I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E :

Message from IACP

President Yost Zakhary

2

2015 TPCA Conference

Information

3

TPCA Regional Reports 4, 5,

6, 7

TPCA Committee

Reports, Chairs

8,9,

10,11

TPCA Affiliate Reports,

TPCA News

12,

13

New TPCA Members 14

Safety Choices, In Me-

moriam

15

Bigger Truck Problems 16

Filming Police Encoun-

ters

17

TPCA Training Schedule 18

F A L L 2 0 1 4

Texas Police Chiefs Association

Newsletter Elected Officers

2014-2015 President Chief John R. Chancellor Shenandoah P.D. 1st Vice President Chief Tim Vasquez San Angelo P.D. 2nd Vice President Chief Brian Frieda Sweetwater P.D. 3rd Vice President Chief Gary D. Johnson Roanoke P.D. Secretary Chief Robert J. Burby Texas City P.D. Sergeant At Arms Chief Todd Hunter Kilgore P.D. T.M.L. Board Director Chief Mark R. Hafner Keller P.D. Immediate Past President Chief Mark R. Hafner Keller P.D.

General Counsel & Executive Director Chief James McLaughlin, Jr. (Ret.)

What an honor it is to serve

as the president of the Texas

Police Chiefs Association for the 2014-15 term. It is with great pride that I follow a long line of professional law en-forcement leaders who have guided our association to be recognized across the nation as a leader in promoting law enforcement professionalism. I, like those before me, want to thank those in the associa-tion who have given me the opportunity to serve in this role and also the leadership within the City of Shen-andoah for supporting me. In recent years under the leadership of our Executive Director and Executive Board, our membership has grown to over 1,000 members and we must strive as an asso-ciation to promote law en-forcement excellence with them and continue our efforts in recruiting to attract new members. This past year, our Law En-forcement Best Practices Recognition Program exceed-ed 100 agencies that have achieved the coveted ‘Recognized’ status, and we need to continue to nurture and promote the program so it will continue to be the ‘Gold Standard’ for agencies across

the state. I want to especially thank Chief Marlin Price for the hard work he did in fur-thering the professionalism of Texas Law Enforcement Agen-cies by making the Texas pro-gram the best in the nation. As the founders of our asso-ciation recognized over 50 years ago, it is vitally im-portant that we continue to support credible research and offer the best in training, such

as our Developing Leaders Class. As an association, we should always strive to be leaders in promoting officer safety and awareness and through our Safety Committee promote such programs as the Below 100 Program. As Texas chiefs, one of our main priori-ties should be the reduction and elimination of officer fa-talities and injuries and we need to promote training and programs that will help us reach this goal. For almost a decade we

have talked about developing a certification process for ex-ecutive achievement for cur-rent and future police chiefs, which would be the ‘Best Prac-tices Program’ for police chiefs to achieve. The Certification of Law Enforcement Managers Committee has worked hard this past year to present a pro-posal to get this program off the ground and running and we need to finalize this pro-

cess and move for-ward. January 2015 will begin the 84th Session of the Texas Legisla-ture and we need to support our Legislative Committee and Chief Sean Mannix as he heads up our efforts in Austin. As always, there will be a number of legislative items that

will affect Texas Law Enforce-ment. Last but not least, we need to move forward with finding a new home for our associa-tion. The current office situa-tion has become almost un-tenable and we are in desper-ate need of more space. Our professional staff works ex-tremely hard for us and we need to give them the proper space so they can continue to do their work. Thank you, John R. Chancellor Chief of Shenandoah PD

Message from the 2014-2015 TPCA President

P A G E 2

Training

Opportuni-

ties

and

Classes

Available

Through

The

Texas

Police

Chiefs

Association

A Message from IACP Immediate Past President Yost Zakhary

The past year has been one of the most rewarding and challenging times of my law enforcement career. The opportunity to serve as the President of the Inter-national Association of Chiefs of Police has been a true honor and an experi-ence I will never forget. Throughout my time on the IACP Board of Officers, I have met law enforcement leaders from around the world to work toward our shared vision of improving the law enforcement profession and enhancing our ability to protect the communities we are sworn to serve. I am very proud of all that the association has accomplished over the last year. The commitment of the IACP leadership, membership and staff never ceases to amaze me. I would like to draw your attention to a just a few of the many high-lights of this year. As many of you know, I decided to focus on five initiatives while I was Presi-dent. One of those initiatives was improving officer response to people with mental illness. A growing challenge for law enforcement officers around the globe is their increasing interactions with people who have mental illnesses and other disabilities, are in crises, are undergoing treatment, are suicidal or are under emergency detention orders. Without proper training, these situations

can become fatal. Realizing the need for law enforcement, health professionals and community leaders to work collectively to find alternatives, the IACP convened an advisory board of police executives, mental health practitioners and police psychologists to develop approaches for encounters with those with mental illness and other disabilities. Working closely with the advisory board, the IACP developed a tri-fold document to help people understand the issue, position chiefs as leaders to influence others and provide information for building partnerships and imple-menting proven strategies. Another one of my initiatives this year was reducing violence and crime on our streets. Many communities are confronted by unacceptable levels of violence on their streets. Typically, a disproportionate amount of this vio-lence is young males killing other young males. In the United States, homicide is the second leading cause of death for 15- to 24-year-old males and the first leading cause of death among 10- to 24-year-old African Ameri-cans. We worked with our partners in the criminal justice system to reduce violence through an array of proven ap-proaches. These approaches range from early intervention to aggressive enforcement and prosecution, as well as enhanced penalties for those who commit crimes with firearms. An IACP advisory board that included law enforcement leadership, prosecutors, representatives from district attorneys’ offices and other stakeholders, discussed street crime, the historic over-representation of African American youth as both perpetrators and victims and possible solutions. The group provided their counsel to help each other better understand this problem and identify effective ways to handle violent crime in our com-munities. To continue the discussion we held a plenary session at conference on Violence and Crime on Our Streets: How Police Leaders Can Improve Prevention and Response Strategies. This panel took an in-depth look at all aspects of street violence, particularly violence by youth and provide ways for law enforcement leaders to adjust their agencies’ strategies to reduce violence on the streets. We also released a tri-fold guide on how to reduce vio-lence and crime on our streets. Officer safety has always been one of my highest priorities and a huge priority for the association. This year I had the opportunity to testify before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary on the importance of bulletproof vests and the need to reauthorize the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program. It is imperative that our police departments and officers have the equipment they need to keep safe while protecting our citizens. Continuing to build upon the resources provided by the IACP’s Center for Officer Safety and Wellness, we part-nered with Point Guard Productions, Polaris Health Directions and the Philadelphia Police Department to raise awareness about officer mental health and created a useful tool for departments to begin the discussion about officer suicide in order to change the culture within our profession. An APP was developed that contains IACP’s Breaking the Silence Symposium Report, which outlines steps a department can take to prevent, intervene and respond; a 30 minute docudrama to create greater public awareness of suicide among law enforcement and a self-assessment tool to evaluate one’s mental wellness. The APP provides a resource to those who are struggling with mental and behavioral health issues and who might be at risk for suicide. I encourage all of you to down-load the free APP at the itunes APP store or the Google Play Store.

T E X A S P O L I C E C H I E F S

A S S O C I A T I O N N E W S L E T T E R

Do you

have

training

opportu-

nities

available

in your

PD? Post

your

classes on

our

website.

P A G E 3

2015 Annual Conference Special Events To Benefit TPCAF Officer Death Fund

Golf Tournament Location: Moody Gardens Golf Course

Cost: $125 Per Golfer - Includes Green Fee, Cart, Lunch & Awards Live Auction - Donations needed

Prayer Breakfast All Proceeds go to the Texas Police Chiefs Association Foundation Officer Death Benefit Fund Members: We are still looking for sponsors for the 2015 Conference and Prayer Breakfast.

TPCA 2015 Annual Conference REGISTER NOW! March 30-April 2, 2015

Hilton Galveston Island Resort The San Luis Resort & Spa

Holiday Inn Resort Galveston, Texas

Event information and registration at www.texaspolicechiefs.org.

