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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1993 Moorpark Police Annual ReportMOORPARK POLICE DEPARTMENT Cele. MY( of se; to tho of the City, To the reader ... From the desk of .fir. OF"# Id - We have just finished our tenth year of service to the City of Moorpark. While the cars we drive and the equipment we use has seen an evolution over the past decade, our basic mission of providing a safe environment in which to live has not changed. To that end, 1993 was another successful year for the Moorpark Police Department and, as a result, the citizens of Moorpark. Moorpark continues to struggle under the strain of the financial crisis facing both public and private agencies. Despite fiscal restraints, the city council continues to make the safety of the people of Moorpark a high priority. This commitment resulted in the addition of a detective sergeant who greatly assisted in the investigation of cases which were unable to be addressed in prior years. Gang activity continues to be present within the community. Our gang ydetail, working with patrol officers and detectives, continue to track gang activity through our automated database. We established and continue to enforce a zero tolerance policy towards criminal acts committed by known gang members. There were many special accomplishments throughout the year. A couple of these really stand out. The certification of our Moorpark officers and several city employees as Emergency Medical Technicians was a big step in providing additional emergency medical resources for the community. The joint training venture between Pruner Health Services, who provided the training, and the City, is a great example of the public and private sector working together for the benefit of everyone. The kick-off of our Hispanic Traffic Education Program, funded by a grant from the state, will lead to a reduction in accidents and injuries throughout the city. Part I crimes dropped by 8.5% in 1993. While we are thrilled with this reduction, now is not the time to become complacent. There must be an ever-expanding partnership between the citizens of Moorpark and their police department. Only through this partnership can we continue to live in a safe environment. On behalf of Sheriff Larry Carpenter, myself, and the deputies who work in your city, we thank you for your support and the opportunity to serve You. Sincerely, Geoff Dean utenant Ventura County Sheriffs Department 3 ANNUAL REPORT Moorpark Police Department Mission Statement We, the members of the East County Police Services Division, are committed to safeguarding the lives and property of the residents of Moorpark. Our strategies for accomplishing this goal are to display empathy and respect for individual dignity, preserve the peace, prevent crime, enforce laws, apprehend offenders, and respond to public concerns through a community partnership which promotes neighborhoods free from the fear of crime. Personnel and Responsibilities Police Department Police Services Manager: Lieutenant Geoff Dean Police Services Supervisor: Sergeant Keith Parks Detective Supervisor: Sergeant Marty Rouse Community Services Officer.- Sr. Dep. Ed Tumbleson Traff c Investigator. Dep. Craig Smith Motorcycle Officer: Dep. George Fitzgerald Detectives: Sr. Dep. Dave Lea Dep. Ron Nelson Patrol Senior Deputies: Sr. Dep. Ross Bonfiglio Sr. Dep. Jerry Hernandez Patrol Officers. Dep. Kent Adlof Dep. Don Aguilar Dep. Allen Devers Dep. Denise Enfinger Cadets: Juan Ponce Eric Sonstegard Administrative Assistant. Diane McCrossen Dep. Jose Lopez Dep. Albert Miramontes Dep. Emmett McCracken Dep. Randy Watkins Mayor: Dep. Albert Mesa Dep. Steve Lengyel Dep. Gregg Willson City of Moorpark City Council. City Manager: Deputy City Manager. Paul Lawrason Patrick Hunter Scott Montgomery Bernardo Perez John Wozniak Steven Kueny Richard Hare � Introducing... � The Moorpark Police Department Standing (left to right): Admin. Asst. Diane McCrossen, Dep. Craig Smith, Dep. Emmett McCracken, Dep. Gregg Willson, Sr. Dep. Dave Lea, Sgt. Keith Parks, Sgt. Ross Bonfiglio, Cadet Juan Ponce, Lt. Geoff Dean, Dep. Steve Lengyel, Sr. Dep. Ed Tumbleson, Dep. Allen Devers, Dep. Denise Enfinger Kneeling (left to right): Sr. Dep. Jerry Hernandez, Sgt. Marty Rouse, Dep. Randy Watkins, Dep. Don Aguilar, Dep. George Fitzgerald, Dep. Albert Miramontes, Dep. Ron Nelson Not pictured. Dep. Kent Adlof, Dep. Jose Lopez Moorpark Police Department Management Team Lt. Geoff Dean (center) Sgt. Marty Rouse (right) Sgt. Keith Parks (left) Community Services TAKING A BITE OUT OF CRIME "Neighbors Helping Neighbors" This is the theme of our Neighbor- hood Watch program. This crime prevention program teaches people to become more aware of their neigh- bors and their neighbors' properties. Residents are encouraged to watch for suspicious persons