Oct06, Amy Ellis Nutt)
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger
/index.ssf?/base/news-9/11599
37280298970.xml&coll=1
Strategy combats weaponized anthrax
“U.S. scientists say they've developed a countermeasure to combat weaponized anthrax, a biological agent used in 2001 to kill five people. ‘For anthrax to be effective, it has to be made into a fine powder that can easily enter the lungs when inhaled,’ said Clemson University chemist Ya-Ping Sun. ‘What we have done is come up with an agent that clings to the anthrax spores to make their inhalation into the lungs difficult.’ Anthrax spores are covered with carbohydrates, or simple sugars, that are used to communicate with or attract other biological species. The Clemson team used carbon nanotubes as a platform or scaffolding for displaying sugar molecules that would attract the anthrax spores.” (Science Daily, 03Oct06, UPI)
http://www.sciencedaily.com
/upi/index.php?feed=Science&a
rticle=UPI-1-20061003-1601150
0-bc-us-anthrax.xml
Anthrax probe update sought
“Five years after anthrax-tainted mail thrust a local post office to the forefront of a national bioterrorism attack, Rep. Rush Holt has called on federal investigators to meet with postal employees and update them on the status of their investigation into the deadly attacks. In a letter sent to the FBI yesterday, Holt, D-Hopewell Township [New Jersey], demanded answers for employees at the Hamilton post office that processed the tainted mail that killed five people nationally. Holt demanded the local meeting five days after the FBI rebuffed his request to share classified information on the investigation with a congressional intelligence panel.”
(The Times, 03Oct06, Lisa Coryell)
http://www.nj.com/news
/times/index.ssf?/base/new
s-2/1159848336284030.xml&coll=5
Water utilities granted chemical exemption
“Water utilities using chemicals such as chlorine will no longer have to repeat vulnerability assessments and emergency response planning previously required by the Bioterrorism Act of 2002, according to a September 29 report in the American Water Works Association's (AWWA) WaterWeek. Congressional leaders agreed on a measure to exempt water and wastewater utilities from interim chemical security requirements authorized in the 2007 spending bill for the US Department of Homeland Security, the story said.” (Water Technology Online, 02Oct06)
http://www.watertechonline.com
/NewsPrint.asp?print=1&mode=
4&N_ID=63995&UniqueURL=
683774613-2006-10-4-1-5-7
Police need terror gear: Oslo police warn that they do not have vital equipment needed to cope with a terrorist attack on the capital
“Norway's terrorism readiness will be tested in one of the biggest catastrophe scenarios ever, dubbed ‘Exercise Oslo’. At the same time police and rescue teams warn of deficiencies that limit their ability to intervene. Sigve Bolstad, head of the Oslo Police Union, believes the exercise will uncover an extremely poor state of readiness, especially if there is a mock chemical attack, for example on the underground trains or the Norwegian State Railways tunnels during rush hour.” (Afterposten,
04Oct06)
http://www.aftenposten.no/
english/local/article1482294.ece
‘Chemical bomb’ raid that found nothing cost £2.2m
“The anti-terrorist raid on a house in east London, which failed to find a suspected chemical bomb being hunted by police, cost more than £2.2 million. The bill for the raid in Forest Gate in early June, which caused deep friction between the Metropolitan Police and some Muslims, includes slightly more than £90,000 in hotel charges to put up the two families whose homes were virtually dismantled in a fruitless forensic search.”
(The Daily Telegraph, 03Oct06, John Steele)
http://www.telegraph.co.uk
/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/200
6/10/03/nterr03.xml
OPCW’s [Orgainsation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons] Seventh Associate Programme Concludes
“The Seventh Associate Programme organised by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) concluded on 29 September 2006. The ten-week programme was attended by twenty-four participants from the following OPCW Member States: Algeria, Belarus, Brazil, Cambodia, Croatia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Malawi, Nigeria, Panama, Philippines, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Uruguay and Zambia. The training course facilitates the application of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in chemical industry. National capacity in the peaceful uses of chemistry is enhanced by improving the skills of qualified chemists and chemical engineers from Member States whose economies are in transition or development. The programme also increases the pool of experienced personnel that National Authorities and the OPCW can call upon in the future.” (Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, 04Oct06) http://www.opcw.org/
pressreleases/2006/PR65_2006.html
[Radioactive] Source recovery pinched by success
“A program to secure radioactive sources around the country has been almost too successful, said Patrick Moss, a general engineer, who has managed the project for the federal government. ‘The program exceeded the congressional mark on sources recovered,’ he said by phone from the Los Alamos National Laboratory site office of the National Nuclear Security Administration. __Moss responded this morning to an Inspector General audit following up on LANL's Off-Site Recover Project. The project has become increasingly important in proportion to concerns about terrorist threats and especially the availability of materials that might be used in a radiological dispersal device, also known as a ‘dirty bomb.’” (Los Alamos Monitor, 04Oct06, Roger Snodgrass)
http://www.lamonitor.com
/articles/2006/10/04/headline_news/news02.txt
Congress Doubts Value of New Radiation Detectors
“U.S. lawmakers have withheld all funding for deployment of next-generation radiation detectors until the Homeland Security Department proves the new monitors are a significant improvement over those currently in place. Questions about the new technology, known as the Advanced Spectroscopic Portal monitor, are nothing new.~ The Government Accountability Office in March noted the considerable cost of the detectors, up to $500,000 per machine compared to $180,000 for the monitors now being used, while questioning the improvements offered by the new technology. The congressional doubts, however, come just as lawmakers passed a sweeping port security measure that authorizes $3.4 billion in spending over five years and requires all containers at the nation’s 22 busiest seaports to be scanned for radioactive material by the end of 2007.” (Global Security Newswire, 03Oct06, John Fox)
http://www.nti.org/d_
newswire/issues/2006_10_
3.html#C5E5B104
Russia ratifies international nuclear anti-terror treaty
“Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a bill officially ratifying the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, the Kremlin announced Tuesday. The convention, proposed by Russia, was initially signed by Putin on behalf of Russia in September 2005 after several years of negotiations between nuclear and non-nuclear nations. The Russian parliament passed the bill to ratify it earlier this month. Already 107 states have signed the treaty and six other countries have ratified it; it will enter into force after it is ratified by at least 22 countries.” (Jurist, 03Oct06, Gabriel Habouti)
http://jurist.law.pitt.edu
/paperchase/2006/10/russia-ratif
ies-international-nuclear.php
7-year term for trying to make ricin
“A Phoenix man who was convicted of trying to manufacture the deadly biological toxin known as ricin was sentenced Monday to more than seven years in prison. Denys Ray Hughes, 59, was convicted by a federal jury in June on the ricin charge and possession of explosives and a silencer. U.S. District Judge Earl Carroll, who sentenced Hughes to 87 months in prison, said the case was among the most serious he had ever tried, according to prosecutors.” (The Arizona Republic, 03Oct06, Dennis Wagner) http://www.azcentral.com
/php-bin/clicktrack/print.php?re
ferer=http://www.azcentral.c
om/community/phoenix/article
s/1003ricin1003.html
Terrorism drill today to test emergency crews, military [in South Carolina]
“A mock terrorism exercise involving soldiers from Fort Jackson and hundreds of emergency responders from around the state is planned for today in Rock Hill [South Carolina]. The drill, to be held in the Winthrop Coliseum and parts of the surrounding Winthrop Farm, will simulate a terrorist attack that includes the use of chemical or biological weapons.”