Cont. From Page 2 Our advocacy efforts on behalf of the law enforcement profession and, specifically, police executives were a central focus of the IACP’s activities. Throughout the year, the IACP has been actively working with elected officials on a wide range of issues critical to public safety and the law enforcement profession. The IACP has recently been at the center of policy debates over law enforcement funding, immigration enforcement, wrongful convictions, officer safety, bulletproof vests, cybercrime, drug legalization, police-community relations and law enforcement’s use of technology, to name a few issues. As IACP President, I have had the honor of meeting with law enforcement leaders from around the world, including two meetings with U.S. President Obama and numerous interactions with the U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and the heads of the various U.S. federal law enforcement agencies. In all of these meetings and discussions, the IACP has ensured that leaders understand the impact their decisions have on our membership and on the ability of state, local and tribal law enforcement to provide the services and protection expected and deserved by the citizens we serve. IACP has also continued to enhance our partnerships around the world. Working closely with our international vice president Barbara Fleury and IACP’s world regional chairs, IACP has forged new partnerships with key international law enforcement or-ganizations such as Interpol and Europol. Clearly, this has been a remarkably busy and productive year for the IACP. It has been my heartfelt honor and privilege to have the opportunity to lead this amazing organization for the past year. I would also like to offer IACP 1st Vice President Richard Beary my congratulations and complete support as he assumes the IACP presidency. He will do a terrific job leading our organization. Finally, I want to express my deepest appreciation to my profes-sional colleagues; friends; the men and women of the City of Woodway, Texas; Woodway Mayor Don Baker and the entire Woodway City Council and most importantly, to my wife, Julie, and twin daughters, Lauren and Emily. All of you have played a vital role in allowing me to take on this tremendous challenge and experi-ence it to the fullest. I look forward to continuing to serve the IACP in any way I can. Chief Yost Zakhary Woodway Public Safety

Chief Yost Zakhary, his wife Julie and daughters Emily and Lauren enjoyed time together at the IACP Conference.

P A G E 4

Regional Directors 2014- 2015

Region 2 Chief Robert Taylor Amarillo P.D. Region 3 Chief Albert Garcia Idalou P.D. Region 4 Chief Price Robinson Midland P.D. Region 5 Chief Manuel Borrego Wichita Falls P.D. Region 6 Chief Stan Standridge Abilene P.D. Region 7 Chief Scott Rubin Fair Oaks Ranch P.D. Region 8 Chief Russell Kerbow Lewisville P. D. Region 9 Chief Brent Stroman Waco P.D. Region 10 Chief Don Brent LCRA Public Safety Region 11 Chief Tim Jayroe Rockport P.D. Region 12 Chief Juan Gonzalez San Juan P.D. Region 13 Chief Mark C. Moeller Rockwall P.D. Region 14 Chief Henry S. Porretto Galveston P.D. Region 15 Chief Todd Hunter Kilgore P.D. Region 16 Chief Jimmie Sevey Nacogdoches P.D.

TPCA Regional Reports

T E X A S P O L I C E C H I E F S

A S S O C I A T I O N N E W S L E T T E R

Region 2 - Chief Robert Taylor, Amarillo PD The Amarillo PD has instructors qualified to teach the Basic, Intermediate and Advanced Latent Fingerprint Schools generally taught by DPS. We will offer the schools as needed for internal employees but we will invite other departments across the state to attend tuition free. Class size is limited and will be announced a few weeks ahead of the time for a class when it is scheduled. Captain Lester of the APD will be retiring at the end of the year. Sgt. Paul Buckles died during an Active Shooter School earlier

this year. He was a long term employee of the Potter County Sheriff’s Department and a past member of the Amarillo/Potter/Randall Special Crimes (Homicide) Unit. Our Association issued a check to his family within a few days of his death. It was greatly appreciated. Adrian Garcia has been appointed the Chief of Police in Childress, Texas Region 3 - Chief Albert Garcia, Idalou PD I assisted the City of Crosbyton in their search for the new chief of police. The city staff had ranked the

final candidates and asked for assistance from the TPCA in background investiga-tions. I solicited Chief Barnes of Slaton PD and Chief Arrañaga of the Frenship ISD PD to assist in the background investigations to be completed. The City of Crosby-ton selected John Wilson as their new Chief of Police who took over the first of August. Chief Wilson was the former chief of Amherst, Texas, but was unem-ployed after the City decided to close their police department and contract with the county. Gregory Scott McAuley was selected as the new Chief of Police for the City of Seagraves, Texas. Chief McAuley comes to our region from Arp, Texas where he served as the Chief of Police.

The Lubbock Police Department was involved in two officer-involved shootings in this quarter. The first was May 7 when officers responded to a domestic disturbance. Upon arrival, the sub-ject barricaded himself and Lubbock SWAT was activated. Ultimately, the suspect did confront the SWAT officers who attempted to disarm the knife-wielding person by using less lethal ammo. When the suspect continued his attack another officer did have to use lethal force on the suspect. Upon completing the investigation, it ap-peared the suspect was wanted to commit suicide by cop. On August 26 the Lubbock Police Department was involved in a second officer-involved shooting when they responded to another domestic disturbance. The suspect had threatened to kill his girlfriend and her children but had left the immediate area prior to the officer’s arrival. When a single officer was directed to a separate location, he did locate the suspect holding a handgun. The officer gave the suspect verbal commands to drop the weapon although he raised the gun as if to fire on the officer. The officer then opened fire on the subject who was later pronounced dead. In late August, the Levelland Police Department responded to a call of shots fired in a neighborhood and a woman yelling. Upon arrival, they found a male suspect who had shot several rounds in the air during a domestic issue with his girlfriend. The suspect then barricaded himself in the residence with the girl-friend and would not respond to the officer’s commands. Levelland police did seek the assistance of the Lubbock County Sheriff’s Department SWAT team who did finally communicate with the suspect who ultimately gave up without incident. The three incidents encouraged media outlets to seek information from several chiefs in the area about the militaristic responses and the thoughts of police departments receiving equipment from the military through the 1033 program. This was also a direct result of the riots in Missouri. Legislative Concerns: There has been a concern brought to my attention from the ISD police chiefs in my region who are seeking assistance. Chiefs in the region are concerned with the new legislative updates in SB 393 and HB 1240 which restrict the enforcement of Class C violations on school campuses. They have asked if there are any possible legislative changes being proposed during the new legislative session and if not, will the TPCA be willing to assist in bringing this forward to the legislative committee for discus-sion.

Chief Garcia

Chief Taylor

P A G E 5

TPCA Regional Reports

Region 5 - Chief Manuel Borrego, Wichita Falls PD Bowie PD selected Guy Green as their new chief of police; Richard Candelaria is the new Chief of Police at Knox at Knox City PD and Electra, Texas has interviewed three applicants for the chief of police position in their city. The Wichita Falls Police Department hosted the FBI Executive Leader Active Shooter Conference in June and several sheriffs and police chiefs from Region 5 attended, as well as EMS and the Wichita Falls Fire Chief. St. Jo PD requested assistance with obtaining BPV for its department of three officers. WFPD provided them with the equipment. Region 6 - Chief Stan Standridge, Abilene PD

