Police-Scanner.info’s Scanner Blog

The Police-Scanner.info Scanner Blog is back on a new domain!

The new domain address is:

www.PoliceScannerBlog.com

The contents on this blog here will remain for archival purposes.

04/21/09, 8:26PM PT - The following article highlights the long time and recently growing problem involving off-duty police officer getting into trouble or altercations while drinking and carrying their off-duty firearms. Although the article focuses on the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s department, the problem is nationwide. 

Several weeks ago I heard a call over the scanner about a male that was seen with a gun at a local bar & grill. The suspect, accompanied by a another male and two females, was seen placing a gun into the purse of one of the females. When responding officers made contact with the suspect, he identified himself as an off-duty LAPD officer. According to radio traffic, the off-duty officer was HBD (Has Been Drinking) and became extremely irate and combative with the officers and was subsequently arrested for drunk in public.

Now, that said, it’s always been common practice for an officer to give “professional courtesy” or “overlook” an off-duty officer’s “miss-behaving” while drinking or even while driving so this guy must have really pissed off officers . We civilians would call this “special treatment,” a practice that looks to soon be over. 

+ Alcohol a Growing Problem in the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department, Report Says - 4/16/09
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-sheriffs-misconduct16-2009apr16,3,7060796.story

Liquor-related arrests of department employees have nearly tripled since 2004, watchdog agency finds. Baca and unions are at odds on new policy barring drunk deputies from carrying guns.

There has been a dramatic upswing in the number of Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies arrested for alcohol-related offenses in recent years, suggesting a growing drinking problem within the department, a county watchdog agency reported Wednesday.

Last year, 70 sworn and civilian employees of the Sheriff’s Department were arrested. The majority of those arrests involved employees driving off-duty while under the influence of alcohol, according to an annual report produced by the county Office of Independent Review. In many cases, drunk deputies were carrying firearms at the time of their arrests.

Michael Gennaco, the head of the office, said alcohol-related arrests have nearly tripled since 2004. Alcohol-related incidents in 2009 are at the same pace as last year, he said. In one case last year, an off-duty deputy who drank heavily at a New Year’s party inadvertently shot his cousin in the lower abdomen while showing off his new holster.

“From one point of view, this incident was a fluke, an accident that could have been much worse if the bullet had struck a vital area,” Gennaco wrote in his report. “But the investigation of the incident made it clear that the event would likely not have happened if either the deputy had not been intoxicated or he had not had his firearm on him.”

As a result of that incident, Sheriff Lee Baca sought to implement one of the nation’s toughest policies barring deputies from carrying firearms while under the influence of alcohol. The unions have opposed the policy, saying that it would endanger deputies. The matter is now with the county’s employee relations commission.

Gennaco’s report also cited two cases in which deputies drew their guns after coming out of bars. In one case, a deputy followed a bar hostess to her car, flashed his badge, told her he’d “like to molest her” and kissed her on the neck. He displayed his handgun before kissing her again, according to the report. The deputy pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of disturbing the peace and was suspended for 15 days, the report said.

In the other case, an intoxicated deputy got into an argument with bar patrons and waved his handgun to prove he was an officer, the report stated. That deputy received a “significant suspension,” according to the report.

Gennaco said the department, which in the past had been reluctant to talk about alcohol abuse with its employees, has recently taken steps to educate them about the problem.

For example, Undersheriff Larry Waldie now e-mails employees, describing the conduct of deputies involved in alcohol-related arrests, Gennaco said. In one e-mail, Waldie revealed that a nine-year veteran was arrested for driving under the influence after being involved in a traffic collision. The deputy went into a “long tirade of verbal abuse and profanity toward police officers,” Waldie said. The deputy’s companion, who was also a deputy, was arrested for being drunk in public. That deputy was vomiting at the scene and paramedics feared he had alcohol poisoning, according to the report.

In the past, Gennaco said, officers may have overlooked the transgressions of a colleague who drank too much and got into trouble. But today, law enforcement attitudes toward excessive drinking have changed, he said.

“The era of professional courtesy is over. In the old days officers from other departments would stop a drunk deputy’s car and as courtesy drive them home. That has gone away, and I am not sure all deputies understand that,” he said. “In a lot of cases the stopping officer now reports the deputy is angry they are not being given special treatment.”

Baca acknowledged Wednesday that the number of alcohol-related arrests indicated that some deputies have a drinking problem.

“This is a personal failure that has public consequences,” Baca said. “I don’t know how they can look anyone from Mothers Against Drunk Driving in the face.”

Gennaco’s report praised the department for improving its policies on the use of stun guns and on removing an unruly inmate from a jail cell. The reforms followed a February 2007 incident in which a deputy stunned an inmate who was standing on top of a bunk bed in his cell. The inmate fell to the floor and was left paralyzed from the chest down.

Gennaco’s report, however, expressed concern that deputies in field assignments were being transferred to work in the jails as a punishment for misconduct.

