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11 13 15 JTF 1 The latest from the Mendota Heights Police Department CHIEF Mike Aschenbrener SERGEANTS Eric Petersen Tanner Spicer Peyton Fleming Bobby Lambert POLICE OFFICERS Jerry Murphy John Larrive Todd Rosse Jeff VonFeldt Steven Meyer Denise Urmann Michael Shepard Nick Gorgos Robin Nelson Steve Hilyar Phillip McCarty INVESTIGATIONS Chad Willson SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER Jennifer Fordham SUPPORT STAFF Kim Henning Trista Miller Lisa Brandt Becky Pentel RESERVES Randy Pentel Jim Knox Jeff Parker CHAPLAINS Butch Millett John Snider Alberto Vargas Lynn Liberman Sue Plucker Joel Detlefsen Lenny Andrie NOVEMBER 13, 2015 ORIGIN OF FRIDAY THE 13TH Legend of the origin of Friday the 13th as unlucky comes from the persecution of the Knights Templar in the 14th Century. On Friday, October 13th, 1307, King Philip IV of France, in league with Pope Clement V, ordered all Templars to be rounded up and thrown in prison. The Knights were accused of numerous crimes including heresy and treason. For two hundred years the Knights Templar had been the most dominant force in Christendom, but after their defeat at the Siege of Acre and the loss of the Holy Land, their influence began to wane. Not only were the Templar some of the first protectors, but they also founded the modern day banking system. The Templar that were captured were tortured and died very painful deaths, but legend has it that a few did avoid capture and went into hiding, bringing with them numerous artifacts of the church. Last week, The Mendota Heights Police Department lost one of its heroes. Police Officer and Reserve Captain Jerry Murphy ended his earthly watch the morning of Monday, November 2. Jerry faithfully served his city and community as a volunteer for 48 years. Had he stayed much longer, it would have required some creative tailoring of his sleeve in order to accommodate all of the hash marks for his years of service; each mark representing 3 years! Jerry will be missed, but his legacy lives on in us through the advice and wisdom he imparted to each one who had the opportunity to know this great yet humble man. Thank you to all who stopped by as he dealt with his situation on his terms, and in his way, which allowed all of us to say, “I love you, Jerry,” as well as to hear him say it back to us. What a blessing it was to help “walk our brother home” and to share what needed to be shared. Garald “Murf” Murphy April 7, 1938 - November 2, 2015 2 DAMAGE TO PROPERTY SUNDAY 08:46 HOURS Officer Phil McCarty made contact with a male who said his vehicle was parked outside a hotel and sometime overnight, someone had entered his unlocked vehicle and stole his wife’s purse containing cash and several credit cards. The credit cards have been cancelled and there are no suspects at this time. POSSESSION OF MARIJUANA SUNDAY 14:47 HOURS Sergeant Eric Petersen and Officer Phil McCarty were dispatched to a local park on a report of two people smoking marijuana from a large bong. Officers arrived and located a male and a juvenile female sitting at a picnic table under a pavilion as well as a large red bong with marijuana in it sitting on the ground in front of them. The male admitted to purchasing the marijuana from a friend but would not give any further information. The male was cited for Possession of Marijuana and the juvenile female was released to her mother. THEFT OF GAS SUNDAY 17:00 HOURS Officer Robin Nelson responded to a local gas station on a theft of gas report. Upon arrival, she was met by store employee who stated that a male pumped $22.91 worth of gas, came in to the store, patted his pockets and then stated he was unable to pay for his gas but left his MN ID and said they could keep it until he was able to come back and pay for the gas. In running the ID, it came back as a revoked status. Officer Nelson mailed the male a citation for Theft of Motor Fuel From Retailer and Driving After Revocation. STOP-ARM VIOLATION MONDAY 10:40 HOURS Officer Phil McCarty received a stop arm violation report from ISD #197. It stated that the bus was stopped at an intersection while kids were exiting the bus and a vehicle traveling south was not stopping despite the honk from the bus driver. McCarty made contact with the vehicle driver via telephone who claimed he did not see the bus as he may have been looking at something else however did hear the bus honk at him loudly. The driver was issued a citation for Bus-Fail to Stop for School Bus. PRESCRIPTION FORGERY MONDAY 10:53 HOURS Officer John Larrive responded to a local pharmacy on a report of prescription forgery. Upon arrival, he was met by complainant who stated that when she went to get her prescription filled, the pharmacist notified her that it had already been filled. She stated that she did not fill her prescription and does not know who would have done so. They were unable to gather video surveillance as the videos recycle themselves after 10 days. No suspects at this time. FOUND PROPERTY MONDAY 12:55 HOURS Officer Phil McCarty received a report on an abandoned bike at the intersection of Decorah Lane and Pueblo Lane near Friendly Hills Park. The bike was a green Road Master mountain bike. The bike was transported back to the MHPD for safekeeping. MENTAL HEALTH MONDAY 17:59 HOURS Officer Steve Hilyar responded to a local group home on a report of a missing vulnerable adult. Upon arrival, he was met by the group home supervisor who stated that the subject had ingested un-prescribed medication and took 35 times the normal dose in just 24 hours and then took off to walk to the liquor store. Sergeant Fleming located the subject walking and made contact with him. He denied overdosing on medication and said he was fine. He was unable to tell Fleming where he was and could not tell him the accurate date. HealthEast responded and the male was put on a health and welfare hold and transported to the hospital. 