The Police Chief in Bangs resigned in lieu of termination. Chief Troy Grusendorf, according to the Mayor, was using on-duty employees to help renovate his personal rent home. A meeting was scheduled with the Council, but the chief resigned beforehand. Abilene SWAT assisted Sweetwater PD with a barricaded felony theft suspect on June 26. The suspect pointed weapons at the PD officers, so Abilene’s help was requested. The suspect shot Abilene’s Bearcat four times, while narrowly missing a SWAT team member. The suspect was shot and eventually succumbed to his injuries. A Grand Jury reviewed the case and returned a no-bill. Abilene entered a third Meet and Confer Agreement whereby they replaced their 4 10-hour shifts for the Patrol and Traffic Divisions. This was done to accommodate 12-hour shifts on the weekends and thereby increase cov-

erage while reducing overtime. This proved to be hugely unpopular within the Department, recognizing that the 4 10’s had been in place since 1989. The Abilene Reporter News has asked many Texas agencies to respond to a request for their use of force reports from 2010 to present. This is in addition to requests asking for terminations and job hires. Sweetwater’s new LEC is progressing ahead of schedule. They may get the keys by December. Also, they have added two new canines that are currently undergoing certification training as drug dogs. Abilene hosted a regional training meeting. DPS presented on their new Fitness Institute and their mandatory fitness policy. Odessa hosted a mid-sized agency meeting including Abilene, Midland, San Angelo and Big Spring. After more than 3 hours, we all agreed that we need to continue to civilianize many positions; intentionally recruit at military bases; address literacy issues among new hires; lament being hostage to technology while endorsing its force-multiplier ability and address crash investigations. ALERRT will be adding another course that is designed for administrators – ATIRC. Advanced Threat Integrated Response Course will be a hands-on course designed in response to Aurora (watch YouTube video called After Aurora). The course will focus on inte-gration of PD, Fire and EMS. Region 8 - Chief Russell Kerbow, Lewisville PD Cleburne Police Department – Cleburne hosted the 2014 Texas Citizens on Patrol Association (TCOPA) Conference at the Cleburne Conference Center on August 29-31, 2014. Trophy Club Police Department – Chief Scotty Kniffen wanted me to announce his retirement to this group on September 30, 2014. Highland Village Police Department – Doug Reim is the new chief in Highland Village beginning on September 2, 2014. Doug most recently was chief of the Westover Hills Police Department. The Colony Police Department – David Coulon is the new chief in The Colony. David comes from the Irving Police Department where he served as assistant chief of operations. David is a resident of The Colony so this will certainly makes his daily commute much easier. Flower Mound Police Department – Flower Mound launched a new mobile app to facilitate better interaction with its communi-ty. A new FMPD program that ‘fits’ in with their community engagement philosophy is the ‘Get the Scoop’ program. They provide officers with ice cream vouchers for several town businesses who partnered with them to provide free ice cream treats. The idea behind the plan is to reward children observed wearing safety equipment while riding their bicycles, skateboarding, roller blading or other similar activities. When officers see a child making good decisions, they take the time to reward this behavior and encour-age interaction between children, their parents and the police officer on the beat. This has been well received and is a ‘0’ cost program. Lewisville Police Department – Lewisville Police Depart-ment celebrated its 75th anniversary on August 9, 2014, with an open house for the community. Department staff cooked hot dogs and provided residents and visitors with a bag of chips and a free drink (water or soft drink). Facility tours took place along with static displays of various pieces of equipment to include vehicles, weapons and safety equipment.

Chief Standridge

P A G E 6

TPCA Regional Reports Region 9 - Chief Brent E. Stroman Waco Police Department Hewitt Police Department Hewitt PD is nearing completion on its new Public Safety facility; so far completion is ahead of schedule. The department is planning an open house and grand opening in mid-November with an expected move-in date the first of December. Temple Police Department Sergeant Brad Bennett will be receiving the Star of Texas Award from the Governor for injuries received in a shootout with an armed robbery suspect. During the exchange of gunfire, the suspect was shot and killed by Sgt. Bennett. Waco Police Department and other area law enforcement agencies helped Baylor Department of Public Safety with the grand

opening and first football game on August 31 at Baylor’s new McLane Stadium. By the reading of this report, agencies will know if the year of planning for traffic, crowds, dignitary protection and the unexpected were successful. Besides other training opportunities being offered in Region 9, chiefs in the western and eastern parts of the Region have indicated a need for small time blocks of topic specific training and certification. First up will be Taser certification for departments in the eastern part of the Region and requested by Chief Jerri Almy with Groesbeck Police Department. Captain Smith with DPS out of the Waco office has offered to leverage his training staff in this effort.

Affiliate Report Chief Gene Ellis will be presenting his report from the Central Texas Association of Chiefs of Police and Sheriffs. Worthy to note is the President of the Association Chief Fred Churchill’s call for 100% membership in TPCA for all Affiliate Members who are eligible to join TPCA. Region 10 - Chief Don Brent, LCRA Public Safety New TPCA members during the past few months include Commander Don Georgens, Taylor PD; Assistant Chief Robert Klett, San Marcos PD and Interim Chief Scott McCollum, College Station PD. Chief Rusty Pancoast retired from Bee Cave PD on September 30. Gary Miller, who was the police chief in Boerne for 22 years and is currently the Chief Deputy for Kendall County was chosen as Rusty’s replacement. A Bastrop County Sheriff’s Deputy was indicted on murder charges for a shooting in February when he responded to a domes-tic disturbance. An unarmed 47-year-old woman was shot when she came outside the home. The Texas Rangers investigated the shooting which led to the arrest of Deputy Daniel Willis for murder.

Region 12 - Chief Juan Gonzalez, San Juan PD The new Police Chief appointed to Sullivan Police Department is Miguel Martinez; Geovani Hernandez is the new chief who was appointed to the La Joya PD and the new temporary Hidalgo County Sheriff select-

ed to finish an unexpired election term until 2016 is Eddie Guerra. Three officers were seriously injured in two separate officer-involved shootings in Hidalgo County. There is an influx of unaccompanied mi-nors in Hidalgo, Cameron, Starr, Willacy and Brooks counties. There is an on-going DPS surge in Hidalgo County to address criminal aliens; an on-going National Guard deployment in Hidalgo County to assist the DPS surge and an on-going surge of US Customs and Border Protection in Hidalgo County to address issue of unaccompanied minors. The Rio Grande Valley Law Enforcement Police Chiefs Coalition held several meetings in Hidalgo and Cameron counties to address communication issues, grants and master com-munication plans. Some militia groups have arrived in the RGV area to defend the border in Hidalgo, Cameron

and Starr counties and have been met with resistance from local ACLU organizations. Local media is addressing issues of military equipment (MRAP) for law enforcement purposes. Some MRAP equipment was in-strumental in two recent officer-involved shootings.

T E X A S P O L I C E C H I E F S

A S S O C I A T I O N N E W S L E T T E R

Chief Stroman

Chief Gonzalez

Chief Hernandez

P A G E 7

TPCA Regional Reports

Region 13 - Chief Mark C. Moeller, Rockwall PD On April 17 Officer Heather Phares, 22, was killed in an automobile accident while she was on Special Assign-ment with the Midlothian Police Department. She had been with the police department for 10 months. A check was delivered to her father. On June 5 the Grand Prairie SWAT team was executing a narcotics warrant in Arlington when one of their offic-ers was shot in the arm. His tactical vest deflected much of the round so his injuries were not as severe as they could have been. The afternoon of July 9, Cedar Hill police responded to a burglary call at a strip mall. The suspect had doused himself with gasoline and ran into a Wingstop. Officer Ann McSwain tried to arrest him, but the suspect set him-

self and Officer McSwain on fire. Two detectives also tried to subdue him and one of those offic-ers shot the suspect. On July 11 shortly after midnight two Dallas Police Officers were fired upon as they were stopping a vehicle on traffic. The officers were not injured and returned fire, however the suspects escaped. On August 11 Dallas firefighters and police officers were shot at by a suspect who later surrendered. The suspect made several 911 calls stating he was mad at the government and was now his own country. There were no inju-ries. New chiefs in the Region include Mark Metdker, Celina PD and Frank Deater, Tom Bean PD. Celeste, Leonard,

Cockrell Hill, Waxahachie and McKinney have open chief positions. The Region had two retirements - Chief Chuck Edge, Waxaha-chie PD and Chief Joe Williams, McKinney PD. Attaining Recognized status was the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School Police Department and the McKinney Police Department earned Re-Recognized status. Region 15 - Chief Todd Hunter, Kilgore PD Region 15 welcomes two new police chiefs. Interim Police Chief Leland Benoit of the Marshall Police De-partment retired in May and in July, the city announced the appointment of Jesus ‘Eddie’ Campos. Chief Campos comes the from El Paso County Sheriff’s Office where he had served since 1994. Chief Campos was sworn in and I reached out to him about the TPCA. He is looking forward to joining our organization in the near future. Gilmer Police Chief James Gruden retired in June. Chief Gruden had served the City of Gilmer since 1996. Mark Case, a veteran member of Gilmer PD, was named as police chief after a statewide search. The City of Palestine is currently searching for an Interim police chief and the City of Jefferson has posted its opening for police chief. I attended the East Texas Police Chief’s Association quarterly meeting, which was held on July 10 at the East Texas Police Academy. The meeting was hosted by Academy representatives who delivered the program of the day. The ETPA, in conjunction with Kilgore College, has developed a curriculum for a new A.A.S. degree developed specifically for those entering Law Enforcement. Students attending the East Texas Police Academy who also complete an abbreviated course schedule at Kilgore Col-lege are eligible for an A.A.S. in Criminal Justice. Region 16 - Chief Jim Sevey, Nacogdoches PD

