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2012 ANNUAL REPORT
PADUCAH POLICE
William F. Paxton
Mayor
Jeff Pederson
City Manager
Commissioners
Richard Abraham
Carol Gault
Gayle Kaler
Gerald Watkins
The Paducah Police
Department’s 2012 Annual
Report is printed with public
funds.
Photos by: George Johnson,
Steve Smith, David White, other
city employees, or taken from
non-copyrighted material. Cover
art by George Johnson.
Contributors: James Berry,
Stacey Grimes, Brandon
Barnhill, Brian Krueger, David
White, Robin Newberry, and a
special thanks to all of our other
staff that assisted with putting
this report together.
Edited by: Robin Newberry and
David White.
For questions or comments:
dwhite@paducahky.gov
Index
2013 Welcoming a New Mayor & CommissionWelcoming a New Mayor & CommissionWelcoming a New Mayor & CommissionWelcoming a New Mayor & Commission
2012 was, of course, an election year, and we are pleased to welcome former
Mayor Pro Tem Gayle Kaler as our new Mayor. We are also pleased to have
Richard Abraham and Carol Gault back on the Commission, as well as welcoming
two new commissioners, Allan Rhodes and the new Mayor Pro Tem, Sandra Wil-
son. We look forward to working with them in the upcoming year.
Chief James Berry
Page 3 Strategic Plan 2010-2013 in Review
Page 4 Budget Overview
Page 5 Command Officers
Page 7 Our Employees
Page 9 Our Sergeants
Page 10 Employee of the Year
Page 11 Records & Evidence Unit
Page 12 Employee Awards
Page 13 The Future of Policing
Page 14 Our Building Project: An Update
Page 15 Specialized Units
Page 16 Flex Platoon
Page 17 Minority Recruitment Committee
Page 18 School Violence: Our Response to Sandy Hook
Page 19 Professional Standards Office Report
Page 20 Drug Abuse Resistance Education
Page 21 Traffic Report
Page 23 Crime Report
Page 25 Operations Division Report
Page 27 General Investigations Unit Report
Page 29 Drug and Vice Enforcement Report
Page 31 Our Honor Guard
Page 33 Citizens’ Police Academies
Page 35 Building the Right Vision for Paducah
Page 36 Honoring Our Veterans
Chief’s Report
Chief James O. Berry
Chief Berry has served as Chief of
the Paducah Police Department
since August of 2009. He has more
than 35 years’ experience in
policing — having spent 25 years in
Hartford, CT, retiring there as
Assistant Chief in 2000. After
leaving Hartford, Berry served as
chief of security for the Hartford
school system, where he stayed for
two years. In December of 2001, he
accepted the position of Chief of
Police in Trumbull, CT, where he
stayed until 2004, when he accepted
the role of Chief at Manchester, CT.
He left that post in 2009 to accept
the position in Paducah. Berry has
an Associate’s Degree in Criminal
Justice, a B.S. Degree in Sociology,
and a Graduate Certification in
Homeland Security from St. Joseph
College. He is a member of the
International Association of Chiefs
of Police, the Kentucky Association
Chiefs of Police, the Police
Executive Research Forum, the
National Organization of Black Law
Enforcement Executives, the
National Sheriff’s Association, FBI
LEEDS, and has many accolades
spanning his vast career.
Contact Chief Berry
1400 Broadway
Paducah, KY 42001
Phone: (270) 444-8590
Email: jberry@paducahky.gov
The Paducah Police Department is looking very closely at several evolutions in the field of law
enforcement occurring around the country. These evolutions encompass everything from how
we will manage our personnel to technology, and certainly the safety issues involving schools.
There are a host of issues developing in law enforcement relative to personnel and hiring. Baby
Boomers are going out of the profession and Millennials are entering the field. Baby Boomers
epitomized a strong work ethic and came into the field with a value system that put the job first.
On the other hand, Millennials are coming into the field with a slightly different value set. They
are willing to work hard, but they value quality of life issues and time off rather than working
overtime. While the differences aren’t necessarily a bad thing, learning to manage the various
generational differences is challenging.
Changes in pension systems from defined benefits to defined contributions will also be a major
challenge relative to the hiring and retention of police officers. Pension changes may result in
officers changing departments several times during a career due to the portability of their
pension.
Diminishing resources and management of technology will also be important. Law enforcement
professionals must maximize results with minimal and shrinking resources. Technology will
increasingly become more an asset to maximize return on investments. Manpower allocations
are being reduced, which causes tremendous problems for departments as they attempt to
maintain statistical reductions in crime with smaller forces. The logical approach would be for
departments to look at technological resources. I have always stated that you can’t put a police
officer on every corner, but you can have technology that can cover every corner to enhance
crime prevention. That is an important aspect of a police officer’s job, along with the
apprehension of offenders for the commission of a crime.
Finally, police departments and schools must develop a stronger partnership with the goal of
protecting our most important assets — our children. During the last 20 years, there have been
numerous school shootings, from Heath to Newtown, CT. The situation in Newtown has
dramatically changed the way that we look at school security. The intruder shot his way into a
school. There are discussions going on all over the country attempting to answer the question of
how schools can be more secure. No matter what decisions are made relevant to who should be
armed, the most important preventive measure in any school is a school climate that fosters an
attitude that encourages students to share information with staff. In addition, students must feel
that staff will investigate any information that is shared.
In summary, our schools must be secured and our students and faculty must be protected.
Schools were designed to be a safe haven with an atmosphere conducive to learning and
achieving. This has been shattered, but with strong collaboration between schools, police, and
the community, this will be achieved. This is also not something that we will try to accomplish;
it is something we must accomplish because families and children are depending on us to
protect them from harm.
As you read through our report this year, I hope you find it helpful and encouraging to know we
are watching these important issues both in our community, and around the country, as they
relate to law enforcement.
Sincerely,
James O. Berry, Chief
OUR 3-YEAR RECAP STRATEGIC PLAN
FROM MAY 2010—MAY 2013
To continue to emphasize diversification of our workforce:
See our efforts in minority recruitment on Page 17; a work in
progress.
To conduct a spring open house to aid in recruiting: Done.
To reactivate our Explorer program: Done. (Page 11)
To advance community policing through outreach to the
youth in our community: The Junior Citizens’ Police
Academy (Page 33); the Explorer Program (Page 11); The
Youth Forum (Page 17); D.A.R.E. (Page 20); G.R.E.A.T. (Page
16); talking to kids about texting and driving (page 22); our
partnership with the Oscar Cross Boys & Girls Club through
the Met Life grant; and many other presentations Chief James
Berry and our staff made in the past year to Scout groups,
school clubs, and youth groups.
To conduct an annual awards program celebrating the
department’s success: Done. (Page 12)
To improve camera systems around our building to
enhance site security: Done.
To purchase a newer, greener police fleet that is more
economical: In progress. You may notice we have several
different types of patrol vehicles in operation today, many of
those are more energy efficient than the traditional Crown
Victoria police vehicle. We haven’t purchased an 8-cylinder
patrol car in three years. Additionally, we made a commitment
to conserve fuel and reduce our fuel budget by five percent. So
far, we’re on track to meet that goal!
“All of these things would not be possible if it weren’t for the
good work that these men and women do out here everyday, for
me, and for the citizens of Paducah,” says Chief Berry. “It’s
time we recognize some of our accomplishments, but it’s also
time we set the bar even higher.” While we haven’t yet met all
of our goals, Chief Berry urges our employees to constantly
look for ways to improve the efficiency of the organization.
3
A three-year strategic plan is something that is always
evolving, as we try to keep a good future outlook.
However, it’s good to look back over what you mapped
out and highlight your accomplishments, even though some of the
goals may still be in motion.
The Strategic Plan for the Paducah Police Department, drafted in
May 2010, laid out the various priorities of the department, and
while we haven’t met all of our goals, we have accomplished a
considerable number of them. Here are the ones we’ve met, or are
in progress:
Moving the drug unit off-site to improve covert operations and
provide needed room at headquarters: Done.
Construction of a new police building: In progress. (See Page 14
for an update!)
To better manage the replacement of our Mobile Data Comput-
ers: We are happy to say we’ve begun to shore up the MDC
replacement fund to ensure the smooth purchase of these items in
the future. The account currently has roughly $36,000 in it, ready as
needed to replace worn-out computers.
To develop a better audio-visual technology for officers’ train-
ing and daily briefings: Done. We have a department PDP, which
is intranet-based, allowing officers to check daily logs, warrant
lists, and other important messages each day from their computers.
It also aids in the day-to-day trainings and briefings they rely on.
To develop and implement PDA technology: We continue to
evaluate new, cheaper, more advanced technologies as we try to
save money and maximize technology.
To enhance succession by utilizing advanced leadership
schools: One captain has completed the FBI National Academy and
we have one on stand-by. Two captains and two sergeants have
completed the Criminal Justice Executive Development course, and
three sergeants have completed the Academy of Police Supervision.
BUDGET
OVERVIEW
By Assistant Chief Stacey Grimes
Each year, it seems to be increasingly important for police
departments to focus on their budget as we try desperately to hold
down costs, while not decreasing services.
Nearly 20 years ago, when crime was at its peak, the Paducah
Police Department had 83 full-time sworn officers. Today, our
allotted sworn staffing is down to 78, and we have civilianized
several positions once filled by sworn officers in an effort to reduce
costs.
Over the years, our City leadership proactively positioned us to
survive the most recent recession, which limited the number of
staff layoffs in 2009.
The United States Department of Justice estimated that by the end
of 2011, approximately 12,000 officers nation-wide had been laid
off and nearly 30,000 law enforcement jobs continue to go unfilled.
However, in 2009, the U.S. Department of Justice introduced a
program aimed at saving 5,000 such jobs through grant funding.
This, too, helped our department weather the economic storm.
We were awarded funding from the U.S. Department of Justice
COPS office to retain three police officers for a three-year period,
worth $607,194. Our grant for these three officers will expire dur-
ing the next fiscal year, placing yet another challenge on our door-
step.
A 2011 International Association of Chiefs of Police study showed
that 85% of its members reported they were forced to reduce their
budgets, and approximately half incurred a 5% reduction. Our
City revenue stream has been flat for the past few years and has
impacted the allocated funding for public safety, but not on the
same level as the majority of the nation.
Property taxes in Paducah have not increased and high unemploy-
ment rates have impacted the payroll tax. Contrary to the belief of
many motorists, the issuance of traffic citations is not a revenue
generator for the department, so we must look more at our spending
until tax revenues return to pre-recession rates.
The 2012-2013 budget for the Paducah Police Department is
approximately $9.16 million, of which, more than 85% is
personnel costs. The remainder of the budget includes
vehicles, fuel, equipment, utilities, office supplies, field
supplies and numerous miscellaneous specialized expenses.
The police department budget was virtually flat from the 2011-
2012 fiscal year, which forced leadership to make reductions
in several line items to offset substantial increases in
uncontrollable costs. Those cuts included $19,000 in
ammunition, $30,000 in overtime, $43,000 in training and
travel, $9,000 in office supplies and $20,000 in gear and field
operation supplies. We also reduced our full-time civilian
staffing level by two and transferred the Operations Division
clerical staff to the Records Unit to streamline operations and
reduce the budget.
One significant uncontrollable cost that cities and police
departments across our state are forced to deal with is
snowballing pension costs. This fiscal year, budgeted pension
expenses are more than $1.7 million, nearly 20% of our overall
budget and an increase of nearly $123,000 to the pension fund.
Years of under-funding, poor investment returns and
squabbling over how to deal with the unfunded liability (all at
the state-level) are only making the system more ill. Tough
medicine will have to be administered and the unintended
consequences may force communities and police departments
to reassess service expectations, staffing levels and the
philosophical approach to policing.
The economic horizon in the very near future does not appear
to be friendly to local government budgets and the limited
available funding will have to be prioritized more than
previous years. With crime appearing to increase for the first
time in 20 years and a significant reduction in law
enforcement resources, we are in for challenging times. It will
be more important than ever for our community to become
involved and take ownership in assisting paid law enforcement
maintain the high quality of life we expect. Economic
development and population growth will only flourish if our
streets, schools and businesses remain safe.
4
S uccessful police departments, like successful
companies, have good leaders and managers.
And good leaders, says Chief James Berry,
share their experience and knowledge with the good
leaders who will come after them.
Within the Paducah Police Department rank structure,
there are two assistant chiefs, one covering the Opera-
tions side of business, the other managing Support
Services, which includes General Investigations, Drug
and Vice Enforcement and the Records and Evidence
units.
