TPD Blog

New Police Chief search begins

Searching for a leader

By BRIAN BARBER World Staff Writer

Mayor Dewey Bartlett has recruited some outside advisers to help him select Tulsa's next police chief.

Crime Commission Executive Director Carol Bush and the Rev. Weldon Tisdale of Friendship Church will serve on the mayor's search committee as it interviews candidates for the job, Bartlett told the Tulsa World.

In addition to the mayor, the internal members of the committee are Director of Administration Jim Twombly and Personnel Director Erica Felix-Warwick.

Bush and Tisdale will each bring "unique perspectives" to the search process, Bartlett said.

The Crime Commission has been around for a long time and has seen several management changes in the Police Department, he said.

"It interacts with the police force and the community on a daily basis, so I felt like Carol would be in a very good position to understand the needs of the job," Bartlett said.

Bush said the recent federal indictments involving police officers and the turmoil within the department due to layoffs and budget cuts will necessitate that the chief is "both a good people person and a strong manager."

"It's a weird job," she said. "The chief has to head up a military-like troop of men and women and also has to navigate the city's politics. Sometimes that's like two different skill sets."

Not only does the person have to gain the trust of the officers, he or she must have the trust of city leaders and the community, Bush said.

Tisdale, a north Tulsa leader, is "from a family that has a tremendous amount of respect throughout the community," the mayor said.

"I value his judgment," Bartlett said. "He's a very thoughtful person and he really understands the need to create bridges between groups of people that may otherwise be divided."

Tisdale said he was honored to be asked to serve by the mayor and sees it as "a critical responsibility."

"I won't take it lightly," he said, adding that he intends to seek input from different segments of the community on the qualities that they want to see in the next police chief.

Interviews with the two internal police chief candidates, Deputy Chiefs Mark McCrory and Daryl Webster, will be scheduled within the next two to three weeks, the mayor said.

Interim Police Chief Chuck Jordan has filled the role since former Police Chief Ron Palmer's resignation Jan. 22.

Jordan, who earns $100,000 annually, has confirmed he will be an external candidate for the job, if the search makes it to that stage.

Although Jordan, 62, served for 32 years in the Tulsa Police Department, he was tapped for the interim chief role while he was serving as a captain in the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office.

Following the City Charter, Bartlett must first consider candidates from within the Tulsa Police Department before he can accept external applications.

Each candidate will be questioned by the search committee and then likely have a one-on-one meeting with Bartlett, he said.

McCrory, 50, has served on Tulsa's force for 28 years and achieved the rank of deputy chief five years ago. He oversees the department's investigative bureau, which includes the detectives division and special investigations.

Webster, 49, has been in Tulsa's police ranks for 23 years and became a deputy chief two years ago. He is in charge of the department's administrative bureau, which includes training, recruitment, community outreach, records, the property room and forensic lab, budget preparation, planning and research, policy formation and other functions.

Bartlett is also changing the police chief post from one of the mayor's at-will employees to one that is again under the civil service system. This means that the chief can be removed only for just cause and with due process.

Former Mayor Kathy Taylor made the chief job one of her at-will posts in 2007 following the retirement of former Chief Dave Been.

Bartlett has said he believes the chief has to be able to make tough decisions without being subjected to the political whims of the city.

Brian Barber 581-8322
brian.barber@tulsaworld.com

Copyright Tulsa World 2010

Detectives to meet with druggists

The intent is to decrease the number of holdups at Tulsa drugstores.
 

By NICOLE MARSHALL World Staff Writer
Published: 9/25/2010  2:20 AM

Police set a date this week to meet with area pharmacists in an effort to decrease the number of drugstore heists in Tulsa.

Robbery detectives will meet with pharmacy employees Oct. 5 at the Tulsa Police Academy, Sgt. Dave Walker said.

More than 30 pharmacy robberies have occurred in Tulsa this year, including one earlier this week.

Walker said police have contacted several companies that operate pharmacies about the seminar, which will focus on prevention efforts, video surveillance, what to do after a robbery and witness accounts.

Meanwhile, police at the three patrol divisions are addressing crime hot spots and trends, a weekly crime report shows.

