Planning Committee Seeks Relatives of Fallen Officers

On Monday May 13th at 10:30 am, the Corpus Christi Police Department, Nueces County Sheriff’s Office, and the Port of Corpus Christi Police Department will together host the seventh annual Regional Peace Officers Memorial Day Ceremony.  This year’s event once again will be held at the Solomon P. Ortiz International Center Outdoor Pavilion, 402 Harbor Drive, Corpus Christi.   Keynote speaker for this year’s ceremony will be United States Congressman Blake Farenthold.  The ceremony is a tribute to all Peace Officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty, specifically recognizing those officers from the Coastal Bend who have made the ultimate sacrifice for their community. The public is cordially invited to attend.

Members of the Peace Officers Memorial Day planning committee are seeking current addresses for family members of the fallen officers so they can be invited and properly recognized during the ceremony.  If you are a family member, or can provide the address for a family member of any of these fallen officers please contact:

Executive Assistant to Chief Floyd Simpson

Teri Barrera

(361) 886-2603

TeriB@cctexas.com

By: Captain John Houston

On April 20, 1953, 60 years ago, Patrol Officer Roy Newton Smith was responding to a fight call when his patrol car was struck by another car at Staples and Lipan. Smith died of his injuries that day. Smith was 21 years old and had been on the department for just 4 months at the time of this tragic accident. Roy was married to Laverne Smith and had come here from Wichita Falls, Texas to work at the department. Roy and Laverne had one daughter Gail. Roy served with distinction in the Army having served in the Korean conflict before joining the department. Please take a moment out  of your day to remember our fallen brother. Our prayers remain with him and his family and may we never forget him and his sacrifice. Roy Smith is the fourth officer to die in the Line of Duty for the Department.

As a side note, we were able to locate his only daughter Gail Michalsky of Spring, Texas who never had a chance to know her father and she attended her first Police Officers Memorial Service last year. She was given a copy of the Wall of Honor photo by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott.

The week of April 14 through April 20, 2013, is National Public Safety Telecommunications Week. This is a designated time when the public can thank the men and women who answer emergency calls and dispatch resources to crisis situations. The public may show gratitude to 9-1-1 calltakers, dispatchers, technicians that maintain radio and emergency phone systems, communications staff trainers, communications center personnel, and other public safety telecommunications staff across the country who work tirelessly, often behind the scenes, to help during emergencies.

National Telecommunications Week began in 1981 in the effort to recognize and honor the hard work and dedication of the telecommunicators in emergency services. Congress made a formal proclamation in October 1991 to designate the second week in April as National Public Safety Telecommunications Week.

Patricia Anderson of the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office in California set up the first week-long event in 1981 and the Corpus Christi Police celebrates the service of the telecommunicators in 2013.

The Corpus Christi Police Department would like to remind all users of West Guth and LaBonte parks that we will be monitoring both parks throughout Easter Sunday. Officers will be enforcing the city ordinances for parks. Below are some of the rules:

West Guth & Labonte Park Rules and Regulations

• Park Curfew: 10pm – 6am—City Noise ordinance enforced City Code of Ordinances: Chapter 31 Noise (Ord.No.027440)
• No lifeguards are on duty–Children must be supervised at ALL times. (LaBonte Park)
• Dogs must be on leash & owners must pick up pet wastes.
• When parking allow enough room for emergency vehicles to pass through.

• The following are not permitted:
• Littering
• Alcohol
• Motorized vehicles (ATV, go-carts, motor-bikes or scooters)
• Glass containers
• Fireworks or campfires
• There will be limited number of portable toilets made available for public use.
• Customer is responsible for cleaning the reserved campsite area after use and disposing of all trash in receptacles.

Report non-emergencies to 886-2600

Corpus Christi Police Chief Floyd Simpson promoted Michael Pena from the rank of Senior Officer to Lieutenant in a ceremony at the Police Headquarters building Tuesday morning.

Lieutenant Pena began his employment in the Corpus Christi Police Department in August of 1993. He was previously employed in the United States Air Force where he served in Operation: Just Cause in 1989 (which was the invasion of Panama); Operation: Desert Shield and Operation: Desert Storm in 1990 and 1991 (known as the Persian Gulf War).

Lieutenant Pena was born in Dallas, Texas and moved around as his father served in the United States Army. Lieutenant Pena graduated from American High School in Stuttgart, Germany.

Lieutenant Pena’s badge was fastened onto his uniform in the ceremony by his wife of 8 years, Velma Pena. Congratulations, Lieutenant Mike Pena and good luck with your new assignment as first line supervisor of officers in the street.

