County exec to lawmakers: Peace my brethren

From ye olde Jackson County:

(Kansas City, Missouri) – The County Executive issued the following statement today regarding the incident following yesterday’s meeting of the County Legislature:
“I believe the best way for all elected officials to proceed in this matter would be to participate in an orderly conflict resolution or mediation process, and I have offered to assist the members of the County Legislature in beginning such a process. Conflict resolution is a proven, valuable and positive process that is commonly used in all walks of life – from the corporate world, to non-profits, and in government. Legislators seem to be open to the idea, and we are having continued discussions about it. I remain hopeful.
Disagreements play an important role in any healthy democracy. All elected officials must find a way to serve the taxpayers interest by vigorously debating issues and policies, but always in a professional manner – to disagree without being disagreeable.”

Thank goodness.

P.S. Here's a picture of county legislator Robert Stringfield, who hasn't been charged with anything and is innocent until proven guilty. Thank you.

   

More St. Louis area police drama

At least it wasn't a Taser...

• ST. LOUIS (AP) — Black activists on Tuesday called for the firing of police officers who were shown on live television swinging night sticks and punching and kicking a suspect after a car chase.
• The Missouri State Highway Patrol was investigating to see if the four officers involved had acted illegally.
• The suspect, Edmon Burns, 33, of St. Louis County, was treated at a hospital and released, and was jailed.
• Story

$500,000 in Bloody Mary mix?

FORT SMITH, Ark. (AP) — A former top-ranking executive at Wal-Mart Stores Inc. pleaded guilty to fraud and tax charges Tuesday, admitting that he stole money, gift cards and merchandise from the world’s largest retailer.
...embezzled money from the company and used expense vouchers to buy products as varied as snakeskin boots, hunting trips and Bloody Mary mix. They estimated losses at up to $500,000.
Story

Lawyer: Sonia incompetent for trial

Sonia Galindo isn't competent to stand trial in the murder of Alexander Gladkov, her attorney says a  mental health expert has determined.
Hearing Friday in Jackson County Circuit Court. Still nothing on Casenet, though.

AP story today
Metropolitan Digest item this morning

Previously in this blog:
Sonia: The discussion

Deadliest workplace shooting by a woman?

A criminologist says this may be the highest workplace shooting toll by a woman:
GOLETA, Calif. (AP) — A female ex-postal worker opened fire at a mail processing plant, killing five people and critically wounding another before committing suicide...AP story

Overland Park daily offenses

Daily report from Overland Park police.

Offenses Jan. 30, 2006: XLS PDF

Data also available at www.opkansas.org

Also see:
Interactive map of Overland Park crime data by local programmer Brett Rickman
Crime mapping by Overland Park police
Past Overland Park crime reports in this blog

Daily report from Overland Park police.

Offenses Jan. 30, 2006: XLS PDF

Data also available at www.opkansas.org

Also see:
Interactive map of Overland Park crime data by local programmer Brett Rickman
Crime mapping by Overland Park police
Past Overland Park crime reports in this blog

Leawood police activity

Daily report from Leawood police.

Jan. 30, 2006 6:53 a.m. to 9:26 a.m. today: PDF

2 more sentenced in drug witness plot

From the office of U.S. Attorney Eric Melgren:

• The getaway driver and a crack customer of the main figure in a plot to kill a federal drug witness have been sentenced to seven years in prison each.
• News release

All The Star's crime stories today

This blog is meant to be your one-stop resource for crime-related news from The Star. Today's links:

Courthouse smackdown VIDEO
Felony DWIs, pot charge stem from Yuletide stops
Deadline set on ruling for execution
Guilty plea in Internet child sex case
 Plane from Olathe crashes in Illinois, killing four
Kansas bills would make animal abusers felons
Father says man who died was denied treatment
Man, 60, charged in molesting of girl, 8
Metropolitan Digest
 Murder conspirator turned down for parole
Prosecutors charge teen basketball fans with throwing urine
Motorist dies from injuries 3rd Infantry soldier gets 20 years in colleague's slaying

 

Jackson County legislator arrested

From the Jackson County sheriff's office 4:15 p.m.:

• On 01-30-06 at approximately 3:00 p.m., deputies from the Jackson County Sheriff's Office arrested one of the Jackson County Legislators at the Downtown Courthouse.  The courthouse, located at 415 E. 12th Street, is located at the corner of 12th Street and Locust in Kansas City, MO.
• According to the police report, immediately following the legislative meeting, a disturbance erupted in the assembly area involving at least two Jackson County Legislators.  One Legislator, a male from Kansas City, reportedly approached the victim and reportedly struck him several times.  The victim, identified as Dan Tarwater, was not injured in the assault.
• Deputies were present and immediately took the suspect into custody.  He is currently being held at the Kansas City Courthouse pending formal charges for Assault 3rd.  Once charged, he is expected to post an ROR bond from there.