(Rock Hill Herald, 04Oct06, Matt Garfield)
http://www.heraldonline.com
/109/story/7462.html
Anti-terror insurance expands for U.S. firms
“Insurance coverage for a terrorist attack like the one on Sept. 11, 2001, has expanded significantly in the past five years as a result of a U.S. government program that pays for the bulk of the damage, a Bush administration report has said. But the report, released late Monday, said there was virtually no coverage available for most of the damage that would come from a nuclear attack or one carried out with chemical or biological weapons.” (International Herald Tribune, 03Oct06, Bloomberg News)
http://www.iht.com/articles
/2006/10/03/business/ibrief.php
California man charged with threatening Bush, Cheney
“An engineer at a nuclear power plant near Sacramento has been charged with sending threatening letters containing a powdery substance to the same Sierra foothills country club where President Bush will appear Tuesday for a Republican campaign event. Michael Lee Braun, 51, appeared Monday in U.S. District Court in Sacramento on two federal charges of sending threats through the mail. The FBI said he also is a suspect in mailing dozens of similar threats since shortly after the 2001 terrorist attacks. ‘Each of the letters contained a written threat, usually death by some kind of WMD agent (anthrax, toxic chemical poison, radioactive dust or improvised explosives) and some unknown, white, powdery substance, or items simulating a possible letter/package improvised explosive device,’
according to the affidavit by Special Agent Timothy Lester.” (North County Times; 03Oct06; Don Thompson, AP)
http://www.nctimes.com
/articles/2006/10/03/news/
state/17_01_0010_2_06.txt
5 years after deadly attack “More than 1,000 biological detectors are sniffing mail across the country for dangerous contamination as the hunt goes on for whoever put anthrax [Bacillus anthracis spores] in letters and killed five persons just after the September 11 attacks. The U.S. Postal Service has taken action to prevent a repeat [of the attacks]. ‘We have fully deployed the fleet of bio-detection systems’ on canceling machines at 271 mail-processing locations, Postal Vice President Tom Day said. A modified version for larger, flat mail items will be put into service next year, he said.~Installation of the current system cost $800 million, provided by Congress, and the post office is spending about $70 million to operate it.
That annual cost is expected to climb to $120 million.” (The Washington Times; 04Oct06; Randolph E. Schmid and Michael J. Sniffen, AP) http://washingtontimes.com
/functions/print.php?StoryID
=20061003-103956-5418r
Complexity of N.J.’s [New Jersey’s] public health structure raises questions about its ability to respond
“New Jersey has one of the most complex local public health infrastructures in the nation. There are 115 local health departments and more than 500 local boards of health -- a third of all the local boards of health in the entire nation. ‘You have an incredibly intense, piecemeal infrastructure that is incredibly dysfunctional,’ said Laura Kahn, author of a recent two-year study of the public health systems in four states, including New Jersey. In her study, Kahn asked physicians whether they felt prepared to recognize unusual infectious diseases. Only half of the 155 respondents indicated they were ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ prepared.” (The Star-Ledger, 04Oct06, Amy Ellis Nutt)
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger
/index.ssf?/base/news-9/11599
37280298970.xml&coll=1
Strategy combats weaponized anthrax
“U.S. scientists say they've developed a countermeasure to combat weaponized anthrax, a biological agent used in 2001 to kill five people. ‘For anthrax to be effective, it has to be made into a fine powder that can easily enter the lungs when inhaled,’ said Clemson University chemist Ya-Ping Sun. ‘What we have done is come up with an agent that clings to the anthrax spores to make their inhalation into the lungs difficult.’ Anthrax spores are covered with carbohydrates, or simple sugars, that are used to communicate with or attract other biological species. The Clemson team used carbon nanotubes as a platform or scaffolding for displaying sugar molecules that would attract the anthrax spores.” (Science Daily, 03Oct06, UPI)
http://www.sciencedaily.com
/upi/index.php?feed=Science&a
rticle=UPI-1-20061003-1601150
0-bc-us-anthrax.xml
Anthrax probe update sought
“Five years after anthrax-tainted mail thrust a local post office to the forefront of a national bioterrorism attack, Rep. Rush Holt has called on federal investigators to meet with postal employees and update them on the status of their investigation into the deadly attacks. In a letter sent to the FBI yesterday, Holt, D-Hopewell Township [New Jersey], demanded answers for employees at the Hamilton post office that processed the tainted mail that killed five people nationally. Holt demanded the local meeting five days after the FBI rebuffed his request to share classified information on the investigation with a congressional intelligence panel.”
(The Times, 03Oct06, Lisa Coryell)
http://www.nj.com/news
/times/index.ssf?/base/new
s-2/1159848336284030.xml&coll=5
Water utilities granted chemical exemption
“Water utilities using chemicals such as chlorine will no longer have to repeat vulnerability assessments and emergency response planning previously required by the Bioterrorism Act of 2002, according to a September 29 report in the American Water Works Association's (AWWA) WaterWeek. Congressional leaders agreed on a measure to exempt water and wastewater utilities from interim chemical security requirements authorized in the 2007 spending bill for the US Department of Homeland Security, the story said.” (Water Technology Online, 02Oct06)
http://www.watertechonline.com
/NewsPrint.asp?print=1&mode=
4&N_ID=63995&UniqueURL=
683774613-2006-10-4-1-5-7
Police need terror gear: Oslo police warn that they do not have vital equipment needed to cope with a terrorist attack on the capital
“Norway's terrorism readiness will be tested in one of the biggest catastrophe scenarios ever, dubbed ‘Exercise Oslo’. At the same time police and rescue teams warn of deficiencies that limit their ability to intervene. Sigve Bolstad, head of the Oslo Police Union, believes the exercise will uncover an extremely poor state of readiness, especially if there is a mock chemical attack, for example on the underground trains or the Norwegian State Railways tunnels during rush hour.” (Afterposten,
04Oct06)
http://www.aftenposten.no/
english/local/article1482294.ece
‘Chemical bomb’ raid that found nothing cost £2.2m
“The anti-terrorist raid on a house in east London, which failed to find a suspected chemical bomb being hunted by police, cost more than £2.2 million. The bill for the raid in Forest Gate in early June, which caused deep friction between the Metropolitan Police and some Muslims, includes slightly more than £90,000 in hotel charges to put up the two families whose homes were virtually dismantled in a fruitless forensic search.”