and activity in their neighborhoods, and to call the police to report it. The Community Services Officer publishes a monthly newsletter for the 65 residential Neighborhood Watch groups in Moorpark. The newsletter offers crime prevention tips as well as updates on crime trends in their neighborhoods and throughout the city. We also hold periodic planning and training meetings for these groups and their representatives in order to maintain our "crime prevention" network. Specific topics presented under the Neighborhood Watch theme include: "Business Watch," personal safety training, home security planning, and disaster preparedness. Community Involvement Crime prevention extends beyond the Neighborhood Watch program. The Community Services Officer works with a variety of community organi- zations and service clubs with the intent to prevent crime. Member of the D.A. T.E. Committee The Moorpark Unified School District's "Drug, Alcohol, Tobacco Education Committee" is representa- tive of both the school district and community. The committee coordi- nates district efforts to increase the level of student awareness about substance abuse problems. They also plan the allocation ofD.A.T.E. funds throughout the prevention programs. Local Outreach The Community Services Officer assists with "Project Pride," a joint venture of the City of Moorpark and the Moorpark Unified School District. "Project Pride," which is operated by El Concilio Del Condado De Ventura, provides a drop -in counseling and tutoring center for area youth in the downtown area. The CSO also works with the Moorpark Teen Council, which addresses some of the problems facing our local teens. With the younger children, the Community Services Officer serves as a friend and a role model at the local Boys and Girls Club in their "Adopt A Cop" program. He also takes crime prevention to the local elementary schools and preschools with "Officer McGruff." The children are very receptive to Officer McGruffs message on how to be safe. Funding The Community Services Officer position is funded by the City of Moorpark and the Moorpark Unified School District's D.A.T.E. program. The Parent, Teacher, Student Associations (P.T.S.A) at Arroyo West and Flory Schools, where D.A.R.E. is taught, provide addi- tional funding. Community dona- tions from local businesses and service organizations are used to purchase items for the children who participate in the D.A.R.E Program. MONNOW NZO"CIA®�Ss�� DRUO ABUSE RESISTANCE E CW-40 ON D.A.R.E. As the D.A.R.E. instructor, Ed teaches nine classes of fifth -grade students at Flory School and Arroyo West School each week during the school year. We reach almost 600 students each year with this impor- tant program which helps develop individual personal skills to resist the peer pressure to experiment with drugs or to engage in other negative behavior such as gang activity. Students learn about the different types of drugs, including alcohol and tobacco. More importantly, they learn about the personal and social consequences that occur when a choice is made to use drugs. To help build the self-confidence to say "no" to the inevitable peer pressure, students act out situations that they may face. This play acting helps them feel good for saying no! During the program, each student writes an essay about their personal commitment to stay drug free. At the end of their semester of training, the students attend a graduation cer- emony where they show their families and the community what they have learned in the program. Students who have written the best essays from each class share their thoughts with their families and friends in the audience. All of the graduates receive a D.A.R.E. tee-shirt and a course completion certificate. , a Patrol Services Introduction Responding to Gangs Patrol deputies serve as the backbone of the Moorpark Police Department. They are on duty 24 hours per day, seven days a week. They respond to all calls for service, take reports, initiate investigations, arrest offenders, investigate traffic accidents, enforce traffic laws, and prevent crime through routine and directed patrol. In addition to routine patrol operations, we evaluate specific locations and time frames for crime trends. Through directed patrol, we assign patrol and detective staff to work in those locations in an effort to reduce the problems. This "Problem Oriented Policing" concept relies on input from all of the deputies assigned to Moorpark. Patrol officers are an important resource, because they see first hand what is happening in their patrol beats. We encourage the deputies to present their own ideas on how to deal with a situation. We then shift our resources, such as forming a short-term Special Enforcement Detail, to manage the situation. Four Moorpark deputies have collateral assignments as gang officers. In addition to their regular