Further I knoweth not. Updates promised.

Officer Ben Dougherty, KCPD

I rode with Kansas City police officer Ben Dougherty Saturday night in the North Patrol Division. It was a slow shift, but I'll report what happened in several posts today.

Random person protecting you on Kansas City streets:

• Benjamin F. Dougherty III
• Rides North Patrol, beat 421, third shift.
• Oldest of six, father of six.
• Worked in a grocery store and drove a bread truck for 15 years before becoming a cop six years ago at 36.
• Likes his job but misses Central Patrol Division, where he started.
• Doesn't drink, except for a glass of red wine (supposed to help prevent heart attacks).
• Has a rank-and-file view of his job, i.e., doesn't always understand the brilliance of management decisions and policies.
• Thinks chase rules are too tight, though he understands the risks.
• Pulled over a young driver once who sped away, then crashed and was killed. Doesn't recall the date or name. He does say his in-car video "saved my butt" in the police inquiry, showing he followed procedure.

Don't mess with "Ms. Bitchy"

I rode with Kansas City police officer Ben Dougherty Saturday night in the North Patrol Division. It was a slow shift, but I'll report what happened in several posts today.

7:14 p.m. We answer a holdup alarm at a hotel, where the pleasant clerk is clueless about who might have pressed the button. Cops know her for the tag on her Mitsubishi, "Ms. Bitchy", which she once used to block a semi-trailer after a minor accident. The confidence of youth.

7:33 p.m. Another officer runs a tag on a Ford Harley-Davidson pickup truck and it comes back with a felony assault warrant out of Lee's Summit. But it's not their guy; it's a little family, with a very scared mom at gunpoint and a smiling baby in the back seat.

Teens rescue their Grand Prix just in time

I rode with Kansas City police officer Ben Dougherty Saturday night in the North Patrol Division. It was a slow shift, but I'll report what happened in several posts today.

9:42 p.m.:
A white Grand Prix sits in the right lane of traffic ahead of us. Locked, no one in it.
"We'll sit here for a while, then we'll have to have it towed," Dougherty says.
Soon a young man carrying a gas can appears, accompanied by two giggling teen-aged girls.
"Just barely driving age," Dougherty says. "They haven't learned 'E's not 'Enough'."

Driver flips pickup, hurts elbow

I rode with Kansas City police officer Ben Dougherty Saturday night in the North Patrol Division. It was a slow shift, but I'll report what happened in several posts today.

4:50 p.m. - Injury accident call. Driver has flipped his Ford Ranger FX4 pickup on a 169 entrance ramp. We run code, but before we get there we hear, "This is going to be a minor elbow injury." Bless seatbelts and airbags. Officer Dougherty blocks the ramp with his car while I hoof it under the overpass to gawk.

5:01 p.m. - Drivers pull up and ask Officer Dougherty how to get on southbound 169. He tells them to go to the next light, turn left and do a U-turn. No one does. Some turn right. "I guess I have to work on my communication," he says.

Bumper sticker of the day

I rode with Kansas City police officer Ben Dougherty Saturday night in the North Patrol Division. It was a slow shift, but I'll report what happened in several posts today.

En route to the assault call, we pull up behind a red junker, rear bumper missing, taillight smashed,  and this bumper sticker on the trunk:

• "I'm driving like this just to piss you off"

"That's good for a violation right there," Officer Dougherty says.
"The bumper sticker?" I ask.
"No taillight."
But it's not much of a violation, and he doesn't pull the driver over.
"Oh, we'll go to our assault call," he says.

When the assault suspect is hearing-impaired

I rode with Kansas City police officer Ben Dougherty Saturday night in the North Patrol Division. It was a slow shift, but I'll report what happened in several posts today.

