Status of the 71st:

The Corpus Christi Police Academy Cadets learned the operations and functions of the Corpus Christi Police Emergency Response Unit. The components of the Emergency Response Unit include The Hostage Negotiation Team, The Dive Team, The Bomb Squad, and SWAT. Representatives from each component of the Emergency Response Unit and the officers who work with the Patrol Dogs gave presentations today of their function on the department and the criteria for applying to these specialized units. The Cadets were informed when and how to appropriately activate these resources.

The Cadets have to read Chapters 6 & 7 of the Corpus Christi Police General Rules Manual over the weekend. Chapter 6 explains the policy of Internal Affairs Investigations and Chapter 7 provides the regulation of reporting and controlling criminal justice information.

The Corpus Christi Police Department are hosting a Citizen’s Police Academy that begins February 26, 2013 and meets every Tuesday Evening from 6:30pm until 9:30pm at the Police Training Center located at 4510 Corona Drive. This will be the 41st Session of the Citizen’s Police Academy hosted by the Corpus Christi Police Department.

The Citizen’s Police Academy (C.P.A.) is a partnership with the citizens of Corpus Christi and the Corpus Christi Police Department. The benefits of such a partnership can only help strengthen the entire community in public safety and quality of life.

A police agency cannot be effective without the trust of its citizens. The Citizen Police Academy program builds that trust. Through education, it provides a bridge between the officer in the car and the citizens in the field. Citizens will gain an appreciation of the problems and challenges facing law enforcement and have an opportunity to offer comments and ideas regarding solutions. Those citizens then become the police department’s “goodwill ambassadors” throughout the community.

As a result graduates are better equipped to assess safety issues, and share with others their knowledge of law enforcement practices and policies.

There are several hands-on exercises and, at the end of the program, you will participate in role play exercises and make decisions as a police officer would. You will also be signed up for a 4-hour “Tour of Duty” and ride with an officer to see first-hand what happens on the street.

Contributed by Charlie Cardenas, P.E., Traffic Engineering  

Chaparral Street and Schatzell Street Intersection

Monday – Friday

Schatzell Street:  From Shoreline Boulevard, Schatzell Street westbound traffic will be detoured onto Water Street.  In addition, Schatzell Street will close to through traffic between Water Street and Mesquite Street.  Parking will be permitted on this section of Schatzell Street.

Chaparral Street:  Chaparral Street will become a two-way between Lawrence Street and Schatzell Street where parking will be allowed on this section of Chaparral Street.  Motorists need to be aware of vehicles entering and exiting this section of Chaparral Street at the Lawrence Street intersection.

McBride Lane (Between Leopard Street and IH-37 Eastbound Frontage Road)

Monday – Friday

Construction is temporarily suspended and all streets are open to through traffic.

Kostoryz Road

Saturday – Friday

Contractors will work on Kostoryz Road between South Padre Island Drive (S.P.I.D.) and Mansheim Boulevard.  During this period, there will be various lane shifts and traffic will be reduced to one through lane in each direction.  Upon completion, traffic between S.P.I.D and Gollihar Road will be shifted onto the northbound lanes and reduced to one through lane in each direction.

In addition, traffic on eastbound McArdle Road will be shifted to the westbound lane where traffic will be reduced to one lane in each direction through the Kostoryz Road intersection.

New – Staples Street (Williams Street to Saratoga Boulevard)

Saturday – Friday

Holly Road:

Until further notice, left turns are restricted on Holly Road from northbound Staples Street. Southbound Staples Street drivers on cannot turn left onto Holly Road and right turns will be restricted when the traffic signal is on red.  There are no turning restrictions for westbound and eastbound drivers on Holly Road onto Staples Street but no left turns are allowed from northbound Staples Street at Williams Drive.

Wooldridge Road:  The Wooldridge Road traffic through the Staples Street intersection will be shifted onto the westbound lanes and reduced to one through lane in each direction.  There are no left turns from both northbound and southbound Staples Street onto Wooldridge Road.

Staples Street:  Contractors will shift the southbound Staples Street traffic onto the northbound lane reducing traffic to one through lane in each direction from the Moore Plaza entrance through the Williams Drive intersection.  Southbound drivers will have dedicated right turn while northbound drivers will have a dedicated right turn lane at Williams Drive, but no left turns are permitted.

On Staples Street, from Woodridge Road to north of Holly Road, there are two lanes of traffic open in each direction.  Staples Street traffic, between Cain Drive and Bonner Drive, will be shifted onto the northbound lanes and traffic reduced to one through lane in each direction.