patrol duties, Deputies Don Aguilar, Randy Watkins, Allen Devers, and Gregg Willson comprised our 1993 gang detail. They received training as gang investigators and coordi- nated gang investigations between the department, probation officials, and officers from other agencies. Most importantly, these deputies developed expertise on local gang members and shared their information with the other patrol deputies. This resulted in making our officers better able to monitor and control the criminal activities of gang members. We also started a program to enhance the emergency medical skills of our patrol officers. Through the new Emergency Medical Technician training program, we began the process of giving our personnel the skills necessary to move beyond basic first, aid practices. As an integral part of the County's Emergency Medical System, deputies who are EMT trained will better be able to respond to victims of medical or accident emergencies. In 1993, half of the patrol officers completed their EMT training. Four Moorpark municipal employees were also trained. This program will continue in 1994 until all of the Police personnel are trained and equipped as EMT's. The Police Department utilizes cadets to supplement patrol and traffic services. Cadets maintain the gang intelligence files, enforce parking ordinances, manage abandoned vehicles, and take non -emergency reports. This allows deputies more time to focus on emergency calls and to give more in-depth service on routine calls. Important tools used to effectively monitor local gang members are the terms and conditions of probation placed upon them by the Court. Our patrol deputies work closely with probation officials to share information and to assist with investigations of gang members who are on probation. We also educate deputies about the specific probation terms for each local gang member. When a patrol deputy observes a gang member engaging in a behavior that violates their terms, such as associating with another known gang member, the deputy documents that behavior on a report, which is then forwarded to probation officials. Often this behavior does not violate a criminal statute, so an arrest cannot be made. However, by documenting the behavior, the Court can be shown that the gang member is intentionally disregarding the Court's orders. That may result in the revocation of the gang member's release on probation status. As a result of the proactive approach Moorpark patrol deputies take in dealing with gang members (a 40% increase over 1992), we saw a significant decrease in the number of reported gang incidents in 1993. This also resulted in a reduction of the number of incidents where gang members violated their probation, which means that they made a conscious effort to obey the court ordered restrictions instead of facing a violation. For the purposes of data gathering, we defined gang incidents as those situations where a crime was commit- ted by gang members, such as a battery or vandalism. We also counted incidents, such as disturbances, where no crime was reported, but where the situation warranted a report to be written by a deputy. Gang contacts are the individual contacts of gang members, either through the completion of a Field Interview card or placement on an official report. The "VOP" column lists the number of violation of probation reports written. Data collection for gang incidents, contacts, probation violation reports, and arrests was fully computerized in early 1993. Cadets Eric Sonstegard and Juan Ponce were instrumental in placing all of the information obtained by the patrol deputies and gang officers into the database on a monthly basis, in order to provide deputies with concise information on local gang members. Patrol Operations Patrol Beat Configuration ' E .0 : Patrol deputies are placed into "teams" to ensure that they primarily work .' h< vn in specific sections (beats) of the city. This allows them to gain a good ...:::...:: understanding of the needs of their beats. They also have a better opportunity to become personally acquainted with the residents and merchants in their beats. Ultimately, this allows the deputies to provide a more personal and in-depth response to the community. This concept, referred to as "Commu- nity Oriented Policing," is the concept behind our patrol services mission statement. In January 1993, we changed the configuration of our patrol beats. We had originally divided the city into three beats, two of which were patrolled by their teams on a 24 hour per day basis. The third beat was patrolled by it's team for the busiest 17 hours a day, with the remaining slower activity hours being handled by the other two teams. In an effort to reduce the occasional confusion about the beat boundaries, we divided the city in two parts, with each of the 24 hour per day teams (2A and 2B) assuming