“At the assistant chief level, we work very closely
with Chief Berry to manage the policy and budgetary
decisions of the department.” says Assistant Chief
Stacey Grimes. Grimes has filled that role for the last
nine years and he says managing a $9 million dollar
budget and all the complexities of a 78-officer agency
is not an easy task. Grimes and Assistant Chief Bran-
don Barnhill both have advanced degrees in public
administration, as well as years of experience in the
field.
They both are graduates of the Southern Police Insti-
tute’s Administrative Officers Course. Comparable to
other command-level training courses, it’s a virtual
must-have for aspiring chiefs, and a regular
prerequisite on most all chief applications.
Chief Berry and the two assistant chiefs are supported
by six captains, working in a variety of mid-level
management capacities. Each of them is equipped
with the training and experience to be ready to step up
to the next level. Many of them have advanced de-
grees and advanced leadership training, including the
Criminal Justice Executive Development course and
School of Strategic Leadership from the Kentucky
Department of Criminal Justice Training. Two have
graduated from the FBI National Academy, one of the
most advanced leadership schools in the country, and
one is currently on standby for the course.
5
LEADERSHIPLEADERSHIPLEADERSHIPLEADERSHIP Succession planning is something that departments
take very seriously, knowing, as author Jim Collins
points out in his book Good to Great, that most
successful leaders come from within the organization.
Chief Berry says “As an outsider, you’re at a little bit
of a disadvantage, and that’s why it’s so important to
have good people like this working for you.”
“For me, it’s about investing in the people, and I pride
myself on the fact that I have had six people who
worked for me go on to be chiefs of police over the
years,” Chief Berry said.
“It’s not just about the old chief leaving a good legacy.
It’s about investing in those around you, through lead-
ership and mentorship. It’s about seeing people who
truly understand the profession, grow.”
“Paducah should be proud to have such a qualified
group of good leaders who care so much about the de-
partment, and about the City,” he said.
Berry said that the overall level of professionalism, the
level of training and the number of college-educated
officers in the field has grown drastically over his 30-
plus years of policing. “Policing, in general, is so much
better and more professional than when I started. It’s
really exciting to see how much it’s changed, and it’s
caused people like me to change, too,” he said.
“At this department 55 percent of the officers have at
least a two-year degree, and it’s now a requirement just
to get in the door. 38 percent of officers have bache-
lor’s degrees, and we have four who have master’s de-
grees,” he said.
“One of the most significant things we can do to ensure
success is to hire the best and brightest people we can
find, and encourage them to be life-long learners —
through advancing their college education and giving
them the best professional training we can give them.”
6
7
Chief James Berry
Stacey Grimes
Brandon Barnhill
Don Hodgson
Brian Krueger
Mark Roberts
David White
Shawn Maxie
Jason Merrick
George Johnson
William Gilbert
Brian Laird
Wesley Kimbler
Steven Smith
Robert Hefner
Kevin Neal
Joseph Hayes
Wesley Orazine
Rene Long
Robert Estes
Brent Obermark
John Tolliver
Michael Simak
Brian Kopischke
Nathan Young
Paul Stevenson
Cindy Neihoff
Sco4y Davis
James Davis
Ma4hew Wentworth
Travis Counts
Jason Montgomery
Michael Wentworth
Jus5n Canup
Ma4hew Smith
Michael Redmon
Melissa Dillon
Linda Hodgson
Gretchen Morgan
Dana Davie
James Robbins
Troy Turner
Jus5n Rundles
Lo6on Rowley
Jus5n Crowell
Ryan Clark
Jarre4 Woodruff
Christopher Baxter
Christopher Bolton
Anthony Copeland
Michael Rigdon
Corey Willenborg
Ryan Conn
Joshua Bryant
Beau Green
Nathan Antonites
Ma4hew Reed
Nathan Jaimet
Jason Hicks
Christopher Fearon
Keith Thuline
Kevin Collins
Derik Perry
Ma4hew Scheer
Jus5n Hodges
Shawn Craven
Steven Thompson
Aus5n Guill
David Carroll
Travis Watson
Ryan Burrow
Blake Quinn
Kelly Drew
Joshua Anderson
Nickolas Francescon
Kortney Rose
Henry Collins
Jan Saxon
Robin Newberry
Malinda Baltz
Lourdes Morrison
Vicki Miller
Myra Reid
Dickie Powers
Tracy Lynch
Leigh Shanks
Kris5ne Shanks
Amy Travis
Kimberly Newlon
K-9 Junior
K-9 Fox
8
OUR SERGEANTS
Sergeant George Johnson
Sergeant Johnson began his career in 1995 with the Marshall County Sheriff’s Office. He came to Paducah
in 2002. He currently serves as the Flex Platoon commander, and he is in charge of the Ci5zens’ Police
Academy program. Johnson also leads the Crisis Nego5a5on Team.
Sergeant Will Gilbert
Sergeant Brian Laird
Sergeant Wes Kimbler
Sergeant Steve Smith
Sergeant Rob Hefner
Sergeant Kevin Neal
Sergeant Joe Hayes
Sergeant Wes Orazine
Sergeant Will Gilbert leads our Drug and Vice Enforcement Unit. He has been with the department since
1999. He is a former Marine and has a Bachelor’s Degree from Murray State University. He is Bomb Squad
Commander and he is in the 2012-2013 session of the Criminal Jus5ce Execu5ve Development course.
Sergeant Laird supervises the General Inves5ga5ons Unit, where he has served for several years. He
joined the department in 2001, as part of the Police Corps program. He has a Bachelor’s Degree from
Murray State University, and he is a graduate of the Criminal Jus5ce Execu5ve Development course.
Sergeant Kimbler joined the department in 2001, a6er spending several years with the Mayfield Police
Department. He is a 20-year veteran of the Army, and he is a graduate of the Academy of Police
Supervision. He currently serves as a patrol sergeant and a Police Training Officer Supervisor.
Sergeant Smith currently serves as a patrol sergeant. He has 10 years of service with the department. He
is an Army veteran, having served in the Middle East. He is currently a Police Training Officer Supervisor,
and serves as a member of Bomb Squad. Addi5onally, he is working on his Bachelor’s Degree.
Sergeant Neal has served the department since 1999. A Marine with many years of combat experience,
Sgt. Neal currently serves as a patrol sergeant. He is former SWAT team member and serves as a firearms
and defensive tac5cs instructor. He is a graduate of the Academy of Police Supervision.
Sergeant Joe Hayes joined the department in 2004. He is a former Marine and served at The White House
Communica5ons Agency. He worked for the Department of Homeland Security, has a Bachelor’s Degree and
is working toward his Master’s Degree. He is a patrol sergeant and serves as SWAT team commander.
Sergeant Wes Orazine has been with the department since 2001. A former Marine, Orazine currently serves
as a patrol sergeant. He is a past SWAT team member and commander, and serves as a Law Enforcement
Explorer advisor. He is a graduate of the Academy of Police Supervision.
Sergeant Rob Hefner currently serves as a patrol sergeant. He joined the department in 2001, and spent
many years as a K-9 handler. Hefner is a former member of the SWAT team, and currently serves as a
firearms and driving instructor for the department. He has a Bachelor’s Degree from Murray State.
EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR
Each year the Paducah Police Department recognizes an
Employee of Year. Chief Berry accepts nominations for
sworn and civilian employees who have demonstrated the
highest level of professionalism and service to the
community.
While there were several great nominations for 2012,
Detective Anthony Copeland was selected as the Employee
of the Year.
Copeland, a six-year member of the Paducah Police
Department, currently serves in the General Investigations
Unit, and he is a member of the Bomb Squad.
In his letter of nomination, Sergeant Brian Laird said Detec-
tive Copeland has demonstrated professionalism, dedication,
and maturity in the handling of his various tasks at the
department.
Copeland worked more than 50 major cases in 2012, with an
85 percent clearance rate. In the nomination, Laird specifical-
ly highlights two cases Copeland handled: a June 12 homi-
cide that resulted in an arrest within 24 hours of the crime,
and a robbery of a local pizza delivery driver.
“I feel Detective Copeland’s 2012 performance best defines what
supervisors strive to find in an employee,” said Sergeant Laird.
“Although there are many deserving employees, I believe Detective
Anthony Copeland rose to the top in 2012 and is worthy of the
distinction of Employee of the Year.”
Chief James Berry concurred. “Copeland is a self-driven employee
who works hard. He routinely demonstrates those attributes one
looks for in an employee. He is trustworthy and genuine, and an in-
formal leader within the department.”
Copeland started his career in Baltimore, MD, serving with the Balti-
more County Police for a short time before coming to Paducah in
2006. He is a second-generation police officer, with his father also
serving in Baltimore. He has a Bachelor’s Degree from Mid-
Continent University.
For the full award nomination, check out our website at
www.paducahky.gov.
“Anthony is a dedicated
professional and we are
fortunate to have him.”
—Captain Brian Krueger
10
11
The Records and Evidence Unit experienced several significant
developments in 2012. It was a belt-tightening year, forcing a
restructure of the unit, which included the reallocation of
department personnel. The clerical staff from the Operations
Division was transferred to the Support Services Division and our
authorized full-time civilian positions were reduced by two. This
transition was also made to improve efficiency and
communication within the department.
Records Manager Tracy Lynch supervises the
Records and Evidence Unit, comprised of three
records clerks and two evidence personnel.
The unit took in 2,365 pieces of evidence and
was able to dispose of 2,667 pieces, for a net
decrease of 302 items. We currently house
11,000 items of evidence and strive to reduce the net volume each
year. Spot audits are conducted each quarter to verify the chain of
custody for prosecutorial and accreditation purposes.
Kentucky continues to be a leader in prescription drug abuse and
we have developed proactive strategies to mitigate the problem
locally. We have partnered with the Kentucky Crime Prevention
Coalition and the DEA to safely destroy unwanted medication.
The Paducah Police Department is a recognized location to
dispose of unwanted prescription medication. Citizens need only
bring their medications to the lobby of the department during
business hours and drop them into the
designated box. No information is
requested and we will properly destroy
the medication to ensure that it does not
enter the water system or fall into the
hands of drug dealers or our children. In
2012, we destroyed 236 pounds of pills, a
significant increase over the 155 pounds
in 2011.
Several technological and safety changes were also implement-
ed during 2012. Bullet-resistant glass and bullet board (photos
above) was installed to “harden” to lobby and improve the safe-
ty and security of our facility. A credit card machine was in-
stalled to allow the public to purchase reports and pay fines
without the use of cash. We took in $27,495 in revenue from
copies of reports, parking fines, false alarm fines and finger-
printing services.
Records & Evidence Unit Drop off unwanted medica5ons
Monday—Friday
8:30 am –4:30 pm
AWARDS 2012
Each year the Paducah Police Department hosts an Awards
Ceremony to celebrate the achievements, dedication, and hard
work of our employees throughout the year. This year’s program
was held on July 13, 2012.
The event is generally held at the Emerging Technology Building
at West Kentucky Community and Technical College, and we
wish to thank them for their continued support and generosity
toward the Paducah Police Department.
“I think it is extremely important to recognize the good efforts of
your employees, and it has always been my goal to do that in a
formal and meaningful way,” said Chief James Berry.
This year, we recognized officers James Davis, Justin Canup,
Corey Willenborg, and Detective Matt Smith with Service
Commendations. The Service Commendation is awarded for
service that is considered “above and beyond” the employee’s
duties, exceptional skills in a coordinated effort, or exceptional
investigative work that demonstrates self-sacrifice or significant
personal danger. We would like to congratulate each of them on
their award.
Officer Derik Perry received the Chief’s Award for helping de-
velop a department gym. The Chief’s Award is given when an
employee demonstrates an exceptionally high degree of
dedication and professionalism, showing a continued
commitment to the department, and demonstrates an example for
others to follow. We applaud Officer Perry in his award.
There were also several Life Saving Awards given out in 2012.
Life Saving Awards are given any time an officer helps save or
prolong a life. As first responders, officers are often the first on
scene when someone collapses, and they are trained in CPR. The
award is also given in situations where officers rescue citizens
from life-threatening situations. 12
In 2012, Life Saving Awards were awarded to: Sergeant Kevin
Neal, and officers Chris Bolton, Corey Willenborg, Melissa
Dillon, Beau Green, Kevin Collins, and Jason Hicks. We thank
each one of them for their efforts in trying to preserve life.