I attended an East Texas Police Chiefs’ Association meeting on July 17 at the East Texas Police Academy in Kilgore, Texas. Members discussed the 2015 TPCA annual conference and ETPCA is considering purchasing a table at the prayer breakfast. We are also considering a fundraiser for the TPCAF - a gun raffle with tickets at $5. Membership received an update on activity at the regional police academies, in-cluding a discussion of the new TCOLE rules examination required before licensing and the licensing process for dispatchers. A presentation was made by Michael Ferguson, ET Police Academy regarding a new AAS degree offered by Kilgore College in Police Science, which is practical education based on experience, training and academics. Most of the course is on-line but does require limited classroom attendance.

There are no new chiefs in Region 16 and no additional details to report.

Would you like your agency to be in our next newsletter? Submit information and photos in January, 2015 to info@texaspolicechiefs.org or call

TPCA staff at 512-281-5400.

Chief Moeller

Chief Hunter

Chief Sevey

P A G E 8

TPCA Committee Reports

T E X A S P O L I C E C H I E F S

A S S O C I A T I O N N E W S L E T T E R

Membership Report, Chief Rex Phelps, Brenham PD

As of this date our current membership total is 1,053. This past year we have experienced a slight increase in membership. There are over 2,600 law enforcement agencies in Texas (according to TCOLE). However, only about 1,100 of those are municipal or educational law enforcement agencies (according to LEMIT). As you know, our membership is made up of current police chiefs, second in command, retired members and corpo-rate members. Thus far our strategy for driving and sustaining membership has been recruiting candidates from the new chiefs’ school at the Sam Houston State University Law Enforcement Management Institute of Texas (LEMIT). Also, our current members continue to recruit new members. In the recent past, we have engaged in membership drives and have drawn names for prizes for those who sponsor new members. We want to express appreciation for the continued support. It is because of the efforts of our members that we continue to sustain and grow as an association both in depth as well as in numbers.

Texas Police Chiefs Association, 2015 Draft Legislative Agenda Chief Sean Mannix, Cedar Park PD The below legislative items have been adopted by the TPCA Legislative Committee for presentation to the TPCA Executive Board as the proposed legislative agenda for 2015. The first five items were also adopted by the Texas Major Cities Chiefs as their legislative agenda. If adopted by the TPCA Executive Board we will start identifying House and Senate sponsors for each of the items. DNA Collection Proposal: Amend the Government Code to require the collection of a DNA sample from all suspects who are arrested for a Class B misdemeanor or higher. Currently, law enforcement takes fingerprints from all per-sons arrested for a crime. The collection of DNA could be done just as easily by simply swabbing the inside of a suspect’s cheek as part of the jail intake process. This simple, non-invasive procedure can provide crucial evidence in serious crimes that may otherwise go unsolved and has worked well at the federal level and in other states. (See SB 767/HB 1063 from 83rd session). [In July 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court held in Maryland v. King that, “When officers make an arrest supported by probable cause to hold for a serious offense and bring the suspect to the station to be detained in custody, taking and analyzing a cheek swab of the ar-restee’s DNA is, like fingerprinting and photographing, a legitimate police booking procedure that is reasonable under the Fourth Amendment.” Note that limiting our proposed change to specific Class B and above offenses would be permissible under this holding.] Discussion A question was raised whether it would be more advantageous to advocate for DNA collection at the point of conviction rather than at the point of arrest. All agreed that the DNA collection should be tied to specific codes (in order to exclude violations for things like illegal fishing, etc.) MCC Chiefs need to meet with DPS Director Steve McCraw to discuss the matter so he can encourage his Lab Director to develop a detailed fiscal note ahead of the legislative session to start working from. If the fiscal note demonstrates that the DNA collection would be prohibitively expensive, make the process permissive to allow Departments who can afford it to move forward. The final recommendation was to advocate for DNA collection upon class B arrest and to negotiate down as needed from that posi-tion - Senator Dan Patrick has been supportive of previous DNA efforts. Mobile Sobriety Checkpoints

Proposal: Amend state law to grant Texas peace officers the authority to use mobile sobriety checkpoints as a tool for the detection, deterrence and arrest of motorists operating vehicles on state highways and streets while intoxicated. While the United States Su-preme Court has held that sobriety checkpoints are legal; they are not permissible in Texas only because the state has not adopted state guidelines governing the proper conduct of the checkpoints. Sobriety checkpoints are currently allowed in 39 states and the Dis-trict of Columbia (See SB1418 from 83rd session.) Senator Wendy Davis carried SB1418, but took no action - suggestion that Chairman should file the bill in the coming session. Discussion When discussing checkpoint, stress that the primary reason for checkpoints are as a deterrent, not a tool used for arrests. Acknowledged that checkpoint legislation is going to be an uphill battle – give consideration to sobriety checkpoint pilot program with sunset provision.

Continue Legislative Agenda, page 9

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TPCA Committee Reports Police Applicant Database Proposal: Have a database shared by all of the Texas police departments that would track every applicant that applies within the various police departments. This will enable police departments to verify prior applications. Currently, police departments are unable to verify an applicant’s claim that he/she has never applied with another agency. Consequently, if one department rejects an applicant for a specific reason, he/she could apply with another department and omit the information that caused their prior rejection. The department would not know about the prior application unless the applicant admitted to applying. The proposed database would help to protect the police departments. Discussion Suggestion that TCOLE set up the database; participation should be voluntary. CLEAT is interested in the ‘gypsy cop’ issue as well – they want to start meeting with chiefs monthly to discuss legislative issues. Houston PD will draft language. Obstruction or Retaliation Offense Amendment Proposal: Amend the offense of obstruction or retaliation to make it an offense for a person to post on a publicly accessible website the residence address or telephone number of an individual the actor knew was a public servant or member of a ‘public servant’ family or household. (See SB 1798 from 83rd session). Discussion Legislation would protect all public servants including elected officials – not just law enforcement. Representatives Matt Schaefer and Steve Toth both opposed the legislation citing government transparency. Access to Stored Communications/Mobile Tracking Devices Revision

Proposal: Revise the requirements for access to stored communications and mobile tracking devices. During the 83rd session, House Bill 2268 was enacted to limit the ability of law enforcement to access transactional data and from accessing information from service providers in emergency situations. These requirements should be revised to allow law enforcement to more effec-tively access this information in certain circumstances. Discussion Representative John Frullo agreed to work with Houston on the issue; Representative Stickland added problematic language When discussing stored communication, stress that the law enforcement interest is in historical information, not on real time tracking – revise tracking language. Mental Health Transports Proposal: Amend Chapter 573 of the Health and Safety Code to allow police departments to contract with ambulance compa-nies or other suitable transportation providers to transport mental health patients subject to emergency detention to an appro-priate mental health facility. Discussion Due to a lack of local facilities or bed-space, departments around the state are forced to transport mental health patients to facilities sometimes several hours away from their jurisdictions. This creates a staffing burden and mandatory overtime is being worked.