First call 3:02 p.m.:
Is there any scene of domestic violence that's not sad?
We're at the 2nd-floor apartment of Jason, Jacob and Heather. The guys are both 24 and hearing-impaired. Jason is alone when we get there. Six hours earlier, about 9 a.m., Jacob slugged Jason in the eye, we learn.
Jason let it go, but a friend in chat hours later urged him to call police,  so he did.
We track Jacob to his mom's house at another apartment complex. Jacob and Heather stayed up the previous night drinking whiskey, she says.
"It's kind of a love triangle", she says."It's always sad to see friends end up this way."
Officer Dougherty faces a choice. This assault can require a $1,000 bond, potentially requiring Jacob to spend the weekend in lockup. Or, Dougherty could release him on his signature and promise to appear.
Booking Jacob at the city jail would require a signing interpreter. But the KCPD only has one, and she's not available. Dougherty calls his sergeant and a DV detective, but they both leave it up to him.
"I really don't want him going in without an interpreter," Jacob's mom tells police. Dougherty releases Jacob, then goes back to Jason's apartment to help make sure there's no further confrontation.
We spent 90 minutes on this call.

Waldo Homes: Crime-stats enabled

Waldo resident Steve G. emailed me a couple months ago saying he was downloading the Kansas City crime stats and formatting them for his neighborhood association.
Later, he sent me this:

• Just wanted to tell you that we at the Waldo Homes Association have been putting the Crime Stats to good use. We had Major (Patty) Higgins from the Metro Division plus six other officers visit our monthly meeting last Saturday.
• The meeting was very interesting. We had the actual statistics of crime in our hands while the police were giving their presentation, so that there was no confusion on our part as to what certain numbers did and did not mean.

Now Steve sends me a copy of his handiwork. Thought you might like to see it: PDF

Thanks, Steve!

(Waldo boundaries, according to the Waldo Business Association: Gregory to 91st; Holmes to State Line)

Police blotters for 25 area cities

The Star collects crime reports from several dozen area police departments, and publishes those lists on Wednesdays and Saturdays. From Saturday:

Blue Valley: Leawood (66206, 66209, 55211, 66223, 66224)-Prairie Village (66208)-Overland Park (66206, 66209, 66210, 66251, 66211, 66213, 66221, 66227, 66224)

Shawnee Mission:  Overland Park (66202, 66204, 66207, 66212, 66214, 66215)-Fairway (66205)-Merriam (66202, 66204)-Mission (66202, 66205)-Prairie Village/Mission Hills (66206, 66207, 66208)-Roeland Park (66205)-Westwood/Westwood Hills/Mission Woods (66205)

Shawnee-Lenexa-Merriam (66203)

Southland: Lee's Summit-Belton-Grandview-Greenwood-Lone Jack-Peculiar-Pleasant Hill-Raymore-South Kansas City

Olathe (66061, 66082)-Overland Park (66210, 66213, 66221)

Overland Park sex, drugs, alcohol

Weekly report from Overland Park police of sex-, drug- and alcohol-related arrests.

Jan. 23-29: XLS PDF

Overland Park weekend offenses

Daily report from Overland Park police. This one covers the weekend.

Offenses Jan. 23-29, 2006: XLS PDF

Data also available at www.opkansas.org

Also see:
Interactive map of Overland Park crime data by local programmer Brett Rickman
Crime mapping by Overland Park police
Past Overland Park crime reports in this blog

Leawood police activity

Daily report from Leawood police.

Saturday 7:37 p.m. to 6:53 a.m. today: PDF

Stunned to death by a life-saving Taser?

The death of Karl W. Marshall was the first time that someone in Kansas City police custody died after Taser use.
In other cases like this around the country, the death has been attributed to drug use or other causes - not the Taser. And the Taser maker, which says its product saves lives, fights critics.
But some police departments have amended their Taser-use policies after incidents. And Marshall's death promises to bring police Taser use here under scrutiny.

Police statement 9:09 p.m. Sunday

Star story today

News stories in Nexis, "taser and police and death", past 90 days: 665.