(The Daily Telegraph, 03Oct06, John Steele)
http://www.telegraph.co.uk
/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/200
6/10/03/nterr03.xml
OPCW’s [Orgainsation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons] Seventh Associate Programme Concludes
“The Seventh Associate Programme organised by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) concluded on 29 September 2006. The ten-week programme was attended by twenty-four participants from the following OPCW Member States: Algeria, Belarus, Brazil, Cambodia, Croatia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Malawi, Nigeria, Panama, Philippines, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Uruguay and Zambia. The training course facilitates the application of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in chemical industry. National capacity in the peaceful uses of chemistry is enhanced by improving the skills of qualified chemists and chemical engineers from Member States whose economies are in transition or development. The programme also increases the pool of experienced personnel that National Authorities and the OPCW can call upon in the future.” (Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, 04Oct06) http://www.opcw.org/
pressreleases/2006/PR65_2006.html
[Radioactive] Source recovery pinched by success
“A program to secure radioactive sources around the country has been almost too successful, said Patrick Moss, a general engineer, who has managed the project for the federal government. ‘The program exceeded the congressional mark on sources recovered,’ he said by phone from the Los Alamos National Laboratory site office of the National Nuclear Security Administration. __Moss responded this morning to an Inspector General audit following up on LANL's Off-Site Recover Project. The project has become increasingly important in proportion to concerns about terrorist threats and especially the availability of materials that might be used in a radiological dispersal device, also known as a ‘dirty bomb.’” (Los Alamos Monitor, 04Oct06, Roger Snodgrass)
http://www.lamonitor.com
/articles/2006/10/04/headline_news/news02.txt
Congress Doubts Value of New Radiation Detectors
“U.S. lawmakers have withheld all funding for deployment of next-generation radiation detectors until the Homeland Security Department proves the new monitors are a significant improvement over those currently in place. Questions about the new technology, known as the Advanced Spectroscopic Portal monitor, are nothing new.~ The Government Accountability Office in March noted the considerable cost of the detectors, up to $500,000 per machine compared to $180,000 for the monitors now being used, while questioning the improvements offered by the new technology. The congressional doubts, however, come just as lawmakers passed a sweeping port security measure that authorizes $3.4 billion in spending over five years and requires all containers at the nation’s 22 busiest seaports to be scanned for radioactive material by the end of 2007.” (Global Security Newswire, 03Oct06, John Fox)
http://www.nti.org/d_
newswire/issues/2006_10_
3.html#C5E5B104
Russia ratifies international nuclear anti-terror treaty
“Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a bill officially ratifying the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, the Kremlin announced Tuesday. The convention, proposed by Russia, was initially signed by Putin on behalf of Russia in September 2005 after several years of negotiations between nuclear and non-nuclear nations. The Russian parliament passed the bill to ratify it earlier this month. Already 107 states have signed the treaty and six other countries have ratified it; it will enter into force after it is ratified by at least 22 countries.” (Jurist, 03Oct06, Gabriel Habouti)
http://jurist.law.pitt.edu
/paperchase/2006/10/russia-ratif
ies-international-nuclear.php
7-year term for trying to make ricin
“A Phoenix man who was convicted of trying to manufacture the deadly biological toxin known as ricin was sentenced Monday to more than seven years in prison. Denys Ray Hughes, 59, was convicted by a federal jury in June on the ricin charge and possession of explosives and a silencer. U.S. District Judge Earl Carroll, who sentenced Hughes to 87 months in prison, said the case was among the most serious he had ever tried, according to prosecutors.” (The Arizona Republic, 03Oct06, Dennis Wagner) http://www.azcentral.com
/php-bin/clicktrack/print.php?re
ferer=http://www.azcentral.c
om/community/phoenix/article
s/1003ricin1003.html
Terrorism drill today to test emergency crews, military [in South Carolina]
“A mock terrorism exercise involving soldiers from Fort Jackson and hundreds of emergency responders from around the state is planned for today in Rock Hill [South Carolina]. The drill, to be held in the Winthrop Coliseum and parts of the surrounding Winthrop Farm, will simulate a terrorist attack that includes the use of chemical or biological weapons.”
(Rock Hill Herald, 04Oct06, Matt Garfield)
http://www.heraldonline.com
/109/story/7462.html
Anti-terror insurance expands for U.S. firms
“Insurance coverage for a terrorist attack like the one on Sept. 11, 2001, has expanded significantly in the past five years as a result of a U.S. government program that pays for the bulk of the damage, a Bush administration report has said. But the report, released late Monday, said there was virtually no coverage available for most of the damage that would come from a nuclear attack or one carried out with chemical or biological weapons.” (International Herald Tribune, 03Oct06, Bloomberg News)
http://www.iht.com/articles
/2006/10/03/business/ibrief.php
California man charged with threatening Bush, Cheney
“An engineer at a nuclear power plant near Sacramento has been charged with sending threatening letters containing a powdery substance to the same Sierra foothills country club where President Bush will appear Tuesday for a Republican campaign event. Michael Lee Braun, 51, appeared Monday in U.S. District Court in Sacramento on two federal charges of sending threats through the mail. The FBI said he also is a suspect in mailing dozens of similar threats since shortly after the 2001 terrorist attacks. ‘Each of the letters contained a written threat, usually death by some kind of WMD agent (anthrax, toxic chemical poison, radioactive dust or improvised explosives) and some unknown, white, powdery substance, or items simulating a possible letter/package improvised explosive device,’
according to the affidavit by Special Agent Timothy Lester.” (North County Times; 03Oct06; Don Thompson, AP)
http://www.nctimes.com
/articles/2006/10/03/news/
state/17_01_0010_2_06.txt
Police author writes on Christian law enforcement
San Dimas (CA) October 5, 2006. Police-writers.com, a website dedicated to police officers turned authors has added its 142nd police officer, Michael Dye.
Michael Dye is a 21 year veteran of law enforcement. Currently, he is sergeant with the Volusia County Sheriff’s Department. His book, “The PeaceKeepers: A Bible Study for Law Enforcement,” asks the question - "How can I be both a cop and a Christian?"
According to the Michael’s book, police officers work in a world where there is constant struggle between good and evil. More than any other public service profession; those in the field of law enforcement are in a unique position to make a spiritual difference in the lives of both co-workers and citizens whom they encounter. However; without a firm spiritual foundation, the stress found in a law enforcement career can drag the police officer down emotionally thus leading to stress in the family, divorce, addiction, and in extreme cases even suicide.
The PeaceKeepers: A Bible Study for Law Enforcement is designed to be used by individual law enforcement officers and small groups. It is written by a Christian law enforcement veteran using real life situations that all police officers can appreciate. By using biblical quotes and spiritual references, the Peacekeepers study helps you discover and understand God's purpose for your life and career. Chapter topics include issues such as work stress, becoming spiritually connected, developing a stronger marriage and family, and being a sound witness for Christ.
