Things That Make Us Smile

[You can see the hole, right?]

Okay, so a few days ago, a woman drove past two ‘Road Closed’ barricades near Northgate Mile and Whittier Street in Idaho Falls at 1:30 in the morning. She proceeded through a construction zone, over piles of dirt where the entire road had been torn up and was texting on her cell phone when she drove her vehicle into a large hole in front of 450 Whittier Street.

She said when she went around the first barricade the road was "still okay" so she thought it would be the same past the second barricade. We asked her how she didn`t notice that the road wasn`t there and that she was driving over piles of dirt. She said someone had texted her and she was texting them back. Then in her words, “I was texting and just fell in a hole."

Sergeant Galbreaith conducted field sobriety tests and she checked out okay. We issued her a citation for Inattentive/Careless Driving, 49-1401(3). She had already called a tow company who pulled her vehicle from the hole and she drove away.

Freedom of the Press is Essential, but Messy

[Freedom of the Press Belongs to Those Who Own One]

Saturday’s Post Register article clearly crossed the line between news and opinion. I want to give you my perspective, not on the how, but on the why.

First, I have believed Cory and Roger to be men of conscience but still subject to their own biases. Unfortunately, a person’s bias (me included) is rarely self-evident. I believe they see the press as a check on state power – ensuring the survival of a free society. I whole-heartedly agree. As bad a job as the news media may do at times, they really are essential. Fortunately for Idaho Falls, the Post Register usually does a fine job, but sometimes stumbles just like the rest of us.

In addition to natural biases there is a business model that underlies editorials. They will likely deny this, but I think it’s pretty apparent. If my information is current, letters to the editor (and obituaries) are some of the most read portions of the newspaper. Editorials are not as widely read. The business purpose of the paper’s editorials is to create public discussion through letters to the editor. If they are successful, more letters strengthens readership. They want lively discussion and they want it inside their playground.

In their efforts to generate public debate on police shootings, I’ve noticed there has not been a single letter to the editor, though I anticipate there will be a few. I suspect the Post Register’s recent article will likely be followed by another editorial or two mixed with other “news” articles as they continue to try to evoke a public response.

The police are doing an awesome job and I know the large majority of the population is behind us. Even former arrestees come to our aid when we’re in trouble. This is a tribute to the fact that we’re treating the bad guys’ right (which makes it safer for the next officer’s encounter).

It’s not surprising that police, military, firemen, and teachers are always rated near the top for being trusted, while politicians, journalists, and attorneys are rated near the bottom.

When I set aside my emotions, I think the Post Register generally believes they are acting in the public good, but this recent article has strained that belief.

By the way, try to cut some slack to the retired-30-years officers. How many of us aren’t guilty of occasionally armchair-quarterbacking things we really know nothing about?

Welcome Shara

When we civilianized our property & evidence room position, we had no idea we’d get 214 applicants. Shara comes to us with 6 ½ years of experience from the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office Records Division. Since we work so closely with the Sheriff’s Office and are on the same computer system, this turned out to be a big advantage.

After working hours, Shara has managed to go camping just about every weekend this summer focusing on her 4-year-old daughter instead of the dirt and mosquitos. She also enjoys golf and horseback riding. Shara said she’s already felt very welcome and looks forward to working with Krissy, our Crime Scene Technician, on occasion.

Darlean Packer from the Sheriff’s Office describes her as a delight to work with, dependable, good natured, and very intelligent. She said, “We’re happy for Shara, but we definitely feel the loss.” Sheriff Paul Wilde and I worked together on the transition to minimize the disruption.

Shara is known as being totally organized and detail-oriented -- a perfect combination for the evidence room.

Left Turn Intersections

Memorial & B Street.

Okay, so I was turning left onto "B" Street from Memorial a few weeks ago and found a driver on my side facing the opposite direction preparing to do a U Turn. No problem with a U Turn, but the driver was on my side of the intersection. When I motioned that she needed to be on the other side, she shook her head, pointed her finger and mouthed that I was the one on the wrong side.

I faced an almost identical situation later while driving with my wife, Rebecca. I laughed about it and explained this had just happened a few days ago. Rebecca raised one eye brow and said, “She’s right, you know.” Wow, you’d think she’d trust my expertise.

Okay, Rebecca, here’s the explanation: When you’re turning left in an intersection, you need to stay inside the left side of the intersection. The other way creates the potential for a bottleneck.

The law (49-644) reads, “The driver of a vehicle intending to turn left shall approach the turn in the extreme left-hand lane lawfully available to traffic moving in the direction of travel of the vehicle. Whenever practicable the left turn shall be made to the left of the center of the intersection and so as to leave the intersection or other location in the extreme left-hand lane lawfully available to traffic moving in the same direction on the highway (highway is legal-speak for road) being entered.”

