|
|
|
MCSO eNewsletter
Your 24/7 Human Services and Public Safety Agency
SEPTEMBER 2009 |
To All Green Hornet Readers:
I want to welcome you back after the short summer hiatus. I trust all enjoyed their summer and remained safe.
Many changes are happening in the Sheriff's Office at this time. I want to assure you, the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office will continue to provide the very best police and corrections services to the citizens of Multnomah County. We take great pride in serving the citizens in an exemplary manner. If you have an opportunity, strike up a conversation and hopefully you can let them know you appreciate their service.
Last week the Sheriff's Citizen Academy started its year at the Wood Village City Hall. This is an annual opportunity for citizens to experience the diversity of functions performed by the Sheriff's Office. The Academy will culminate in a short graduation experience for all the citizens attendees. The Academy is put on by members of the Sheriff's Office. It is our hope that participating citizens soak up the experience, become ambassadors of the Sheriff's Office and more importantly, our eyes and ears in the community. Good luck to all those attending the Citizens Academy this year.
Look for other activities that will be happening in the near future. We will keep you informed through the "Green Hornet" and other sources.
Once again, welcome back from the summer. Remember, school is back in session so please drive carefully and be safe.
Sincerely,
Tom Slyter
Undersheriff
|
Wood Village Night Out
The city of Wood Village, in partnership with the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office, held its 10th annual Wood Village Nite Out on July 17th.
The evening highlighted crime prevention education and public safety along with live music, children's games and activities; and free hot dogs, beverages, ice cream, cotton candy and popcorn.
The evening began with a parade of emergency vehicles through the city. Mayor David Fuller and Multnomah County Sheriff Bob Skipper spoke to the crowds. Following, there were demonstrations by the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office SWAT Team and canine units; the Gresham-Portland-Multnomah County Explosive Disposal Unit; and the Martial Arts Fitness Center.
American Red Cross Blood Drive, Multnomah County search and rescue, river patrol, dive team, mounted posse, and patrol units; the East County Gang Task Force; American Medical Response's Reach and Treat team; and Gresham Fire and Emergency Services also provided information about services.
The evening was a huge success and the hot summer heat did not disuade citizens from coming out to enjoy the festivities.
To view pictures from the event, please click HERE |
|
It's a Dirty Job, But Someone Has To Do It
MCIJ Laundry Facility has been a beehive of activity lately. Michel Camacho, Equipment Property Technician, spends much of his day out on the floor with the inmates, folding clothing and blankets, encouraging them to stay productive and press on. However, at the end of the day, there is still clothing to fold and orders to fill. This has added additional stress to a civilian unit who prides itself in providing impeccable customer service to Sheriff's Office personnel, other outside agencies, as well as the public.
Internally, it is mandated each inmate be provided a clothing exchange twice per week. This is a constitutional minimum. Equipment Property Technicians manage the laundry and prepare clothing and linen for delivery to the jail facilities. At the time of delivery, EPTs also collect and return dirty laundry and linen to the laundry at Inverness. During FY 09, the Laundry processed 1,462,233 pounds of clothing and linens related to MCDC and MCIJ. In addition, last winter during the cold weather, MCSO donated clean blankets for the warming centers in Portland. According to Tom Lueb, Laundry Supervisor, "for the month of January 2009 we washed 6,377 lbs. of laundry for the warming centers alone. Our cost was $2,170.42." This was not a cost recouped by the Sheriff's Office but was definitely for a good cause.
From its major computerized machines down to the wheels on its carts, the laundry facility depends on mechanical and electronic devices. These devices require a range of constant maintenance by skilled technicians. The facility currently has two medium washers capable of washing about 150-200 lbs of laundry each. The four workhorse dryers, each capable of drying 300 lbs, keep room temperatures comfortable in the wintertime, and sweltering hot in the summer. Moving into the 21st century in contemporary laundry operations has now been the focus. We are finding ways to further mechanize the laundry operations to improve employee and inmate efficiency. Future machines may include microprocessor controlled blanket and sheet folders and motorized carts for clothing and linen. Until then, the work goes on to meet the continuous demands our Correctional Facilities; washing approximately 5,500 lbs of laundry each day.
Chris Payne
Operations Supervisor
|
|
Varro Receives Bronze Medal
The Washington County K-9 Trials were held August 8th, at Century High School in Hillsboro. K-9 officers and their handlers competed in the 5th annual event. Competition categories included Area Searches for Suspects and Evidence, Agility Course, Fastest Dog, Suspect Apprehension, Extraction of Suspect from Vehicle, and Handler (Officer) Protection. MCSO Deputy Todd Weber and Varro placed 4th overall. They were only 7.74 seconds behind top dog on their combined time for all five events, and for the fastest dog, Varro was a mere .43 seconds from 1st.
|
|
Stats and Facts
In conjunction with Yamhill, Washington and Clackamas, Multnomah County Sheriff's Office conducted a Back to School Safety Zone Mission.
During the first week of school, MCSO issued 27 cites, wrote 10 warnings, made 2 Misdemeanor warrant arrests, and directed one violation impound tow while working in various east metro school zones during school hours. The cites and warnings were primarily for speed, seatbelt, and child safety seat violations.