Although not written by a police officer, Police-Writers.com offers as a companion to Michael Dye’s book, the Police Officer’s Bible. In the U.S. a police officer dies in the line of duty every 57 hours. Facing the worst elements in society exacts a toll both personally and in the family of police officers. According to the publisher, “God’s Word provides both power and perspective for these who are on the frontlines of our cities and villages. The Holman Christian Standard Policeman’s Bible is designed specifically for these who serve in a clearly God-ordained role. It contains devotions, prayers, and suggested Scripture readings for a wide variety of occasions.”
Police-Writers.com now lists 142 police officers turned authors and there 424 books in six categories.
Michael Dye is a 21 year veteran of law enforcement. Currently, he is sergeant with the Volusia County Sheriff’s Department. His book, “The PeaceKeepers: A Bible Study for Law Enforcement,” asks the question - "How can I be both a cop and a Christian?"
According to the Michael’s book, police officers work in a world where there is constant struggle between good and evil. More than any other public service profession; those in the field of law enforcement are in a unique position to make a spiritual difference in the lives of both co-workers and citizens whom they encounter. However; without a firm spiritual foundation, the stress found in a law enforcement career can drag the police officer down emotionally thus leading to stress in the family, divorce, addiction, and in extreme cases even suicide.
The PeaceKeepers: A Bible Study for Law Enforcement is designed to be used by individual law enforcement officers and small groups. It is written by a Christian law enforcement veteran using real life situations that all police officers can appreciate. By using biblical quotes and spiritual references, the Peacekeepers study helps you discover and understand God's purpose for your life and career. Chapter topics include issues such as work stress, becoming spiritually connected, developing a stronger marriage and family, and being a sound witness for Christ.
Although not written by a police officer, Police-Writers.com offers as a companion to Michael Dye’s book, the Police Officer’s Bible. In the U.S. a police officer dies in the line of duty every 57 hours. Facing the worst elements in society exacts a toll both personally and in the family of police officers. According to the publisher, “God’s Word provides both power and perspective for these who are on the frontlines of our cities and villages. The Holman Christian Standard Policeman’s Bible is designed specifically for these who serve in a clearly God-ordained role. It contains devotions, prayers, and suggested Scripture readings for a wide variety of occasions.”
Police-Writers.com now lists 142 police officers turned authors and there 424 books in six categories.
Police Officer’s Bible
The events of September 11, 2001 brought to our awareness the quiet heroism at work in both the large cities and the small towns and villages across the U.S. Every day police, men and women, put their lives on the line as servants of God, restraining the evil that seeks to destroy society. In the U.S. a police officer dies in the line of duty every 57 hours. Not only that, facing the worst elements in society exacts a toll both personally and in the family of police officers.
God’s Word provides both power and perspective for these who are on the frontlines of our cities and villages. The Holman Christian Standard Policeman’s Bible is designed specifically for these who serve in a clearly God-ordained role. It contains devotions, prayers, and suggested Scripture readings for a wide variety of occasions.
Click here for more information on the Police Officer’s Bible.
www.police-writers.com/police_officers_bible.html
God’s Word provides both power and perspective for these who are on the frontlines of our cities and villages. The Holman Christian Standard Policeman’s Bible is designed specifically for these who serve in a clearly God-ordained role. It contains devotions, prayers, and suggested Scripture readings for a wide variety of occasions.
Click here for more information on the Police Officer’s Bible.
www.police-writers.com/police_officers_bible.html
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Last U.S. Servicemembers to Leave Iceland Sept. 30
Editors Note: While not a criminal justice story, an interesting bit of history.
By Jim Garamone
WASHINGTON, Sept. 28, 2006 – A 65-year segment of history ends Sept. 30, when the last American servicemember based in the country leaves Iceland. U.S. servicemembers will continue to work with, train with and operate with their NATO ally, but troops will not be based in the island nation, said Thomas F. Hall, assistant defense secretary for reserve affairs and the man who negotiated the U.S.-Iceland agreement.
Hall said the last American servicemembers will take down the U.S. flag at Navy Air Station Keflavik at 5 p.m. Sept. 30 and then depart.
The United States will continue to defend Iceland as part of the 1951 Defense Agreement between the two nations and as as a NATO ally. An attack on one NATO nation is considered an attack on all.
In March 2006, the United States announced the decision to close American facilities on the island and reassign the servicemembers. Since then, U.S. and Icelandic officials have been working together to craft the new relationship.
At one time, Iceland had more than 10,000 U.S. servicemembers based there. Then, the threats came from first Nazi Germany and then the Soviet Union. Since the fall of the Soviet Union, the threats have changed and come from new directions: terrorism, international crime, and drug trafficking, Hall said.
The United States is stepping up its coordination with Iceland to help maintain the security of the country and the region against such emerging threats. U.S. forces could go back into the country quickly if conventional threats re-emerged, Hall said. The assistant secretary said there will be at least yearly exercises and U.S. ships will visit the nation on a regular basis.
Even before the U.S. entry into World War II, the U.S. government vowed to defend Iceland. In 1940, Denmark, which then had sovereignty over Iceland, fell to the Nazis. British troops moved into Iceland to defend the nation, which has never had a standing military force.
In July 1941, U.S. forces landed in Keflavik and replaced the Brits. With a few short breaks, American servicemembers have provided security for Iceland ever since.
During World War II and the Cold War, Iceland was critical to keeping the sea lines of communication open. The U.S. maintained aircraft on Iceland to defend Iceland and the North Atlantic sea lanes against conventional military threats: submarines, ships and aircraft. But those threats no longer exist.
A State Department official said the new agreement builds upon "our ironclad commitment" to defend Iceland under the 1951 Defense Agreement and the 1949 North Atlantic Treaty. "The package also puts us on course to see that Iceland's security needs are met and that Iceland contributes to global security requirements in deterring terrorism and countering trafficking in drugs and persons and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction," the official said.
Since the 1940s, most American forces based in Iceland were stationed at Naval Air Station Keflavik.
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
PhD, NYPD, LAPD and the Three Little Pigs
September 27, 2006 (San Dimas, CA) Police-Writers.com, a website dedicated to police officers turned authors, has added four local police officers.
Dr. Isaiah McKinnon has more than 39 years of experience in the public and private sector, education, law enforcement and private security. Since his retirement as Chief of Police of the Detroit Police Department, he has continued to educate more than 4 million television viewers on Personal Safety on his WDIV-TV program, "Stay Safe With Ike." Additionally, his Motivational, Inspirational, Educational presentations are heard by audiences nationally.
Isaiah McKinnon holds a Doctorate of Philosophy from Michigan State University, a Masters Degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Detroit, and a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Mercy College of Detroit. In addition he is a graduate of the FBI Academy in Virginia, and the United States Secret Service Dignitary Protection School in Washington D.C. He is also certified by the American College of Forensic Examiners Institute in Homeland Security at Level 111 (the highest level).