Screening Committee, Chief Jeffrey Capps, College Station PD

As many of you are aware, I have recently changed positions from the Chief of Police to Assistant City Manager. The new position will still be a commissioned position but I will pick up all of the Public Safety responsibilities for College Station to include police, fire, community service (Code Enforcement), emer-gency management and HR. Due to this change, I will be stepping down as the chair of the Applicant Screening Committee and Chief Eric Buske with Bryan PD has been asked to replace me. I have started the transition and will continue to work with Eric so that he is prepared to take on this

task. A summary of this quarter’s activities include: Making initial contact and sending brochures to over 10 cities explaining our process and offering assistance in their search for a chief of police. The City of Wharton finalized their selection of candidates provided and chose Terry Lynch as their new chief. The City of Bee Cave was provided with list of candidates and worked on selecting their new chief out of three finalists. Chief Russell Pancoast retired on September 30 and the City named Gary Miller to replace Russell. TPCA assisted the City of Highland Village in their selection process. They recently named Chief Doug Reim of Westworth Village as their new police chief. The City Manager of Yoakum recently contacted me about our committee helping with the search for a new police chief. I will be turning this over to Chief Buske and will assist him through this process.

Chief Jeff Capps

Chief Eric Buske

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TPCA Committee Reports Strategic Plan Chair Report Chief Royce W. ‘Rusty’ Smith, Robinson PD The Strategic Plan Chair met with the TPCA Executive Board members on April 17, 2014

during the TPCA Conference. The purpose of this meeting was to determine the TCPA’s

strategic plans for fiscal year 2014-2015. We were seeking direction for the next fiscal year

under the future direction of Chief John Chancellor.

Present at the meeting was current President Mark Hafner, First Vice President John Chan-

cellor, Second Vice President Tim Vasquez, Third Vice President Brian Frieda, Secretary Gary

Johnson, Sergeant at Arms Robert Burby, past presidents Barbara J. Childress and Yost

Zakhary, Training Committee Chair Todd Radford and Strategic Chair Rusty Smith.

The meeting was opened with input from First VP Chancellor regarding his vision for his 2014- 2015 term as president. First Vice

President Chancellor specifically stated he wanted to focus on training and the future of the TPCA/TPCAF office.

Discussions started off regarding continuing the Developing Leaders for Texas Law Enforcement and possibly a follow-up course to

address operation issues that administrative staff must address. First VP Chancellor said he believed there was enough material to

continue the Developing Leadership program in different areas. He mentioned the amount of advanced administrative training that

chiefs often fail to take advantage of as being available for a followup to the Developing Leaders course.

The discussion then moved toward developing ongoing training in the proposed professional development certificate or executive

leadership recognition that is currently under development. First VP Chancellor said he thought advanced chief training could be de-

veloped into the professional certificate/recognition program. Training Committee Chair Todd Radford asked if additional chiefs’ train-

ing through the professional certificate/recognition could be handled by the Training Committee. The discussion of training possibly

being handled by TCPA Foundation was briefly discussed but no decision was made.

First VP Chancellor asked to consider training going to outside help through a focus group and using our own chiefs to teach these

classes. Past President Barbara Childress reminded the group that there had to be an organized process to determine what training

would be offered and the Training Committee would see that the courses are taught. Second VP Tim Vasquez said he thought the

amount of things that are assigned to the Training Committee is too much. He thought there needs to be a focus on specific programs

that the Training Committee should actually coordinate and let a focus group determine what training will be offered.

First VP Chancellor said that there needed to be a decision as to what the organization wants to do about training, where we want to

go with it and dates to hold training.

President Hafner stated that if the Training Committee focuses on the professional chiefs’ certification/recognition and on (TPCA)

board-sponsored training, these are two separate types of training and one takes away from the other. Secretary Johnson commented

that professional certification/recognition program is a completely different program than the developing leaders’ course.

Strategic Planning Chair Smith said that several smaller agency representatives to the LEMIT training focus group were not pleased

that the ideas they presented seemed to never be used for training. Executive Director McLaughlin said that some of the ideas did not

consist of enough material to comprise a 40-hour block of training. There was a general discussion regarding possibly doing on-line

training, specifically to help those chiefs who are in more remote locations or who do not have the staff to cover while they are gone

to training. The feedback in doing this was positive.

The discussion then moved to the need for additional space or new facilities for the TPCA/TPCAF office. First VP Chancellor comment-

ed about the lack of space that the staff has to work in, the previous discussions of needing to do something about this matter and the

lack of anything happening. There was much discussion about the real estate market in the Austin area and the lack of available fund-

ing for this project. There was a consensus that this project is a priority for the organization. There had been some discussion in the

TCPAF meeting about purchasing a pre-fab building as a solution. The problem for moving forward has been a financial issue, with a

rough guess of perhaps $500,000 for the complete project of purchasing the land and the providing the structure.

In summary, the three issues to be considered as a priority for the next year are continued training, the professional certificate/

recognition program and the continued development of office space. While there were no definite decisions made on most of the

discussed items, there was positive movement toward what needs to be addressed during the next term of office. There was a long

range discussion regarding how succession may occur for the Executive Director position when the day comes that James

McLaughlin retires.

T E X A S P O L I C E C H I E F S

A S S O C I A T I O N N E W S L E T T E R

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TPCA Committee Reports

Special Olympics – Texas - Chief Gary O. Smith, Temple PD 2014 Activities Jeramey Miller from Westworth Village PD represented Texas at the 2014 National Games in New Jersey. Jeramey participated in the 10 day Run through the northeastern United States. He made several reports as the events continued. He represented Texas very well! Budget SOTX set a revenue goal for calendar year 2013 was at $1.49 million. Actual revenue received in 2013 was $1.27 million (85% of goal). The goal for calendar year 2014 is $1.35 million. At the end of July, SOTX has received $600,000 in revenues (44% of goal) Texas Roadhouse Tip a Cop in July was a very successful. Forty-two locations participated statewide, raising $93,600. The Austin-Round Rock PDs held a Fire Truck Pull on August 31 in conjunction with a Round Rock Express minor league baseball game. There are Fire Truck Pull event in 13 cities with Duncanville PD raising the largest amount at $22,000. Coming Events in 2014 Over the Edge The Over the Edge event will be held in Austin, San Antonio, Dallas and Houston. This is a very large fund raising event for Special Olympics Texas and the Law Enforcement Torch Run. Revenue expectations for the four events combined are about $500,000. Dallas PD Chief David Brown is serving as the Honorary Chairman for the Dallas event; Austin Chief Art Acevedo is serving as Honorary Chairman for the Austin event. Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia is serv-ing as the Honorary Chairman for the Houston event. Tip a Cop Red Robin restaurants in the Dallas Ft Worth area participated on October 25. Running Events 13th annual Arlington PD/Joey Cushman 5K Run was held on November 1. Dallas PD had its first ‘Blue and Brave' 5K on November 15. Future Opportunities SOTX has entered into discussions with SeaWorld in San Antonio to sponsor some activities.

Committee Chairs 2014-2015

Ethics Committee Chair Chief Thomas D. Cowan (Ret.) Burleson, Texas

Membership Committee Chair Chief Rex Phelps Brenham P.D.

Exhibit Committee Chair Chief Rex A. Hoskins Decatur P.D.

TPCA LEMIT Liaison Chief Kevin P. Lunsford Huntsville P.D.

Applicant Screening Chair Chief Eric W. Buske Bryan P.D.

TPCAF Training Committee Chair Chief G.M. Cox Murphy P.D.

Legislative Committee Chair Chief Sean Mannix Cedar Park P.D.

TCOLE Liaison Chair Chief Brian Frieda Sweetwater P.D.

TPCA General Counsel/Exec. Dir. Chief James McLaughlin, Jr. (Ret.) Texas Police Chiefs Association

SACOP Committee Chair Chief Gregory Rushin Plano P.D.

Recognition Committee Chair Chief Scott Rubin Fair Oaks Ranch P.D. Strategic Planning Chair Chief Royce W. Smith Robinson P.D.

Communications Chair Chief Gary D. Johnson Roanoke P.D. Special Olympics Liaison Chief Gary O. Smith Temple P.D.

Border Issues Chair Open

Alarm Committee Chair Chief Chris Vinson Highland Park DPS

Officer Safety Committee Chair Chief Stan Standridge Abilene P.D.

Certification of Law Enforcement Managers Chief Gary O. Smith Temple P.D.