responsibility for their half of the city. The third team (2C) then became a roving unit, providing backup and directed patrol to the other two beats. Operating during the busiest 17 hours each day, the 2C car also handles calls in the other beats when those deputies are busy. To provide additional patrol supervision during the peak operating hours, the two patrol Senior Deputies were assigned to the 2C car. This ensured that the more experienced patrol deputies, with supervisory rank, were in the field during the times that they were most needed. Geographically, the 2A beat covers the western and southern portions of the city, including the Peach Hill, Mountain Meadows, and Buttercreek neighborhoods. It also includes the downtown areas west of Moorpark Avenue and south of New Los Angeles Avenue. The 2B beat includes the majority of the downtown area, the Campus Park neighborhoods, and Moorpark College. Calls for Service Calls for service (CFS) are specific incidents where a citizen requests an officer to respond. They range from emergency calls to public service requests. Emergency calls for service usually require that at least two deputies respond. Routine report calls would only require that one deputy respond. CFS do not include officer initiated activity such as traffic citations, investigative stops, special enforcement, or crime prevention contacts. The distribution of the calls for service was impacted by the beat reconfiguration plan completed in early 1993. The primary result was the even redistribution of the work load. In 1992, the 2A beat received 44% of the calls for service, highest among the three beats. The 2B beat received 19%, and the 2C beat had 36% of the calls. In 1993, the 2A beat received 52% and the 2B beat received 48%. By changing the beat configuration, the calls for service became more evenly distributed, ensur- ing that residents and businesses received more equal and consistent patrol coverage. Of the total CFS in the City of Moorpark in 1993, 10.5% were alarm calls. Virtually all of these alarm calls were false alarms (99.3%). This includes both audible and silent alarms for private residences and businesses. Most of the calls are a response to intrusion (burglary) alarms. A minority of the calls are for panic or robbery alarms. Since alarms are designed to gain police response to a dangerous situation (an intruder in a home or a closed business, a bank robbery in progress, etc.), a minimum of two officers are sent to each call. Because of the time it takes to adequately investigate each call, these false calls take up a significant amount of available patrol time. As the numbers of Calls for Service increase, average patrol response times increase as well. A Confidence Indicator Range is used to provide a method to compare response times. This Indicator Range tells us that in 95% of the emergency calls for service, our response time was between 4.2 to 7.4 minutes during 1993. In 1992, the range was 4.6 minutes to 6.5 minutes. The greater response time range in 1993 is most likely related to the increase in total calls for service and the increase in the numbers of arrests made in 1993. (Refer to the arrest statistics on a subsequent page). Calls for Service ( . Below isachart listing the number ocalls for service received in each b£the Reporting Districts . within 6e city during 1993. Refer to 6e above map for the locations of these Reporting Districts. 0 1 2 AIDAM AREA ' q% \< 2 BOY AREA RD CFS . RD CFS 5102 90 5100. \1894 5106 568 \\ 5101 78 5107 194 : 5103 355 5108 473` 5104 1080 5119 218 5105 29 5112 877 5109 35 5115 163 } 5114 279 511■ 525 5126 1024 Crime Overview PART I CRIMES Part I crimes are those which are considered more serious in nature and are listed in the chart on the next page. As you can see, we experienced an 11.3% increase in violent crime in 1993. The majority of this increase was in the area of Aggravated Assault (16.5%). This category includes a variety of crimes, including, but not limited to: brandishing, assault with a deadly weapon, assault on a peace officer, and spousal battery. Five of the reported 50 assaults were spousal batteries. Eleven cases involved battery on a child. • Two involved assaults with guns. • In four of the assaults, a knife was used. • A weapon, other than a knife or a gun, was used in fourteen of the cases. OP10 • Ten of the assaults were committed against deputies. Residential burglaries and grand theft saw increases of fourteen and twelve incidents respectively. Commercial and vehicle burglaries saw a significant reduction of over 35%. Overall, property crimes dropped 10.8% during 1993. Total Part I crimes dropped & 5% to 19.15 crimes per thousand of the population. PART H CRIMES Part II crimes are those which are considered less serious in nature. This is not necessarily the case with all of the Part II crimes. These crimes include driving under the influence, sexual assault, and narcotic offenses. During 1993, reported Part II crimes were down 9.5% from 1992. Narcotics violations and driving under the influence were up 70.4% and 3.91/o, while simple assaults stayed constant at 109. There were fewer cases of vandalism, which is very encouraging. Total Part II crimes declined from 1,487 to 1,370. 