Finally, the PPD gives out Safe Driving Awards for 5, 10, 15,
and 20 years of on-duty accident-free driving. As patrol officers,
much of your day consists of being behind the wheel, and each
year many officers die in traffic crashes. Officers have to drive
in the worst of conditions and often under the stress of an
emergency response. This year we awarded 5-Year pins to
Assistant Chief Brandon Barnhill, Sergeant Wes Kimbler,
Sergeant Robert Hefner, Officer Lofton Rowley, and Officer
Michael Rigdon. We also awarded a 10-Year pin to Officer
Mike Wentworth. Congratulations to all of these recipients.
To read the full award nominations on each of these worthy
recipients go to our website: www.paducahky.gov. Click on
the Police Department tab, and you will find an Awards section
that details their actions.
By Captain David White
Forecasting the
FUTURE of POLICING
13
L ife would be so much easier if we had a magic ball that
could help us see the future, but unfortunately, things
aren’t that simple. Policing, like other pursuits, tries its best to
predict the future because we want to ensure we are prepared
to handle the coming challenges. Staying ahead of these
challenges allows us to respond more quickly to the changing
landscape, and forecasting the future is not completely
impossible. So what are some of the future issues for policing?
Well, the answer lies in three seemingly different, yet very
interconnected issues that are swirling and blending together
because of one thing: our constant push toward globalization.
A recent Harvard Kennedy School report listed
Legitimacy as one of the key components for 21st
century police survival, and for good reason. Legitimacy is a
subject that is on the radar for several reasons. First, how
people view the importance of policing among other
competing socio-political priorities is changing. Issues like
competing in a globalized economy are causing people to
rethink how they spend public money, and how they can ease
tax burdens to improve job growth.
Combined with the slowed economy, the efforts to make our
government more slim and fit mean police, like other public
services, are competing for shrinking resources.
Unfortunately, the ebb and flow of political priorities mixed
with ups and downs in the crime rate can lead to a yo-yo
effect. Crime goes down, the public cuts police funding.
Funding goes down, crime goes up, and the relationship
becomes a difficult cycle of ups and downs.
The second reason legitimacy is an issue, and this one is much
more subtle, is the increasing plurality of our society. As
society becomes more diverse, it becomes more difficult for
us to determine and settle on social norms and laws. Jock
Young, a world-renowned criminologist and professor at John
Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City, explains
this process in his 2009 book, The Vertigo of Post-Modernity.
Young suggests that our norms/values shift rapidly in this age,
thus the idea of “vertigo.” He says that shifting sometimes
causes stress and inconsistencies for the justice system. The
good news, he suggests, is that there is a point at which a
society starts working together better. Beyond the polarizing
rhetoric and fear of falling, there are examples of how we are
becoming more in tune with our own diversity. The rebirth of
urban neighborhoods, he says, is an example of a breakdown of
traditional barriers.
Look at Paducah, and the diversification and neighborhood
revitalization that we have experienced in Lowertown, and now
Fountain Avenue, among other efforts in urban renewal: signs of a
more healthy future, according to Young. He points to New York
City as an example of a highly diverse community that embraces its
differences, and is highly functional.
Finally, legitimacy is an issue for policing because we are still
clinging to traditional measures of crime. The Uniform Crime
Report, the nation’s primary measure of how police are doing, was
designed in the 1930s as a collaborative effort between the FBI and
the International Association of Chiefs of Police. Since then, it has
changed very little, and while other surveys help policy makers
decide what’s going on and to what extent, the UCR remains the
primary mode of evaluation.
So why is it important? Well, local police departments, now more
than ever, need to remember they serve the community. All crime is
local, and though we keep our eye on the fluid nature of the drug
trade and the rapidly evolving internet-based crime problems, we
have to remember our job is to protect our community from these
threats. I know it seems like a paradox, but as local law
enforcement leaders look and think globally, they will have to act
locally. It’s a concept that will be more difficult than it may seem.
Leaders of the future will have to stay more informed on a broader
range of topics, more willing to change and adapt, and be more
ready to help their community understand and develop local
strategies to combat more complex problems. This will require
them to be more in tune with their community; be more
collaborative in their approaches; more transparent, and more
willing to work with shifting social norms that might otherwise
cause a little vertigo, as Young suggested. Colorado and
Washington state’s recent legalization of marijuana are examples of
that reality. As a caveat to that idea, there will also be more reliance
on local funding, as federal and possibly state-level funding
continues to dry up, which will bring us to our next point.
Cost — As law enforcement leaders look around, they know
that there has to be a balance between what a community spends on
law enforcement and what they spend on their other socio-political
priorities. The salience of policing is therefore determined by how
their community sees that balance. For future leaders, this issue
Last year we reported we were working on plans for a new
building, and while the wheels are turning slowly, they are
turning. In 2012, we, along with the Paducah Fire Department,
hired a local architectural firm to develop a needs assessment
and evaluate our exis5ng building.
That report helped us understand the issues a li4le more and
encouraged us to seek out a firm that specializes in the
construc5on of public safety complexes. We developed and
submi4ed a Request For Qualifica5ons na5on-wide, looking
for firms that meet those criteria, and we will hopefully see
some progress on the plan in 2013.
Our building project: An update
will more complex, because in a time when people are cutting
back, police work has become increasingly more expensive.
Several issues have made policing more expensive over the past
20 years, and while the current political rhetoric would lead
people to believe it is all due to increased public salaries, one of
the culprits is technology. Consider what items are now
standard for police officers that weren’t there 20 years ago:
bullet proof vests ($600/ ea.), in-car cameras ($5,000/ ea.), in-
car computers ($4000-5000/ ea.), Tasers™ ($800/ ea.), and the
list could go on. In-car computers are possibly the best
demonstration of the expanding costs. According to the
Department of Justice, only five percent of officers used in-car
computers in 1990, but by 2007, fully 90 percent of officers in
America had a computer in their car. With roughly 250,000
municipal patrol cars in operation nation-wide, that single
change represents about an $850 million dollar increase. All
total, these issues have caused the cost of policing to more than
double in the past 20 years.
So again, what does this have to do with us here at home?
Citizens want to get the most for their money, and when it
comes to policing, they want to feel safe, keep crime low, and
know their community is well taken care of. So when local
leaders try to decide how much to spend on law enforcement
efforts, the magic question will become “how much is it going
to cost to meet our needs.”
One famous economist, Isaac Ehrlich, said the magic amount
was when none of the criminals, the people, or the government
felt like they needed to change their behaviors. But for law
enforcement leaders in the future, the job of helping city leaders
find that magic point will be more difficult. Increased
expenditures on bigger ticket items means more focus and
planning on capital expenditures/investment. And, increased
training costs associated with the new complexities of the job
means it will be ever more important to select and invest in the
right people — people who know how to innovate. Leadership
that capitalizes on the more talented workforce will be critical,
too, and while the theme during the recession has been “do
more with less” the rally cry for the coming years will be
“smarter, not harder.”
Technology — The final issue that law enforcement
leaders will struggle most with in the future will be technology.
Not only does technology change the work of policing — from
the patrol car to the office — it changes the way investigations
are handled, and in some cases, it changes the types of crime we
will be facing.
In today’s world, many major crimes involve some type of
technological evidence, such as cell phone, computer, storage
device, etc. And internally, major investments in technological
infrastructure marketed to police could become antiquated over-
night, costing taxpayers money. The creation and storage of
electronic public records is important, and it is safeguarded by
certain federal and state statutes. Law enforcement
administrators in the future not only have to understand the
complexities, but they have to make wise consumer decisions
about big ticket technologies used in policing. With technology,
the sky is the limit, and leaders will have to consider what is
right for their community. For instance, larger cities now have
large networks of cameras, even what they call “Shot-Spotter” a
technology that pinpoints gunfire, realities not necessary in a
smaller community.
Globalization — Ultimately, these three interconnected
ideas are bound together by the growing reality of a more global-
ized economy. Jim Clifton, CEO of Gallop, in his 2011 book, The
Coming Jobs War, said basically every policymaker was going to
have to assess whether public policies help or hurt job growth as
America scrambles to be competitive in the global marketplace.
Clifton’s thought includes local policy makers, and law enforce-
ment leaders find themselves smack dab in the middle of that new
reality, since a large portion of municipal government spending is
directed to law enforcement.
I said it once, and I’ll say it again as I close: future law enforce-
ment leaders will have to look globally, think globally, but act
locally. The pressure will be on to stay more informed, more in-
tune with larger issues, but more adept at applying the overload of
information to locally focused, cost-effective strategies that work!
Maximizing technology, but not breaking the bank. These realities
will be forged under the pressure of a rapidly evolving world,
where we feel a little vertigo. And any number of missteps could
jeopardize the very underpinning of policing as we know it.
1. Cli6on, J. (2011). The Coming Jobs War, Gallop Press, taken here from a Kindle Edi5on
2. Stone, C. & Travis, J. (March, 2011). Toward a New Professionalism in Policing. New Per-
spec5ves on Policing, Harvard Kennedy School of Government, NIJ. Taken here from: h4p://
www.smartpolicingini5a5ve.com/sites/all/files/Harvard%20-%20Toward%20a%20new%
20professionalism%20in%20policing.pdf
3. Young, J. (2007) The Ver5go of Late Modernity. Sage Publica5ons, London, England, UK.
Taken here from a Kindle Edi5on
4. Costs of Law Enforcement taken from the LEMAS studies (1993-2007). U.S. DOJ/ BJS.
Available through www.bjs.gov 14
SPECIALIZED UNITS
Within most municipal police departments of any size, you will find
a variety of specialized units designed to handle some of the rare,
yet most critical, incidents. The Paducah Police Department is no
different; in fact, we are a little unique in that we have one of only a
handful of bomb squads in the state.
The specialized units are: the Special Weapons and Tactics
(SWAT) Team, the Bomb Squad, Crisis Negotiation Team (CNT),
and Accident Reconstruction Team.
These units fall under the direction of the Special Units
Commander, Captain Mark Roberts, and each has its own team
leaders.
Bomb Squad
The Bomb Squad is led by Sergeant Will Gilbert, the senior
member of the team, and includes: Sergeant Steve Smith, Detective
Anthony Copeland, Officer Michael Rigdon, and Medic Shane
Moore. Each member has highly specialized training in explosive
ordnance. Most of their equipment is purchased with federal grants,
and they serve not only Paducah and McCracken County, but a mul-
ti-county area of Western Kentucky. In 2012, the Bomb Squad re-
sponded to 31 calls, 24 of which involved some type of explosive
device. The rest were suspicious packages. The squad attended a 40
-hour training in Frankfort this year, and while there, were sum-
moned back to Livingston County to handle a call that led to the
recovery of a large cache of military ordnance. In concert with KSP
bomb technicians and military personnel, the squad was able to
safely resolve the threat for that community.
CNT
TCR
Crisis Negotiation Team
The Crisis Negotiation Team is led by Sergeant George
Johnson, and includes Sergeant Brian Laird, Officer Brian
Kopischke, and Detective Matt Smith. They only had one
call-out in 2012. In June, they were requested by the
Marshall County Sheriff’s Office to deal with a
barricaded, heavily armed suspect. Sergeant Laird and
Officer Kopischke responded and attempted to help talk
the subject into giving up.
Although the team was not officially called out, Sergeant
George Johnson also assisted the McCracken County
Sheriff’s Department’s negotiators with a “jumper” on the
Brookport bridge in June. After a rather lengthy negotia-
tion, that man was successfully removed from the bridge
without further incident.
SWAT
The SWAT Team is led by Sergeant Joe Hayes and
includes the following members: Lofton Rowley, Jason
Montgomery, Nathan Young, Matt Wentworth, Ryan
Conn, Justin Rundles, James Davis, Nathan Jaimet, Jarrett
Woodruff, Derik Perry, Nathan Antonites, James Robbins
and Medics Greg Edwards and Steve Skipworth.
The SWAT Team trains twice each month, and takes a
three-day trip each year to a nearby military training facil-
ity. There, the team works to perfect tactics associated
with high-risk building entries, such as barricaded sub-
jects, and high-risk search warrants. As their name im-
plies, the team is equipped with special weapons and the
tactics to handle some of the most dangerous situations
law enforcement encounters.
In 2012, the team was utilized on one barricaded subject,
and called on to assist with one high-risk search warrant.
The threat level associated with the department’s use of
the SWAT Team is guided by a threat matrix, a document
developed by experts in the field and approved by the
City’s legal team and insurance provider, Kentucky
League of Cities.