Bonner Drive, Cain Drive, or Curtis Clark Drive:  Cain Drive, Bonner Drive, or Curtis Clark Drive may be periodically closed at the Staples Street intersection.  Motorists will be detoured onto Burton Lane.  In addition, when one street is closed, the other may be reduced to one lane with flaggers to direct traffic.  Once work is completed, each street will be closed for 10 days to pour concrete and allow the pavement to cure.

Today marks the 53rd Anniversary of Sergeant Frank Dolan’s In the Line of Duty Death.

On February 12, 1960 Sergeant Frank Dolan was killed in an automobile accident on Highway 624, near Orange Grove, while returning to Corpus Christi from a meeting in Alice.

His vehicle went out of control on a curve in the road during a period of snow and slushy conditions. His car was broadsided by another vehicle, causing him to suffer fatal injuries.

Sergeant Dolan was a U.S. Navy veteran and had served with the Corpus Christi Police Department for 24 years. He was survived by his wife and three children.

Read more: http://www.odmp.org/officer/21563-sergeant-frank-edward-dolan#ixzz2KiZb6qk6

The Corpus Christi Police Department Explorer Post #133 will host a Police Explorer Academy that begins Thursday, February 7, 2013 at 6:00pm at the Del Mar West Campus Public Safety Building.

There will be 30 students who participate in the Academy every Thursday night and Saturday until the graduation in June. The classes will include instruction on the history of policing, Criminal Law, Crisis Intervention, Traffic, First Aid, Report Writing, Arrest Search and Seizure, Narcotics, Physical Training, and Crime Scene Scenarios.

Law Enforcement Explorers are students ages 14 – 20 who are interested to learn about Law Enforcement careers. The Explorers participate in competitions with other Explorer posts to compete for awards and learn skills in the police industry. Post 133 recruits from throughout the city, to include all high schools and colleges in this area. Corpus Christi Police Explorers formed in 1972 as a living memorial and honor for all fallen officers after police officer John Sartain was killed by a sniper. The Explorers are affiliated with the Boy Scouts of America’s Learning for Life program which enhances self-confidence, motivation, civic-mindedness, and cultivates strong leadership traits. These characteristics help Explorers prepare for a career in law enforcement and to become future leaders. Post 133 will celebrate its 40^th year anniversary next year.

The Kingsville Border Patrol Explorers will participate on Saturdays in this Academy. The Kingsville Border Patrol Explorers are a new program who reached out to the Corpus Christi Police Department for assistance. The two explorer posts will share resources to facilitate training.

Anyone interested to learn more about Law Enforcement Explorers program may visit: http://exploring.learningforlife.org/services/career-exploring/law-enforcement/  or contact Senior Officer Emily Perez of the Corpus Christi Police Department at (361) 728-9843 or by email at emilyp@cctexas.com.

Citizens living in the neighborhood which borders Don Patricio Road to Glenoak Drive and Flour Bluff Drive to Waldron Road are invited to a neighborhood meeting next week where results from a police department crime survey will be given.

The gathering will take place Monday, February 11, 2013, at 6:00 p.m., at Real Life Fellowship located at 1241 Flour Bluff Drive.  Representatives from different city departments will also attend to answer questions.

Back in January, Code Enforcement officers and volunteers stretched out over the large populated area making sure all city facilities were being taken care of, as well as, looking for issues they can assist citizens with such as replacement of street signs, stray animal pick up, high weeds and illegal dumping.

Status of the 71st:

The Corpus Christi Police Department 71st Academy session ended week 2 with a boom! The Corpus Christi Police Department Bomb Squad delivered an 8 hour block of instruction on explosives awareness. The purpose of the class was to train the Cadets to properly and safely respond to bomb threats and reports for suspicious items. The Bomb Squad then provided a demonstration for the cadets at the Corpus Christi Police Bomb Range in order to exhibit the dangers of explosive materials officers may encounter on patrol.

The Cadets were assigned to read Chapters 3,4, and 5 of the Corpus Christi Police General Rules Manual for homework over the weekend. Chapter 3 covers Supervisor Responsibilities; Chapter 4 explains Uniforms, Appearance, and Equipment; and Chapter 5 provides the standard for Conduct and Performance.

 

The Corpus Christi Police Department remembers Senior Officer Juan Rincon Prieto and his line of duty death on February 2, 1993. Officer Prieto was directing traffic at Up River Road and Suntide when he was struck and killed by a pickup truck. Officer Prieto had served in the Corpus Christi Police Department for 27 years and was survived by his wife, two sons and two daughters.

A park on Woodland Creek Drive in Corpus Christi near Callicoate Road is named Senior Officer Prieto Park in his memory.