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TPCA Affiliate Reports

T E X A S P O L I C E C H I E F S

A S S O C I A T I O N N E W S L E T T E R

North Texas Crime Commission Legislative Trips The Border Mission trip is December 11-12. The hotel is Embassy Suites ($109 per night) in McAllen. DPS Direc-tor Steven McCraw has committed to meeting us there as well. Several of the North Texas chiefs, sheriffs and state representatives have verbally committed to go. All LE is invited to go on both of these trips. The FBI Dallas field office celebrated its 100th year in DFW and the celebration was attended by James Comey, FBI director, several former SACs as well as a large number of North Texas police chiefs. For more information, contact www.northtexascrimecommission.org East Central Texas Police Chiefs Association Chief Eric Buske, Bryan PD Our meeting on May 9 was hosted by Chief Philip Dupuis and the Conroe PD and we had 15-20 attendees. In addition to our agency roundtable, we had a presentation from Shenandoah Assistant Chief on the Below 100 program. On July 25 our meeting was hosted by Chief Rex Phelps and the Brenham PD. We had about 20 attendees and in addition to our agency roundtable, Jeff Capps and I made a presentation on the Active Shooter Command Guide. The September 26 meeting was hosted by Chief John Chancellor and the Shenandoah PD. South Plains Police Chiefs Association Affiliate Chief Roger Ellis, Lubbock PD SPPCA held a quarterly meeting June 20. SPPCA President, Chief Jerry Arrañaga led the meeting and discussed the following items: TPCA Conference was success for those who attended; the importance of networking with area po-lice chiefs and Lubbock County Assistant CDA Mary Duncan of the Crime Victim's Coalition spoke on the topic of vic-tim's rights. She emphasized for chiefs to nominate officers for annual service awards through their coalition for do-ing exemplary work and having a fundraiser for TPCA Fallen Officer Foundation and local organization, such as Wom-en's Protective Services. There was a luncheon on August 13, hosted by The Parenting Cottage, where guest speaker and Chair of the Adviso-ry Board of the Texas Regional Office of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Susie Hance, spoke on NCMEC's Role in the Texas community, which includes finding children who have been abducted and who are being exploited, including child por-nography, child sex and to help prevent child abduction and exploitation through training and education. SPPCA officers attended the luncheon. Texas Association of College and University Police Administrators Chief Jimmy Ellison, Abilene Christian University Police Department

TACUPA continues to appreciate the ongoing affiliation with the TPCA and the affiliate seat on the TPCA Executive Board. A few noteworthy events and news items from the world of college/university law enforcement in Texas: West Texas A&M University PD (Canyon TX) was hosting their annual regional active shooter/mass casualty training on their campus on May 30 when one of the training participants, Potter County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Paul Buckles, a 26-year PCSO veteran collapsed during the scenario. He died later at a local hospital. Cisco College (Cisco TX) has completed the final stages of establishing a police department, headed by Chief of

Police Brad Teaff. For now, Chief Teaff will be a one-person department with plans to grow the PD over time to serve the Cisco cam-pus as well as the large new satellite campus located in Abilene. College/university PD’s continue to be impacted by ever-growing federal legislation covering campus related sexual assaults, dating violence, domestic violence and stalking. Federal compliance issues related to reporting, disclosure, student and employees training/awareness are increasingly intensive, with no funding for the mandates. Additionally, there are discussions about future federal requirements related to off-campus incidents that the US Dept. of Education may require administrative action by the institution. This preliminary proposal could require that municipal/county law enforcement agencies work with non-sworn university administrators related to information sharing so that the institution can properly adjudicate the administrative case. TACUPA will continue to monitor these federal discussions and keep TPCA aware.

Chief Ellis

Chief Ellison

TPCA Affiliate & News Reports P A G E 1 3

Single Sticker Program Begins in March

The single sticker program, also known as ‘Two Steps, One Sticker,’ requiring verification of vehicle inspection prior to initial registration or renewal will begin statewide on March 1, 2015. The program is a result of House Bill 2305 enacted during the 83rd Legislative Session. Instead of registration and vehicle inspection stickers expiring in different months, you will have just one sticker with one expi-ration date. The familiar blue-bordered registration sticker will be the only sticker in the left corner of windshields. Because a passing vehicle inspection will be a requirement to renew your registration, more Texans will comply with the safety and emis-sions testing laws. With inspection stickers no longer needed under “Two Steps, One Sticker,” this change will eliminate the risk of inspection sticker fraud and theft. For more information, visit www.TwoStepsOneSticker.com or call 1-888-368-4689. Please check the TxDMV website for webinars and classes related to this change.

Rockwall Police Officer Sets Regional Academy Academic Record Rockwall Police Officer James Michael ‘Mike’ Watson set a new academic record at the North Central Texas Council of Government Police Academy with a 99.15 overall average. The previous record was 98.67 and was set in 2003. In those 11 years almost 1,700 recruits have graduated from this regional academy located in Arlington, Texas. Officer Watson scored 100 on 12 of the 14 academic tests and completed the academy on July 18, 2014.

Maypearl PD Adds First-Ever K9 Unit

Maypearl PD recently started its first K9 Unit and it has been already very successful. The first week ‘Silver’ was on the street an escaped fugitive from Tennessee was tracked down and captured by officers and Silver. Maypearl Chief Kevin M. Coffey is pictured here with the agency’s K9 member, Silver.

Central Texas Association of Chiefs of Police and Sheriffs—Chief Gene Ellis, Belton PD The biggest and most tragic news since our last report is the loss of two more law enforcement officers in Bell County. In less than 12 months, four Bell County law enforcement officers have been killed in the line of duty. On May 11, 2014, Killeen Detective Charles Dinwiddie died from a gunshot wound he sustained while executing a narcotics search warrant. The suspect is currently being held in the Bell County

Jail on charges of Capital Murder. Detective Dinwiddie is survived by a wife and two children. This was the second KPD officer killed in less than a year. Officer Robert Hornsby was shot and killed on July 14, 2013. On June 19, 2014, Little River-Academy Police Chief Lee Dixon was shot and killed when he responded to reports of a man with a gun. The suspect, a former police officer, is in the Bell County Jail charged with Capital Murder. Chief Dixon is survived by his wife, who is also a police officer. Chiefs Mike Gentry, Gary Smith, Gene Ellis, and Dennis Baldwin delivered TPCA Foundation benefit checks within 48 hours to the widows/family in each of these tragedies. Our region will be hosting the Developing Leaders for Law Enforcement program this Fall/Winter. The tentative dates are: No-vember 10-14. 2014; December 8-12, 2014; and January 5-9, 2015. Each of the three sessions will be at the Central Texas Council of Governments in Belton. Please visit the TPCA website http://www.texaspolicechiefs.org/civicrm/event/info?reset=1&id=71 to register for this dynamic leadership training program. Our association recently awarded 16 scholarships to police officers and children of officers from departments in our region who are pursuing a college education. This is the largest number of scholarships we have ever handed out. The funding for these scholarships comes from our annual bass fishing tournament and our corporate sponsors.

Chief Ellis

P A G E 1 4

Chief Monte L. Leggett Fritch PD Chief Kenneth J. Cheatle Dallas County Hospital District PD

Lt. Jeremy T. Hundley Borger PD Capt. Marc Bane Schertz PD Capt. Glynell Horn, Jr. Stafford PD Asst. Chief David Perkins Aransas Pass PD Asst. Chief Anthony Griffin Borger PD Chief Jeffrey D. Yarbrough Tulia PD Lt. Jason Jack Tulia PD Sgt. Matthew A. Counts Sweetwater PD Sgt. Matthew Todd Jones Sweetwater PD Lt. William Townsend Aubrey PD Chief Chapman E. Baber Todd Mission PD Asst. Chief Billy Couch College Station PD Lt. Larry Berg Belton PD Lt. Allen Fields Belton PD Asst. Chief Hector Gonzalez Los Fresnos PD Chief Harold Piatt Cottonwood Shores PD Chief Luis Aguilar Colorado City PD Chief Carlos Enriquez Anthony PD