In the Mingo Valley Division in eastern Tulsa, police have seen an increase in meth lab dumps behind strip shopping centers. Because the chemicals involved in meth-making are dangerous, police are directing patrols to address the problem.

Police also noted a cluster of daytime residential burglaries in the area of 21st to 41st streets from U.S. 169 to Garnett Road.

In the Gilcrease Division in northern Tulsa and downtown, police reported that they have been responding to residents' complaints of prostitution in the 400 to 500 blocks of East Virgin Street.

They are also addressing the continuing problem of daytime burglaries in which thieves are specifically seeking electronics.

Gilcrease officers have also been focusing on traffic violations, including red light runners in the downtown area.

In the Riverside Division, which patrols southern and western areas of the city, police have seen a spike in burglaries from vehicles between 53rd Street and 56th Place from 25th to 30th West avenues.

Although the division has seen a decrease in auto thefts, officers are continuing to monitor the areas around 61st Street and Peoria Avenue and Riverside Drive from 71st to 81st streets, where they have seen clusters of vehicle thefts.

Nicole Marshall 581-8459
nicole.marshall@tulsaworld.com
By NICOLE MARSHALL World Staff Writer

Copyright Tulsa World 2010

Tulsa's Weekly Wanted arrested Wednesday

Tulsa's Weekly Wanted arrested Wednesday
 
Waunderful Love Yancey, 21, was arrested just before midnight on a first-degree robbery charge.

 
Published: 2/25/2010 

A woman who was listed as Tulsa's Weekly Wanted suspect after being charged with robbery was captured Wednesday night.

Waunderful Love Yancey, 21, was arrested just before midnight on a first-degree robbery charge. She also faces other complaints including assaulting a detention officer, jail records indicate.

Police released information about Yancey on Monday, when they listed her as the city's weekly wanted suspect.

She is being held at the Tulsa Jail with bail set at more than $32,000.

For more information on Tulsa's Weekly Wanted, visit tulsaworld.com/mostwanted.

By MATT BARNARD World Staff Writer

Police unit attempts to thwart sexual predators

By JARREL WADE World Staff Writer
Published: 12/21/2009

It starts out slowly. A man sends messages to someone whom he knows is too young — legally and morally — for a sexual relationship.

Through any number of discreet communication devices, he asks a 14-year-old girl how she is doing.

That's how it begins. Within a month of exchanging daily messages, he's asked her about her bedtime, talked about sex, sent images of his genitals to her and persuaded her to meet him for sex.

But in this case, it was caught early. The "14-year-old girl" was actually a Tulsa police officer since just after the predator's first contact with the real teenager, Detective Scott Wanzer said.

Derekco Eugene Sells, 31, was arrested Dec. 11 in the sting operation. Police allege that he took the girl's cell phone at a school football practice long enough to get her phone number and then began texting her.

Her parents are thankful that she told them about the messages early and that they knew what to do.

The girl's mother said she had set up several professional development courses for teachers on the subject after she heard Wanzer speak at a PTA meeting about sexual predators.

If she hadn't heard his speech, she said, she might not have recognized the signs of a sexual predator and called police.

"Predators pretty much become friends in kind of a grooming period," she said. "They slowly work into the child's life."

How to catch a predator

After the case was reported, the Tulsa Police Department's  Cyber Crimes Unit, including Wanzer, went to work.

The unit took the girl's cell phone and waited for more messages to arrive.

Entrapment — a legal defense that sometimes gets charges dismissed — is hardly ever an issue in these cases, Wanzer said.

"Entrapment is when we bring up topics," he said. "They (predators) just incrementally bring up topics."

Before long, messages from the man started coming, and police were sending messages right back — in the persona of the teenager.

"When we are in an undercover personality of typically a 12- to 13-year-old we just play dumb or stupid, and it's not long before the predator begins to trust," Wanzer said. "It's kind of awkward at times."

The unit's personnel have to keep up on "teen lingo" and just "be smart about it," Wanzer said. "It's very inconvenient. I've got my paperwork, my family and kids — but every day my 'boyfriend' wants to talk to me."

One convenience, he said, is that children should be in school during the day and unable to send text messages. Wanzer uses that time to do his other work, he said.