1993 NOTABLE HIGHLIGHTS for ALL SHERIFF'S JURISDICTIONS COMBINED • 7 out of every 10 violent crimes are Aggravated Assault. The 659 Aggravated Assaults reported in all Sheriffs jurisdictions is the second highest number of assaults reported in 20 years. 1993 saw the second lowest property crime rate in 25 years (1989 was lower). Violent acts against females rose to 1 victim in 4, up 11% from 1992. Monthly violent acts have doubled since the early 1980's. Deputies are the victims in one out of every 12 Aggravated assaults. 1993 Statistics PART 1 CRIMES RAW NUMBERS (�us�© li©PurrQ 1992 1993 '1992 1j993. %Chang HOMICIDE 1 1 .. _ 7_ RAPE 4 3 Q.'1.5 0.11 -25.6°' ROBBERY 11 12 E 41 0 44 6.7°f AGGRAVATED ASSAULT 42 50 '; 58 1 16,5°l' TOTAL VIOLENT 58 66.19 2.44 11.30% RESIDENTIAL BURGLARY 97 111 ............................................................................ ....... ..................................................... 66 4 ... ............ __.............. ............... 12°' COMMERCIAL BURGLARY 77 51 9 1.88 -35.2°f VEHICLE BURGLARY 71 46 2 68 1 .7 -36.6% GRAND THEFT 50 62 'C 89 29 21.3°f PETTY THEFT 141 131 _.. 5 32 .__ _ 4.83 _ _ .. _ _ _ . -9.1°/' AUTO THEFT 52 44 96 1.62 -17.2/' ARSON 9 8 0:34 _ _ . 0,3 -13°/' TOTAL PROPERTY 497 453 18.7 '1f.7 -10.8'/ TOTAL PART 1 1 5551 519 Additional: 155 arrests for driving under the influence were made in 1993. This was a 7.6% increase over the 144 made in 1992. Narcotic arrests, including misdemeanor under the influence charges and felony charges for possession of controlled substances, increased significantly in 1993. In 1992, we made 90 total narcotic arrests. This number rose 72% to 155 narcotic arrests in 1993. Traffic Services Introduction Traffic operations within the Moorpark Police Department serve all users of the public highways, including motorists, pedestrians, bicyclists and commercial drivers. Through high profile patrols, directed enforcement, and traffic educa- tion programs, we work to create a safe driving environment on all of the roadways within the city. Specialized traffic services are provided by Dep. Craig Smith, who primarily focuses on accident investigation, as well as traffic enforcement. Our motor officer, Dep. George Fitzgerald, deals specifically with those areas requiring a directed enforcement effort because of apparent traffic problems or complaints from citizens. Our traffic cadets respond to cite and tow abandoned vehicles as well as enforce parking violations on both public streets and applicable private parking lots. All of the patrol deputies work to provide these services on a 24 hour per day basis. 1993 Summary Traffic Services in the City of Moorpark saw a lot of change in 1993. One SPEED important factor was a Superior Court LIMIT decision, affecting all Ventura County law enforcement agencies, that placed additional requirements on the engineer55 - ing survey justification of posted speed limits. Because of the decision, the use of radar on many city streets has been restricted and our efforts to enforce speed laws were hampered. However, the enforcement of the 55 mph maximum speed law was not affected by the decision and officers used this tool in appropriate loca- tions to keep motorist's speeds in check. The completion of the State Route 118 and State Route 23 Freeway connector significantly changed Moorpark's traffic pattern. We have seen an increase in traffic on New Los Angeles Avenue and dramatic decreases on Spring Road north of New Los Angeles Avenue and on Los Angeles Avenue from Spring Road east to Princeton. Because of the increase in traffic on New Los Angeles Avenue, we have seen a change in the prevalent types of violations occurring there. Currently, right of way violations and unsafe speed for prevailing conditions are two of the most noticeable violations we are seeing. Moorpark's traffic detail investigated three fatal accidents in 1993. One involved a car running into the rear of a truck, which had stopped on a two lane highway to make a left turn. The driver of the car was under the influence of alcohol. He and his two passengers were killed. The second fatal accident occurred in the construction zone of the new State Route 118. There was only one person involved in this accident, which happened when his van ran off the road, ejecting and killing him. The third crash occurred when a drunk driver hit the back of another car, pushing that car into a pole, killing the driver. The drunk driver was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison. Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Completion of the freeway project apparently has resulted in an increase in the frequency of large commercial vehicles on city truck routes. However, this truck traffic is concentrated on a straight stretch of State Route 118, from State Route 23 to the western city limits. This allows the Commercial Enforcement Detail to focus on a smaller area when looking for vehicles to inspect. Sr. Dep. Ed Tumbleson, Dep. Craig Smith and Dep. Jose Lopez comprise the Commercial Enforcement Detail, which functions collaterally to their regular duties. On selected days, they take their inspection equipment out in a pickup truck and patrol the city truck routes looking for moving or mechanical violations. When a commercial vehicle is stopped for a violation, a more detailed safety inspection can then be conducted. Citations are issued to the owners of the trucks when mechanical problems are discovered. If the problem is a direct hazard to the motoring public, the truck is taken out of service by the deputies until the owner can arrange for repairs to be made. In 1993, the Detail worked 35 shifts (300 hours) inspecting commercial vehicles. On one occasion, a commercial driver was arrested for drunk driving. Summary Traffic Activity As explained on the previous page, this was a year of change for the delivery of traffic enforcement services to the city. Because of the Goulet decision, which rendered many of our street speed surveys (to support the use of radar) inadmis- sible in court, the total number of citations issued dropped 30% from 1992. Consequently, we saw a slight increase of 4.5% in the total number of reported traffic accidents. This bulk of the increase occurred in the injury accident cat- egory, even though the total number of injured persons decreased 10%. The increase in reported accidents may also be based on the construction zones on many of our heavily used roadways. Changing roadways often distract motorists and cause other motorists to commit minor traffic offenses in an attempt to get around congestion. This was often the case in the area of the State Route 118 construction zone at Princeton Road. In the charts below, the numbers for people injured includes the numbers for people killed in the accidents. Statistics for accidents occurring on the non -freeway portions of State Route 118 (Los Angeles Avenue) are included in the "City Accident Summary" chart. A separate chart was made to isolate the numbers for State Route 118, which accounts for 40% of the total reported traffic accidents within the city. This does not include figures for accidents which occurred on the completed freeway (State Routes 118 and 23). Those accidents are investigated by the California Highway Patrol. Traffic officers assigned to the city were responsible for issuing 43% (1851) of the total citations written. This is consistent with last year's traffic detail percentage of 41%. In addition to these violations, deputies and cadets issued 1540 parking citations in 1993. 0 "210(-30%) Total Accidents 220 (+4.5%) 301 Total Non -Injury Accidents 130 (-6%) 138 (-28%) 194 Total Injury Accidents 90 (+20%) 72 (-32%) 107 Total # of Persons Injured 100 (-10%) 111 (-33%) 166 •' includes State Route 118 accidents Investigations Summary All criminal investigations, other than sex crimes and major crimes such as homicides, are handled by Moorpark investigators. The investigative unit is comprised of three detectives; Sergeant Marty Rouse, Senior Deputy David Lea and Deputy Ron Nelson. The detective sergeant position is new and was first funded in August 1993. The detective sergeant is responsible for the supervision of the unit, in addition to providing assistance with case investigations. After a crime report is taken by a patrol deputy, the detective sergeant classifies the case as either being workable or pending. This determination is based upon the available evidence or type of leads. The case is then assigned to a detective for investigation. During 1993, the Moorpark Detective Bureau received 822 total cases for review and possible investigation. With the additional staffing of the detective sergeant position, we have been able to investigate cases which had historically been placed on pending status and would not have been investigated. On an average, we are now investigating five pending cases a month that otherwise would not have been investigated. The detective unit works closely with patrol and the crime prevention unit, taking a proactive and enthusiastic approach to fighting crime. If a crime can be prevented or deterred, the police department saves valuable investigation time and resources. More importantly, our citizens do not become victims of crime. This enforcement effort can range from plain clothes patrol to high visibility