Here's a picture.

Memorial might be going away, but this concept applies to nearly any intersection.

I've changed my silent question from, "What would Rebecca do?" to "What would Rebecca do, except driving." Yeah, I think I'm going to catch it when I get home.

We'd Be Lost Without these Volunteers -- Post by Joelyn Hansen

The Idaho Falls Citizen’s Watch Group – the men and women that drive in the cars with the yellow lights and wear the white uniform – are a great asset to the operation of the Idaho Falls Police Department.

Started in 2001, the group officially organized itself after alumni from the Idaho Falls Police Citizen’s Academy asked what they could do to assist the IFPD.

Ten years later, the group is a thriving organization with approximately 25 members that assist with neighborhood patrols, accidents, abandoned vehicles, vacation watches, special events, graffiti clean-up and various other tasks. Some of these volunteers put upwards to 20 plus hours a week and never hesitate to assist when needed – and there are times we need them a lot!

It’s estimated that annually their contribution of volunteer hours saves the city over $400,000 and it also assures that sworn officers can continue to work the high priority calls.

Around the state, the CWP sets a high standard for other groups completing similar tasks for their respective law enforcement agencies. The group again was able to “show off” this past weekend as the CWP hosted the annual State of Idaho Law Enforcement Volunteers Organizational Picnic.

Representatives from Elmore County, Twin Falls, Mountain Home and Weiser were in attendance giving an opportunity for these volunteers to share information and network with each other.

As the volunteer coordinator, I was busting with pride Saturday as our volunteers, dressed in their white uniforms, again showed by many agencies look to Idaho Falls for guidance when starting their own volunteer group.

By Joelyn Hansen

How Safe Is Idaho Falls?

In spite of a few high-profile incidents, violent crime in Idaho Falls continues to fall after peaking in 2007-2008. In fact, as violent crime continues to drop nation-wide for cities our size (down 5.3% from last year), Idaho Falls violent crime is dropping even faster (down 10.3% from last year).

So how do we stack up against other cities of our size across the nation? Pretty good. The FBI measures crime in two main categories: Violent Crime and Property Crime. Violent Crime consist of murder, rape, robbery, and aggravated assaults. Property Crime consist of burglary, theft, and auto theft. Of course there are other crimes, but the FBI uses these key crimes as benchmarks. Keep in mind these numbers don't measure all crimes, but only those reported to the police.

Crime Rate Compared

The preliminary FBI numbers on crime rates compared to other cities of our size show Idaho Falls Violent Crime 17% less and Property Crime 10% less.

Crime Trend

During the past few years, we've had a strong downward trend.

When the final numbers are in for 2010, I’ll fill you in on the specifics. If you want to do the research yourself, take a look at the FBI’s site at http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/ucr. If you’d like to look at other cities in Idaho, go to the Idaho State Police website at http://www.isp.idaho.gov/identification/ucr/crimeinidaho2010.html

Welcome Krissy

When we civilianized our CSI position, we conducted a national search. There were several solid candidates with finalist from Stockton Calif. and Scotland, but the best match for us turned out to be a local, Krissy Gittins. Krissy did CSI work for Madison County and has an Associates degree in Criminal Justice. She has four very blonde children and a father who is a retired assistant police chief from American Fork (that didn’t hurt).

Krissy said she’s always been fascinated with law enforcement. She said, “The great thing about evidence is it can’t lie to you like a person can.”

She’s only been with us a short time, but we’ve kept her busy. Krissy has already been a key player in solving a few cases including getting a cold hit from a fingerprint she lifted off a window sill.

Krissy describes herself as being a bit of a neat freak, but her husband, Nathan, describes her as an “absolutely amazing person that’s super smart.” Sounds like Nathan is fairly smart for saying so.

Police Accountability

Meet the Police Oversight Committee - aka City Council.

The public entrusts the police with incredible power. Who else is legally authorized to use force, imprison, or even take life if necessary? Understandably, society scrutinizes and holds police accountable like no others.

In Idaho Falls, we are fortunate to have a high level of trust between police and the citizens they serve. If that trust breaks down, our effectiveness would drop like a rock and the community’s safety with it. I take that trust very seriously.

Let me cover a few ways police are accountable.

1. Their own sense of duty and integrity. We work hard to select the right kind of person to be a police officer. Candidates undergo a written test followed by an interview with subject matter experts and members from the community. Then they have to pass a physical agility test, a medical test, a psych test, a background check and a polygraph test. The majority wash out - it's surprising how many with problems in the moral character arena. Once chosen, police officers go through extensive training.

2. Immediate Supervisors. These are seasoned professionals that mentor and coach our police officers giving them guidance and ensuring they exercise their authority appropriately. They are there on a daily basis monitoring and showing up on police calls.