A predator will sometimes take months to get to know an underage person, all the while moving toward a sexual relationship with the child, Wanzer said.

Investigations can take just a couple of weeks, as in Sells' case, or they can span months. Police have to keep up with the messages as a relationship develops between the predator and the police officer.

Parents should be parents

Wanzer's unit arrests about one predator a month in sting operations and lengthy undercover investigations.

"It's not in Chicago or Dallas or New York," he said. "It's right here in Tulsa."

The girl's mother said parents have to be able to monitor their children's lives on some level and should act as parents rather than as friends.

"We didn't have kids to have friends," she said. "Every once in a while, pick up your kid's phone."

Wanzer said parents need to make sure that they understand the advances in technology their children are using.

"If they are intimidated by that technology," he said, "they need to get over that intimidation."

Jarrel Wade 581-8367
jarrel.wade@tulsaworld.com

Copyright Tulsa World 2009. Format differs from original publication.

Firefighters, police officers ring bells for Salvation Army

By JARREL WADE World Staff Writer
Published: 12/16/2009 

Tulsa firefighters and police officers braved the cold Tuesday as they volunteered their time to be bell ringers for The Salvation Army at Woodland Hills Mall.

The public safety workers raised $1,935.75 in two four-hour shifts between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

The event was billed as a competition between the groups, with the firefighters looking for revenge after losing last year, said Bill French, a public information officer for the Fire Department.

But the Police Department didn't muster a full crew, so the teams were unequally matched, French said. Firefighters were stationed at red kettles at six entrances at the mall, while police officers rang bells at only two kettles.

"I don't think it was much of a competition," French said, "especially when one of the first people to show up was a young girl that gave (the firefighters) a $100 bill."

Firefighters collected $1,266.30, and police officers collected $669.45.

Assistant Fire Marshal Doug Lewis, who took the second shift Tuesday, said the worst part of the volunteer job was the repetitive sound of the bell.

Lewis found several different ways to ring the bell to break its monotonous sound, but helping The Salvation Army was well-worth it, he said.

Funds raised through The Salvation Army's annual kettle campaign help provide Christmas dinner, clothing, toys and basic necessities for families in need.

Jarrel Wade 581-8367
jarrel.wade@tulsaworld.com

Copyright 2009 Tulsa World. Format differs from original publication.

Sex-offender law under scrutiny

A felon's third child-molestation charge prompts concerns.

By NICOLE MARSHALL World Staff Writer
Published: 8/15/2009 

The case of a convicted sex offender who was charged Friday with the kidnapping and lewd molestation of a 23-month-old girl has raised concerns among law enforcement and legislators about the state's sex-offender law and sentencings.

Marcus Berry, 56, has two previous child-molestation convictions, and he was arrested twice on violations of the sex-offender law. The first time he was charged with not registering as a sex offender, a jury acquitted him based on his claim that he couldn't register because he was homeless.

The second time — after again claiming to be homeless — he pleaded guilty and received a two-year probation.

Berry was arrested Wednesday night after two patrol officers found him and the girl — both partially dressed — in a pickup that was parked in a field, police said. The girl had been snatched from her family's front yard after she wandered out of a gate on the side of the house.

At the time, the Department of Corrections listed Berry as a registered sex offender with a Sand Springs address.

District Attorney Tim Harris said that based on Berry's prior felony convictions, he faces 20 years to life in prison if he is convicted of the kidnapping charge and up to life, with or without parole, on the lewd-molestation-of-a-minor charge.

But police, prosecutors and legislators have been debating whether the state's sex-offender law failed in this case and whether more could have been done to prevent Berry's arrest on a third child-molestation offense.

The "homeless defense" is an issue police and prosecutors have struggled with previously.

In January 2008, a Tulsa World analysis showed that more than 20 sex offenders were registered as homeless in Tulsa. But police said the majority of those offenders were not homeless at all.

Reporting that they are is just one way the offenders have learned to cope with the state law that precludes them from living in most of Tulsa, police said.

A state law that went into effect in 2006 made about 90 percent of the city off limits to sex offenders by prohibiting them from living within 2,000 feet of playgrounds, parks or child-care facilities.