Dep. Chief Jeff Christy Conroe PD Chief Kevin M. Coffey Maypearl PD Asst. Chief Chase Stapp San Marcos PD Lt. Charles Kreidler Texarkana PD Chief Anthony D. Tamayo Saint Jo PD Chief David W. Cross Crockett PD Chief Keith Traylor Manvel PD Capt. Eric Jones Memorial Villages PD Chief Gerardo ‘Jerry’ Arrañga Frenship ISD PD Chief Mike Ragan Texas A&M University PD Capt. Kristi R. Tillery Dallas Co. Hospital Dist. PD Sgt. William Pitmon II Bee Cave PD Dep. Chief Mark Young Farmers Branch PD Chief James Napolitano Montgomery PD Asst. Chief Eric C. Robins Sugar Land PD Asst. Chief Michael Smith Perryton PD Chief Mike Ritchey Blanco PD Sgt. Jeffery Daugherty Luling PD Chief Allen Banks Round Rock PD Dep. Chief Greg Ward Frisco PD Dept. Chief David Shilson Frisco PD

Chief Ken Coughlin Plainview PD Chief Eric Herrera Uvalde PD Chief Larry James Johnson Prairie View PD Capt. Maricruz Ramos Brazosport ISD PD Asst. Chief Darren Stevens Frisco PD Chief Sammy Hancock Joshua PD Dep. Chief Gilberto Garza III Dallas PD Chief Gregory Reyes Somerset PD Chief Colin Owen Milano PD Lt. Allen C. Pigeon San Jacinto College PD Cmdr. Don Georgens Taylor PD Asst. Chief James Brandon Southlake PD Chief Stephen L. Mylett Southlake PD Chief Nic Malmstrom Somerville PD Chief David Coulon The Colony PD Asst. Chief Robert Meyer Texas A&M University PD Chief Jeff Ward San Antonio ISD PD Lt. Stanley Slate San Antonio ISD PD Chief Richard J. Park Lake Jackson PD Asst. Chief Michelle Gardner El Paso PD Asst. Chief Albert Martinez Alice PD

Chief William C. Blanton Meridian PD Asst. Chief W.C. Plemons The Colony PD Chief Randy Driver Sansom Park PD Chief Tony Widner Graham PD Asst. Chief Brent Bullock Graham PD Chief Cheryl Wilson Lancaster PD Chief Terry David Lynch Wharton PD Chief Roberto Dominguez Mission PD Capt. Kyle Holcomb Mount Pleasant PD Chief Cordelia Mendeke Brackettville PD Chief Ronald Guylon Green Bowie PD Chief Chris Vinson Highland Park DPS Chief John Hargis TX State Board of Pharmacy Asst. Chief Michael W. Young North Richland Hills PD Chief Kevin Phillips Gainesville PD Interim Chief Jonathan Raden Dawson PD Chief Barry Hinkle Blue Mound PD Chief Gilbert Rodriguez Natalia PD Chief Steven Drumm Zavalla PD Asst. Chief Lowell Kent Stagg Bowie PD Capt. Daniel Tripp Mansfield PD Chief Quincy Lee Rosebud PD

Asst. Chief Todd Taylor Lewisville PD Asst. Chief Jay Powell Lewisville PD Chief Joseph O’Brien (Ret.) Former Chief of Windcrest PD Asst. Chief Bret Crook Woodway Public Safety Asst. Chief Robert Klett San Marcos PD Interim Chief Scott McCollum College Station PD Asst. Chief Steve Ayres Sherman PD Chief Michael A. Berezin Missouri City PD City Marshal Abel Saldaña City of Strawn Chief Brandon Shawn Davis Rhome PD Chief Shawn Martin Italy PD Lt. Brian Gordon Big Spring PD Chief LeeRoy Amador Galveston ISD PD Capt. John W. Pruitt, Jr. Galveston ISD PD Lt. Greg Minter Mansfield ISD PD Capt. Ross B. Clements Texas City PD Chief Terry Hargis Krum PD Chief Rex S. Ramon Alice PD Asst. Chief James Altgelt Bastrop PD Chief Earl Morrison Hutto PD Interim Chief Darrell D. West Azle PD Chief Bob Shelton Granger PD

T E X A S P O L I C E C H I E F S

A S S O C I A T I O N N E W S L E T T E R

Welcome New Members

P A G E 1 5

Officers Have Safety Choices to Make

When I received the news that Okfuskee County Deputy David Allford was the 1st officer killed in 2013, it was personal. You see, Oklahoma is where I call home. For close to 20 years I’ve been working with — and training with — those who wear the badge in the Sooner state. I did not know David, but I couldn’t help but notice a familiar trend in the details of his line of duty death. There were three deadly words on the screen: 1.) single 2.) responding 3.) ejected I first discussed this troubling trend in 2008 and sadly the story continues today. Our profession has a clear choice to make. We can continue dying in ways that do not have to be or we can correct it. I think we would all agree that the lessons we are writing in blood have to be learned and applied immediately. 1.) Single-vehicle collision is too common a phrase. Sebastian County Sheriff’s Corporal Terry Johnson was the 20th hero killed in 2013, but we have no idea why. His patrol car was found overturned in a ditch in the middle of the night. The why of it should really bother us all. There is no bad guy to blame, and all we have to think about is a single-vehicle collision and what may have happened. I’ve asked many traffic collision investiga-tors what they think of when they respond to single-vehicle crashes and one word con-tinually comes up: speed. Indeed, driving fast takes away all variables, but when you really analyze it, how much of a difference does it make? The difference between 80 mph and 100 mph over 10 miles is just 90 seconds. We should ask ourselves: When has 90 seconds really made a difference? I’m not saying there are not times that we as first responders must drive over the speed limit to situations, but we must always recognize the inherent danger of doing that. The phrase single-vehicle collision is a tragic reminder. 2.) Responding In addition to single vehicle collision we also see the word responding accompanying it. The largest fraternity in the world, we as law enforcement professionals will do whatever it takes to take care of one another. When we hear that radio transmission of a brother or sister in need, we will get there and we will get there quick. I’ve done it many times, and I’ve heard those beautiful sounds of sirens coming to me — and this is what I believe our lights and sirens are made for — but we must do everything we can to make sure the need is real. DeKalb County (Georgia) Officer Ivorie Klusmann died while going to assist another officer. Officer Klusmann had taken the infor-mation from a suspect when that suspect drove off. The pursuit was terminated by department policy, but another officer saw the car and Officer Klusmann responded to the area. He would never arrive, as he succumbed to injuries in a single-vehicle crash. I will never tell anyone to not do what they can to help another officer, but knowing that we lose a lot of heroes behind the badge in this fashion, we owe it to those responding to us to be very specific on our needs. If at all possible, explain what you have. If the situation at the scene has become less urgent, then tell those responding. A simple “Everyone can slow down ¬— the situation is under control” could be just the phrase to save a life. 3.) Ejected NHTSA tells us that from 1980 to 2008, 19 percent of the officers killed behind the wheel were ejected. It’s the same way that Vernon Parish (La.) Deputy Steven Netherland was killed when his vehicle left the roadway. The lack of seatbelt use in our profes-sion has been well documented. In another PoliceOne column I wrote about this topic, citing a 50 percent failure to wear rate among our officers. I fear it is much higher, and I regularly find myself at an agency talking about this issue because an administra-tor found out the wear rate was very low. I recently was told that a large agency that you would all recognize had just a five per-cent wear rate among their officers. Let me be clear. There will be many buried in that agency if they do not address the issue im-mediately. Changing Course There is a terrible history with these three words, but we do not have to continue down the path of tragedy. We must honor those who have given the ultimate sacrifice by training those here now. I was never told in my academy or subsequent training about these issues. We owe it to today’s crime fighters to tell them about these dangers. A recent message I received after the loss of Orange Beach (Ala.) Investigator Michael Stockwell, says it all: “Mike Stockwell was ejected from his vehicle and was not wearing his seatbelt. The crash and [damage to] his vehi-cle was not incredibly severe. He likely would’ve lived even though the vehicle rolled over. It crushed him after ejecting him. It pisses me off that he wasn’t buckled up...I’m sick of the senseless loss.” Indeed we should all be ‘pissed’ about the death of Mike Stockwell and countless others. It is time to turn that righteous anger into action. As a professionl, it is time to learn these blood lessons immediately. In honor of Stockwell, Netherland, Klusmann, Johnson, and many others, let us learn now. By Captain Travis Yates, who commands the Precision Driver Training Unit with the Tulsa, OK Police Department. He may be contacted at Policedriving@yahoo.com.

