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Latest News &
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Two month investigation by
the Florence Police Department
Street Crimes Unit ends in nine arrests
(Florence, Al) - Florence Police delivered what they
say to be a “significant blow” to street level drug dealings
within the West Florence Community.
After two
months of complaints and surveillance activities the
Florence Police Department’s Street Crimes Unit took
advantage Friday night of what they believed to be the right
circumstances to shut down local street level drug dealings.
The events
surrounding the arrest of nine people is being termed
“Operation Block Party” due to the large crowds and open
alcohol and drug usage at 401 West Mobile Street, Florence.
Friday night’s events at the address come just one week
after officers responded to shots being fired into the
residence. In that case Dennis Lerondstadt Cole, 28, 1247
Graham Ave, now faces charges of Attempted Assault First,
Reckless Endangerment, and Shooting into an Occupied
Dwelling.
“It was
the right time to act” stated Ira Davis, Community Policing
Officer for the neighborhood. Davis was referring to
surveillance video which showed illegal activity occurring
at the time of the raid. All arrested were in the yard and
city street in front of the residence. As officers arrived
several individuals fled the area on foot. Officers gave
chase and apprehended one of the subjects.
“This
isn’t the face of West Florence which has a history of bad
publicity,” states Brad Holmes, Community Relations Officer
for the police department, “I hope that this operation has
shown the community that we stand behind them and will not
allow drugs to dominate the neighborhood. With the
communities help, the bad publicity stops now.”
“Operation
Block Party” stems from complaints from the neighborhood and
an initiative by Florence Police Chief Rick Singleton and
the Florence City Council. “Councilman Sam Pendleton was
instrumental in this case,” stated Holmes, “He not only
encouraged our department to investigate but helped to
ensure funding for the unit along with his council
counterparts and Mayor Irons.” Pendleton represents the area
where the operation took place.
Police say
that this operation is far from over. Additional arrests and
charges will be filed on several individuals who were not
arrested Friday night. “The evidence we’ve obtained will be
turned over to the Lauderdale County Drug Task Force and
presented to the Lauderdale County DA’s office for review
and prosecution,” stated Davis. “We expect additional
arrests and will continue to show those that chose to be
involved in criminal activity they will be caught, arrested,
and prosecuted.
Arrested
were:
Anthony
DeShawn Carroll, 30, 1-B Jackson Apts, Sheffield
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False information
Jamar
Monte McDonald, 19, 1437-A Carver Heights, Florence
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Possession of
Marijuana 2nd
Derek
Dewayne Roberts, 22, 303 Apt B Handy Homes, Florence
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Unlawful
Possession of Controlled Substance
Julius
Lashawn Simpson, 29, 1550 Helton Drive BB2, Florence
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Unlawful
Possession of Controlled Substance
Willie
Montez Saffold, 20, 1550 Helton Drive BB2, Florence
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Unlawful
Possession of Controlled Substance
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Possession of
Drug Paraphernalia
Brenda
Shell Tubbs, 45, 104 S. Locust, Florence
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Unlawful
Possession of Marijuana 2nd
Derrick
Ramond Peters, 27, 301 N. Court Street Apt. 12, Florence
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Carrying a Pistol
without a Permit
Michael
Lamont Shanes, 32, 206 S. Broadway Street, Florence
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Drinking in
Public
An
additional juvenile was arrest and charged with disorderly
conduct
April 12,
2006
Florence Police Duo Bring Home 3rd
in International Competition
(Tampa, FL)- After months of preparation, Florence Police
SWAT Snipers Hal Howard and Kevin Jackson have accomplished
the impossible bringing home to the Shoals a third place
award in the SniperCraft Challenge International
Sniper Competition.
SniperWeek, sponsored by
SniperCraft, is a unique training event for police and
military snipers. It combines two days of comprehensive
classroom lectures and presentations with two days of
intense, job-related range training and competition. SniperWeek
is recognized as the largest, and longest running police
sniper training event of its kind in the world. There is
nothing else like it anywhere.
This is not a contest, or a world
championship. Nor is this to be confused with your basic
bull’s eye bench rest course. This is a competitive sniper
training event without equal. Any sniper seeking to gauge
his readiness to operate in the real world of tactical
deployments should stop here first.