Previously, 550 sex offenders were registered in Tulsa, but the list is now down to about 300. Many offenders have moved to rural areas, but others are just refusing to register, police say.

"You have to wonder, where did the other 200 go?" Tulsa Police Sgt. John Adams said.

He suggested that residence restrictions be loosened, perhaps decreasing the restricted boundary around schools from 2,000 to 1,000 feet and removing the prohibition against offenders living near parks.

Such changes would make it easier for sex offenders to find a place to live legally and would therefore make them more likely to register their addresses, police say.

Adams also suggested that mandatory sentences be set for violations of the sex-offender laws.

"The point is that we know where they are," he said. "So we make it a little easier for them to find a place to live and then, if they fail to register, they are gone on a mandatory five-year sentence."

The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals ruled in a previous Tulsa County failure-to-register case that homelessness was a legitimate defense.

Assistant District Attorney John Lackey, who prosecuted that case, argued that the Sex Offenders Registration Act imposes strict liability on offenders to register and that failure to do so is criminal regardless of the intent. Lackey asked the appeals court to provide jury instructions for failure-to-register cases and to make the statute's language more specific.

While preparing the case, Lackey did research on the homeless-defense issue and found that other states already have measures to deal with the problem. Some states require an offender to check in with the appropriate agency daily or every few days, he said.

Oklahoma's "sex-offender registration statute makes it almost impossible for the sex offenders to find a home, and then we don't address what happens when they don't have a home," Lackey said.

In reaction to Berry's arrest, Rep. Rex Duncan, R-Sand Springs, announced Friday that he plans to file legislation that would address loopholes in the state sex-offender laws and strengthen sentencing.

Duncan said the legislation would eliminate the homeless defense as an excuse for not registering and would allow those convicted of failing to register to receive 20-year prison sentences.

Under current law, a child molester can face a sentence of 25 years to life with parole possible for a first offense. Duncan's proposal would increase the maximum penalty for first offenders to life without parole. It also would allow the death penalty to be considered for those convicted of second offenses.

However, a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in a Louisiana case last summer effectively tossed out an Oklahoma law that allowed the death penalty for repeat child molesters. In the Louisiana case, the high court limited capital punishment to those who commit murder.

Berry's previous child-molestation convictions were in 1986 and 1993. In the most recent case, Berry was sentenced to 30 years in prison. But he was convicted before 2000, when a law took effect requiring those convicted of offenses such as lewd molestation to serve at least 85 percent of their sentences.

Because of the earned credit system, he was released from prison on Oct. 3, 2006, not quite 13 years after his 30-year sentence was imposed.

Sex offender registries
Search sex-offender registries in your area.

Tulsa: tulsaworld.com/tpdsexoffenders

Tulsa County and suburbs: tulsaworld.com/offenderwatch

Oklahoma Department of Corrections: tulsaworld.com/docsexoffenders

Nicole Marshall 581-8459
nicole.marshall@tulsaworld.com

Tulsa Police: Divine Intervention Led To Sex Offender's Arrest

Posted: Aug 13, 2009 8:32 PM CDT
KOTV-Tulsa

By Ashli Sims, The News On 6

TULSA, OK -- The two Tulsa Police officers who discovered Marcus Berry, Sr. with the 2-year-old girl say it's pretty incredible they even found her. 

The officers discovered Berry and the little girl before the call even went out that she was missing.  If it weren't for a glance out of the corner of an eye, they might have driven right on by.

The officers weren't searching for an abducted child. They weren't trying to match a suspect description. They were just patrolling an unfamiliar road.

"A lot of what we do is good cop instinct. And, a lot of it is luck. Last night had nothing to do with both. It was divine intervention, completely," said Tulsa Police Officer Mark Wollmershauser, Jr.

Officer Mark Wollmershauser, Jr. says a divine hand steered him and his partner Officer Stephanie Blann to a deserted gravel road.

Officers say they barely saw Marcus Berry's truck that was parked far off the road. They say 30 minutes later, it would have been dark. With all of the tall grass in the area, they never would have seen it.

