Letter from the Sheriff

SAFE: Strategy, Accountability, Focus and Evaluation

This week will mark our first Crime Control meeting, a preview of the upcoming SAFE forums that will be
conducted for the benefit of the department and those we serve.

Field Operations will be the first command to participate in a Crime Control meeting, which we hope will provide a
roadmap for problem solving within the command. We will focus on four principles:

1. Accurate and timely intelligence - how is this information being used by Command Staff?

2. Effective crime fighting tactics

3. Rapid deployment of resources

4. Relentless follow-up and assessment

As many of you know, a primary objective of the SAFE Program is to improve operations; ensure policy and procedures are being written
or updated as necessary; allow input from all levels of the organization; and identify systems that require modification to support the
SAFE Program. Some of these systems include use-of-force protocols and documentation, crime trends, employee activities, and resource
deployment.

This is an exciting time for the Department, a time to recognize the fine accomplishments of the past and to build on those to make
ourselves the premier Sheriff's Department in the nation.

SANDRA HUTCHENS
Sheriff-Coroner

All OCSD Employees, Family and Friends;

On Wednesday January 28, 2009 from 7AM to 7PM, The Orange County Sheriff’s Department will be participating in the 3rd Annual “BATTLE of the BADGES” Blood Drive.  

The Battle of the Badges Blood Drive will run for two weeks from Tuesday January 20th to Tuesday February 2nd 2009, as Police and Fire Departments throughout Southern California compete in a friendly competition to see which Badge Carrying Personnel, Family and Friends can donate the most blood and ultimately save the most lives.  

So please join us and help save a life, and help Law Enforcement collect and donate the most blood.  

Thank You for your assistance,

***FREE T-shirt******In-house raffle for Gas Cards and other Prizes***FIRST 30 DONORS TO PRE-REGISTER WILL RECEIVE A $1.00 SCRATCHER FROM CALIF. LOTTERY***With Parent Permission children as young as 16 years old may donate***MUST BRING PICTURE IDENTIFICATION

To see the flyer click: battleofthebadges (3).pdf (1.03 mb)

The theft of an adorable puppy from a Stanton pet store set off of series of actions that captured the hearts of all over Southern California. It is an unusual tale that was reported in the print and broadcast press. 

The Orange County Register gave this account: 

Girlfriend gets to keep puppy her boyfriend is charged with stealing

Man stole $1,300 dog to give to his girlfriend for Christmas, authorities say.

By KIMBERLY EDDS and ADAM TOWNSEND
The Orange County Register

STANTON - It was love at first sight for the 3-month-old yellow Labrador retriever under the Christmas tree and his new owner.

What the new owner didn't know was that her boyfriend is suspected to have stolen the puppy from a Stanton pet store a few days before Christmas.

The puppy theft was caught on the store's video surveillance. The boyfriend – Ryan Rickman, 23, of Orange – was booked into county jail Tuesday night on suspicion of burglary and grand theft after he showed up at the scene of the crime and offered to pay for the dog. The puppy – Oggi – was turned in, photographed and turned over to Rickman's girlfriend after she paid for the dog in full.

For the whole store click here.

The Orange County Register reported this morning that testimony by Sheriff's forensic identification technician Sandy Abrams helped a judge order a trial for the defendant in the county's oldest cold case homicide case. There was no suspect in the case until a fingerprint from the decades old crime scene was matched by new technology to the defendant.  

1964 murder case to go to trial

Oldest cold case homicide probe – at 44 years – in O.C. history to result in arrest and prosecution.

By LARRY WELBORN
The Orange County Register

SANTA ANA – A 68-year-old Phelan man sat in a wheelchair without emotion Monday as he was ordered to stand trial on a charge that he bludgeoned and strangled a Santa Ana hotel manager nearly a half-century ago.

Superior Court Judge John D. Conley ruled after a two-day preliminary hearing that there is sufficient evidence to try Charles Edward Faith Jr. for the Feb. 16, 1964, slaying of Christine Elizabeth Vono Wariner.

It is the oldest cold-case homicide investigation – at 44 years – in Orange County history to result in an arrest and prosecution.

Senior Deputy District Attorney Larry Yellin contends that Faith, who was not a suspect in 1964, was matched to the fingerprints on Wariner's hotel door through advances in forensic technology.

On Monday, Sandy Abrams, a forensic identification technician for the Orange County Sheriff's Department, testified that in February 2002 she matched two bloody fingerprints left on the door of Wariner's room to Faith.

To read the entire story click here. 

Alice Chandler received a Deputy Sheriff's Badge from Sheriff James Musick in 1949 and was told she was a deputy. She may have been a Special Deputy, records are vague, but she was given an Deputy Sheriff's Badge. She returned it last year on her 80th birthday, along with the .32 caliber pistol she carried while guarding Irvine Ranch property on horseback. She cae to a Divison Commander's meeting with her gear to be returned shortly after Sheriff Sandra Hutchens took office.

To see a feature on Alice Chandler published in the Trabuco Canyon News click: Trabuco Cyn News Scan001 (2).pdf (786.17 kb)

To see the Department Blog story on her returning her badge click here.

The Office of Independent Review is completing its fourth month of providing full-time, independent civilian oversight of the Sheriff’s Department. 

OIR is led by Stephen J. Connolly, an attorney with several years experience as a consultant and monitor for law enforcement.  

“I am grateful for the reception I’ve gotten at all levels of the Department,” he said recently.  “I’m impressed with how helpful people have been about sharing information and answering questions.  And there’s been a very cooperative spirit as far as considering my input and trying new approaches.”

Connolly’s primary role is to monitor all complaint cases and critical incidents from beginning to end.  He works closely with Internal Affairs personnel and Department executives in tracking investigations and offering recommendations about outcomes. 

In the coming months, Connolly is expected to provide public reports about his initial observations and activities. 

“The goal is to make the Department more transparent and understandable to the public,” he explained.  “The Department isn’t perfect. But when it deals with its problems appropriately and effectively, then I think people are more accepting.”

OIR also recently expanded with the hiring of John W. Harris as an “Investigations Analyst.” 

Harris is a longtime resident of Orange County and a 36-year veteran of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department; he was a sergeant at the time of his retirement in March of 2008.

Harris will contribute to the monitoring process from his perspective as a veteran officer and experienced investigator.  He spent six years in the Internal Affairs Bureau, and was assigned to LASD’s Force/Shooting Roll-Out team.  He had lead investigative responsibilities for the internal review of dozens of shootings, significant force cases, and misconduct allegations.  Along with a familiarity with the OIR model, Harris also has considerable knowledge about force policies, training, and the Peace Officer Bill of Rights. 

Prior to serving with Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Harris spent two tours in Vietnam with the United States Army. His was initially assigned to the Military Police before being reassigned the Army Criminal Investigation Division (C.I.D.).  

Harris holds numerous certificates from the California Commission on Peace Officers Standards & Training (P.O.S.T.) and obtained an Associate of Arts Degree from Rio Hondo College in Administration of Justice. 

“I am pleased that John was willing and available to join OIR,” said Connolly.  “I really respect his insights and his expertise, but he also understands the importance of listening and getting the whole story.  I think he will develop constructive relationships inside the Department and with the public as well.”