The Corpus Christi Citizens Police Academy Alumni will host their fifth annual All You Can Eat Waffle Breakfast on Saturday March 30^th.   This fun event will take place at the First Christian Church, 3401 Santa Fe Street from 8:00 am to 11:00 am.

The Waffle Breakfast is one of the biggest fundraisers of the year for the CPAA, which has been in existence for over twenty years.  All proceeds from the event are donated to the officers of the Corpus Christi Police Department in the form of equipment and other support.  Over the years the CPAA has generously made over $100,000 in contributions to our men and women in blue.  Past donations include roads spikes, trauma kits, emergency response tools, digital cameras, digital recorders, hostage negotiation communication equipment, and life preservers for the CCPD Rescue and Recovery Dive team.  The equipment donated by the CPAA is generally equipment that the Police Department is unable to budget for, but still essential for our officers to safely serve our community.  By filling that gap, the CPAA performs a tremendous service to all the citizens of Corpus Christi. In addition, CPAA members volunteer at the Police Department on a daily basis, working alongside our officers to achieve our mission of reducing crime, reducing the fear of crime and enhancing public safety.

This year’s waffle breakfast promises to be the best ever.  For a $6.00 donation, customers are treated to all you can eat waffles, a serving of sausage, and their choice of juice, milk or coffee. For the youngsters, there will be clowns, balloons, and free children’s fingerprinting.  Grownups can take advantage of free VIN etching for their vehicles, courtesy of the CCPD Auto Theft Task Force and their new VIN etching machines donated by the CPAA.  There will also be a silent auction, with many valuable items available.

Tickets can be purchased at the door or from any CPAA member.  So come on out, enjoy a great breakfast, have some fun, and support the wonderful men and women who support our officers.  For more information or to make a donation, contact CPAA President Cheryl Daubs at 886-2784.

A nine-year old canine whose future once looked bleak enjoyed a first class flight to Houston Tuesday afternoon, thanks to an enterprising Corpus Christi Animal Control Officer and a non-profit animal rescue network called “Pilots N Paws”.

The dog named “Gucci” arrived at the Corpus Christi Animal Shelter last Thursday when her owner surrendered her.  Gucci’s owner was forced to make the difficult decision to surrender her when apartment management informed the pet’s owner that she was only allowed two pets; Gucci sadly became the odd dog out.

When Gucci tested positive for heartworms the next day, Animal Control Officer James Matt Ray realized that placing her for adoption would be difficult due to her age and health issues.   Ray quickly went into action and found an animal rescue group called PugHearts of Houston that specializes in rescuing that particular breed.  Ray contacted the group and they agreed to rescue Gucci, but there was still the problem of how to get her to Houston.  Undaunted, Ray continued to search the internet and found “Pilots N Paws”, a non-profit website that serves as a meeting place for those who rescue, shelter or foster animals, and volunteer pilots willing to assist with the transportation of at-risk animals.

Pilots N Paws was founded in 2008 by animal-lover Debi Boies and pilot Jon Wehrenberg. The idea first took flight when Jon agreed to help Debi by flying a rescued Doberman from Florida to South Carolina. The trip was a success and the two brainstormed on how to rescue other animals.  As a result of their collaboration,  the website, http://www.pilotsnpaws.org was soon launched. Today the organization has 3,168 pilot volunteers and 10,551 volunteers responsible for saving thousands of animals each year.

Through the website Officer Ray contacted Wade Roberts, a pilot from Pearland, Texas, who agreed to pick up Gucci and fly her back to Houston.  ACO Ray met Roberts Tuesday morning at a small airport in Port Aransas and by 11:30 am Gucci was on her way to a new life in Houston-all thanks to a caring pilot and the Animal Control Officer who went beyond the call of duty to save her.

The Corpus Christi Police Department remembers fallen officer, Lieutenant Stuart J. Alexander who was killed in the line of duty March 11, 2009. A Corpus Christi Police Patrol Officer initiated a traffic stop and the violator attacked and physically assaulted the officer. The violator fled from the traffic stop and scene of the assault of the police officer in a vehicle. The violator used the vehicle as a weapon against responding officers and rammed several pursuing patrol vehicles.

Lieutenant Alexander positioned himself on the grass median on State Highway 358 near Agnes for road spike deployment. The violator abruptly swerved and intentionally struck Lieutenant Alexander.

The suspect continued to use his vehicle as a weapon against officers until he was shot by Corpus Christi Police Officers and arrested.

Lieutenant Stuart Alexander was 47 years old, a 20 year veteran of the Corpus Christi Police Department and is survived by his wife, his son, and three grandchildren.