Growing list of links:
Video of cop being Taser'ed in training
Georgia sheriff revises Taser policy after a death
'If they point a Taser at you, you better listen'
Jury rejects Arizona deputy's lawsuit against Tasers
Palm Beach Post study of 1,000 Taser uses by police
KC cops Taser man, still get shot at, feds say

All The Star's crime stories today and over the weekend

This blog is meant to be your one-stop resource for crime-related news in The Star. Links today and over the weekend:

Today:
Identity of ‘Molly’ is still a mystery
Motorcyclist dies after hitting light pole

Saturday:
In court, security is literally shocking
Toll-runner piled up $76,000 in charges
Accusations fly after smuggling clash
Aide did not molest girl, school says
Houston crimes linked to Katrina
Woman gets life in killing of kin
On request of KCK police, FBI to probe Turner party incident
Death penalty at issue in Doe case
Metropolitan digest
Judges back Kline’s ruling on underage sex
3 teens plead guilty in deadly brawl
Day-care aide accused of hanging boy on hook
Woman, son sentenced in 25-year-old slaying
THE CRIES OF A CRISIS (Midwest Voices)

Sunday:
A defective system gives speeders a pass
Other courts are harder to budge on moving violations
‘Puppy mill’ reputation dogs Missouri, breeders
Kansas AG lauds teen-sex ruling
Man dies after cops employ stun gun
Metropolitan digest
Name of NKC wreck victim released

On patrol this weekend: North Zone purse-snatches

This recent Star news item caught my eye:

• Saturday, Jan. 14, 2006
• Purse snatchings
• After a string of purse snatchings and muggings...recently in the Northland, Kansas City police warned residents to be aware of their surroundings...Story

No further purse-snatchings have occurred recently, Sgt. Brad Stott told me today, but thefts from autos have continued. I'll be riding with an officer of the North Patrol Division tomorrow on the PM shift - 2:30 p.m. onward.
Here's a table of reported offenses in Kansas City, North for the first 11 months of each year 1989-2005. December 2005 offenses aren't available yet.
Keep in mind while looking at these numbers that Northland population has grown 35 percent since 1990, from 93,712 to 126,868 in 2004. (Check my math here)
(Click on the image for a clearer picture, or view a PDF or spreadsheet)

I've heard some stories about Northland crime - allegedly problem apartment complexes, an alleged meth lab here and there...I'll post what I see Saturday night first thing Monday.

Accused in rape: Larry D. Smith

From Kansas City police 1:55 p.m.:

"The Jackson County Prosecutors Office has charged Larry D. Smith, black male, 05/28/1960 of KCMO with Forcible Rape, Kidnapping and two counts of third degree assault. The incident occurred on January 22, 2006 in the 900 block of Linwood Boulevard, KCMO. A bond amount of $250, 000 cash has been set."

All The Star's crime stories today

This blog is meant to be your one-stop resource for crime-related stories from The Star. Today's links:

Kansas Senate passes sex offender bill
Police find vehicle suspected in hit-run
  Metropolitan Digest
 Mystery of lost mother ends in still more loss
 Police end search of drained KC lake
 State ponders imposing tougher DUI penalties
  Two rob and rape woman, police say
  Lawmakers consider regulating ‘toy’ cars
 Clueless clerk faces charges
  

KC 2006 homicide #8: Elias Lopez Ramirez

From The Star this morning:

Shooting victim dies
A man wounded in a shooting last week at 10th Street and Topping Avenue has died, raising the city’s homicide tally this year to eight.
Police said Elias Lopez Ramirez, 23, of Kansas City died about 4 p.m. Wednesday from injuries suffered in an 8:10 p.m. shooting on Jan. 18.

And from Kansas City police 2:51 p.m.:

• On Wednesday January 18, 2006 at about 8:10pm, KCMO Police Officers were dispatched to 1008 Topping on a reported shooting. Upon arrival they located a victim laying in the street with what appeared to be two puncture wounds to his abdomen. The victim could not be interviewed at the scene and was immediately transported to an area hospital where medical personnel advised that his injuries were life-threatening. 
• Mr. Elias Lopez-Ramirez, Hispanic male, 7/20/1982 of KCMO died from his injuries...This is the 8th Homicide of 2006 compared to 9 at this same time last year. No suspects are in custody and anyone with information is asked to call the TIPS Hotline at 474-TIPS (8477).