Chief Michael Pimentel Elmendorf Police Department

Constable Cleve Johnson Titus County Constable’s Office

Senior Deputy Jessica Hollis Travis County Sheriff’s Office

Deputy Sheriff Michael Naylor Midland County Sheriff’s Department

Officer Johnnie Jones Northeast Police Department, Denton County

Deputy Sheriff Jesse Valdez Harris County Sheriff’s Department

2014 In Memoriam

They Gave Their All

P A G E 1 6

Bigger Trucks Mean Bigger Problems for Texas

We in Texas could soon face the reality of longer and heavier trucks on our roads and bridges if

some in Washington have their way. This past session, Congress considered several types of truck

size and weight limits, including allowing triple-trailer trucks, long double-trailer trucks and in-

creased weight limits for single-trailer trucks to 97,000 pounds—an increase of 8.5 tons. No bigger-

truck language passed this year, although proponents attempted to add increases in truck weight

and length increases to a variety of bills, these provisions will likely be considered again next session.

Our association has taken a stand opposing any increases and is partnering with the Coalition

Against Bigger Trucks (CABT) in leading this effort in our state and across our nation. We know that

bigger trucks would add new dangers to our roads. While trucks play a vital role for our U.S. econo-

my and transportation system, they are inherently dangerous vehicles. In Texas, there were more

than 15,052 large-truck collisions in 2012, and 568 people lost their lives. Allowing heavier or longer

trucks would threaten the safety of motorists as well as law enforcement officers and first respond-

ers because heavier and longer trucks would be more difficult to control, take longer to stop and

increase crash severity. In fact, a study conducted by the U.S. Department of Transportation

(USDOT) found that trucks with multiple trailers have an 11-percent higher fatal crash rate. Heavier

trucks are also more dangerous according to USDOT’s November 2013 release, stating that gross

vehicle weight would appear to be associated with higher crash rates. Not only do these trucks en-

danger our traveling public, but they also put our law enforcement officers and first responders at

risk. In fact, a Marshall University-led study found that over 95 percent of law enforcement officers

believe that adding more weight makes a truck more dangerous. The same study found that 90 per-

cent of truck drivers say more weight negatively impacts braking. That is why national organizations

such as the National Troopers Coalition, the National Sheriffs’ Association, the National Association

of Emergency Medical Technicians and AAA all oppose bigger trucks on our highways.

The decision in Congress boils down to this: Do we experiment with the lives of motorists and

truck drivers, and do we roll the dice on whether our bridges will stand or fall under the weight of

heavier trucks? Bigger-truck proponents talk about ‘modernizing’ our transportation policy, but

there is nothing modern about endangering motorists while wasting taxpayer dollars. Join with your

association in halting the tide of bigger and heavier trucks. CABT, a national nonprofit, grassroots

organization is leading the public campaign against truck size and weight increases.

Contact Rick at (214) 491-7454 or rcowan@cabt.org to learn

how you can voice your opposition to bigger trucks. You can also

connect with CABT by visiting cabt.org, ‘liking’ CABT on Face-

book at facebook.com/nobiggertrucks, or following CABT on

Twitter at twitter.com/nobiggertrucks.

T E X A S P O L I C E C H I E F S

A S S O C I A T I O N N E W S L E T T E R

WELCOME NEW CORPORATE

MEMBERS

Aladtec Online Employee Scheduling & Workforce Management

ALPS Technology Coban Technologies, Inc. Digital Media Group Elbeco, Inc. Forum Industries NC4 NDI Systems PatrolPC PD Off Duty Power DMS Printek, Inc. Radarsign, LLC Sisk Rifles, LLC Streetcred Software, Inc. VTS Systems

P A G E 1 7

Using Procedural Justice to Improve Officer Safety

North Texas has seen an increase in citizens exercising their rights to film police encounters with a mission statement of

holding law enforcement officers accountable. From the very onset, the underlying goal of the Arlington Police Department

has always been and continues to be to support the rights of individuals, including the constitutionally protected activity of

filming police actions in the field while keeping our officers and the citizens of Arlington safe. However, executives must be

aware that this type of activity can present a challenge to the field personnel

who are engaged in inherently dangerous law enforcement action, such as

traffic stops. While, the majority of the conduct has been legal and constitu-

tionally protected, some individuals have allegedly engaged in conduct which

violates the law while filming the police.

As policing executives, we must help ensure the lines between preserving

officer safety and upholding the privileges guaranteed by the Constitution are

not blurred. No encounter is the same. In some circumstances, citizens have

quietly filmed officers, while in others, citizens have become aggressive, dis-

ruptive and interfered with officers attempting to perform their duties. Emo-

tions cannot get in the way of objectively evaluating each encounter and re-

sponding appropriately to the encounter. Balancing the rights of individuals

exercising a lawful activity while still maintaining officer safety in the field re-

quires thoughtful dialogue with employees. One way in

which the Arlington Police Department has achieved this is by investing in training. Over the past several

years, Arlington Police Department employees have received training on procedural justice which I believe

has assisted us when dealing with these types of situations. By adhering to the pillars of fairness, con-

sistency, allowing voice, being transparent and making impartial and unbiased decisions, officers are able

to maintain and keep the high ground when dealing with

these issues.

In addition, in addressing these encounters in particular, the Arlington

Police Department asked members and informal leaders of some police

accountability groups to meet with us so we could have a meaningful dis-

cussion about safety concerns and seek opportunities to minimize potential

conflict. This type of engagement has historically minimized the need for

enforcement actions related to individuals exercising their constitutional

rights. Although these individuals have declined our offer to meet, our

commitment will continue to be that we respect the filming of police in

public settings and treat all citizens with the utmost professionalism and

courtesy. Regardless of the adverse actions of a few in the

community, departments must continue to stay on the

high ground. This can be accomplished by adhering to best practices in procedural justice concepts. Being

fair and transparent helps the public understand the challenges and concerns that police have when en-

counters are escalated by some members of these

groups. It also helps ensure we are committed to our oath and honor the community who has entrusted

us with their safety.

Arlington Police Chief Will D. Johnson— For more information on this topic, please contact our public information

officer, Lt. Christopher Cook (Christopher.cook@arlingtontx.gov or 817-459-5333).

A protestor encourages the filming of police

encounters.

Several citizens observe actions of police

officers as they conduct an investigation.

TPCA News

MISSION STATEMENT

To promote and enhance the professional development of all executive and management personnel within duly constituted

law enforcement agencies in the state of Texas. To encourage close cooperation and partnerships with all law

enforcement agencies and the citizens they serve. To promote and maintain the highest standards of the police profession through selection and training of law enforcement

officers and police personnel. To maintain a clear VISION of our PURPOSE, VALUES

and IMAGE.

Mailing Address: P.O. Box 819 Elgin, Texas 78621 Physical Address: 1312 Highway 290 E. Suite C Elgin, Texas 78621 Phone Number: (512) 281-5400 Toll Free: 1-877-776-5432 Fax: (512) 281-2240 Email: info@texaspolicechiefs.org

Texas Police Chiefs Association

Special Thanks To

Third Edition

“Our goal is to promote the professional practice and development of law enforcement administration.”

Texas Police Chiefs Association Foundation Training The Texas Police Chiefs Association will be offering

several classes in 2015 conferences & training.

Developing Leaders for Texas Law Enforcement Classes for 2015 will be held in

Madisonville, Bryan, College Station, Texas City, and more. Advanced FTO 2015 Classes Coming soon! 84th Legislative Update 2015 Schedule Coming

soon!

THESE COURSES ARE OPEN TO ANY FEDERAL, STATE OR LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER.

For more information on future classes, contact

TPCA at (512) 281-5400

Your Police Department’s Training classes or employment opportunities may be submitted to info@texaspolicechiefs.org for posting on the

TPCA website.

Thank you! Thank you for taking the time to read the

Texas Police Chiefs Association Newsletter. We hope you have found this publication

informative. Any feedback we will graciously accept. Please send comments or

suggestions to info@texaspolicechiefs.org or

call (512) 281-5400. Next Publication January 2015