Please remember to drive safely and obey speed limits as posted in school zones.
|
|
UDDERLY DESTROYED
Theft, Disorderly Conduct, Impeding Traffic, Criminal Mischief and Elude are but a few of the crimes that would have been committed recently in Corbett...if the activities were committed by people.
The Corbett Community Resource Officer, Deputy Joe "Rocky" Graziano was dispatched to a report of loose cattle on SE Pounder Road. Calls like this are common in unincorporated Multnomah County. Deputies have responded to calls of loose cows, horses, llamas, goats, and sheep just to name some of the more common escapees. Generally deputies work with owners and neighbors to round up animals. However once they've enter a public roadway, the risk to motorists increases substantially.
Upon arriving, Deputy Graziano found six cattle eating their way through a woman's garden.
Tactic #1: The scare tactic, with the lights and siren. Failure; they totally ignored us.
Tactic #2: Poke the cattle with a baton to prod along. Bigger failure; not recommended, cattle get angry when prodded.
Tactic #3: Entice the cattle with a bucket of grain. Failure; they liked corn on the cob better.
Tactic #4: Wait and let them eat the garden. Success! of course.
After eating at least 50 corn stalks and trampling everything else, the cattle moved along to the backyard and trotted onto the roadway. This is where things got a little dicey due to the windy road and passing motorists.
With lights flashing and the occasional blip of his siren and air horn Deputy Graziano corralled the slow moving herd down the road with his patrol car. After the cattle plodded along, stopped to look around, glanced back at Graziano's vehicle, another moment of pondering and then another slow trot it became apparent that these cattle were in no hurry to get home. Although some cattle have run down the road with the speed of an Olympic sprinter, these cattle were definitely not athletes. They were looking for another free buffet.
To convince them otherwise, Graziano had to weave his patrol car from left to right across the road to deter the escape attempts along the ditches and wide shoulder areas. After a half mile, with motorists pulled over and a walking caravan of deputized neighbors, the cattle darted off the roadway and onto their owner's property. They knew exactly where they were supposed to be all along. The cattle owner had apparently fed them fresh corn recently and it was this primeval taste for the summer delight that simply drove them to the woman's garden, about a half mile away.
The garden owner took her lumps with good humor and didn't express any anger. The cattle owner made amends with the woman and the cattle are back in the owner's possession....until next season?
| |
|
East County Gangs
Over the last couple of years gang activity in East Multnomah County has increased dramatically. In East Multnomah County alone we, as a gang team, have documented about 800 gang members in our area of patrol and there are over 120 active gangs in East Multnomah County. We estimate that for every one gang member we document there are three we don't know about. Our Gang Team consists of officers from Gresham, Multnomah County, Troutdale and Fairview. Each one of the officer's specialize in a certain type of gang and their activities in Multnomah County. The Gang Team is responsible for all gang calls in East Multnomah County including the unincorporated areas. We respond to all types of gang calls, ranging from Graffiti to Homicides.
Gang trends are always changing from clothing to gang names or "sets". In the Multnomah County area gangs are not as concerned about controlling certain geographic areas as they are concerned about drugs and money. There are many areas where there are Hispanic gangs living next to White Supremacist gangs and Bloods and Crips working together to sell narcotics. These gangs will tolerate each other to advance their drug trade or income. Gang activity is drawn into certain hot areas of the county where drugs, weapons and other forms of illegal activity are present. We deal with gang members from all around the metro area. We contact gang members from Washington County, Multnomah County, Clackamas County and Clark County. Gang members continue to tattoo there gang affiliation on their persons. They occasionally wear gang related clothing and colors which is called "dressing down".
Other gang activity that commonly affects residents in the area is graffiti. There has been an increase in graffiti in the Wood Village area. We know who most of the active gang members are, but proving they are the taggers is much more difficult. The graffiti placement usually occurs in the late hours of the night or in such a fast manner it is hard to apprehend the subjects. Our advice to property owners affected by graffiti is to cover up the graffiti as fast as possible. Sadly the cost of covering up the damage is commonly left up to the property owner. If you witness someone putting up graffiti, Do Not Approach These Subjects. Gang members are known to carry weapons, from guns to knives to screwdrivers. The best thing a citizen can do is get a good description of the suspects. When obtaining a description of these individuals focus on height, weight, age, tattoos, clothing description and last known direction of travel. If the subjects leave in a vehicle attempt to get the license plate, make, model and color. When the Gang Unit arrives we identify what gang the graffiti belongs to. With the help of the citizens and their suspect(s) description we can try to find and arrest these subjects. Not all graffiti is gang-related and there are many groups, usually teens, that go out and "tag" walls and buildings with their so called "art work". These groups are called "tagger crews". Tagger crews usually put up very ornate Graffiti with multiple colors. Gang graffiti is usually very simple and will say things like, "Southside 13" or "SSx3".
The East Metro Gang Enforcement Team is located out of the Gresham Police Department. We encourage anyone in the community to call our Gang Activity Hotline at 503-666-1844 with gang related information. Callers can remain anonymous.