Kansas City homicide roster 2006:

#1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 #7

Scam of the Week: Counterfeit Tamiflu

The scam: Fake or "generic" anti-flu medications
The targets: Persons concerned about influenza, especially the avian flu.
The hook: Online offers of "generic" Tamiflu - actually Vitamin C wrapped as Tamiflu instead. (Pictured: genuine Roche Tamiflu)
The scammers: Unknown online sellers.
The FDA (statement) has ticked off a series of recent cases involving counterfeit or diluted flu meds:

• FDA and Customs intercepted products at the border that purported (to be "generic" Tamiflu,) but which, in fact, contained Vitamin C and other ineffective substances.
• FDA and FBI special agents arrested an individual in Texas who administered counterfeit influenza vaccine to employees at a corporate-sponsored health fair.
• FDA probe led to the indictment of an individual for smuggling foreign, unlicensed influenza vaccines into the United States and attempting to sell the illegal vaccines to hospitals.
• An LPN was sentenced to nine months in prison for operating a series of unauthorized influenza vaccine clinics at a college in Minneapolis after admitting to diluting some of the vaccine to increase her supply.

How to avoid being victimized: "be very cautious of drugs they purchase over the Internet, and urges consultation with a qualified medical professional in the search for any influenza treatment."

San Francisco Chronicle article on seizure of counterfeit Tamiflu
State Department warning

A victim's open letter to burglars

It's easy to forget how seriously the crime of burglary or theft can affect a victim. It can rob you of your sense of security and safety - and make you mad as anything.
James Fritz, for example, blames himself for leaving unlocked the back door of his Independence home, where a burglar snuck in at 2:28 a.m. Dec. 28, rifled his wife's purse and tried, unsuccessfully, to withdraw cash at two nearby banks and an ATM in a Quik-Trip.
But he's even madder at the thief or thieves. And he's not happy with police response, either.

He wrote an open letter to the crook(s):

• You came in through our back door, which opens to the kitchen. You sat down at our table and went through the purse, I know this cause you left coupons in an envelope on the table top and other envelopes on the floor, that had been in the purse...
• I knew that you were at the Union Bank on U.S. RT 40 at 3:03 a.m. trying to get money from the ATM with our credit cards. Didn't work,  did it? Fools...
• I also told the Independence Police Dept. about this " activity " as soon as I learned about it. The information never got to the right people...in time (to retrieve surveillance tapes)...

Independence Police Sgt. Dennis Green said there was some initial confusion about where the withdrawal attempts were made. But, even with video surveillance - police need suspect info or the like to investigate - especially in a case with no loss, he said.
"This is not a viable case that we’re going to go out and actively pursue, because of the fact that nobody knows this person," Green said. "There are solveability factors that we have to look at prior to even assigning a case. If we take photographs that come to us from Union Bank and show those to the Fritzes, and they don’t know them, we’re kind of at a dead-end here."

1:55 p.m.: Folks, I should have posted this to begin with. Here are the full comments of Sgt. Green.

Overland Park daily offenses

Daily report from Overland Park police.

Offenses Jan. 26, 2006: XLS PDF

Data also available at www.opkansas.org

Also see:
Interactive map of Overland Park crime data by local programmer Brett Rickman
Crime mapping by Overland Park police
Past Overland Park crime reports in this blog

Leawood police activity as of 6:36 a.m.

Daily report from Leawood police.

Jan. 25 8:30 p.m. to 6:36 a.m. today: PDF

Feds: License clerk was on the take

From U.S. Attorney Todd Graves' office:

• Careli Rodriguez, 22, Kansas City, charged in a four-count indictment by a federal grand jury in Kansas City today...was employed by the Missouri Department of Revenue, Motor Vehicle and Driver’s License Contract Office at 1170 W. 152 Hwy. in Liberty...issued Class A Commercial Driver’s Licenses (CDLs) to persons who had not provided proof that they had passed the required written test and driving skills test...in return for payments to her of up to $1,500. News release

Rodriguez was hired by and worked for the state's license bureau contract employee, not the DOR, DOR spokesperson Maura Browning told me.

Update: KCPD pond draining

From Kansas City police 3:35 p.m. This refers to the police draining a lake in Blue Valley Park:

• The homicide detectives were looking for evidence from the homicide of Emanuel L. Gragg, black/male, 02/14/1971.  Mr. Gragg was killed on February 5, 2005 at 2859 Oakley.  His body was discovered when the fire department was called to the scene of a house fire.  While inside putting out the fire, Mr. Gragg's body was discovered.  Detectives received information regarding possible evidence that was thrown into the lake at Blue Valley Park.  On Tuesday, investigators found the evidence they were told about when they were searching.  There were no additional guns or anything of evidentiary value found today (Thursday).  There is no suspect in custody for his death and anyone with information is asked to call the TIPS hotline at 816.474.8477.