He has written three books: "North Between The Houses,” a collection of very funny anecdotes collected over thirty years of service; "In The Line of Duty,” a tribute to fallen law enforcement officers from the State of Michigan; and, "Stand Tall," an autobiography.
Robert Roots joined the New York Police Department where he reached his goal of becoming an Undercover Police Officer. Assigned to midtown Manhattan, Robert was involved in cases ranging from petty theft to murder. In the peak of his career, Robert was recruited to work as a Police Officer for one of Florida’s wealthiest communities in the Coral Gables Police Department.
Using his copyrighted approach, Robert Roots presents a message that neither you nor your organization will ever forget. Because he incorporates a familiar story, The Three Little Pigs, audiences not only enjoy the ideas shared with them; they subconsciously start applying the information to their daily life. Audiences learn that the way they handle obstacles and challenges affects every area of their life. And discover whether their Straw, Wood or Brick and the habits and mind-set that it takes to become Brick. Brick is what most people want to be, but most people settle for Wood.
Sergeant Mitchell Grobeson was the Los Angeles Police Department’s first openly gay police officer. Following the publicity from his groundbreaking lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department’s discriminatory practices, Mitchell Grobeson created the first formal support group for Southern California gay and lesbian law enforcement, fire, rescue and paramedic professionals. He also formed and hosted the first Statewide and National conference of gay officers in California.
His first novel, “Outside the Badge,” tells the story of a serial killer hunting the streets of Los Angeles. According to Jack Connolly, “That some members of the LAPD could use a good spanking is no secret; allegations of abuse within and outside the Los Angeles Police Department have been surfacing for years. In Outside the Badge, former LAPD Police Officer Mitchell Grobeson (who sued the department for discrimination--and won) takes actual events to weave a fictionalized account of a cop under siege--from the streets and from his own department. Grobeson obviously knows his territory. Those with a cop fetish will enjoy his authentic voice and his attention to police procedure. And the unconventional cover image of him as a hunky bare-chested hustler will surely win him fans. But his gritty tale is not for the faint-hearted: the descriptions of the doomed hustlers--mostly runaways--are heartbreaking, and the torture scenes are cold and graphic.”
Ruben Benjamin Whittington was born and raised in Norristown, Pennsylvania. At the age of seventeen, he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. During his enlistment, he spent a one year tour of duty in Vietnam as part of the U.S. build up during that war. He began his law enforcement career with the Norristown, Pennsylvania Police Department for four years before he moved to Los Angeles and joined the Los Angeles Police Department. He worked for LAPD for 21 years and retired at the rank of sergeant. Ruben also joined the California Army National Guard and the California Air National Guard. Ruben taught law enforcement for seven years to high school students at Los Altos and Workman High Schools under the direction of the La Puente Valley ROP. Today, Ruben is a franchise owner for Mr. Handyman, a national handyman franchise. Ruben has published one novel, Soldier: Behind the Badge.
His fictional novel tells the story of the dual life of an American special agent, like that of James Bond, who disguises himself as a police officer and fights crime on the busy and dangerous streets of Los Angeles. Then, when his country needs him, his true identity is revealed and he becomes a secret CIA special agent in this action-packed novel set in today's treacherous and volatile world. For fun, Lance Kessler is a Los Angeles Police Department police officer; but his real profession is being a top-notch freelance agent for the CIA. He's the best the CIA has. But now Lance has crossed paths with a secret worldwide criminal organization known only as PHANTOM, and PHANTOM has decided that Lance needs to be eliminated.
Both Mitchell Grobeson and Rueben Benjamin Whittington were also added to LAPDAuthors.com, a website dedicated to Los Angeles Police Department officers turned authors.
Police-Writers.com now lists 141 police officers and their 423 books in six categories.
Dr. Isaiah McKinnon has more than 39 years of experience in the public and private sector, education, law enforcement and private security. Since his retirement as Chief of Police of the Detroit Police Department, he has continued to educate more than 4 million television viewers on Personal Safety on his WDIV-TV program, "Stay Safe With Ike." Additionally, his Motivational, Inspirational, Educational presentations are heard by audiences nationally.
Isaiah McKinnon holds a Doctorate of Philosophy from Michigan State University, a Masters Degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Detroit, and a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Mercy College of Detroit. In addition he is a graduate of the FBI Academy in Virginia, and the United States Secret Service Dignitary Protection School in Washington D.C. He is also certified by the American College of Forensic Examiners Institute in Homeland Security at Level 111 (the highest level).
He has written three books: "North Between The Houses,” a collection of very funny anecdotes collected over thirty years of service; "In The Line of Duty,” a tribute to fallen law enforcement officers from the State of Michigan; and, "Stand Tall," an autobiography.
Robert Roots joined the New York Police Department where he reached his goal of becoming an Undercover Police Officer. Assigned to midtown Manhattan, Robert was involved in cases ranging from petty theft to murder. In the peak of his career, Robert was recruited to work as a Police Officer for one of Florida’s wealthiest communities in the Coral Gables Police Department.
Using his copyrighted approach, Robert Roots presents a message that neither you nor your organization will ever forget. Because he incorporates a familiar story, The Three Little Pigs, audiences not only enjoy the ideas shared with them; they subconsciously start applying the information to their daily life. Audiences learn that the way they handle obstacles and challenges affects every area of their life. And discover whether their Straw, Wood or Brick and the habits and mind-set that it takes to become Brick. Brick is what most people want to be, but most people settle for Wood.
Sergeant Mitchell Grobeson was the Los Angeles Police Department’s first openly gay police officer. Following the publicity from his groundbreaking lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department’s discriminatory practices, Mitchell Grobeson created the first formal support group for Southern California gay and lesbian law enforcement, fire, rescue and paramedic professionals. He also formed and hosted the first Statewide and National conference of gay officers in California.
His first novel, “Outside the Badge,” tells the story of a serial killer hunting the streets of Los Angeles. According to Jack Connolly, “That some members of the LAPD could use a good spanking is no secret; allegations of abuse within and outside the Los Angeles Police Department have been surfacing for years. In Outside the Badge, former LAPD Police Officer Mitchell Grobeson (who sued the department for discrimination--and won) takes actual events to weave a fictionalized account of a cop under siege--from the streets and from his own department. Grobeson obviously knows his territory. Those with a cop fetish will enjoy his authentic voice and his attention to police procedure. And the unconventional cover image of him as a hunky bare-chested hustler will surely win him fans. But his gritty tale is not for the faint-hearted: the descriptions of the doomed hustlers--mostly runaways--are heartbreaking, and the torture scenes are cold and graphic.”