But, Officer Wollmershauser caught sight of a tail light out of the corner of his eye.  The two officers approached the truck and said they knew immediately something wasn't right.

"He was acting really weird, and at one point, put it in reverse. So, we thought he was gonna flee or run us over. We had no idea there was a kid in the car," said Tulsa Police Officer Stephanie Blann.

"I see his pants are undone. Still, don't see the little girl. Just ask him what's going on. And then, he finally tells me he's with the little girl, and it all clicked. And, got really awful at that point," said Tulsa Police Officer Mark Wollmershauser, Jr.

He says he grabbed Berry and Blann scooped up the baby girl.

"She was as sweet as anything. And, she looked up at us. And, Officer Blann got her from the passenger side and got her outta the truck and just held on to her," said Tulsa Police Officer Mark Wollmershauser, Jr.

And, that's when the call crackled across the police radio.

"They put the call out and her clothing description. And, I was looking right at her. Everything matched," said Tulsa Police Officer Stephanie Blann.

The little girl is now home with her family.  The suspect is behind bars.  And, two Tulsa Police officers are being called heroes.           

"More than likely they saved this little girl's life or who knows what they prevented. But, because they did a good job we got this child back," said Tulsa Police Sgt. John Adams.

Both officers shrug off the hero talk.  But, they are frustrated that a two-time convicted sex offender would even have the opportunity to hurt another victim.

http://www.newson6.com/Global/story.asp?S=10928418

Copyright KOTV 2009. Format differs from original publication.

Fair Board chair requests necessary law enforcement

By KEVIN CANFIELD World Staff Writer
Published: 8/6/2009 

Fair Board Chairman and County Commissioner Fred Perry sent a letter to Mayor Kathy Taylor asking the city of Tulsa to provide the law enforcement services necessary for this year’s Tulsa State Fair.

“This can be done with actual on-site Tulsa Police officers or by the city contracting with the Sheriff’s Office,” Perry wrote in a letter hand-delivered to the mayor Wednesday.

For years, the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office provided law enforcement services at the fair that were supplemented by private security hired by the Tulsa County Public Facilities Authority, which oversees operation of the fairgrounds.

But that was before the city annexed the fairgrounds Jan. 1.

After discussions with the Tulsa Police Department, Expo Square President and CEO Mark Andrus was informed last week that the police would not provide security at this year’s fair without charging a special event fee.

The Police Department will respond to 911 calls.

“We don’t provide internal security for any major function without billing the sponsor for the cost of that security,” Deputy Police Chief Dennis Larsen said last week. “We’re being consistent with what we’ve done for the last 20 years.”

But in his letter, Perry says that in discussions preceding the city’s decision to annex the fairgrounds city officials were made aware that the fair “required a high degree of law enforcement.”

“With this annexation comes the responsibility to provide adequate service to the newly annexed property,” Perry wrote.

Larsen said the city provides security without a charge for only two special events: the Veterans Day parade and the Martin Luther King Day parade.

When it comes to the hundreds of other special events, from the Tulsa Run to Dfest, the sponsor pays for police to provide internal security, he said.

Sheriff Stanley Glanz has estimated that it would cost his office about $300,000 to provide law enforcement at this year’s fair.

By KEVIN CANFIELD World Staff Writer

Copyright Tulsa World 2009. Format differs from original publication.

Tulsan teaches DNA tests to Iraqis

By NICOLE MARSHALL World Staff Writer
Published: 8/3/2009 

A Tulsa woman has returned home after spending nine months in Iraq teaching the first members of the country's national police force to conduct DNA testing.

After working at the Tulsa Police Department's lab for more than 11 years, Dr. Valerie Fuller resigned in October and left for Iraq just weeks later. She faced a lot of uncertainties, but Fuller said she was excited to be a positive part of Iraq's history.

"Saddam (Hussein) tore everything down, and then ...we had to tear a lot of things down just to get him out of there," she said.

"This is one thing where we are building something, and it was a positive thing, and I just think it will have far-reaching ramifications for a very good, positive future for their country. I feel honored to be a part of it."

At the Tulsa lab, Fuller worked by herself for several years as DNA caseloads mounted.