Accident Reconstruction Team
The ART is led by Captain David White, the senior recon-
structionist, and includes officers Brian Kopischke, Mike
Redmon, and Josh Bryant.
The ART responds to all fatal traffic collisions, as well as
serious crashes that may result in a fatality. In 2012, the
ART investigated all five of the fatal crashes in the city
and responded to several other crashes that were later de-
termined not to have been life-threatening. 15
FLEX PLATOON
16
Officer Travis Counts teaches the
Gang Resistance Education and Training
(G.R.E.A.T.) program at Paducah Middle
School each year.
The nation-wide program started in 1992, with the stated
mission of preventing youth crime, violence, and gang
involvement.
According to Counts, the curriculum focuses on decision-
making and refusal skills toward drugs, gang involvement and
other dangerous/criminal situations. He says it also addresses
how to deal effectively with peer pressure, and works with
kids on goal planning.
Counts believes the program compliments the Drug Abuse
Resistance Education program, taught in the 5th grade: “It is
like a stepping stone into this program, giving the students a
background in this type of curriculum and the comfort level
with seeing an officer in their classroom. I think the two work
well together.”
This is Counts’ eighth year teaching the curriculum. In 2012,
he graduated 112 Paducah Middle School students from the
program.
The Paducah Police Department has a dedicated squad of four
patrol officers and one sergeant who sign up to be part of a
“Flex Platoon.” The Flex Platoon officers often have to adjust
their schedules to fit the need of the agency; this, opposed to
the regular shiftwork that most patrolmen are accustomed to.
The Flex Platoon is used to handle special events, such as
BBQ on The River, the quilt show, summer festival, and other
special events our community enjoys throughout the year. This
flexibility helps the department avoid excess overtime, caused
by the need to adjust staffing to handle special events.
“These guys are instrumental in covering a wide assortment of
planned events, and when they aren’t busy with those
commitments they are used to conduct hot-spot patrols,
relative to crime prevention and apprehension,” says Chief
James Berry.
The flexible nature of their shift commitment allows the
department to use them in particular trouble areas identified
through crime statistics and CompStat (see Page 24 for more
details). And, they give us an incredible resource to use year-
round.
Building a safer community one child at a me!
Officer Counts was recently interviewed about his role as a
G.R.E.A.T. instructor, and will be featured in the Kentucky
Department of Criminal Justice Training publication, Law
Enforcement magazine, in the spring of 2013.
If you would like to know more about the GREAT program, check
out their website at: www.great-online.org.
One example of their efficiency: The Kentucky Oaks Mall area
around the holidays. “What was once a scheduling nightmare —
something that ate up a lot of overtime and was difficult to
orchestrate — is now as simple as focusing the Flex Platoon to the
area,” says Sergeant George Johnson.
“Those in geographic areas of high crime may find themselves
flooded with these officers at times when we know crime in that
area to be at its highest,” says Chief Berry.
The Flex Platoon is currently led by Sergeant George Johnson. In
2012, he was supported by officers Jarrett Woodruff, Corey
Willenborg, Beau Green, and Nathan Jaimet. Sergeant Wes
Kimbler was the first supervisor for the new unit, and officers
Travis Counts and Chris Baxter served on FLEX for the first six
months.
MINORITY RECRUITMENT
A report from the Committee
In May 2012, Chief James Berry published an
Executive Summary & Action Plan addressing the
issue of minority recruiting.
The plan calls for the department to use a committee to
assess current law enforcement practices, as well as
community feelings toward how the Paducah Police
Department can better appeal to potential minority
candidates.
The committee, which is led by Captain David White,
includes Dr. Bernice Belt, chairwoman of the Paducah
Human Rights Commission and professor at West
Kentucky Community and Technical College
WKCTC); Jimpalm Askew-Robinson, director of
Cultural Diversity at WKCTC; Martha Argotte-
Thomas, Human Resources manager at Lourdes
Hospital and Paducah Human Rights commissioner,
Chevene Duncan-Herring, Paducah Human Rights
commissioner and Job Success coach at WKCTC;
Rosa Scott, past president of the local chapter of the
NAACP; Gary Reese, retired assistant chief of the
Paducah Police Department and director of the
Criminal Justice Program at WKCTC; Captain Brian
Krueger of the Paducah Police Department; Martin
Russell of the city’s Human Resources Department;
and Kristen Williams, local business woman.
The committee met throughout 2012, organizing and
developing each step of the plan laid out by Chief
Berry. The first step, a community forum, was held in
June at the Robert Cherry Civic Center. There,
committee members and Paducah Police Department
recruiters listened to community members explain what issues
and stumbling blocks they believed existed in attracting
minority candidates, particularly local youth seeking a career
in law enforcement.
The committee later conducted a youth forum under much the
same format, in cooperation with the Oscar Cross Boys &
Girls Club. About 30 young people, predominately minority
youth of middle school and high school age, attended. Paducah
police recruiters again acted to facilitate the discussion, which
provided some helpful insight into why youth may or may not
be attracted to a career in law enforcement and how the police
may be able to better market themselves to young people.
Dialog with the committee, and much of what was gleaned
from the two sessions, indicates police need to be more
involved with young people at an earlier age, and actively look
for ways to be positive role models. While the committee is
still in motion, planning a law enforcement meeting for early
spring of 2013, this feedback has already led to some action.
The PPD’s recruiters developed and implemented a Junior
Citizens’ Police Academy, a three-day program offered in
June, much like a summer camp for youth ages 13-18. The
program was so successful the department has expanded it to
five days for 2013. Additionally, recruiters offered an open
house in May. It was a one-day event for high school and
college students, but it, too, will be offered again in 2013.
And, the department was glad that Officer Paul Stevenson and
Sergeant Wes Orazine have volunteered to restart the Law
Enforcement Explorer program. The Explorer program is a
group for young people (ages 15-20) who have a serious
interest in the profession. It meets regularly on Thursday
nights.
The committee hopes to keep working through early 2013, and
ultimately develop a long-term strategy to attract more
qualified minority candidates in the future. Chief Berry says
“Everyone recognizes successful organizations are diverse
organizations.”
As the committee finalizes a strategy, they will meet with
Chief Berry to discuss recommendations for improvement.
While the department is currently near full staff, recruitment in
general may be slow for a while, but the committee realizes
these recommendations will be build around a more long-term
strategy.
For more information on recruiting, or the minority
recruitment committee, check out our website at:
www.paducahky.gov. 17
School Violence
Law Enforcement’s
Response to Mass Shootings
The tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in
December 2012 is one more example of violence that will forever
be seared into our conscience. We all cringed as we watched that
day unfold, as we couldn’t help but think of the innocent lives lost.
Those in Paducah and McCracken County know all too well that it
can happen in our community. But many people don’t realize the
extent of school-related shootings. According to Captain Mark
Roberts, who recently researched the topic as part of his attendance
at the FBI National Academy, there have been 188 killed, and an-
other 482 people wounded, in school shootings between 1996 and
December 2012.
In response to Sandy Hook, the Paducah Police Department teamed
up with McCracken County Sheriff Jon Hayden and Emergency
Management Director Paul Carter to host a joint law enforcement–
school security staff roundtable in January 2013. Though this is the
2012 Annual Report, we are pleased to say the meeting was well-
attended by every school system, both private and public, in
Paducah and McCracken County, as well as by members of the
McCracken County Sheriff’s Office, Paducah Police, Kentucky
State Police, United States Secret Service, and the U.S. Bureau of
Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms.
Officials from both sides discussed concerns and issues they have
about the various schools, law enforcement’s response to serious
incidents, and ways we can improve safety for our students.
“I hope it reignites a conversation about school violence, builds a
better relationship between school officials and law enforcement,
and encourages us both to find practical ways we can work more
closely together on this issue,” says Captain David White, one of
the primary facilitators for the meeting.
White said he was happy with the dialog and feels there were
several “do-able” ideas presented at the meeting. “While we don’t
really want to elaborate on some of the actionable items, since they
are still in the planning stages and have a certain sensitivity to the
key security measures, they generally fall into the categories of
improved communication and use of technologies, and im-
proved cooperation and continuity in training for law enforce-
ment, school staff, and students,” White said.
In addition to the meeting, Officer Ryan Conn, a department
firearms instructor and SWAT Team member, has been tasked
with developing school-specific response plans. The
department is turning from several years of generalized training
in “active shooter response” to more specific response trainings
using local schools, afterhours, as their training grounds.
Chief Berry has added a two-week block of training to the
department’s spring training calendar ensuring each officer
receives at least eight hours of instruction on the school-
specific responses. The training division is currently
developing a curriculum to support the class, which will likely
include deputies from the McCracken County Sheriff’s Office
too, similar to our joint driver’s training each year. Chief Berry
says, “Sandy Hook has got us thinking about how we can
collaborate and work together more closely with our schools in
hopes of protecting the children, which is our primary goal.”
Law enforcement and school security staff discuss security at the
table, January 15, 2013. 18
Office of
Professional Standards
The Professional Standards Office is responsible for ensuring the
department lives within the commonly recognized practices of
today’s law enforcement profession. As such, the Professional
Standards Office is responsible for making sure we live up to the
standards outlined in our accreditation with the Kentucky
Association of Chiefs of Police. The office also tracks and monitors
use of force (response to resistance) and all internal and external
complaints, investigates serious complaints of police misconduct, and
coordinates all of the department’s training.
We understand these issues are important to the citizens of our
community, and we believe it is important for us to be transparent, as
we seek to be accountable to the community we serve.
The use of force by police officers is almost always reactive in
nature, so the Paducah Police Department (PPD) calls our use of
force “Response to Resistance.” A report is generated anytime the
officer uses more force than is necessary during normal handcuffing.
This action includes, but is not limited to physically taking someone
to the ground, having to strike someone with an open- or closed-
hand strike, striking someone with a baton, spraying them with OC
spray, using an electronic control device (Taser), or having to point
or use a firearm.
To many people’s surprise, this level of police force is truly
uncommon. In 2012, the PPD used force in only 1.3 percent of all
arrests, which is a little below a three-year average for our
department. That is 37 incidents, involving reports from 54 officers,
in the arrest/custody of 2,775 adults and juveniles. The statistics are
broken down by type of Response to Resistance in Figure 1. Figure 2
demonstrates how those statistics are broken down by race & gender.
By Captain David White
The Office of Professional Standards is glad to report that
the department conducted a total of 6,862 hours of training
in 2012, including 3,348 hours of in-house training. That’s
an average of 139 hours per officer.
A couple of significant changes in 2012: The department
developed a Curriculum Committee, consisting of various
trainers from within the department, as well as our training
officer, to review and ensure continuity in our in-house train-
ing plans. The idea of in-house training will become more
important as we seek to reduce training costs by not sending
officers to out-of-town schools, where travel costs eat up
19
RESPONSE TO RESISTANCE BY FORCE TYPE
13 Uses of So6-Empty Hand (35.1%)
9 Uses of Hard-Empty Hand (24.3%)
2 Uses of Chemical Agent (OC) (5.4%)
5 Uses of a Taser™ (ECD) (13.5%)
7 Cases of Poin5ng a Firearm (18.9%)
1 Use of a Police K-9 (2.7%)
(By Incident– by most significant level of force)
Figure 1
SUSPECT INJURED
Yes: 37.8 %
No: 62.2 %
SUSPECT REQUIRED
MEDICAL CARE
Yes: 13.1 %
No: 86.9 %
OFFICER INJURED
Yes: 5.4 %
No: 94.6 %
OFFICER REQUIRED
MEDICAL CARE
Yes: 0.0 %
RESPONSE TO RESISTANCE—Other Facts
RACE
White: 67.5 %
Black: 32.4 %
GENDER
Males: 81.0 %
Females: 18.9 %
AGE
Average age: 31
INTOXICATED SUSPECT
Yes: 48.6 %
No: 51.4 %
Figure 2
a significant amount of the training budget. That brings us
to our second major change in 2012: a focus on increasing
the number of train-the-trainer type classes where we send a
couple of officers to instructor-level courses. They can then
come back and administer training to the rest of our
workforce.
It’s not a new concept, but again one that is becoming
increasingly more important as we try to reduce training
costs. The training budget suffered a 38 percent reduction
this fiscal year, a stop-gap measure that can’t be sustained.
But as we re-evaluate our strategies, we are looking for
ways to improve the bottom line. The average per officer
training cost in 2012 was $745.