8 days of Kansas City crime

These files are daily compilations, lists of all calls to Kansas City police that resulted in a case report.
Files are ordered by street and house number, and cover Sunday, Jan. 15, through Sunday, Jan. 22.
Key: CRN is case report number; PONUM is police officer number. REPORTAREA is the police beat. ADDRTYPE is A for address or I for intersection.

kccrime20060122.xls
kccrime20060121.xls
kccrime20060120.xls
kccrime20060119.xls
kccrime20060118.xls
kccrime20060117.xls
kccrime20060116.xls
kccrime20060115.xls

Kuwaiti UMKC student up on counterfeiting charges

This is Ahmed N. Dashti, 24, citizen of Kuwait. He's been your neighbor in Mission. He's a fourth-year student at UMKC, studying civil engineering and business.
He's traveled often to Iran, Great Britain and his home country in recent years, federal authorities say. He's got a Social Security number. And he got a Fed-Ex package from Kuwait Jan. 12, intercepted by the feds, allegedly containing a crayon-quality counterfeit U.S. Treasury check for $250,000.
Feds filed a six-page complaint against Dashti last week, detailing the interception of the package in Memphis; and a federal grand jury in Topeka indicted him yesterday.
In the complaint, Dashti seems to say the check was part of a Nigerian scam in which he was the victim. It also says Dashti's in this country on a non-immigrant student visa authorizing on-campus employment only.
The charge carryies up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Dashti is innocent until proven guilty.

$1.24M Medicaid scheme goes wrong

What a great name for a drug-alcohol treatment outfit: "The Great Meeting is On For Your Success".

Sadly, the Wichita agency's "meeting" was mostly for its own success - $1.24 million in, well, ginned-up Medicaid payments, prosecutors said. The agency billed the feds for counseling a 36-day infant and many persons not alcoholics or drug-addicted, they said.

A federal grand jury Wednesday indicted owners Johnnie and Peggy Franklin on 52 counts of health-care fraud, conspiracy, money-laundering, obstruction, etc.

• U.S. attorney's news release
• Kansas AG's news release

Great meeting's still on the state list of alcohol/drug service providers.

All The Star's crime stories today

This blog struggles mightily to be your one-stop resource for crime-related news from The Star. Today's links:

 Kansas City police seek parole violator
Arrests made in string of Miami County burglaries
"Survivor" guilty in tax case (AP video)
Police storm California bank (AP video)
7 children killed in crash (AP video)
Two teens face charges after road-rage incident
Drained lake yields clue
Two dead after I-70 shootout near Hays
Quick-thinking witness leads police to suspect
Death penalty foes seek to halt man’s execution
Raise driving age?
Kansas acts against Medicare fraud
Device in many cars today says a lot about how you drive
METROPOLITAN DIGEST

 

Pastor invites swastika-painting vandals back - to talk

Vandals paint a swastika on your church. Catch 'em and give 'em hellfire & brimstone, maybe?
Not Rev. Dr. Heather Entrekin, senior pastor of Prairie Baptist Church, 75th & Roe, Prairie Village, where a swastika appeared on the church door last weekend.
"In fact, I’m delighted they noticed the church and got to the door," she told me. "I would really want to invite them next time to try coming on in, and to see if we couldn’t talk about what their needs are and what the effect could be of what they’re doing, and maybe learn from one another."
A vandal or vandals - universally attributed to "kids" (talk about age discrimination!) - also painted a swastika on the concrete face of a footbridge near the church. Star story

Pastor Entrekin's church has 600 members. You can find her on ethicsdaily.com. And here's the Star story of her appointment in 1999, with background info. 2004 story

Leawood police activity

Daily report from Leawood police.

8:19 p.m. Tuesday to 7:55 a.m. today: PDF

Overland Park daily offenses

Daily report from Overland Park police.