Ruben Benjamin Whittington was born and raised in Norristown, Pennsylvania. At the age of seventeen, he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. During his enlistment, he spent a one year tour of duty in Vietnam as part of the U.S. build up during that war. He began his law enforcement career with the Norristown, Pennsylvania Police Department for four years before he moved to Los Angeles and joined the Los Angeles Police Department. He worked for LAPD for 21 years and retired at the rank of sergeant. Ruben also joined the California Army National Guard and the California Air National Guard. Ruben taught law enforcement for seven years to high school students at Los Altos and Workman High Schools under the direction of the La Puente Valley ROP. Today, Ruben is a franchise owner for Mr. Handyman, a national handyman franchise. Ruben has published one novel, Soldier: Behind the Badge.
His fictional novel tells the story of the dual life of an American special agent, like that of James Bond, who disguises himself as a police officer and fights crime on the busy and dangerous streets of Los Angeles. Then, when his country needs him, his true identity is revealed and he becomes a secret CIA special agent in this action-packed novel set in today's treacherous and volatile world. For fun, Lance Kessler is a Los Angeles Police Department police officer; but his real profession is being a top-notch freelance agent for the CIA. He's the best the CIA has. But now Lance has crossed paths with a secret worldwide criminal organization known only as PHANTOM, and PHANTOM has decided that Lance needs to be eliminated.
Both Mitchell Grobeson and Rueben Benjamin Whittington were also added to LAPDAuthors.com, a website dedicated to Los Angeles Police Department officers turned authors.
Police-Writers.com now lists 141 police officers and their 423 books in six categories.
Cold Cases, Investigations and Tarot Cards
September 27, 2006 (San Dimas, CA) Police-Writers.com, a website dedicated to police officers turned authors, has added three authors, Richard Foschino of the Anderson County Sheriff's Department, Gregory D. Lee a retired Supervisory Special Agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration and Cheryl Hill and corrections worker from Corrections Corporation of America
Richard Foschino was born in New York City in 1947 and grew up in the Catskill Mountains of New York State. In 1979, he moved his family from New York State to East Tennessee, settling in a small town about twenty-five miles north of Knoxville
After serving three years as Chief of Public Safety for the City of Norris, Tennessee he joined the Anderson County Sheriff's Department, became Chief of Detectives, and rose to the rank of Chief Deputy. The greatest challenge of his law enforcement career was the assignment of a series of unsolved murders that occurred in remote areas of the county years ago. His books, Mountain Revenge and Mother’s Blood detail those investigations and are available via Mountain Top Publishing
Gregory D. Lee, M.P.A., is a retired Supervisory Special Agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and a former instructor at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Academy. Currently, he provides a wide range of consulting and expert witness services for the legal community and law enforcement agencies. Mr. Lee's expertise covers the entire spectrum of drug law enforcement. He is a qualified expert witness who thoroughly reviews both criminal and civil discovery material and provides a written case analysis based on his 30 years of law enforcement experience. His specific areas of expertise include the management of informants, deadly force, use of force, arrest procedures, drug raid planning and execution, undercover operations, surveillance, money laundering, drug identification, clandestine laboratories, terrorism, and police investigative procedures.
Greg literally wrote the book on drug investigations. He is the author of Global Drug Enforcement: Practical Investigative Techniques, Conspiracy Investigations: Terrorism, Drugs and Gangs, and Practical Criminal Evidence. Throughout his DEA career he wrote numerous articles for professional law enforcement publications.
Cheryl Hill is a published author, antique dealer, bookstore owner, musician, artist, property manager, real estate student, psychic investigator, tarot reader and entrepreneur.
Cheryl owned and operated one of the world’s largest psychic phone lines in the world. Cheryl also worked as an academy instructor and correctional officer for Corrections Corporation of American working in the Florence, Arizona facility. Her latest book, “Reverse Time” is about a female correctional officer’s first year in a federal detention center.
Police-Writers.com now lists 138 police officers and their 418 books in six categories.
Richard Foschino was born in New York City in 1947 and grew up in the Catskill Mountains of New York State. In 1979, he moved his family from New York State to East Tennessee, settling in a small town about twenty-five miles north of Knoxville
After serving three years as Chief of Public Safety for the City of Norris, Tennessee he joined the Anderson County Sheriff's Department, became Chief of Detectives, and rose to the rank of Chief Deputy. The greatest challenge of his law enforcement career was the assignment of a series of unsolved murders that occurred in remote areas of the county years ago. His books, Mountain Revenge and Mother’s Blood detail those investigations and are available via Mountain Top Publishing
Gregory D. Lee, M.P.A., is a retired Supervisory Special Agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and a former instructor at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Academy. Currently, he provides a wide range of consulting and expert witness services for the legal community and law enforcement agencies. Mr. Lee's expertise covers the entire spectrum of drug law enforcement. He is a qualified expert witness who thoroughly reviews both criminal and civil discovery material and provides a written case analysis based on his 30 years of law enforcement experience. His specific areas of expertise include the management of informants, deadly force, use of force, arrest procedures, drug raid planning and execution, undercover operations, surveillance, money laundering, drug identification, clandestine laboratories, terrorism, and police investigative procedures.
Greg literally wrote the book on drug investigations. He is the author of Global Drug Enforcement: Practical Investigative Techniques, Conspiracy Investigations: Terrorism, Drugs and Gangs, and Practical Criminal Evidence. Throughout his DEA career he wrote numerous articles for professional law enforcement publications.
Cheryl Hill is a published author, antique dealer, bookstore owner, musician, artist, property manager, real estate student, psychic investigator, tarot reader and entrepreneur.
Cheryl owned and operated one of the world’s largest psychic phone lines in the world. Cheryl also worked as an academy instructor and correctional officer for Corrections Corporation of American working in the Florence, Arizona facility. Her latest book, “Reverse Time” is about a female correctional officer’s first year in a federal detention center.
Police-Writers.com now lists 138 police officers and their 418 books in six categories.