Deputy Ryan Burkeen
East Metro Gang Enforcement Team
|
SOME TRAFFIC SAFETY REMINDERS FOR THE START OF THE SCHOOL YEAR
As we rolling into the start of another school year, it is a good time to review some of the rules of the road specifically created to insure the safety of our children.
SCHOOL ZONES
Designated school zones are meant to alert motorists that the area they are entering will likely have children either directly or potentially interfacing with traffic.
Some typical warning signs indicating a school zone are:
SCHOOL SPEED ZONES
Likely to be found in conjunction with a posted school zone, the speed zone is intended to create a safety buffer between motorists and children likely to be in the given area. The 20 mph speed limit gives drivers ample time to be alert to their surroundings and avoid or stop before encountering any hazards. Examples of these are:
 Most of the confusion regarding school speed zones revolves around when the school speed zone is and is not active. Recent legislative, judicial, and road authority decisions led to changes in the signage that now clearly delineates when the school zone speed and the 20 mph speed limit is active. It is not active if any of the conditions listed on the sign are not present or in place.
Any time a school speed zone is not active, the speed through the area reverts to the base posted or unposted speed limit. Nonetheless, since school grounds are a natural gathering point for children at all times, drivers should still exercise caution and a higher level of awareness when traveling through an inactive zone.
END OF THE SCHOOL SPEED ZONE
Just as confusing has been the question of when does a school speed zone end? The legal definition is when it is posted as such or at the point where a posted speed sign not designating a school speed zone is placed. For example;
Other variations include a school zone designator sign with a smaller sign under it that says END or END OF SCHOOL ZONE.
SCHOOL BUSES
Oregon Revised Statute 811.155 provides that a motorist must stop if it meets or is about overtake a stopped school bus with it's red lights flashing. While not required, most current buses also have a lit and highlighted stop sign that comes out in conjunction with the activation of the flashing fore and aft red lights.
Vehicles overtaking should pull no further than equal to the back of the bus. Vehicles meeting should pull no further than equal to the front of the bus.
The only exception to this rule is if you are travelling on a parallel but separate roadway. By separate roadway, the exception means that a physical barrier of some sort, concrete highway barrier, concrete lane dividers, or center pedestrian island, is between you and the bus.
NEXT MONTH: SEATBELTS, CHILD SAFETY SEATS, AND OTHER OCCUPANT SAFETY SYSTEMS
Happy and Safe Motoring
Lieutenant Mark Matsushima
|
|
Work Crews Help Clean Up River Patrol Office
The River Patrol Office does not use service contracts to keep our buildings and office space clean. We have been very fortunate to have a Work Crew Team that is tremendously valuable and helpful whenever we call on them.
When I called upon Sgt Breiten to assist the river patrol once again, like always, she looked over her contracts and found a date that she could fit a work crew in. The "Bay One Garage" needed to be painted and organized with shelving before housing new grant equipment.
This job may have cost hundreds of dollars to complete, if hire by an outside contractor. We are very lucky to have our Work Crew.
I felt that it was time to say thanks to this Unit. They truly are a much needed resource not only for the Sheriff's Office but to the community as well.
Lt. Michael Shults
MCSO River Patrol
|
Boaters Urged to Think About CO Poisoning With all of the gorgeous weather we've been having lately, there's no better time to take to the waterways for a cool respite from the heat. But as one family found out, it's not only important to be properly equipped, it's also important to turn your boat motor off whenever passengers are swimming near a boat's back side. On Sunday, July 19, a family was out enjoying a day of boating on the Columbia River near Fairview, with the occasional dip in the water. According to the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office, the son had been swimming near the back of the boat while the boat's motor was idling. After being in the same location for a while, the family decided it was time to move the boat and found their son was face down in the water, not breathing, but afloat because he was wearing his life jacket. Family members were able to pull him into the boat, and as they were transiting for shore, the boy suddenly started breathing again. The boy was taken to Providence Medical Center where he was placed in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber and fortunately, is recovering. In 2005, the Oregon legislature passed Senate Bill 56, prohibiting a person from operating a motorboat (or idling the engine) while any person holds onto or occupies any portion of the boat aft of the transom. It is important to remember that it's possible to be poisoned by carbon monoxide while swimming in the vicinity of the swim platform, as this family's close-call demonstrates. Boaters should never have the motor running when anyone is in the water, including when picking up skiers or persons on other towed devices. Another obvious danger is the swimmer's proximity to the boat propeller. Carbon monoxide is odorless, colorless and depletes the body of oxygen. The first symptoms include headache, nausea and light-headedness. If you or any of your passengers have any of these symptoms, change your course or take other action to improve ventilation. For more information about carbon monoxide poisoning or boating safety, visit http://www.boatoregon.com/OSMB/safety/Carbon2.shtml |
|
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly; recent news articles or updates you may have missed.
| |
|
|
| Your opinions, questions and concerns are important to us. If you would like to comment on any of MCSO service(s), or any article you have read in this newsletter please click HERE. Or Email us HERE |
|
|
|
|
|
