On February 9^th at approximately 9:52 am, Corpus Christi Police Officers and Corpus Christi Fire Department Medics responded to a residence on the 500 block of 18^th Street to investigate a report of a dog bite with injuries.  Upon arriving, Officers and Medics discovered a 22 year old man with multiple bite injuries to the arms and legs.  The victim told Officers that he had been attacked by a pack of three to five dogs, and pointed out a residence where the dogs had returned to following the vicious attack. The victim was taken by private vehicle to Spohn Memorial Hospital for treatment of his injuries.  A fireman at the scene told police officers that the dogs were loose when the medics arrived and pointed out a residence where two of the dogs had been taken.  Corpus Christi Animal Control Officers responded to MMC and contacted the victim, who told ACOs that he had been walking down the street when he was attacked by a pack of three to five dogs and at least two came from the same residence.  ACOs photographed the man’s injuries and then went to the scene of the attack where they contacted a woman.  The woman, who was in possession of one of two dogs that attacked the man, initially denied the dog belonged to her, denied living at the address, claimed the dog had been restrained the whole time, and claimed that the other dogs were strays.  A police officer at the scene told ACOs that she had seen the dog loose when she arrived on scene and a neighbor told officers that the second dog had been driven away from the home by another woman.   Officers impounded that dog, a female pit-bull mix, at the scene and transported it to Animal Shelter to be held for the mandatory ten day quarantine period.   ACOs checked the address and discovered there had been nine previous complaints of aggressive dog calls, including complaints from City Code Enforcement Officers and US Postal Carriers.  Most calls indicated that the dog owners allowed their dogs to run loose and that they were becoming progressively more aggressive toward citizens living in the neighborhood.  ACOs were able to identify the person who took the second dog, also a pit-bull mix, from the scene, contacted her and convinced her to bring the dog to Animal Control for the ten day quarantine.  That woman told officers that the dog belonged to her son, who was in jail.  The dog had no registration tag, no microchip, or tattoo to properly identify the owner.

Animal Control Officers contacted the resident of the address to attempt to impound the outstanding two dogs. The woman agreed to surrender the dog, but failed to follow through on her agreement.  The remaining two dogs from the vicious attack were never found.

Animal Control Officers checked records and could not find any record of any animal being registered to anyone at the address where the dogs lived.  Officers further checked and could not find any registration under any of the names given by any of the women.

Both dogs were kept in quarantine at Animal Care Services.  During this time period, both dogs were evaluated by Shelter Vet Dr. M. Draper, who determined both dogs were highly aggressive and recommended they be deemed as Dangerous Dogs under the Texas Health and Safety Code.  On February 19^th at 10:11 am the male dog was euthanized by Animal Care Services staff.  This was past the 240 hour state required quarantine period.

On February 20^th, the female pit-bull, was released to the woman who admitted ownership at the beginning.  Animal Care Services Staff failed to notify the alleged owner of male pit-bull mix that the dog was going to be euthanized and offer her one last opportunity to prove ownership.  The ACO who euthanized the dog mistakenly believed that the dog had been “surrendered” by the owner.

Animal Care Services admits that this entire incident could have been handled better and offers our apologies.  An internal investigation is underway to determine what possible departmental policy was violated and create a procedure to prevent this from happening again.

On her 20^th year of service, Cmdr. Adele “Heidi” Frese is saying goodbye to the Corpus Christi Police Department. She has been selected as the chief of police for Greenfield, in Monterey County, California.  Cmdr. Frese held a variety of assignments with the department including patrolling the north and west side of the city, implementing the first Campus Crime Stoppers programs at each of the five school districts and in recent years served as the commanding officer of patrol, support services, and narcotics and vice investigations. Cmdr. Frese is probably known best for her community policing philosophy, support of youth programs, and belief that community engagement offers the best solutions for street crime and neighborhood problem solving. She is the first woman officer to attain the rank of commander and will be the first woman police chief at her next department.

We wish Cmdr. Frese all the best on her next chapter in law enforcement.

From the Greenfield, CA city website Press Release:

Commander Fresé brings extensive experience and training as the City’s new Police Chief.  She holds a Master of Science in Public Safety from Capella University Minneapolis, MN; a Master of Arts from Boston University’s Senior Management Institute for Police, Police Executive Research Forum; is a Certified Public Manager from Texas A & M University; holds a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice, with a specialization in Law Enforcement; Minor in Sociology at California State University, Hayward.  Specialized certification and training include Comparative Criminal Justice and Policing Management and Leadership Program, International Police; Programs at the Law Enforcement Management Institute of Texas (LEMIT); Master  Peace Officer, TCLEOSE; Lemit’s Leadership Inventory for Female Executives (LIFE); Dale Carnegie’s Leadership Training; Certified Public Manager (CPM); Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) Certification; Crime Prevention Inspector Certification and Instructor Certification, TCLEOSE.