One aspect of policing we want to be especially transparent
with is complaints. The criminal justice system is designed
to have many checks and balances, and within our
organization, we openly accept citizen complaints as one
such mechanism to ensure citizens are provided the highest
level of service.
As police officers, we are not beyond making mistakes.
Officers are real people trying to do the best job they can in
some of life’s most difficult circumstances. We have high
expectations of our employees, and we want each one of
them to live up to those expectations day-in and day-out.
In 2012, the Professional Standards Office reported a total
of 35 complaints, 26 of which were internally generated. Internal
complaints are usually generated by an officer’s supervisor in
response to some type of recognized policy violation. From simple
violations to the most complex, they can range in disciplinary
measure from an “Employee Improvement Notice” (EIN), to a
written reprimand, to suspension, even termination. In 2012, 20
officers received an EIN; five received a written reprimand; and two
officers were suspended, one for one day, and another for two days.
Of the nine external complaints, in all but one case the officers were
exonerated or the complaint was unfounded, often after video
evidence from the officer’s in-car camera was reviewed. In one case,
the officer’s actions were reviewed, and while they were found to be
within policy, training issues were identified and measures were
taken to improve the officer’s actions in the future. Of the external
complaints, two involved suspicion of racial profiling, though they
did not formally accuse the officers of such action. In both cases, we
reviewed not only the in-car video, but one year’s worth of traffic
stop data. Both the evidence from the stop itself and the historical
data clearly indicated the officer was not engaging in racial profiling.
As a department, 86 percent of traffic citations were written to
Caucasians, compared to 13 percent African-American, and more
than 95 percent were listed as non-Hispanic drivers.
We hope that our community recognizes we take all complaints
seriously, and we work hard to ensure that our employees are abiding
by the highest standards of professional law enforcement.
The Paducah Police Department teaches the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.)
program at our city elementary schools, as well as St. Mary Elementary School. Officers
Gretchen Morgan and Chris Fearon divide the responsibility of teaching the classes, which
are provided primarily to fifth-grade students.
The D.A.R.E. program has been around since the mid-1980s, but it has undergone several
major curriculum overhauls to stay current and relevant to the changing world. The current
curriculum focuses on how students can avoid drugs, make smart decisions, and exercise
self-control with confidence when faced with a bad situation.
This year the Paducah Police Department is proud to say that 190 local 5th graders graduated our program, and the two officers also
did many visitations with the K-3rd grade students, talking to them about some of the issues. “Parents are an important part of these
students’ lives and my goal is for the student to go home and have a conversation with their parents about what we’ve discussed in the
lessons,” Officer Morgan said.
Morgan says she loves having the opportunity to teach D.A.R.E. because she likes to watch the light bulbs go off when students start
to understand the materials. And, she adds, “Some of the students have had no experience with police officers in the past, and I enjoy
helping them understand what police officers do, and how we are there to help them.”
If you are interested in helping financially support D.A.R.E. by donating to the Paducah-McCracken County Drug Council, you can
get more information by contacting Officer Morgan by email at gmorgan@paducahky.gov.
“The D.A.R.E. program has been a posi5ve experience
for our students. We are thankful that the Paducah
Police Department recognizes the value of the D.A.R.E.
program and hope to con5nue with this partnership.”-
Principal Steve Ybarzabal, Clark Elementary School
20
Traffic Report
2012
Maintaining a healthy flow of traffic in and around the city is
important not only to the health and safety of our citizens, but also to
commerce in our area. Each day many people travel in and out of the
city for work, shopping, access to health care, and so on. The
Paducah Chamber of Commerce estimates Paducah’s daytime
population exceeds 100,000 people, and this increased traffic flow in
the incorporated parts of community means an increased number of
traffic collisions occur in the city.
In 2012, the Paducah Police Department investigated 1,573
collisions, including 343 injury collisions, five of which were fatal.
The 343 injury collisions resulted in 523 persons injured and seven
killed. These numbers represented some ups and downs in the
percentages of collisions over 2011, which are illustrated in Figure 1.
One thing we always try to look at, is how we compare to state and
national data on collisions. It appears that state-wide, there was a 1.8
percent decrease in the overall number of collisions, down from
150,300 to 147,486. There was a very similar drop in injury
collisions, which also fell about 1.8 percent to 36,544. State-wide,
fatalities increased by 5.4 percent, from 716 in 2011, to 755 in 2012.
While we saw a more significant drop in the overall number of
collisions (5.1%), our fatality numbers seemed to go sky high,
particularly in the early part of 2011. Local numbers seem high when
converted to a rate (per 100,000) but when balanced with overall
COMPARING TO 2011
2011 2012 Percent Change
Total Collisions: 1658 1573 - 5.1 %
Injury Crashes: 322 343 + 6.5 %
Total Injuries: 483 523 + 8.2 %
Fatal Collisions: 3 5 + 66.6 %
Total Fatalities: 4 7 + 75 %
FIGURE 1
county statistics and population, the Paducah-McCracken
County area has a collision rate about 3.5 percent below the
state-wide rate.
Nationally, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA), has released its early estimates of 2012 numbers,
which are projected by the first nine months of the year. They
report a 7.1 percent increase in fatalities, which they say is the
largest jump in fatal collisions in one year since 1976.
While the numbers are up, NHTSA indicates the number of
alcohol-related fatalities dropped 2.5 percent in 2011 (the most
current numbers available), though they still accounted for
roughly 31 percent of the nation’s fatalities. That number has
changed very little between 1994-2012, remaining between 30-
35 percent each year. However, locally, of the five fatal
accidents investigated, alcohol was reported as a contributing
factor in only one. And overall, Paducah had just 48 collisions
where the driver was suspected of drinking, 20 of which were
injury collisions. This represents about three percent of all
collisions. Helping hold those numbers down is the number of
drunk driving arrests made each year by the department: 355 for
2012. The number of DUI arrests fell by almost ten percent
from 2011.
Among the 1,573 collisions, inattention is consistently the most
significant contributing factor, this year accounting for 32
percent of all crashes. Second to inattention was failure to yield
right-of-way, accounting for 22 percent. Misjudged clearings,
driver distractions, and disregarding traffic control devices
rounded out the top five causes of crashes in 2012.
Captain Don Hodgson says, “In the Hinkleville Road area,
which is one of our worst areas, rear-end collisions seem to be
the most frequent, accounting for almost a third of all crashes.
“There are a few simple things people could do to avoid being a
victim: don’t follow too closely, reduce speed, and pay
particular attention to your driving while moving through the
congested traffic.” Hodgson said that 2013 will bring additional
concern with the opening of the new McCracken County High
School and the increased amount of commuter traffic.
21
“We are hoping to do even more presentations in 2013, and are
looking for ways to expand our efforts,” Hodgson added.
During the peak holiday season the Traffic Enforcement Unit
handed out 1,500 professionally printed flyers in and around the
Kentucky Oaks Mall area, with the cooperation of several large
retailers. The flyers contained traffic and crime safety tips and
recent statistics about local collisions. “We have had several
retailers commit to handing them out to customers next year. So in
2013, we are hoping to find a few individual or corporate sponsors
who would be willing to contribute roughly $1500. That amount
would help us print and distribute around 25,000 flyers. We are
hoping to reach customers as they move through the check out
lines at our local stores,” Hodgson said.
If you would like for the Traffic Enforcement Unit to make a
presentation to your school or civic group, or you’d like to
contribute to our efforts in public education, contact Captain Don
Hodgson at dhodgson@paducahky.gov.
TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT UNIT
One important element of traffic safety is enforcement. As a
full-service law enforcement agency, our patrol officers
routinely write traffic citations for observed offenses, and
concentrate a portion of their time on watching for traffic
violators. In 2012, the department wrote 9,233 traffic citations,
resulting in 12,606 charges. This number was up 26 percent
over the previous year, due largely to the creation of a new
Traffic Unit.
In October 2012, the Paducah Police Department started a three
-person traffic unit to help make our roadways more safe.
Officers Melissa Dillon, Josh Bryant, and Keith Thuline spend
their day focusing on enforcement and education in our high-
traffic areas. In the final quarter of 2012, they were responsible
for a combined 1,518 citations, or about 16 percent of all
citations for the full year of 2012.
The Traffic Enforcement Unit, which is under the direction of
Captain Don Hodgson, has been focusing their efforts on the
highest collision areas. The Traffic Enforcement Unit also
focuses much of its efforts on seatbelt enforcement. Officers
wrote 3,818 seatbelt tickets, with about 4,811 charges. “It’s
simply undeniable. Seatbelt use saves lives and the numbers
prove it,” says Captain David White, the department’s senior
accident reconstructionist.
The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KTC) published a
scoping study in September 2012, which indicates the level of
concern on Hinkleville Road, especially between the Interstate
24 and Olivet Church Road interchanges. According to their
report, nearly 25,000 motorists travel that section of roadway
daily, and the number of
crashes is significantly higher
than average when compared
to similar roadways. (You can
read more on the Scoping
Study by visiting the KTC’s
website at
www.transportation.ky.gov.
Search for “US 60 Scoping Study, Paducah; Item No.: 1-
125.00.”)
In addition to the Traffic Enforcement Unit’s focus on
enforcement, they have also been working on education. The
department recently used grant funds to purchase a roadside
speed trailer, which you may have seen around town.
Additionally, they have hosted two public presentations at
Paducah Tilghman High School on the dangers of distracted
driving. They also did a presentation to youth at Christ Temple
Apostolic Church on North 13th Street in November. “We have
partnered with the Coltharp family, whose daughter was injured
in a texting and driving accident, to help make the dangers real
to these high school-age students,” Captain Hodgson said.
TRAFFIC CITATIONS BY OFFENSE
Seat Belt Use 3818
Speeding 2344
Failure to 1596
Produce Insurance Card
Disregarding Traffic 411
Control Device (Stop Light)
No Insurance 325
Suspended/No Operator’s License 300
All Other Offenses 439
FIGURE 2
22
Officer Kelly Drew talks to local high school students about the dangers of
tex5ng and driving. (Photo courtesy of The Paducah Sun)
CRIME Report
2012 PART 1 CRIM ES 23
We never like to report that crime has gone up, but in 2012 we
experienced an 11.3 percent increase in major offenses (Part 1
Crimes). Major offenses are classified by the Federal Bureau of
Investigation as “Part I Offenses” and they are the following:
murder, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, larceny, auto theft, and
arson. In 2012, we had 1,376 such reports.
Crime, both in Paducah and around the country, has been in pretty
steady decline over the past 20 years. Despite some increase be-
tween 2011 and 2012, our local crime is still not half of what it was
at its peak in 1992. Furthermore, the numbers are a little deceiving
when lumped together, since the number of larcenies (thefts) often
skews the number considerably. Not to marginalize the increases,
but you can see in Figure 1 (right), there were some ups and down.
A more stable way of evaluating crime, used by the FBI, is to group
all violent crimes together (murder, rape, robbery, and assault), and
group all property crimes together (burglary, larceny, auto theft,
and arson). By doing this, you get a more stable reference of the
two broader categories. In Paducah, property crimes rose by 1.2
percent, while violent crimes dropped by 1.0 percent, over 2011.
Each year, the FBI publishes a semi-annual report of crime (January
-June), which provides us with some estimate of how we are doing,
at least compared to the first half of 2011.
A BREAKDOWN OF MAJOR OFFENSES
Murders: 2Murders: 2Murders: 2Murders: 2
Down: 100%Down: 100%Down: 100%Down: 100%
Rapes: 12Rapes: 12Rapes: 12Rapes: 12
Down: 33%Down: 33%Down: 33%Down: 33%
Burglaries:Burglaries:Burglaries:Burglaries:
139139139139
Down: 1%Down: 1%Down: 1%Down: 1%
Larceny: Larceny: Larceny: Larceny:
1,0881,0881,0881,088
Up: 15%Up: 15%Up: 15%Up: 15%
Auto Thefts: Auto Thefts: Auto Thefts: Auto Thefts:
48484848
Down: 2%Down: 2%Down: 2%Down: 2%
Arson: 6Arson: 6Arson: 6Arson: 6
Up: 20%Up: 20%Up: 20%Up: 20%
Assaults: 40Assaults: 40Assaults: 40Assaults: 40
Down: 13%Down: 13%Down: 13%Down: 13%
Robberies: Robberies: Robberies: Robberies:
41414141
Up: 46%Up: 46%Up: 46%Up: 46%
FIGURE 1
Through these numbers, criminologists make assumptions
about the entire year, and in 2012, the FBI reported a 1.9
percent increase in violent crime and a 1.5 percent increase in
property crime.1 The FBI, as good as they are, usually don’t
release the year-end statistics until the end of the following
year. However, if the early numbers are a good predictor, it
appears that we experienced a better change in crime in
Paducah, than did the rest of the country.