The emphasis is on training. The
SniperCraft Challenge is a unique course, designed by and
for police snipers. Using actual sniper incidents as the
model, each phase incorporates documented realism. The
result is a practical series of intense live-fire exercises,
set up to test your fitness, equipment, teamwork,
problem-solving, communication skills, ability to perform
under a variety of stressors - and your marksmanship.
Exactly like the next time the pager goes off. This is an
opportunity to validate your preparation.
"This is the Olympics of Police Sniping!" Law & Order
Magazine
For the third year in a row, the
pair of Howard and Jackson trekked 720 miles south to Tampa
to compete in the "Olympics of Police Sniping."
“To try and explain what occurs at
SniperCraft Challenge is difficult for me,” states
Howard, “many words come to mind though, stress, physically
demanding, mentally demanding, sweat, frustration, and joy.
The one word that best explains what SniperCraft does for
police snipers is TEAMWORK.”
This year there were 53 two-man
international teams vying for the title of champion. The
group hailed from all parts of the United States and across
the World. Teams from Chicago, New York, Miami, Palm Beach,
Orange Co. FL., Detroit, Texas, Wisconsin, Georgia, and
South America were all attempting to show off their ability
and take home the prize.
Lt. Eric Nichols, Florence SWAT
Commander, stated, “When you consider the tuff competition
and the advantages full time teams have over a pair like Hal
(Howard) and Kevin (Jackson), this kind of success is
phenomenal!”
Most teams in the competition are
full time, meaning, that's all they do at work.
“They shoot, train, are deployed
on operations, train some more, shoot more and are budgeted
for their equipment, time and ammo.” Howard noted, “Being a
part-time team (like Florence) means we train twice a month
for four hours at a time. Kevin and I have been a team for
six years now, shooting when we can on our off time and at
training. We are budgeted a limited amount of ammo so we
have to make it stretch. Our primary assignment is
patrolling the streets and answering calls.”
Florence houses a part-time SWAT
team with a limited number of members. Each member
participates on the team as a secondary assignment in
addition to their normal course of duties.
This year the team placed third.
“I can’t even begin to tell you
how proud I am of their dedication, commitment, and
motivation to make the personal sacrifices necessary to
compete in this event, not to mention the spectacular
result,” added Nichols.
“We are overjoyed at our
accomplishment. Going into the competition Kevin and
myself were going for the top 10. Last year we finished in
the top 20 of the nation coming in at 18. When the scores
were tallied at the end of the first day we were in fourth
place. The next day when they were tallied we were third.”
The first place winners were from
the South American branch of the DEA (Drug Enforcement
Administration), a full time team. The second place winners
were from Orange Co. Sheriff's Dept. FL, another full time
team. The difference between second and third was only one
shot.
The Sniper/Observer teams competed
head-to-head in a very challenging series of events that
have historically served as a comprehensive training
exercise. These courses tested and validated the team's
overall sniping skills, including judgment, teamwork,
tactics and shooting under induced stress. Participation
was open only to active, certified, police SWAT team and
military personnel, and supervisors.
The competition consisted of
several areas of shooting including threat recognition,
acquisition and accuracy. Throughout the competition each
team was subjected to a variety of stress inducing exercises
and physical activities and then placed in realistic
settings with targets less than 2” in diameter.
“We teach our team members that
training and teamwork is important to accomplishing a goal,”
stated Sgt. Jeff Stanfield, who supervises Florence sniper
team.
“The one thing that is discovered
in these events is teamwork,” stated Howard, “Where I was
shooting low on some Kevin picked it up and made up for it.
The same was reversed, where Kevin shot low, I made up for
him. That's how we got so high in score, working
together.”
Howard and Jackson will return to
Florence to resume their normal course of duties this week,
but with a little added pride in knowing that they are among
the best in the world at what they do. “We competed against
some excellent competition and couldn’t have accomplished
this with help,” states Jackson, “Thank you to all who
supported and sponsored our team during this competition.”