Saturday, September 23, 2006
CBR Weapons and WMD Terrorism News- September 22, 2006
Spinach Scare’s Larger Warning
“Even as government health experts urge Americans to eat more fruits and vegetables, federal rules for protecting consumers from such hazards as the current E. coli outbreak from contaminated spinach are weaker than for meat and poultry. And as food-borne illnesses attributed to produce appear to be rising, budget squeezes have federal regulators retreating rather than attacking. Compliance with safety guidelines on the handling of produce is voluntary and federal inspectors conduct fewer and fewer checkups, according to government documents and interviews with consumer groups and a top former Food and Drug Administration official. For example, since the FDA hired inspectors in the wake of bioterrorism concerns after the Sept. 11 attacks, the government has been steadily thinning their ranks. The number of FDA staff in field offices around the country shrank from 2,217 in 2003 to 1,962 currently, budget documents indicate.” (Los Angeles Times, 22Sep06, Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar) http://www.latimes.com
/news/printedition/front
/la-na-spinach22sep22,1,61
88293.story?coll=la-headlines-f
rontpage&track=crosspromo
House committee approves biodefense measure
“The House Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesday passed legislation to promote countermeasures to bioterrorism and other public health threats. The Biodefense and Pandemic Vaccine and Drug Development Act of 2006 (H.R. 5533), expands on Project BioShield, which was signed into law two years ago. The bill establishes a point of authority in the federal government -- the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority -- to coordinate and facilitate efforts to develop countermeasures for bioterrorism or pandemic infectious diseases.” (GovExec.com; 21Sep06; Kristen A. Lee, Congress Daily)
http://www.govexec.com
/dailyfed/0906/092106markup1.htm
GAO [Government Accountability Office] joins inquiry of CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] with 2 audits
“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, beset with low morale and growing staff dissent, is now under investigation by the Government Accountability Office, an inspector general and a second member of Congress. At the request of U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley, who has been investigating turmoil at CDC since the spring, the GAO has opened two investigations, his spokeswoman said Wednesday evening. One audit, prompted in part by a CDC whistle-blower, is examining whether the CDC is properly overseeing a $3.8 billion program of state bioterrorism grants. The second is examining whether the CDC is meeting its responsibility to provide guidance to state and local health departments in preparing for future public health emergencies, said Jill Kozeny, Senate Finance Committee spokeswoman. Grassley (R-Iowa) is chairman of the committee.”
(The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 21Sep06, Alison Young)
http://www.ajc.com/metro
/content/metro/stories
/2006/09/21/meshcdchotline0921b.html
Panel to analyze biolab proposal
“A nine-member panel of real estate agents, educators and others will explore a proposal to build a biological weapons and agricultural disease research laboratory before the [Tracy, California] City Council takes a position on the issue, council members decided Tuesday night. Mayor Dan Bilbrey asked that the Tracy Tomorrow and Beyond committee delve into the proposal and report its findings to the council in January.” (The Record, 21Sep06)
http://www.recordnet.com
/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=
/20060921/NEWS01/60920013/1001/NEWS01
OSU [Oklahoma State University] gets NIH [National Institutes of Health] grant for bioterrorism research
“Oklahoma State University receives a 2.9 million dollar grant from the National Institutes of Health to further its efforts in bioterrorism research. OSU researchers are screening drugs that could be used to combat bioterrorism and emerging infectious disease agents. OSU's veterinary center is one of five institutes involved in an in-vitro screening project. Professor William Barrow says the funding will allow the school to shift from concentrating mostly on testing potential bioterrorism agents to the emerging infectious diseases arena.” (KFOR, 21Sep06, AP)
http://www.kfor.com
/global/story.asp?s=5439433
Boston passes stiff biolab requirements
“Biological research labs working with the most dangerous materials face stiffer city oversight under new rules approved by the board of the Boston Public Health Commission. Under the regulations passed Tuesday night, labs doing work at biosafety level 3 and 4 must obtain a permit from the commission, set up a safety committee that includes two outside community members and submit regular reports on research and safety procedures. In addition, Boston labs can't try to create weapons or conduct classified research and must hold public meetings to disclose research being done.”
(Boston Globe, 20Sep06, AP)
http://www.boston.com
/news/local/massachusetts/
articles/2006/09/20/boston_
passes_stiff_biolab_requirements/
Railroads to upgrade security at terminals
“The Long Island and Metro-North railroads have approved a joint contract for improving Grand Central Terminal's chemical detection system and installing one in the LIRR section of Penn Station, LIRR officials said. The $4-million contract will allow the MTA to expand a chemical-detection technology that it has been testing at Grand Central for two years, said Lewis Schiliro, director of interagency preparedness for the MTA. The system is ‘designed to detect chemicals that at least historically have been used by terrorist organizations,’ Schiliro said yesterday.” (Newsday, 21Sep06, Jennifer Maloney)
http://www.newsday.com
/news/local/longisland/n
y-lichem214900176sep21,0,5300427.story
OPCW and IUPAC Develop Code of Ethical Principles of Chemistry
“From 21 to 22 September 2006, the Scientific Advisory Board of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) is meeting in Bologna, Italy, to convene a joint seminar on the OPCW/IUPAC chemical education and outreach project. Both the OPCW and IUPAC have collaborated in the past to review the verification of chemical weapons destruction and non-proliferation. The present project seeks to establish general ethical principles and a code of conduct for the scientific community dealing with chemistry. The development of a Code of Ethics was discussed to ensure that university and post-graduate curricula in chemistry will include education in the ethical norms that govern the peaceful uses of chemistry.” (Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, 21Sep06) http://www.opcw.org
/pressreleases/2006/PR60_2006.html
Feds surveyed NYC [New York City] for radiation, found tainted park
“Anti-terrorism officials conducted a helicopter survey of New York City's radiation sources in preparation for a so-called ‘dirty bomb’ attack — and discovered a Staten Island park with dangerously high levels of radium, a new report found. Federal authorities found 80 unexpected ‘hot spots’ around New York City, according to the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress. The GAO report released Thursday details a previously undisclosed aerial anti-terrorism program in New York City, one which may be extended to other cities worried about the possible release of radioactive material by terrorists.” (Staten Island Live; 21Sep06; Devlin Barrett, AP)
http://www.silive.com
/newsflash/metro/index.ssf?/bas
e/news-20/1158884056194370.xml&storylist=simetro
Indo-US deal might spur terror attacks in India: Expert
“The Indo-US civilian nuke deal might increase the threat of terrorist attacks against India’s nuclear facilities, a science scholar with the US Council of Foreign Relations has warned. Writing in the Christian Science Monitor, Charles Ferguson argues that the threats could grow in one of the three ways: Facilitating a substantial expansion of India’s plutonium stockpile in the civilian and military sectors and in the hands of terrorists could [sic] to crude devastating bombs including what has commonly known as the ‘dirty bomb’.” (ZeeNews.com, 21Sep06) http://www.zeenews.com
/articles.asp?aid=324319&sid=NAT&ssid=
Ricin scare closes bank
“A local [Mississippi] bank was temporarily closed this morning while local, state, and federal officials checked it for a poisonous substance. Authorities were following up on a phone call saying that ricin, a deadly poisonous material was left at the bank yesterday, The Daily Star was told. The phone call was apparently a hoax. At press time no indications of any poisonous substance had been found.” (Grenada Daily Star, 21Sep06)
http://www.zwire.com
/site/news.cfm?newsid
=17229661&BRD=1433&
PAG=461&dept_id=170165&rfi=6
“Even as government health experts urge Americans to eat more fruits and vegetables, federal rules for protecting consumers from such hazards as the current E. coli outbreak from contaminated spinach are weaker than for meat and poultry. And as food-borne illnesses attributed to produce appear to be rising, budget squeezes have federal regulators retreating rather than attacking. Compliance with safety guidelines on the handling of produce is voluntary and federal inspectors conduct fewer and fewer checkups, according to government documents and interviews with consumer groups and a top former Food and Drug Administration official. For example, since the FDA hired inspectors in the wake of bioterrorism concerns after the Sept. 11 attacks, the government has been steadily thinning their ranks. The number of FDA staff in field offices around the country shrank from 2,217 in 2003 to 1,962 currently, budget documents indicate.” (Los Angeles Times, 22Sep06, Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar) http://www.latimes.com
/news/printedition/front
/la-na-spinach22sep22,1,61
88293.story?coll=la-headlines-f
rontpage&track=crosspromo
House committee approves biodefense measure
“The House Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesday passed legislation to promote countermeasures to bioterrorism and other public health threats. The Biodefense and Pandemic Vaccine and Drug Development Act of 2006 (H.R. 5533), expands on Project BioShield, which was signed into law two years ago. The bill establishes a point of authority in the federal government -- the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority -- to coordinate and facilitate efforts to develop countermeasures for bioterrorism or pandemic infectious diseases.” (GovExec.com; 21Sep06; Kristen A. Lee, Congress Daily)
http://www.govexec.com
/dailyfed/0906/092106markup1.htm
GAO [Government Accountability Office] joins inquiry of CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] with 2 audits
“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, beset with low morale and growing staff dissent, is now under investigation by the Government Accountability Office, an inspector general and a second member of Congress. At the request of U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley, who has been investigating turmoil at CDC since the spring, the GAO has opened two investigations, his spokeswoman said Wednesday evening. One audit, prompted in part by a CDC whistle-blower, is examining whether the CDC is properly overseeing a $3.8 billion program of state bioterrorism grants. The second is examining whether the CDC is meeting its responsibility to provide guidance to state and local health departments in preparing for future public health emergencies, said Jill Kozeny, Senate Finance Committee spokeswoman. Grassley (R-Iowa) is chairman of the committee.”