One particular area of concern for us in 2012 was the
increased number of robberies. Robberies are defined by
Kentucky law as the use of force, or threatened use of force
in the commission of a theft.
In 2012, they jumped by 46 percent, from 28 to 41.
Concerned about the increases, Chief James Berry had
civilian Investigative Assistant Malinda Baltz prepare a
presentation detailing the robberies last September. At that
time, Paducah already had experienced 31 of the 41 robberies.
Baltz’s presentation indicated that 11 of the 31 reports (35%)
were later determined not to have been legitimate. At least
some of those reports revolved around the street-level drug
trade, which complicates cooperation and investigation. Of
the remaining 20 robberies, three involved people who used/
threatened to use force at the point of apprehension for
shoplifting. Overall, nearly 65 percent of the cases were
cleared by arrest.
1. FBI Semiannual report retrieved on 1/29/2012 from:
h4p://www.Si.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2012/preliminary-
semiannual-uniform-crime-report-january-june-2012
One of Chief Berry’s initiatives since he came to Paducah in
2009 has been the use of CompStat. CompStat is a term used to
describe the regular use of crime data, now more readily availa-
ble in real-time, to help direct police resources more efficiently.
Many police agencies around the country rely on CompStat to
help digest their crime data in
what has now become
“intelligence-led policing.”
“CompStat allows us to more
efficiently utilize department
resources to mitigate problems
identified through trends and
crime reporting,” Berry says.
In addition to Part I Offenses, the FBI classifies several other
less serious crimes as Part II Crimes. These numbers, as shown
in Figure 2 (below), demonstrate a total of 2,802 Part II Offenses
for 2012; up 1.8 percent from 2011. While they increased slight-
ly, the Part II numbers seem fairly stable from year to year.
From 2009-2011, they changed an average of 1.3 percent from
year to year, landing only 0.3 percent (nine actual crimes) differ-
ent than in 2009.
Many of the Part II Offenses represent quality of life issues, such
as drug offenses, criminal mischiefs, drunk and disorderly, and
other liquor violations.
A R R ESTS P A R T II CR IM ES The Paducah Police Department made 2,517 adult arrests in 2012,
compared to 2,974 in 2011, and 2,840 in 2010. These arrests re-
sulted in a total of 4,200 criminal charges. Additionally, there were
258 juveniles charged with a total of 337 criminal charges. This
represents a roughly 15 percent decrease in the number of adult
arrests over the previous year, and roughly a four percent increase
in the number of juveniles charged.
The PPD also served a total of 1,077 arrest warrants, carrying a
total of 1,632 charges. That number is down 17 percent over 2011.
There were 220 criminal summonses issued with a total of 291
charges; down 14 percent from 2011.
One important aspect of policing, and one that seems to gather
increasing attention in the wake of high-profile mass shootings
such as the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School this past
December, is dealing with mentally ill people. The law allows law
enforcement to take people into custody for mental health evalua-
tion and crisis intervention when they constitute a danger to them-
selves or others, and are unwilling to get assistance on their own.
In 2012, the PPD took only 34 people into emergency custody for
mental health reasons, compared to 51 in 2011.
“We will continue our
efforts to make Paducah
an exceptionally safe
city.”
- Chief Berry
2012 2011 2010 Offense Type
567 678 677 Simple Assaults
67 62 67 Forgery
204 158 206 Fraud
353 424 447 Criminal Mischief
32 29 30 Sex Offenses
(Other than Rape)
672 700 639 Drug Violations
90 100 103 Offenses Against
Families & Children
817 520 509 All Others
2802 2752 2739 TOTALS
The full-year 2011 numbers from the FBI are now available. They
report both violent crime and property crime dropped again.
In 2011, Paducah police reported a violent crime rate (per
100,000) of 384, which is on par with the national average of
386.3. Our property crimes however, were 4,560 (per 100,000),
compared to a national average of 2,908.7. The reason for this
huge difference is found in the fact that many property crimes are
shopliftings. For example, in 2012, shopliftings at one retail store
accounted for roughly 17 percent of the overall property crimes in
Paducah, or nearly 16 percent of our overall Part 1 Crimes. In
2011, that location accounted for 117 larcenies, so the increase of
102 shopliftings from 2011 to 2012, from that location, accounted
for roughly 72 percent of the overall crime increase in Paducah
last year. Our other property crimes remained well below
available national averages in 2011, which is encouraging.
24
1. FBI 2011 numbers retrieved on 2/6/2013 from: h4p://www.Si.gov/about-us/cjis/
ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2011/crime-in-the-u.s.-2011/tables/table-1
2. All other number retrieved on demand from KYOps
OPERATIONS DIVISION
By: Assistant Chief Brandon Barnhill
bbarnhill@paducahky.gov
25
Broadway
Washington Street
Kentucky Avenue
T he Operations Division is comprised of uniformed patrol
officers who provide the City’s first line of public safety
protection, preserving the peace 24/7, in both criminal and civil
situations. They are highly trained professionals, who at times
must unselfishly place themselves at risk in order to protect the
community. Whether responding to an accident, pursuing a fleeing
vehicle, apprehending an armed suspect or handling a violent
domestic dispute, these officers are required to bring about a
successful resolution to situations, which sometimes seems
impossible. They must accomplish these critical and challenging
tasks in strict adherence to the rule of law and within the high
standards of conduct set forth in the Police Officers Code of Ethics.
The officers assigned to the Operations Division are courteous,
compassionate, dedicated, and responsive to the needs of the City
of Paducah.
Officers’ daily activities include initiating and following-up on
preliminary investigations of all criminal activity and making
arrests when necessary. They protect the city by conducting
proactive patrols, investigating suspicious activity, and seizing
illegal weapons and narcotics. Enforcement of traffic laws, traffic
direction and control, and the investigation of major and minor
vehicle crashes consume a large portion of their time. In 2012, the
department received 45,288 calls for service in the community,
resulting in roughly 124 daily opportunities for interaction with the
public. This total is over 1,200 more calls for service than in 2011. South 6th Street South 6th Street Within the Operations Division, several specialized units,
activities, roles and responsibilities are assumed: Citizens
Police Academy, K-9 Unit, Special Weapons and Tactics Team,
Crisis Negotiation Team, Bomb Squad, Traffic Enforcement
Unit, FLEX Unit, Accident Reconstruction Team, Bike Patrol,
Volunteers in Police Service, Ride-a-long program, Police
Explorers, D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance and Education),
G.R.E.A.T. (Gang Resistance Education and Training) and the
Junior CPA.
In looking back at 2012, the Operations Division accomplished
many of its goals, but especially the number one goal: neither
officer, nor citizen was seriously injured as a result of police
action. Although we still remain a young division, this
opportunity brings fresh ideas and an enthusiasm to keep up
with the changing demands of the profession. The department’s
emphasis, standards and approach to education and training
help offset any shortcomings due to experience levels. The
professionalism and high standards of conduct displayed by our
officers during their tours of duty proudly reflect the
importance of these principles.
The Operations Division is unlike any other division within the
police department because of its visibility and amount of
contact with the citizens of the region. The law enforcement
process is most likely to start with a patrol officer responding to
26
Jefferson Street South 7th Street North 7th Street Monroe Street
a call for service or having a self-initiated call, such as a car stop or
pedestrian check. Through proactive policing techniques and
approaches by the officers, many successful crime prevention
stories often evolve.
Three prime examples of proactive policing in 2012 are the
reduction in calls for service in the Dudley Court neighborhood, the
collision reduction efforts throughout the city, and our proactive
response to school safety.
The first example is a small housing community, Dudley Court,
located between McGuire and Cruse avenues in the heart of
Paducah. In recent years, this neighborhood has been an area with
increased crime reports and drug activity. With a large slate of
commitments by management and police administration initiated in
2011, we are now realizing the fruits of our labors. We are very
pleased to report that in 2012, the housing community had a 19.4%
reduction in calls for police service compared to 2010.
Another example provided is an initiation of a Traffic Enforcement
Unit (TEU) to assist in dealing with the ever growing traffic
problems within our community. The principle focus and mission of
this unit is based on education, awareness and enforcement. When
the department began to take a deeper look into our highest collision
areas within the city, one location stuck out much more than the
others. A section of Highway 60, also known as Hinkleville Road,
was among the highest collision areas, per capita, in the entire
Commonwealth. Part of the data reviewed for consideration came
from a Kentucky Transportation Cabinet study of U.S. 60 that was
published in the fall of 2012. This study was undertaken in an effort
to develop solutions for long-standing problems with engineering
factors, traffic congestion and safety, as well as to accommodate
anticipated increased travel in the future brought about by growth
and system connectivity enhancements, which include the opening
of a new high school in early 2013.
On average, a single collision will occupy anywhere from 42
minutes to well over 2.5 hours of an officer’s time, depending on
the damage and severity of the collision. The TEU was initiated in
early October as a pilot program in an effort to study feasibility,
time, and cost and was tasked with coming up with a plan to address
the problems identified. Within its first three months, the depart-
ment saw more than a 17.5% reduction in collisions in the targeted
areas and more than a five percent reduction city-wide for the entire
year. When you calculate the collision reductions against the time
spent completing the required paperwork, you begin to the see that
our officers are being freed up to conduct more proactive policing.
The third proactive policing approach receiving emphasis in 2012
from the Operations Division was our continued focus on increasing
safety in and around our schools. The philosophy and approach of
the division was about increasing our ownership in the school on the North 6th Street North 5th Street officer’s assigned zone. With the officer’s mindset being
focused on “My Beat . . . My School,” our officers are
encouraged to make a presence on the campuses during the
morning drop-off and afternoon student pick-ups, and during
lunchtime and recess periods.
Officers are also encouraged to participate in school
functions such as “reading pals” and others that foster a
positive relationship between the department and our
community. As a result, we have received numerous
positive comments from school staff, parents and
community leaders.
As we look forward to 2013, our attention, focus and
mission will remain the same. We will continue to engage
and strengthen relationships with partners and the
community, and to deliver improved policing services based
on the principles of a community focused approach. We
continue to be excited as technology and training revolution-
izes our profession. We welcome your feedback on our
plans and our progress, and encourage all citizens to join us
with continued support in helping to make the City of
Paducah a great place and a safe place to live.
The complete KYTC report may be read at: http://
transportation.ky.gov/Planning/Planning%20Studies%
20and%20Reports/US%2060%20Scoping%20Study%
20Final%20Report%201-125.pdf
Our 2012 Grant Awards
In 2012, the Paducah Police Department
received the following grants:
U.S. DOJ COPS Grant: $202,000
U.S. DOJ Justice Assistance Grant: $16,035
KY Homeland Security Grant: $37,000
Highway Safety Grant: $36,200
LSF DUI Enforcement Grant: $11,435
Met Life® Grant: $20,000
BNSF ® Grant: $2,500
KY League of Cities Safety Grant: $5,150
TOTAL: $330,320
General
Investigations Unit
From le3: Detec6ves Chris Baxter, Troy Turner, Ma9 Smith,
Anthony Copeland, Sgt. Brian Laird, Jus6n Crowell
By Captain Brian Krueger
Support Services Division
27
In any police department across the United States, detectives who
investigate general crimes, typically ranging from felony theft to
homicide, are an integral part of day-to-day policing activities. While
their responsibilities are primarily reactive in nature, investigators
are a key part of the overall success of their respective agencies.
“Determined,” “focused,” and “trusted” are just a few words one
might use to describe most investigators. The drive needed for
successful follow up, a key part of any criminal investigation, is a
crucial requirement of the investigative process. These are some of
the characteristics routinely demonstrated by many police
department employees. But, this is especially true for those who
serve as detectives, and those who assist them in their investigations.
The same can be said about the personnel assigned to the General
Investigation Unit, or “GIU” as it is commonly referred to within the
Paducah Police Department. In January 2012, I was assigned to the
mid-level management position that oversees each of the three units
within the Support Services Division. However, I have been able to
observe GIU in action virtually every day over the past year, and it
has been a real eye opener for me. Although I spent time working as
a detective several years ago, I never realized the importance of what
this team routinely accomplishes through each member’s individual
initiative and determination. This group of men and women
continues to be routinely successful, due in large part to their
dedication and the leadership of Sgt. Brian Laird. Probably more
important than anything is the team’s demonstrated cohesiveness. It
truly is a group effort, especially when confronted with a complex
investigation conducted as a result of the commission of a heinous
crime. Each member of the group understands the importance of his
or her role, as it relates to the outcome of the investigation, and that
the crime victim’s family is dependent upon them for a swift and
successful conclusion.