3. Chief of Police. When I receive a complaint, I ensure it is investigated completely. If a citizen isn’t happy with the outcome, I invite them to speak with me directly. My track record with those that do so is high and very credible. It may not always go their way, but chances are good they’ll feel confident they were treated fairly and their concern was dealt with appropriately. On a broader scale, these interactions help influence policy.

4. Mayor and City Council. This is where citizens can have a direct say in the direction of the police department. Also, if you’re not comfortable contacting me with a concern, I invite you to contact the Mayor or any member of the City Council. These are the people you chose to hold me accountable. If they aren’t satisfied with how I’m handling things, they can fire me. If you aren’t satisfied they are holding me accountable, you can fire them.

5. Legal process. This helps protect the rights of the minority. If you can’t muster the votes to fire the Mayor or Council or think they’re doing fine except for a specific incident with the police, you can appeal directly to the courts. This is a powerful tool to keep potential rogue cops in line. Not only can a police officer be sued civilly, but they are subject to criminal law just like everyone else. How? If one of our police officers is accused of a crime, we take it to the Bonneville County Prosecutor, an elected official accountable to you. If the matter is serious, he will always have it investigated by an outside agency. If you’re concerned that police and the prosecutor are too cozy, you can also go to the FBI who is specifically tasked with investigating crimes committed by police.

A word about Citizen Oversight Committees: Large cities that have a difficult time staying in touch with their citizens or smaller cities that do a crappy job of it sometimes have Citizen Oversight Committees. They typically function in an atmosphere of low trust born out of frustration that police aren’t responsive or trustworthy. While well-meaning, these committees often lack understanding or have their own agendas.

Direct oversight is best conducted by the Mayor and City Council – fellow citizens chosen directly by the people rather than a bureaucratic committee with limited accountability. The council is also in a much better position to set priorities and give direction because of their direct ties to the community.

For me, trust that we won’t violate your rights or break the law isn’t enough. I want your confidence that we’re not just doing the right thing, but we’re doing the right thing in a great way. I’ll blog more on our Citizen Surveys and Score Card later. But if you have a sense that we’re moving the wrong direction or fumbling on a specific issue, give me a call or drop me an email. I really want to hear from you.

IFPD & BCSO Merge Narcotics Units

Drugs Cash and Guns - they always seem to go together.

Since Bonneville County Sheriff Paul Wilde and I made a blood oath to cooperate 3+ years ago, we’ve joined forces on a number of ventures. Our most recent collaboration combines our drug enforcement efforts. Our narcotics officers already shared office space and resources, but we recently signed an agreement putting undercover officers under a single unit commander.

This makes sense on a couple of fronts.

First, the drug dealers don’t just set up shop and work inside the Idaho Falls city limits. Erasing this boundry makes it far easier to investigate cases. Sharing information is easier said than done. Actually working the cases together creates a spirit of teamwork and cooperative synergy that makes us much more effective as we follow the investigation to wherever it leads us.

Finally, it saves tax money by eliminating the need for two supervisors. The Sheriff’s Office is providing the leadership for the narcotics commander and we’re providing the leadership on intelligence (Paul, I’m holding my tongue here).

Neither of us has had a formal crime analyst and now we’re initiating a concept sometimes referred to as Intelligence Led Policing (more on this later), but freeing one of the supervisors has allowed us the resources to do this without spending more money.

Hollywood's depictions of competition and sometimes outright animosity among different law enforcement agencies is not always far skewed. It happens more than it should. As Rebecca likes to remind me, "Cops usually don’t suffer from a lack of ego and Cop leaders could write the book." Hats off to Sheriff Wilde for his ability to work together for the good of the community. Law enforcement is miles ahead if we can set aside our egos and cooperate.

In the meantime, druggies beware…

Community Night Out

(I asked Joelyn to write this post - sroos) You can spend months planning an event with no idea whether or not something will come together. At the time you execute it you pray such that it does.

Thankfully plans for Wednesday night’s 11^th annual Community Night Out – with a few hiccups – worked out exactly as planned and overall I deem it a success! That’s based on my own eyewitness account as I watched hundreds of people crowd the Greenbelt listening to music, participating in activities, eating food and generally having a good time.

If you don’t believe me – be sure to check out the evidence photos I took on Wednesday.

I was glad I was there; especially considering I’d dreamt the night before that I’d missed Community Night Out! The dream must have been a good omen.

I wish I could take all the credit, but I can’t. Community Night Out could not have been done without the many people, organizations and businesses that really stepped up to the plate to make this happen. Months ago when we started our planning meetings people brought several new ideas to the table in hopes of adding to an already successful event. They also took the time and effort to be there – which is what I really appreciate.

It also could not have been done without the many community members that came out to support the event. Plus, they should receive kudos for helping to eat up the majority of the food – despite the fact we ran out of ketchup.