3 THEFT WEDNESDAY 15:18 HOURS Sergeant Eric Petersen responded to a local business on a theft report. Upon arrival, he was met by the business Loss Prevention Manager who stated that through his investigation, he determined that an employee of the business had stole over $3,400 in cash and merchandise dating back to the end of September. The employee was on scene and admitted to the theft and said he liked his job, knew it was wrong but did it to help provide for his parents who he was living with. The male was transported to Dakota County Jail for felony theft charges. DWI WEDNESDAY 17:10 HOURS Sergeants Bobby Lambert, Peyton Fleming and Officer Todd Rosse received a report of a vehicle that had driven into a pond, was occupied and sinking. It was also reported that the sole occupant had made it out and was making way to shore. Upon arrival, officers found a fully submerged vehicle in the pond and a male struggling to get to shore. Sergeant Fleming was able to remove the male with his rescue disc he threw to him. The driver, a taxi cab driver, was identified and stated he was in the process of picking up a client nearby when he drove off the parking lot, over the curb, up the grass embankment and then down into the pond. During contact with the driver, officers could smell a strong odor of alcohol coming from him. He was asked to perform field sobriety tests in which he could not, nor did he provide an ample breath test on the PBT as he placed his tongue over the mouth piece. The vehicle was removed by Dakota County Water Rescue and towed by SouthEast Towing and the male was transported to Dakota County Jail for DWI charges. TOBACCO SALE—MINOR WEDNESDAY 17:15 HOURS While conducting routine compliance checks, Officer Mike Shepard gave a volunteer juvenile instructions on attempting to purchase tobacco products. Shepard dropped off the male juvenile at a local business to attempt a tobacco purchase. A short time later, the male returned to his vehicle with a pack of Marlboro Light cigarettes. The juvenile male stated that he was asked for his identification but when he stated he did not have it, the store employee over rode the ID scanner and sold him the cigarettes anyway without asking him his date of birth or whether he was 18 years of age or not. Shepard made contact with the store employee who stated that she thought the male was “borderline” being old enough. Shepard notified her that she would be receiving a citation in the mail for Tobacco Sale to a Minor and that the employer would also be notified. ALCOHOL SALE—MINOR WEDNESDAY 17:55 HOURS While conducting routine compliance checks, Officer Mike Shepard gave a volunteer juvenile instructions on attempting to purchase alcohol products. Shepard dropped off the male juvenile at a local business to attempt a alcohol purchase. A short time later, Shepard received a text from the juvenile that he had just been served a beer and was not asked for any identification or proof of age. Shepard made contact with the employee and notified her that she would be receiving a citation in the mail for Sale of Alcohol to a Person Under 21 and that the employer would also be notified. TOBACCO SALE—MINOR WEDNESDAY 18:31 HOURS While conducting routine compliance checks, Officer Mike Shepard gave a volunteer juvenile instructions on attempting to purchase tobacco products. Shepard dropped off the male juvenile at a local business to attempt a tobacco purchase. A short time later, the male returned to his vehicle with a pack of Marlboro Light cigarettes. The juvenile male stated that he was not asked to provide identification or proof of age. Shepard made contact with the store employee and notified him that he would be receiving a citation in the mail for Tobacco Sale to a Minor and that the employer would also be notified. ALCOHOL SALE—MINOR WEDNESDAY 19:27 HOURS While conducting routine compliance checks, Officer Mike Shepard gave a volunteer juvenile instructions on attempting to purchase alcohol products. Shepard dropped off the male juvenile at a local business to attempt a alcohol purchase. A short time later, Shepard received a text from the juvenile that he had just been served a beer and was not asked for any identification or proof of age. Shepard made contact with the employee and notified him that he would be receiving a citation in the mail for Sale of Alcohol to a Person Under 21 and that the employer would also be notified. 4 11/06 - 11/12 2015 YTD Calls for Service 162 6,309 Citations 13 489 Warnings 19 630 Police Reports 22 949 Response Time Average 4.95 5.39 Check out the MH Crime Map! Click below to search your neighborhood: https://www.raidsonline.com 1101 Victoria Curve, Mendota Heights, MN 55118 If you are a Mendota Heights resident and you are going out of town or on vacation, you can notify MHPD of your outing and we will be more than happy to keep a watchful eye on your home while you are away. The House Check Request online form is available on our website; you can complete a form found in our lobby, or simply give us a call and we’ll help you out. MHPD offers monthly Car Seat Safety Checks. To schedule an appointment, call 651.452.1366 or email jennyf@mendota-heights.com to contact Officer Jennifer Fordham. MHPD has a Medication Disposal Box in the lobby of the PD where Dakota County residents can safely and anonymously dispose of their prescription drugs and over-the-counter medication. Please send us your positive feedback on our staff to: pdrecords@ mendota-heights.com Your feedback is greatly appreciated and helps boost the morale of our staff. HAVE A SAFE WEEK! STOP-ARM VIOLATIONS Stop-arm violations are a serious offense. When you see any school bus stopped, please, slow down and be aware of your surroundings. MN STATUTE 169.444 SAFETY OF SCHOOL CHILDREN; DUTIES OF OTHER DRIVERS When a school bus is stopped on a street or highway, or other location where signs have been erected and is displaying an extended stop-signal arm and flashing red lights, the driver of a vehicle approaching the bus shall stop the vehicle at least 20 feet away from the bus. The vehicle driver shall not allow the vehicle to move until the bus stop-signal arm is retracted and the red lights are no longer flashing. If you commit this crime and drive away, don’t be too sure you got away with it. Most bus drivers will write down your license plate number and vehicle description, fill out a stop-arm violation re- port, then fax it to your local police department. The PD will then try either making contact with you or, just mail the vehicle owner a citation.