One must also realize that the relationship between the
investigators and the prosecutor’s office is a critical part in the
prosecutorial process of the justice system. “The
Commonwealth's Attorney's Office relies upon the input of the
investigators for the effective prosecution of cases,” said
Commonwealth’s Attorney Dan Boaz. “The investigators
make contact with the defendants when they are in their true
element. They are not dressed up for court. They are not
contrite about their actions. The investigators have valuable
insight into not just what a defendant has done, but who a
defendant truly is. This allows our office not to merely
prosecute crimes, but to bring true justice to criminals. Without
effective interaction between the investigators and the
prosecutors, the justice system would just be a quasi-
mechanical system churning out sanctions instead of crafting
fair punishment for the actions of those who break the
law. Our community is very fortunate that the Paducah Police
Department and the Commonwealth's Attorney's Office have a
close professional relationship. We all benefit as a result."
In 2012, GIU detectives were assigned 250 new cases,
including 53 after-hours callouts. Regarding these cases, the
unit maintained a clearance rate of 79% (well above the
national average) with 198 of these cases cleared. The
investigations yielded a total of 110 arrests. It is important to
emphasize the significance of these numbers. Being a police
officer requires hard work and dedication. Being an
investigator requires just as much, and not just from the
individual employees, but also from their families.
Investigators are routinely called out in the middle of the night,
during holiday get-togethers or kids’ sporting events and
birthday parties.
Clerical Specialist Connie Waldridge Retires
Our Connie Waldridge retired in August after 10 years of
service. “Connie was a humble, hard-working employee
that was always full of energy and ready to go, go, go,”
said Chief James Berry. “I wish I had 10 employees just
like her. She will be missed.”
Funny and always upbeat, Connie served diligently in the
Records Unit, as a patrol clerk, and ultimately as the cler-
ical specialist in the General Investigations Unit, where
she completed her last few years of work.
As part of her duties, she
managed case files and
handled our payroll, which is
always an essential function.
She became somewhat of a
master of our Leads Online
program, which helps link
pawn purchases to stolen merchandise. Connie was well-
known for her knowledge of the computer program, to the
point that the Leads Online corporate office recognized
her skills.
A Baby Boomer, Connie was not afraid of technology
one bit, as her skills with the Leads Online program
exemplified. She also managed the Crime Stoppers
software, and was a regular in-house expert with most all
things related to the computer.
A constant encourager, she will be missed, but we wish
her well in retirement. She has moved to the Cincinnati
area to be closer to her son, and we are thankful to be able
to keep track of her on Facebook.
28
They can spend hours or even days away from their families, to
ensure they meticulously follow leads and objectively gather
evidence in an effort to truly pursue justice.
2012 marked the first full year for the Regional Computer Forensic
Laboratory, or RCFL. The RCFL is an excellent example of the
benefits gained through effective partnerships within the federal,
state, and local law enforcement communities. Within the RCFL
concept, Paducah is one of five satellite labs located within the
Commonwealth of Kentucky. Detective Justin Crowell, who was
trained through the RCFL in Louisville, routinely assists other
agencies in locating and retrieving electronic evidence related to
various crimes of a serious nature. In 2012, there were 54 requests
for examination received. Of these requests, 18 came from within the
Paducah Police Department and 36 were made by other agencies.
These requests resulted in
a total of 245 individual
examinations performed
by Detective Crowell this
year. Many of these
requests centered on
crimes such as homicide,
robbery, and drug and sex
offenses.
Another reason GIU is
successful as a unit is due
in no small part to the
direct support of its two civilian support staff; Malinda Elrod-Baltz,
who serves as a civilian investigative assistant and the department’s
intelligence and statistical analyst, and Kim Newlon, who serves as
the unit’s clerical specialist. Mrs. Newlon also bears the
responsibility of compiling and preparing all records pertaining to the
police department’s payroll, which encompasses 90 employees.
Much like many of their counterparts throughout the department, in
addition to their “regular” duties, almost all of GIU personnel also
have additional responsibilities. Most investigators also serve in roles
on the department’s SWAT Team and Bomb Squad,
interdepartmental instructor positions, and critical incident
negotiators.
So what does the future hold? Going into 2013, the GIU will be
challenged to continue their record of success. In addition, the unit
will be challenged to become more efficient while simultaneously
exploring how a traditionally reactive investigative entity can
become more proactive. This includes being focused on working in
conjunction with other units within the department. The intent is an
effort toward implementing successful crime prevention and crime
reduction strategies. By emphasizing that no idea is wrong and
everyone has perspectives that matter, we will be focused on internal
collaboration toward obtaining these goals.
“These guys are
passionate and their
commitment to
solving cases is
unrivaled.”
- Assistant Chief Grimes
“I wish I had
10 employees
just like her.”
—Chief Berry
PHOTO
Drug & Vice
Enforcement
By Assistant Chief Stacey Grimes
As law enforcement agencies across America struggle to
keep pace, ridding the streets of illicit drugs such as
cocaine, methamphetamines and marijuana funneled into
the United States from drug cartels, we face the daunting
task of investigating the abuse of prescription painkillers
mostly prescribed by well-meaning doctors and dentists.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, overdose
deaths from prescription painkillers have surpassed both
cocaine and heroin combined. In 2010, physicians
prescribed enough painkillers to medicate every American
adult around the clock for an entire month.
A 2010 national survey by the Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration revealed 12 million
teens and adults reported using prescription painkillers to
get “high” or for other non-medical reasons. Many of
these teens and adults account for approximately 500,000
emergency room visits costing more than $72 million in
direct health care costs. In 2010, Forbes released a study
revealing the nation’s most medicated states. Kentucky
ranked fourth, behind West Virginia, Tennessee, and
Alabama. The Kentucky Attorney General’s Office reports
more than 1,000 people die in Kentucky each year from
prescription drug overdose, the sixth highest rate in the
nation. In comparison, 744 people died in motor vehicle
collisions in 2012 in Kentucky.
The Paducah Police Department’s Drug and Vice Enforcement
(DAVE) Unit is making a concerted effort to increase the focus on
illegal prescription drug abuse. In January 2013, the DAVE unit will
expand by one detective with the sole assignment of investigating these
cases. Our prescription drug investigator will build relationships with
local pharmacies and prescribing physicians to mitigate the problem in
our community. The database known as Kentucky All Schedule
Prescription Electronic Reporting System (KASPER) will also be an
important resource to identify potential prescription drug abusers. All
Schedule prescriptions for an individual over a specified time period,
the prescriber and the dispenser are entered into this carefully
controlled and restricted database.
The DAVE unit, comprised of five detectives and one civilian, is
supervised by Sergeant Will Gilbert. 2012 was a successful year with
nearly 1800 doses of prescription drugs purchased by our unit and
removed from the streets. The majority of those purchases and
seizures were opioids such as Lortab and codeine, and depressants such
as Valium and Xanax. In addition, more than 596 grams of crack, 93
grams of powder cocaine, 34 grams of heroin, 140 grams of
methamphetamine and 3,924 grams of marijuana were taken off our
streets by the DAVE unit. The unit seized 27 handguns, 39 rifles, eight
assault weapons, four shotguns and more than 13,000 rounds of
ammunition from suspected drug dealers.
Another statistic that causes us
great concern is the re-emergence
of heroin in our community and
across the state. The Kentucky
State Police Crime Labs report
analyzed heroin samples increased
211% from 2010 to 2012. As law
enforcement and medical
professionals clamp down on
prescription drug abuse, opioid
addicts will likely turn to heroin to
feed their habit. Heroin is a highly addictive drug that usually comes
in a powder or in tar-like chunks that can be eaten, smoked, snorted or
mixed with water and injected. “As a young narcotics detective in the
1970s, I observed first-hand how heroin can devastate a community. It
is disheartening to see its comeback in our society,” says Chief James
Berry. Communicable disease issues associated with the sharing of
needles to inject heroin will be extremely concerning to our officers on
the street.
The Paducah Police Department took a proactive stance to reduce and
eliminate synthetic marijuana and bath salts from our community
before many laws were even passed banning their use. Our attention to
the problem attracted national attention. We were approached in
29
H ER O IN
H ER O IN
H ER O IN
H ER O IN
PHOTO
mid-2011 by the National Geographic Channel about
participating in their series “Drugs Inc.” The National
Geographic Channel films 60- minute educational documentaries
specific to the use and enforcement of various illegal substances
across the world. In February 2012, the DAVE unit was featured
on the National Geographic Channel’s “Drugs Inc.” episode on
Designer Drugs. The episode included footage of our officers
seizing thousands of items of suspected synthetic marijuana and
bath salts from a Paducah business.
As law enforcers, we can impact the distribution side of the
problem but it will take input and assistance from the community
to tackle the demand side of the problem. We strongly encourage
parents talk to their children about the risks and lethality of illicit
and prescription drug abuse. It is a societal problem that is poi-
soning our community at our roots and taking the lives of those
we hold dear. Our drug problem fosters increased crime, causes
financial and social hardships and diminishes the quality of life
we strive to pass down to the next generation. The police cannot
tackle this problem alone. It is incumbent that the entire
community takes ownership to minimize the illegal use and sale
of these devastating substances.
30
West Kentucky Crime Stoppers
IN 2012
355 Tips
17 Arrests
15 Rewards given
$4,000 in Rewards approved
J an Saxon started with
the Paducah Police
Department in 1989, and
was the first clerical assistant
hired to work within the
Narcotics Unit. At that time, the
department was a member of the
Western Area Narcotics Task
Force (WANT), which consisted of 20 different law
enforcement agencies. In the late 90s, the WANT Task
Force dissolved and the Paducah Police Department
formed what is currently known as the Drug and Vice
Enforcement Unit (DAVE). Jan remained the secretary,
and still serves the City of Paducah in that capacity,
some 23 years later.
Over the years Jan has worked for five police chiefs
and 10 different drug unit supervisors. She has seen
many technological advances, and even remembers
typing case files for the detectives on the unit’s one
typewriter. She was present when the department
switched to a computer-based records system, and she
has witnessed the many changes in drug crimes.
As the longest active serving and eldest employee of
the Paducah Police Department, Jan is respected for her
wisdom, camaraderie and humor. In the ever-changing
daily ordeals and changes in command at the Paducah
Police Department over the past few decades, Jan has
remained a constant and her service is appreciated.
SINCE INCEPTION
3,069 Tips
772 Arrests
640 Rewards given
$163,425 in Rewards approved 443-TELL Call the 5p line at (270) 443-8355
By Captain Shawn Maxie
H onor Guards are an element of law enforcement agen-
cies that police executives hope never are put to use
— particularly not in any type of line-of-duty deaths.
All too often, the parades, ballgames, awards ceremonies and
memorial services are the forgotten duties of an Honor Guard.
But then again, what other part of a law enforcement agency
spends a training day in a funeral home practicing how to walk
into a room and stand by a casket or how to properly fold and
pass a flag?
The Paducah Police Department Honor Guard is manned by
sergeants Wes Kimbler, Steve Smith and Wes Orazine, and of-
ficers Ryan Conn, Jason Hicks, Keith Thuline and Matt Scheer.
Captain Shawn Maxie is the commanding officer for the unit.
During 2012, Officer Kevin Crider (pictured above, right) left
31
the team and the department to take a
job with a police department in central
Illinois. He was a vital member of the
team, always ready to assist with any
detail.
What are the traits and characteristics that members of
an Honor Guard possess? Is it the squared-away, toy
soldier-like appearance that members hope to portray
when standing in front of a family? Is it the precision
movement that the unit tries to display with each detail?
While those things are possessed and honed by each
member, the common attribute of the team members is
respect for the flag (the “colors”), respect for what it
symbolizes for our nation and respect for the men and
women who put on a badge and are willing to defend
those principles with their lives.
An officer is killed every 56 hours in the United States.
That makes the need to have personnel trained in the
proper protocol to honor their memory that much more
important. In 2012, there were 128 officers who died in
the line of duty, four in the state of Kentucky. The
Paducah Police Department, through its Honor Guard,
expressed its condolences to those Kentucky families
and agencies at three of those funerals.