"I was a one-person lab for five years. That almost killed me," Fuller said. "It finally reached crisis proportions, and they hired two more people, and now they have three."

Fuller's husband, Tulsa Police Cpl. Dan Fuller, is a lieutenant colonel in the Oklahoma Army National Guard and was assigned to Iraq from January to October. It was through him that she made the contact for her new job.

Maj. Gen. Jassim Tahir Chilab, dean of Iraq's High Institute for Training, selected the students who attended the Baghdad Police College Criminal Evidence Lab program. They were unemployed chemists and biochemists before they became police officers.

The 18 officers made up the first training class for disciplines such as toxicology and DNA testing, but the Iraqi police had already been doing fingerprint and firearms examinations, Fuller said.

She didn't know what to expect as a woman teaching a group of Iraqi men, but she encountered no cultural problems, she said.

"These guys were so polite, and immediately they told me they would treat me like a sister — protect me with their lives — and they meant it," Fuller said.

"Now a lot of things...like the camaraderie we had inside the lab probably would not have been acceptable on the streets, but I could be myself inside the lab."

Her students called her "Doctora Fuller," and she got to know them as friends and colleagues.

The Baghdad Police College is in what is classified as the "red zone" because it is guarded entirely by Iraqis. Nonetheless, Fuller said she felt completely safe.

During her time there, she heard a couple of car bombs and then saw smoke and coalition helicopters overhead, but she never saw any violence firsthand, she said.

"I had to wear armor to walk into the red zone, but when we would get there, I would change into my business suit," Fuller said. "I trusted their security, and I am a scientist."

The students took risks to have the opportunity to be police officers, Fuller said. One of the chemists who lived in Sadr City would wear a mask and have his family smuggle him daily into his job as an officer.

"He was not sure that if his neighbors knew he was working with Americans what they would do to him, so these guys took great personal risks to come to this class every day," Fuller said. "All of these guys were more than happy to work for the police, because the police were part of the coalition. It is a very patriotic job to have," she said.

Fuller estimated that 70 percent of the students' fathers had been killed in the Iran-Iraq War or "because of political reasons, they just disappeared one day."

She taught the students how DNA testing could be used to solve decades-old cases, including the hundreds of missing-persons cases in the country.

Previously, "they were aware of DNA, but they thought it was something only in the movies ... that they would never have access to it," Fuller said.

Fuller said her job allowed her to see history being made. In February, the first class of about 1,000 female Iraqi police officers graduated.

"It was great," Fuller said. "They knew that they were doing something really historic, and we were there supporting them."

In addition to the 18 DNA students, six students studied blood-spatter evidence at the college, and 11 studied chemistry.

The Ministry of Interior celebrated the graduation of all 35 Iraqi police officers from the Criminal Evidence Lab course on July 2. Now they are working to set up their work sites at the three main national labs.

"Any of them would be qualified to do DNA in the states. I would hire any of them," Fuller said.

Two days before Fuller left Iraq, the school's dean asked her for a favor.

"He was so concerned and said he hopes that it was a positive experience for me," she said. "He asked me, 'Could you just go back and tell the Americans how grateful we are for all their help? We are so thankful, and you have to get this positive story out there.' "

Fuller is now working to set up a lab in the Caribbean island of St. Lucia.

Nicole Marshall 581-8459
nicole.marshall@tulsaworld.com

Copyright Tulsa World 2009. Format differs from original publication.

Tulsa Police Re-approve Furlough Days

Police officers approve furlough days again

BRIAN BARBER, Tulsa World

Tulsa’s police officers have for a second time approved a contract that includes taking eight unpaid furlough days with the rest of the city’s workforce.

The first vote earlier this month was voided because the contract version contained technical errors that made it violate federal labor laws.

Those were corrected before Monday night’s second vote, Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 93 President Phil Evans said.

Once again, it passed with more than an 80 percent of the vote, he said.

The furlough days essentially amount to a 3.1 percent cut in pay for each officer, but it was either that or see 48 fellow officers — including the 10 newest academy graduates — laid off from the 781-member force.

Tulsa firefighters also have approved a labor contract that includes the furlough days.

Source: http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=11&articleid=20090721_298_0_Tulsas812274

Format differs from original.