Six Corpus Christi Police Officers will receive the Star of Texas Award from Governor Rick Perry in the Texas House of Representatives Friday morning the 14^th of September. Office of the Governor staff will escort recipients and their families to a private reception at the conclusion of the ceremony.

The Star of Texas Award began in 2003 with House Bill 1937 to honor peace officers, firefighters, and emergency medical responders who are seriously injured or killed in the line of duty. The award is given annually. Award nominations are reviewed by three advisory committees each year to ensure they meet statutory criteria.

The Corpus Christi Police Officers to receive the Star of Texas Award for 2012 are Senior Officers Doug Rush, Enrique Roman, Israel Carasco, Jose Smith, Phillip Bintliff, and Daryl Anderson. Senior Officer Jose Smith will unable to attend. Chief Floyd Simpson will be honored to personally accept this award on Officer Smith’s behalf.

While the events that earned these officers their awards occurred prior to his arrival as the chief of police for the city of Corpus Christi, Chief Simpson is proud to accompany these officers to Austin and take this opportunity to spend some time with these dedicated public servants to share in their recognition.

Keely Hill keely.hill@gov.texas.gov  (512) 463–1919 is the point of contact for the Texas Governor’s Office in reference to this event.

The Corpus Christi Police Department will host a business summit Wednesday, September 19, 2012 from 8:00am to noon at the Del Mar College Center for Economic Development located across from Ray high School at 3209 Staples Street.

The purpose of the summit is to build a partnership to protect local businesses. The topics in the summit will include: Protecting your business against scams and social media; Personal safety at home and work; and Counterfeit money and money orders.

Anyone interested to attend this event at no fee should contact Sandra Cantu at (361) 886-2615 or Canyce Hedrick at (361) 886-2844 to reserve a place.

Nine Corpus Christi Police Officers were promoted to the rank of Senior Officer Thursday, September 06, 2012 in a ceremony with Chief of Police Floyd Simpson at the Corpus Christi Police Headquarters.

The officers successfully completed a proficiency exam on August 14, 2012. The test covered material from publications such as the Corpus Christi Police General Rules Manual, the Texas Criminal and Traffic Laws Manual, The Texas Penal Code, Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, Texas Family Code, Texas Transportation Code, and the text-book Leadership, Ethics, and Policing for the 21^st Century by P.J. Ortmeier and Edwin Meese.

The officers must have attained 60 months of service as a commissioned officer in the Corpus Christi Police Department to be eligible to take the exam. Other requirements to take the exam are that they possess an Intermediate Peace Officer license issued by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officers Standards and Education or at least have 60 hours college credit from an accredited college or university.

The Senior Officer exam was graded as an individual pass or fail examination with a minimum score of 70% required to pass the exam.

The Corpus Christi Police Department celebrates the newly promoted Senior Officers: Armando Cruz; Lonnie Humitz; Adam Thurman; Alberto Salinas; David Saldana; Curtis Volling; Jose Flores; Armando Vasquez; and Corey Casey.

Corpus Christi Police would like help from the public to find a missing disabled person from Harlingen, 52-year-old David Mark Garcia. He was last seen in Corpus Christi the weekend of August 25, 2012 at the Exxon Station at Morgan and Crosstown. Garcia has medical problems and stumbles while he walks. Garcia may hang around the bus station.

If anyone sees David Mark Garcia, call Corpus Christi Police at 886-2600. Garcia’s family are worried and would like to find him soon.

Benjamin Gomez has been captured. Please help locate the nine other fugitives in our community.

Lisa Cabrera- Motion to revoke probation for driving while intoxicated

Guadalupe Bazaldua- Burglary of a habitation

Casandra Dunn- Motion to revoke probation for possession of a controlled substance

Roland Rios- Contempt of Child Support

David Theodore- Possession of a controlled substance

Robert Rader- Credit card abuse

Luis Suarez- Endangering a child

Louis Papakostas- Evading arrest with a vehicle

Terrell Fontenot- Assault

If you know where we can locate any of these individuals call Crime Stoppers at 888-TIPS, or log on at www.888tips.com. We want your information, not your name. The information you provide could earn you a cash reward.

August 28, 2012

From:  Roeanne Peppard, Health District Information Aide, 361-826-7292; email RoeanneP@cctexas.com

Contact Person:  William Burgin, Jr., M.D., Local Health Authority, 633-1324 

PUBLIC HEALTH ALERT FOR NUECES COUNTY RESIDENTS

            The Corpus Christi – Nueces County Public Health District reports that it has received confirmation of the first West Nile death in a human from the Texas Department of State Health Services.  This is the first confirmed death of West Nile Virus (WNV) in Nueces County in 2012.  Nueces County has been upgraded to Risk Level 4, indicating that the probability of human outbreak of WNV is at a higher risk.

            According to health officials, the patient was a female between the ages of 45 and 60 who was hospitalized locally and then transferred to a neighboring city hospital due to co-morbidities.  The patient’s condition worsened and patient expired on Monday, August 27, 2012.

Dr.  William Burgin, Jr., Local Health Authority, alerts all residents to take necessary preventative measures to lower their risk.   “Stay indoors from dusk to dawn when mosquitos are most active.  If you must be outdoors during these times, dress in pants and long-sleeves and apply insect repellent that contains DEET”, states Dr. Burgin.

            According to Dr. Mobley, Local Health Authority for San Patricio County, “WNV risk is high between neighboring counties even though we have not had a positive human case”.  Because mosquitos can travel on people, in vehicles, etc., Dr. Mobley is advising San Patricio citizens as well as neighboring counties to follow the listed precautions.

            West Nile Virus is a disease spread by the bite of an infected mosquito, rather than

by person-to-person contact.  In Texas, there have been 783 human cases reported of West Nile Virus and a total of 31 deaths in 2012.  Nueces County has had three human cases and one death in 2012.

Health Officials advise residents to follow the 4 Ds:

• Dusk and Dawn are the times of day to avoid outdoor activities
• Dress in long sleeves and pants when outside
• DEET is an ingredient to look for in an insect repellent
• Drain standing water in old tires, flowerpots and clogged rain gutters

Residents can keep mosquitoes outside by fixing or installing window and door screens.

Not everyone who gets infected with WNV will have any symptoms.  Up to 20 percent of people who become infected have symptoms such as fever, headache, and body aches, nausea, vomiting, and sometimes swollen lymph glands or a skin rash on the chest, stomach and back. Symptoms can last for as short as a few days, even though healthy people have become sick for several weeks.

Serious symptoms in a few people include high fever, headache, neck stiffness stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, vision loss, numbness and paralysis. These symptoms may last several weeks, and neurological effects may bepermanent.

Approximately 80 percent of people (about 4 out of 5) who are infected with WNV will not show any symptoms at all.

Health District officials urge anyone who is experiencing these symptoms should see their doctor.  Although all Nueces County residents and neighboring areas are at risk of getting West Nile Virus, persons over 50 years of age have the highest risk of severe disease.