Nation-wide, violence against police officers is more
prevalent than many think. On average, there are about
55,000 assaults against police officers reported each
year. While the number of line-of-duty deaths climbed
between 2009 and 2011, there was a slight decrease in
2012, to 128. The 11-year average (2002-2012) was
153. Of the 2012 deaths; 65 were the result of gunfire or
other felonious assault, and 41 resulted from vehicular
accidents.
While the Honor Guard wishes to properly honor those
officers who die in the line of duty, the Paducah Police
Honor Guard strives to show the department’s gratitude
and appreciation to the families of our retired members
by serving as Casket Guard, Pallbearers and/or in any
other capacity that department policy allows. In 2012,
the PPD family lost retired Assistant Chief Charles
Pinnegar and retired Assistant Chief Charles “Pork
Chop” Hoskins.
For more information on officers killed & assaulted
check out the following websites:
www.odmp.org/
www.nleomf.org/
www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/leoka
Paducah Police Department
Honor Guard
32
On a lighter note — and not to forget those other details that
were mentioned earlier — the Paducah Police Department Honor
Guard led various parades for the City, including the Veteran’s
Day and Christmas parades. The unit presented the Colors at
civic events, including the Purchase Area Senior Games, the
Candlelight Vigil for Pancreatic Cancer and the Kings of the
Court charity basketball event. Other events for which the team
was utilized were the Paducah Police Department Awards Cere-
mony and the FOP Law Enforcement Memorial Service, which
is held every May.
The highlight of the year for the Honor Guard was the op-
portunity to present the Colors before a St. Louis Cardinals
baseball game in Busch Stadium. While the temperature on
that summer day was almost unbearable, the opportunity to
represent the department on that type of stage was well
worth it for the team! After that event, the team transitioned
into its new Honor Guard uniform, that not only represents
the present day uniform but also touches on the history of
the department.
Retired Assistant Chief Charles N. Pinne-
gar, 51, died March 9, 2012. He began his
career with the Paducah Police Department
in January 1984, and retired in August
2005. After his retirement, he began work-
ing as a network technician for the City’s
Information Technology Department.
Son of the late William Pinnegar, who also served the PPD
and retired as an Assistant Chief, Charles was a graduate of
Paducah Tilghman High School and Murray State
University. During his police career, he graduated from the
Criminal Justice Executive Development Course and the
Administrative Officers’ Course at the Southern Police
Institute at the University of Louisville. He was a Duke of
Paducah, a Kentucky Colonel, a member of the Fraternal
Order of Police and a Master Mason in the Bay City Lodge
#771 in New Liberty, IL.
Retired Assistant Chief Charles Lewis
“Pork Chop” Hoskins, Jr., 89, passed
away October 31, 2012.
A World War II veteran, serving in the
U.S. Army from January 1943 until
December 1945, he served faithfully in
the various theaters. He was a recipient
of a Purple Heart, Meritorious Unit Award, Good Con-
duct Medal, and Theater Ribbon with two Bronze Ser-
vice Stars.
In addition to serving the Paducah Police Department,
and the Paducah Police Auxiliary, Hoskins was a local
businessman, owning and operating Hoskins Coin and
Jewelry in Paducah for 57 years.
He was a life-time member of the Fraternal Order of
Police.
Photo used with permission of The Paducah Sun
JUNIOR 1111 CITIZENS’ POLICE ACADEMY
the upcoming program, which may be offered more than once
in 2013.
“We believe this program will be very successful as we contin-
ue to invest in the youth in our area,” said Chief James Berry.
He believes in the program because it offers a good starting
point for those who may be considering law enforcement as a
career option. “It’s so important that we try to connect with
these kids, invest in them, and try our best to encourage them
to come back here as adults.”
“From our one-day open house, to the JCPA, to the Explorers,
each of these stepping points helps catch the interest of those
that may want to be a cop someday, and who knows, you may
have a future chief in this bunch of kids,.” the chief said. “I’m
really proud of the work our recruiters have done developing
this awesome program.” JCPA T he Paducah Police Department launched its first ever
Junior Citizens’ Police Academy (JCPA) during the
summer of 2012. The youth version of the long-standing
adult program was offered to youth ages 13-18 from Paducah and
McCracken County as a three-day, summer camp-style program,
where participants got to see first-hand what officers do day-in and
day-out.
The Paducah Police Department recruiters developed the three-day
curriculum to provide participants with an interesting and interac-
tive overview of all the basics.
Those in the class were provided a t-shirt, lunch each day, and the
group took a bowling trip to Cardinal Lanes on the final day.
The PPD is planning on offering the 2013 course as a five-day
course, thanks to some generous support from BNSF Railway.
The company donated $2,500 to the police department to fund
Interested in aHending
Our Junior CiIzens’ Police Academy?
Contact Officer Chris Bolton
Email: cbolton@paducahky.gov
Phone: 270-444-8548
OR
Go online for an applica5on: www.paducahky.gov
2 0 1 3 JUNE 17—21
8:30 am—4:30 pm daily 33
CLASS #17 CITIZENS’ POLICE ACADEMY
DUI
GOVERNOR’S AWARD
Each year the Governor’s Office, along with the
Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, give out the
Governor’s Impaired Driving Enforcement
Award to officers from agencies around the
Commonwealth with the highest number of
DUI arrests. In December 2012, Paducah police
officer Steven Thompson was recognized for
having the highest number of arrests among
similar-sized agencies in the state, with a total
of 82 DUI arrest for 2012. Congratulations to
him for this distinction.
The Citizens’ Police Academy, a long-standing program at the
Paducah Police Department, is designed to help citizens in the
community better understand their police department.
It exposes participants to the various aspects of municipal police
work, while letting them get hands-on experience through class-
room work, ride-a-longs, time at the shooting range, and even
practical exercises in crime scene processing. They hear from a
variety of different officers, covering all aspects of the job,
according to our current coordinator, Sergeant George Johnson.
Our program originally was put together by Sergeant J.P. Roberts
in 2002 (Class #1, pictured above, left). Since then, we have
held 16 more classes.
“These types of programs are essential to building good relation-
ships with the community,” said Chief James Berry. “They’ve
been around a long time and the one here in Paducah is very suc-
cessful.”
The program meets every Thursday evening for 11 weeks, begin-
ning each August. Each session lasts about three hours and par-
ticipants are encouraged to schedule at least one ride-a-long at
their convenience over the course of the class.
In November 2012, we graduated our 17th class. Included in that
class was Martha Argotte-Thomas, a Human Resources
generalist at Lourdes Hospital and Paducah Human Rights
commissioner. Martha Argotte-Thomas says the CPA “totally
opened my eyes to a greater appreciation and respect for law
enforcement officers. It also helped me understand the duties
and responsibilities of law enforcement officers and the
operational structure of the department.”
“I must say that I am more confident in our law enforcement
now that I have completed the CPA program!” she said.
“We really want to educate citizens about what we do, and
we want it to be fun,” Sergeant Johnson said. “We want
them to have a good time with it, and we encourage anyone
who is interested in the program to contact us.”
If you are interested in participating in the CPA program,
contact Sergeant Johnson at gjohnson@paducahky.gov or
check out our website at www.paducahky.gov
34
BUILDING THE RIGHT VISION for PADUCAH
I n 2012, Mayor Pro Tem
Gayle Kaler was elected to
serve as Paducah’s next
Mayor. A long-time resident and
local business owner, Kaler has
served on the Paducah City
Commission for the six years.
We know her passion for the arts, and other quality-of-life
issues here in Paducah, but Mayor Kaler’s biggest concern as
she begins her term as Mayor of the City of Paducah can be
summed up in one word – jobs.
“The most important thing we have facing us is the loss of at
least 800 jobs with the closing of USEC,” she said. Loss of
jobs anywhere in McCracken County means loss of revenue
to the City of Paducah.”
Fewer jobs not only means less money is spent in stores and
restaurants, but also the potential for a loss of population as
residents leave to take jobs elsewhere. Reduced revenue puts
an increased strain on an already-tight city budget.
“If we lose population, it affects every department in the
city,” Mayor Kaler said. “All of our services serve that
number of people that come into the city to work or shop.
“The police department, the fire department, your garbage
pick-up, not having pot-holes in your streets – those are real
quality of life issues. Things people expect from the city,”
she said. “It’s our fiscal responsibility as a city to provide
those services.” And those services, particularly law enforce-
ment, are expected not only by residents of the city, but visi-
tors to the city, as well.
“Paducah is where thousands of people come to have fun and
work,” Mayor Kaler said. “But when people go to bed at
night, there are about 25,000 here.”
Mayor Kaler believes the Paducah Police Department does a
“top-notch job” in staying on top of training and technology
in order to best serve Paducah’s residents and visitors. She
attributes that to a police chief who expects professionalism,
and officers and staff who share those goals.
The mayor plans to continue studying the feasibility of a joint
police/fire headquarters building: “That’s on the horizon and
needed,” she said.
And she hopes that former Mayor Bill Paxton’s work on a
new hotel near the Julian Carroll Convention Center soon
will come to fruition.
“We’re right on track with the new hotel,” she said.
Another project still in the works is on-going evaluation of a
sports complex.
“We would love to have a first-class sports facility in
Paducah,” Mayor Kaler said. City officials have, in fact,
toured such a facility in Elizabethtown.
But job one, she said, remains jobs and revitalization of the
city’s neighborhoods, and, consequently, its economy.
“We’re going to have to have some growth in our city,” the
mayor said. “We’ve got to bring more people into our city.”
As we move into 2013 and beyond, the Paducah Police
Department will continue to safeguard the citizens of
Paducah and visitors to the city, as city leaders look for ever
more innovative ways to provide a positive atmosphere in
which to work, play and live. Only through joint efforts will
the city continue to thrive.
35
By Robin Newberry
HONORING OUR VETERANSHONORING OUR VETERANSHONORING OUR VETERANSHONORING OUR VETERANS
Each year we take time to honor our veterans, and there are many at the police department. Our veterans are proud to
have served their country before coming home to serve their community as law enforcement officers. Some of them
are still serving in the National Guard or Reserves.
We currently have 28 veterans from every branch of the military, which is roughly 32 percent of our full-time
employees.
Our veterans march in the annual Veterans’ Day Parade, and they celebrate the Marine Corps birthday with a small
ceremony every November. “It’s good to recognize their service, which is so critical to our country,” said Chief
James Berry. “And it’s good for the citizens to see them behind the PPD banner, knowing that these men and
women, sworn and civilian staff, have committed to serving others on more than one level. That’s important; and it
speaks to their sense of service and desire to keep us safe.”
Sergeant Wes Kimbler is one of three officers who are still serving in a dual role, and he
has a total of 21 years of service with the United States Army Reserves and
National Guard. He was called to active duty status from 2003-2005, to help
train military police officers at Fort Leonard Wood, MO.
“Although it’s tough at times trying to juggle the two roles, I thoroughly enjoy
serving in both capacities,” Kimbler said. He says his time at Fort Leonard Wood
was primarily spent training soldiers who had been reclassified as military police,
because that skill set was in high demand in the Middle East. He said they trained many soldiers age
18 and up, some of whom didn’t have any formal police experience or training.
“My experience as a civilian law enforcement officer has been valuable, and I’m glad
to be able to share those experiences in training others in my Army role,” says Kimbler.
Kimbler started his career with the Mayfield Police Department in 1996 and joined
our department in 2001. He currently serves as a sergeant on first shift, and is a
Police Training Officer Supervisor.
Brian Krueger — Marines; Jason Merrick — Navy; Will Gilbert — Marines;
Wes Kimbler – Army ; Steve Smith— Army; Kevin Neal— Marines; Joe
Hayes — Marines/Army; Wes Orazine— Marines; Rob Estes—Marines;
Brent Obermark — Army; Michael Simak— Army; Brian Kopischke —
Marines; Nathan Young—Navy; Paul Stevenson— Army; Cindy Neihoff—
Army; Travis Counts – Navy; Troy Turner — Army; Lo6on Rowley — Army;
Chris Baxter— Navy; Nathan Antonites— Army; Keith Thuline— Army;
David Carroll—Coast Guard; Ryan Burrow— Army; Blake Quinn— Army;
Kelly Drew—Army; Josh Anderson — Army; Lourdes Morrison—Navy;
Kris5ne Shanks— Marines
Our Veterans
36
www.paducahky.gov
Circa 1976
Paducah Police