(The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 21Sep06, Alison Young)
http://www.ajc.com/metro
/content/metro/stories
/2006/09/21/meshcdchotline0921b.html
Panel to analyze biolab proposal
“A nine-member panel of real estate agents, educators and others will explore a proposal to build a biological weapons and agricultural disease research laboratory before the [Tracy, California] City Council takes a position on the issue, council members decided Tuesday night. Mayor Dan Bilbrey asked that the Tracy Tomorrow and Beyond committee delve into the proposal and report its findings to the council in January.” (The Record, 21Sep06)
http://www.recordnet.com
/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=
/20060921/NEWS01/60920013/1001/NEWS01
OSU [Oklahoma State University] gets NIH [National Institutes of Health] grant for bioterrorism research
“Oklahoma State University receives a 2.9 million dollar grant from the National Institutes of Health to further its efforts in bioterrorism research. OSU researchers are screening drugs that could be used to combat bioterrorism and emerging infectious disease agents. OSU's veterinary center is one of five institutes involved in an in-vitro screening project. Professor William Barrow says the funding will allow the school to shift from concentrating mostly on testing potential bioterrorism agents to the emerging infectious diseases arena.” (KFOR, 21Sep06, AP)
http://www.kfor.com
/global/story.asp?s=5439433
Boston passes stiff biolab requirements
“Biological research labs working with the most dangerous materials face stiffer city oversight under new rules approved by the board of the Boston Public Health Commission. Under the regulations passed Tuesday night, labs doing work at biosafety level 3 and 4 must obtain a permit from the commission, set up a safety committee that includes two outside community members and submit regular reports on research and safety procedures. In addition, Boston labs can't try to create weapons or conduct classified research and must hold public meetings to disclose research being done.”
(Boston Globe, 20Sep06, AP)
http://www.boston.com
/news/local/massachusetts/
articles/2006/09/20/boston_
passes_stiff_biolab_requirements/
Railroads to upgrade security at terminals
“The Long Island and Metro-North railroads have approved a joint contract for improving Grand Central Terminal's chemical detection system and installing one in the LIRR section of Penn Station, LIRR officials said. The $4-million contract will allow the MTA to expand a chemical-detection technology that it has been testing at Grand Central for two years, said Lewis Schiliro, director of interagency preparedness for the MTA. The system is ‘designed to detect chemicals that at least historically have been used by terrorist organizations,’ Schiliro said yesterday.” (Newsday, 21Sep06, Jennifer Maloney)
http://www.newsday.com
/news/local/longisland/n
y-lichem214900176sep21,0,5300427.story
OPCW and IUPAC Develop Code of Ethical Principles of Chemistry
“From 21 to 22 September 2006, the Scientific Advisory Board of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) is meeting in Bologna, Italy, to convene a joint seminar on the OPCW/IUPAC chemical education and outreach project. Both the OPCW and IUPAC have collaborated in the past to review the verification of chemical weapons destruction and non-proliferation. The present project seeks to establish general ethical principles and a code of conduct for the scientific community dealing with chemistry. The development of a Code of Ethics was discussed to ensure that university and post-graduate curricula in chemistry will include education in the ethical norms that govern the peaceful uses of chemistry.” (Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, 21Sep06) http://www.opcw.org
/pressreleases/2006/PR60_2006.html
Feds surveyed NYC [New York City] for radiation, found tainted park
“Anti-terrorism officials conducted a helicopter survey of New York City's radiation sources in preparation for a so-called ‘dirty bomb’ attack — and discovered a Staten Island park with dangerously high levels of radium, a new report found. Federal authorities found 80 unexpected ‘hot spots’ around New York City, according to the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress. The GAO report released Thursday details a previously undisclosed aerial anti-terrorism program in New York City, one which may be extended to other cities worried about the possible release of radioactive material by terrorists.” (Staten Island Live; 21Sep06; Devlin Barrett, AP)
http://www.silive.com
/newsflash/metro/index.ssf?/bas
e/news-20/1158884056194370.xml&storylist=simetro
Indo-US deal might spur terror attacks in India: Expert
“The Indo-US civilian nuke deal might increase the threat of terrorist attacks against India’s nuclear facilities, a science scholar with the US Council of Foreign Relations has warned. Writing in the Christian Science Monitor, Charles Ferguson argues that the threats could grow in one of the three ways: Facilitating a substantial expansion of India’s plutonium stockpile in the civilian and military sectors and in the hands of terrorists could [sic] to crude devastating bombs including what has commonly known as the ‘dirty bomb’.” (ZeeNews.com, 21Sep06) http://www.zeenews.com
/articles.asp?aid=324319&sid=NAT&ssid=
Ricin scare closes bank
“A local [Mississippi] bank was temporarily closed this morning while local, state, and federal officials checked it for a poisonous substance. Authorities were following up on a phone call saying that ricin, a deadly poisonous material was left at the bank yesterday, The Daily Star was told. The phone call was apparently a hoax. At press time no indications of any poisonous substance had been found.” (Grenada Daily Star, 21Sep06)
http://www.zwire.com
/site/news.cfm?newsid
=17229661&BRD=1433&
PAG=461&dept_id=170165&rfi=6
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