Commander Fresé has been with the City of Corpus Christi Police Department since 1994 and has extensive law enforcement experience in various areas in public safety. Early in her career, as a Senior Patrol Officer she directed patrol officers, crime prevention officers, the Campus Crime Stoppers program and undercover operators. She was also responsible for the successful implementation  of first Crime Stoppers program at all 5 Corpus Christi school districts and garnered support by collaborating with school superintendents, principals staff, and media to create what became an award winning program in her community.

As a night Patrol Lieutenant, Commander Fresé managed patrol shifts ranging from 10 to 20 officers and was responsible for managing patrol, walking a beat, bicycle, and prisoner transporters in the Downtown Area Command.  As a result of her management, officers under her command were responsible for 67% of all DUI arrests throughout the City in one year.  As a Special Operations Lieutenant, Commander Fresé directed and worked with community groups to develop strategies to combat crime, managed and created effective and efficient responses to crime for deployment of Directed Patrols, an Enduro Unit, and Crime Prevention Specialists.  She was also responsible for the design and execution of numerous neighborhood surveys and problem-solving models to address crime and improve quality of life.

As a Support Services Division Manager, Commander Fresé was responsible for managing department’s Communication Dispatch Center with an $8.1 million budget with a staff of 120 employees whose primary objective was to provide excellent dispatch and communications for all City Police, Sheriff Deputies, Constables, City and Volunteer Fire Departments and EMS serving a population of over 325,000. During her time managing this unit, she conducted research to improve the management and delivery of services by this Dispatch Center to increase efficiency, reduce overtime  expense, and improve morale, training, and retention of employees. Commander  Fresé  was  responsible for the delivery of a high volume and wide range of support services to the community, the implementation of the Department’s Volunteers in Policing, publishing a volunteer and supervisor guidebook and establishing a Wellness and Fitness program for all sworn and non-sworn employees.

As the Department’s Narcotics and Vice Investigations Commander, she was responsible for redirecting the Division’s effort to target street conspiracy-level drug activity resulting in a significant increase in arrests. Her accomplishments include pursuing narcotics leads with gang members involved in the distribution of drugs resulting in a 50% increase in drug related arrests of known gang members in a 10 month period;  directing the safe execution of 111 drug warrants in a 10 month period; serving on and contributing to the Houston High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA)Board.   During her tenure, she carried out collateral duties as a Hurricane Logistics Chief, Wellness Committee Chair, Peer Support Commander, Awards Committee Chair and Awards Event Coordinator for her Department. As a result of her efforts, she strengthened relationships with public safety partners, effectively networking with County Sheriff, U.S. Border Patrol, DPS, DEA, and Federal Probation.

As a Patrol Division Commanding Officer, Ms. Fresé managed a $35 million dollar budget while providing leadership and direction to seven captains whose objective was to maintain order through the effective deployment of 270 sworn Police Officers and support personnel throughout the City of Corpus Christi. As Commander, she exercised  functional supervision over officers engaged in patrol, directed patrol, traffic enforcement,and accident investigation throughout the entire city and presented weekly productivity reports to the Police Chief and her City Manager, and provided leadership to city-wide crime prevention efforts while synthesizing community policing philosophy with intelligence and lead policing strategies.  As Commander of this Unit, Ms. Fresé oversaw all Emergency Response Units, including SWAT, Dive, HNT, and Bomb Technicians. She provided leadership to  the Peer Support Team as the unit’s Commander.

As a Police Administration Commander, she has managed the Personnel Development Division which includes Training, CALEA, and major projects, and directed the hiring process, including recruitment, background investigations, and applicant processing. In this capacity, she has overseen the career development of all sworn and non-sworn members of the Department, directed the effective operations of the in-service training,Police Academy, and pistol range, and instituted a paid Police Cadet Program targeting high school  and college age students.

Ms. Fresé is expected to begin her service to the community once her P.O.S.T. background is complete and the City approves an employment agreement. I know her entire family is excited about moving to Monterey County and becoming a part of our Greenfield Community.

As you can tell, while I alone as City Manager will be making this appointment and am responsible for the ultimate management of City services, the appointment of Police Chief was a critical process that involved extensive community participation.  The appointment of Commander Fresé as our next Police Chief was a consensus decision by the members of this entire City organization.

Offense: Injury to a Child
Offense number: 1402200084
Location: 4655 Sharpsburg
Time: 4:01pm

Adam units responded to 4655 Sharpsburg Rd for an injured, unresponsive child. The victim, a 4-year-old female, was playing on a skateboard in the driveway. A relative at the home heard a noise and when they went to check on the child found that a BBQ pit had fallen onto the child.

The child was transported to MMC where Doctors worked to obtain a pulse.

Update at 8:15 p.m.: The child did not survive the injuries sustained in the accident. Detectives will continue to investigate.

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