Now – though I may recoup for a few days – it’s time to start thinking about next year’s event. I hope we can make the 12^th annual Community Night Out even more fun and more successful. Any ideas?

Posted by Joelyn Hansen

City Council May Tighten Door-to-Door Sales

The Idaho Falls City Council is in the process of considering tighter controls on door-to-door sales.

Early this summer, we investigated four cases involving door-to-door sales. One salesman was arrested for burglary and theft and another was arrested for rape. Two other salesmen are being investigated for sexual assaults. All incidents but one took place while the men were engaged in selling stuff. The exception occurred at a hotel where the men were staying. All of the men but one had a criminal history.

Crafting an ordinance that works isn’t simple because of First Amendment issues. The courts also made it clear that we need to tread carefully when it comes to high licensing fees, a lengthy application process, or other measure designed to discourage commerce.

We had a misfire on our door-to-door ordinance back in the early 1980s. At that time, the ordinance essentially outlawed door-to-door sales. We won in the U.S. District Court, lost in the 9^th Circuit, won in the U.S. Supreme Court and then lost again in the 9^th Circuit. Our current ordinance was a compromise created out of necessity to get the 9^th Circuit off our backs. It only applies if there is a “no-solicitation” sign which is ineffective because most people won’t do it - including me.

Since the 1980s, there has been more case law, so it’s definitely time to re-visit the matter. City attorneys are working on a draft as we speak. Hopefully, we’ll be ready to take it to the Public Safety Committee in the next few weeks for council consideration.

Weekend Escape

I took this photo from the top of Scotchman Peak overlooking Lake Pend Oreille.

It will be rare that I make a non-police related post, but you’ve got to see the video below (you can also see it on YouTube). Friday, Rebecca and I climbed Scotchman Peak near Sandpoint. We hit the trailhead early. 4 ½ miles and 4,000 vertical feet later, we arrived at the top and were amazed to see a mountain goat that was either friendly or just hungry.

The thought occurred to me that as Rebecca was presenting her back side to the mountain goat, she risked getting head-butted. I saw this once on a farm. I guess I could have warned her, but I just couldn’t pull myself away from the camera. Fortunately, the mountain goat seemed more interested in food.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game!

Are you attending the Chukars baseball game on Tuesday? If you are, that's great news! If you aren't, you should consider it as the Idaho Falls Police Department, along with D.A.R.E. and the Fraternal Order of Police, are the night's sponsors.

As sponsors, we're proud to announce that Tuesday's game will be alcohol free -- making it a perfect night for a family outing to the ball park!

If you'd like to go to the baseball game on Tuesday, the IFPD has a limited supply of free tickets available. If you'd like them, contact Joelyn at 612-8655. It'll be first come first served!

Council Nixes Texting Law

The city council decided not to adopt a texting ordinance for now. The two main deciding factors were the difficulty of enforcement and duplicating laws - see prior post. Even though they were deeply concerned about the insanity of texting while driving, they didn't want to simply make a political statement or create the illusion that they were doing something.

They also listened to the fact that 80% of our police officers were opposed to an ordinance that essentially duplicates the Inattentive Driving law already on the books.

Online Crime Reporting

By the way, this photo isn't Kris

Idaho Falls resident Kris Frasure received good news recently when we caught the culprits that broke his large double pane window at his house two weeks ago. It’s no surprise police made an arrest. We're good at that. The real surprise for Kris was that we solved a crime he reported online.

“I wasn’t exactly sure what (the online reporting sytem) was,” Kris said. “But, I was pleasantly surprised when officers solved my crime.”

After working out a few bugs, we implemented online crime reporting (Coplogic for those that really care) at the start of the new year. It was done to save time in the way we handle minor crimes with no suspects. The benefits are that residents don’t have the hassle of waiting for an officer to respond and the officer’s time is freed to work on other things.

Ultimately, it gives the taxpayers’ more bang for their buck.

For the six months since implementation, the department has seen a savings of about $8,839 with 121 reports taken (about a 44% return on investment). As more people become aware, these numbers should grow. Other departments told me this system for online reporting grew from 11% to 31% of their cases. I think our numbers will grow further as the word gets out.

Online reporting isn’t for everyone. If you call us, we’ll give you the option - if it’s appropriate. It definitely isn’t appropriate for crimes happening right now and crimes where you have suspects or physical evidence, but for minor crimes with no suspects (between 25%-50% of our call load), online reporting may be a good option. Don't worry, the computer (and our Records personnel) won't let you report a crime online if it shouldn't be reported online.

Before I decided to move forward on this project, I did a quick reality check with my wife. “Would you rather file a report online or have personal contact with a real police officer?” She looked at me thoughtfully and smiled. “I think I’d prefer online.”

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