Both Howard and Jackson plan to
compete in the future in hopes of being named SniperCraft
Challenge Champion. Jackson closed by stating, “We learn
something new each competition and hope to continue to
compete and learn each year.”
***Credits- Law and Order Magazine
SniperCraft
03/15/2006
TERRORISM AWARENESS FOR
COMMUNITIES
The Florence
Police Dept. Community Policing Unit would like to announce an
opportunity for civic groups and organizations to host a
community training class on terrorism.
This class
is designed
to educate the public on how to spot terrorists
in their community. It also shows different types of terrorists
that operate in the U.S. and abroad.
In this day and times it is important that we
ALL work together to stop terrorism.
If your
group is interested in this
program, please
contact John Hamm, Community Policing Officer, at 760-6582 or
by email at
jhamm@florenceal.org
Mental Health Training
Free Mental
Health training on Thursday, March 16th and Friday,
March 17th from 08:30 until 5:30. Lunch will be
provided both days.
01/31/2006
Federal Drug
Trafficking Case Ends With 25 Guilty North Alabamians
(Florence, Al)- The federal trial of four North Alabamians
ends with guilty verdicts on all. After a two year
investigation into illegal drug trafficking activities
throughout North Alabama 25 individuals have either plead to
or been found guilty of conspiring to distribute illegal drugs
throughout the area.
This latest trial involves individuals arrested in August of
2005 during a roundup conducted by the Lauderdale County Drug
Task Force with assistance from the Florence Police Dept. SWAT
Team as well as the Colbert County Drug Task Force and DEA
Agents.
The investigation and trial, ironically, ended just two days
prior to its two year anniversary which was marked by the
controlled delivery of narcotics to an address on Baker Point
Lane in Lauderdale County in 2004. Information obtain in that
case led authorities to begin an investigation into an ongoing
conspiracy.
Throughout the investigation agents with the Lauderdale County
Drug Task Force and DEA found ties within this organization
linking the drug trade from Florence, Alabama to Atlanta,
Nashville, Houston, El Paso, Southern California and Mexico.
Thus far, agents have seized over $479,592 in US currency,
numerous vehicles (including 82 mini- motorcycles), and
numerous pieces of property throughout North Alabama which is
believed to be linked to illegal drug trafficking. In addition
to the items seized agents have tied hundreds of kilos of
Cocaine and thousands of kilos of Marijuana to this previously
powerful conspiracy.
Agent Tim Glover, lead agent on the case with the Lauderdale
County Drug Task Force, stated, “This is the perfect example
of the positives that can come from working with federal
agencies and tapping into their resources. I appreciate the
hard work and consideration of the jury in this case and there
is no doubt that this case will make a huge impact in the
availability of drugs within the Shoals area and all of North
Alabama. I especially want to thank Special Agent Fred Gasbaro,
DEA, Special Agent Marty Cosby, IRS, and AUSA Russell Penfield
for their hard work and dedication.” Agent Cosby played a key
role in this, however, was tragically killed in a motorcycle
accident prior to trial.
“This is true cooperation to get drugs and dealers off the
streets,” stated Myron Crunk, Director of the Lauderdale
County Drug Task Force. Over it’s two year duration
authorities with the United States Attorney’s Officer, DEA,
IRS, Lauderdale County Drug Task Force, Florence Police
Department, Lawrence County (Alabama) Sheriff Office, ABC
Board, Sulfur County, LA, Sheriff Office, Texarkana, TX,
Police Department, Houston Police Department Airport
Interdiction and Parcel Packages Interdiction teams assisted.
01/12/2006
The Florence Police Department will hold its annual public
meeting on Sunday, January 22 from 3 to 4 PM at the Florence
Middle School Auditorium on Bruin Dr. The meeting will cover
the goals and happenings of the FPD and our goals for 2006.
Several citizens will be recognized for their contributions to
the FPD and the City. There will also be static displays of
impressive police and homeland security equipment. Come spend
an hour to get to know the inside workings of your police
department.
Shoals-Area Law
Enforcement Wins IACP Photo Contest
AMBER Alert Links
FPD Officer Tim Tankersley
Wins State Award
Former FPD Officer
Receives K-9 Award
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