Offenses Jan. 25, 2006: XLS PDF

Data also available at www.opkansas.org

Also see:
Interactive map of Overland Park crime data by local programmer Brett Rickman
Crime mapping by Overland Park police
Past Overland Park crime reports in this blog

Find your stolen car online

If your car is stolen, you're only $1 away from posting it on Stolencarreports.com, "the Nation's Neighborhood Watch for Stolen Vehicles".
I've been playing phone tag with them, I'd like to find out more.
Anyway, a 1989 Olds88 was apparently stolen out of the employee parking lot at the Brookside Price Chopper, and Stolencarreports - which says it donates all profits to charity - emailed me this victim-provided info:

Make:  Oldsmobile
Model:  88
Year:  1989
Color:  Grey
Type:  4-Door
License Plate KS VJI716

THEFT DATE:  01/24/2006
THEFT LOCATION

Street:  6327 Brookside Plaza
City:  Kansas City
State:  MO
ZIP Code:  64113

Comments:  Parked in the upstairs employee parking Lot of Price Chopper on Brookside Plaza around 12:23 PM, on Tuesday, January 24th, 2006. The passenger side rear windwing window (closer to the trunk) is busted out. It might have a busted steering column, I would believe, due to no keys left in car. The hood, the top of the car and the trunk have a lot of faded paint.  There is a small dent on the drivers side door, but not very noticeable. It has a thin white pin stripe that goes around the car, and there are no hubcaps on the 2 front tires. There is also a small dent in the top drivers side edge of the trunk. The theft was caught on video tape: It was stolen by 2 black males in their late teens / early twenties. One is tall, wearing a longer size white T-shirt, black pants, and a black and red cap. The accomplice is a shorter individual, heavy set, with  fro-ish style hair, and wearing a bulky dark blue puffy like winter coat, a black or dark blue T-shirt and black pants.

And, I might add, call the TIPS Hotline 816.474.8477. I'll check this out with KC police.

Wanted: Carlos K. Henderson

This is Carlos K. Henderson. Dangerous, on parole for robbery, wanted for violating that parole, police say.

• Description: black/male, 03/26/1955, 5'9" 180 lbs, may/may not be wearing his glasses, known to frequent the area of 71st and Tracy and the 6100 block of Blue Ridge.  Anyone with information regarding his whereabouts is asked to call the TIPS hotline at 816.474.8477.

Leawood PD activity

Daily report from Leawood police.

3:23 a.m. Tuesday to 9:04 a.m. today: PDF

Overland Park daily offenses

Daily report from Overland Park police.

Offenses Jan. 24, 2006: XLS PDF    

Data also available at www.opkansas.org

Also see:
Interactive map of Overland Park crime data by local programmer Brett Rickman
Crime mapping by Overland Park police
Past Overland Park crime reports in this blog

Traffic fatal: Vesta L. Anderson

From Kansas City police 3:21 p.m.: 

• The woman who was killed at I-70 and Stateline on January 17, 2006 at 140 pm, has been identified as Vesta L. Anderson, black/female, 01/02/1951, of Raytown.

Anderson was killed, police said, when a semi turned into her lane on the Lewis-Clark Viaduct, pinning her car against the wall and causing it to burst into flames.

Star news item Jan. 18 about the crash

Deer poachers get probation, big fines

Eight hunters from North Carolina shot eight white-tailed, trophy-class bucks in Kansas from 2002-2005  without licenses or tags and:

• were fined $36,000 and
• placed on probation and
• banned from hunting for 3 years

in federal court today in Wichita. The investigation took 15 months.

News release from U.S. Attorney Eric Melgren's office

I called Kevin Jones, top cop at Kansas Wildlife & Parks, and asked - in my ignorance - why this violation wasn't more like a traffic ticket.
Answer: These guys came to Kansas and cherry-picked the most-coveted deer - large-antlered bucks, basically for bragging rights. Hunting is a large industry in the state, and to let poachers deplete the state's highly-regarded deer herd would have a serious economic impact.
"Overall there's a large emphasis on the size of antlers on deer," Jones told me. "And it will cause some folks to do some pretty amazing things to try to get that big deer."

Crack dealer hands out business cards: Police

A Leavenworth crack dealer handed out business cards with his phone number and:

• QUICK HIT ON TIME CALLBOSS (see below)

police said.

Star story

And now, the card:

(but I got a Nextel "not in service" when I called...)

So many robberies, so much time

Sixteen bank robberies, four states, 25 years in prison. This happened Monday but just now landed in my email:

• James Kyle Kerr, 35, was sentenced to 25 years after pleading guilty to a series of robberies and armed bank robberies. He was sentenced Jan. 23 during a hearing before U.S. District Judge John W. Lungstrum Kansas City, Kan.

Kerr hit banks in Kansas, Missouri, Ohio and California, prosecutors said. He also dragged and slightly injured a Leawood police officer during his last robbery.

News release
Star story from 2004 robbery