enforcement._ A recent example of this effort occurred in November 1993. Detectives, working in plain clothes during the evening hours, made contact with five juveniles. One youngster was listed as a missing person from the State of Oregon. During the investigation, the detectives determined all five were wanted for a recent premeditated violent murder of an elderly man during the commission of a burglary in Oregon. There was little gas in their car and they did not have any money. We can only speculate what crimes they may have committed in our city had they not been arrested. The juveniles are currently facing murder charges in Oregon. This past year, detectives handled several cases of significance. One complex forgery/fraud case was under investiga- tion for over ten months and involved a statewide communications network which operated out of Moorpark. Employ- ees of the business had embezzled over $40,000 from their employer. After serving search warrants, detectives recov- ered nearly two thousand items which were subsequently used as evidence. This effort, though time consuming, resulted in the recent filing of 29 felony counts against two Moorpark residents. 1993 Statistics Working . Pending cases cases Felony Crimes 158 247 Misdemeanor Crimes 110 222 Runaway 61 n/a Juveniles Hit & Run Accidents 11 13 January Our gang database is now fully automated. This allows our patrol deputies and detectives to have access to current data on local gang members. After a thorough evaluation of the calls for service that are received, we reshaped the patrol beats for a more efficient distribution of calls among the beats. March Senior Deputy Ed Tumbleson is selected as the next D.A.R.E. officer. He attends the two -week long D.A.RE. instructor training program in Los Angeles. April Dep. Allen Devers tackled the problem of �' l graffiti caused by taggers by identifying 48 local taggers and their monikers (tag names). We were able to make a number of arrests for vandalism, which resulted in the closure of 98% of our reported graffiti crimes. May Senior Deputy Ross Bonfiglio receives the Moorpark Rotary Club "Officer of the Year" award. June Sr. Dep. Ed Tumbleson begins work as the new Community Services Officer. He jumps right into the community with the Boys and Girls Club "Adopt a Cop" program. Looking back ... July A new Detective Sergeant position is funded. Sgt. Marty Rouse takes the assignment and Sgt. Keith Parks is brought into Moorpark as the Police Services Supervisor. With the change in state law, we start the process of handling all parking violations as civil matters. This transfers responsibility for the appeal process from the courts to the city. A plan is established where a contract hearing officer is funded among Moorpark and other local cities to deal with the appeals. September Sgt. Rouse begins to teach a class at Moorpark High School three mornings a week for the semester. The Introduction to the Administra- tion of Justice class is funded by Moorpark College as an elective for Moorpark High seniors. This outreach has been a real asset to the relationship between the Department and our high school students. Lt. Dean and Sgts. Rouse and Parks receive training in managing emergency response to critical incidents. The "Incident Command System" provides a versatile tool for dealing with disasters, major crimes and accidents, or special events. October We are awarded a grant through the California IM Highway Patrol, funded by the Office of Traffic Safety, to begin a Hispanic Outreach Program. Sr. Deputy Jerry Hernandez goes to Sacramento for training and returns with a multi- tude of ideas on how to improve traffic safety in our Hispanic community. We had a successful Country Days event on a beautiful Saturday in downtown Moorpark. During our "Red Ribbon Week" celebration, we had the honor of recognizing Maya Rosman, an 8th grade student at Chaparral Middle School, for her award winning essay on how to say no to drugs. Maya's work was the top essay for her age group in California. The first Emergency Medical Technician training class for six deputies and four municipal employ- ees starts. Our deputies participate in the countywide deployment to the major brush fires in the Thousand Oaks and beach areas. November Our bicycle safety rodeo is held at Peach Hill School. 55 youngsters participate in the event, which was both fun and educational. Over 60 bicycles were engraved to protect them from theft. Detectives Marty Rouse and Ron Nelson arrest 5 teenagers, who were loitering in the downtown area, for a murder they committed in Oregon. On Thanksgiving morning, Deputy Emmett McCracken responded to a call of a baby who had stopped breathing. Using his EMT skills, McCracken was able to resuscitate the baby, which survived. December Moorpark's first Emergency Medical Technician training class graduates.