This article appears courtesy of LATimes.com

RELATED ARTCLES:

+ More Los Angeles Sheriff’s deputies arrested in alcohol cases - 4/16/09
http://www.sgvtribune.com/ci_12154412

+ L.A. County sheriff’s deputies are told to unwind unarmed - 4/20/09
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-sheriff20-2009apr20,0,1317642.story

12/15/08, 9:20PM PST - It is with great sadness that another officer has been added to the Officer Down Memorial Page that I featured on my previous post the other day. A California Highway Patrol Officer was struck and killed early this morning while directing traffic at the scene of an accident on a freeway during heavy rain. I gotta say, having several family members and friends in law enforcement, it always strike close to home for me when I hear about an officer killed in the line of duty. 

This one even more so as I heard the call go out over my scanner while working on updates for Police-Scanner.info. The call went out as a “vehicle vs. pedestrian” and was quickly updated to “CHP Officer Struck by Vehicle” which gave me a deep chill down my spine and an empty feeling inside. 

The officer was identified as Joseph Sanders, 29, who had been with the CHP for 14 months. He is survived by an expectant wife and three young children.

Related Links:

+  Officer Down Memorial Page: Officer Joseph Sanders

+ Scanner Audio Recording of Event
Pt.1 (5:21,629K) - Pt.2 (5:26, 639K)
Note About Recording: The audio picks up after the call has already gone out and units are rolling “Code-3″ (lights & siren) to the scene. Also, the audio quality is kind of scratchy and a bit high pitched as I had to record from my handheld scanner. 

+ NBC4LA: Officials Identify CHP Officer Struck, Killed by Motorist

+ California Highway Patrol (CHP) Website
http://www.chp.ca.gov/index.html

12/12/08, 6:05AM - As the year comes to an end, I would like to take this time to remind you all to visit the Officer Down Memorial Page and remember the 125 Officers Killed in the Line of Duty in 2008 (as of 12/11/08). Unfortunately, this number will rise as there is still twenty days left in 2008.

The Officer Down Memorial Page, Inc., (ODMP) is a non-profit organization dedicated to honoring America’s fallen law enforcement heroes. More than 19,000 officers have made the ultimate sacrifice in the United States and it is with great honor that the ODMP pays a lasting tribute to each of these officers by preserving their memories within its pages.

All who visit the ODMP will be deeply moved by the countless stories of selfless courage and heroism exhibited by officers who lost their lives while serving and protecting the citizens of this great nation.

2008 Line of Duty Deaths (LODD) By the Numbers:
(as of 12/11/08)

+ Top-3 Line of Duty Death by Cause: 

38 - LODD by Automobile Accident
35 - LODD by Gunfire
11 - LODD by Vehicular Assault

+ Top-3 Line of Duty Deaths by Month:

19 - LODD in September
14 - LODD in January, June, August, & October
12 - LODD in November

+ Top-3 Line of Duty Deaths by State

13 - LODD in Texas
10 - LODD in California
 8  - LODD in Florida

+ More By the Numbers:

11 - Number of Average Tour of Duty Years
39 - Number of Average Officer’s Age
14 - Number of Female Officers Killed in the Line of Duty
 1  - Number of “911 Related Illness” Deaths (new entry added this year)

 
Officer Down Memorial Page - http://www.odmp.org/

Related Links:

+ National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund

09/13/08, 10:30PM PT - UPDATE: Recovery efforts have ceased as all passenger have been accounted for. There were 25 people killed (including an off-duty LAPD Officer), 135 injured and 45 in critical condition. According to a Metrolink spokesman, the appreant cause of the crash is “Engineer’s Error” as it is believed that the Engineer was sending text messages and may have ran a red signal. This is my last update on this event. For updated information, video, photo galleries and more, see the links below:

+ KNBC4LA.com - Complete Coverage

+ Yahoo! Photo Slide Show (100+ pics)

+ Metrolink Annoucements

09/12/08, 5:44PM PT - A Metrolink passenger train has collided head-on into a freight train. Several people have been killed and dozens injured. I been watching this live since just after the call came out on my scanner around 4:23PM PT. There are hundreds of firefighter and police officers on scene and extrication on victims is ongoing as I write this. Click the links below (scroll down) for live video streams:

+ ABC7.com Live Video Stream  

+ KCAL9.com Live Video Stream

+ KNBC4 Live Video Stream 

*Photo courtesy of CBS2.com

09/12/08, 11:52AM PT - Latest NOAA Weather Advisory states that if you stay in Galveston to ride out Ike, you risk “certain death”! Yikes, you would not have to tell me twice! Anyway, I have added numerous live scanner feeds, webcams, and video feeds below in the original post under “links of interest” (scroll down).    

09/11/08, 2:12PM PT - Just seen on CNN: Hurricane Ike’s trajectory has changed in a northerly direction and now looks like it will make landfall in Galveston, TX and slam the Houston metro area shortly after that. Still gathering live feeds and webcams, check back later this evening…    

09/11/08, 12:07PM PT - Hurricane Gustav is just a memory for those of us not living in the affected area, but for those living in the affected area, they are still dealing with the aftermath of destruction caused by Gustav. Although Gustav was not the “Storm of the Century” as Mayor Ray Nagin predicted, it did leave a path of destruction typical of a Category-2 Hurricane. Even though the levees held, Hurricane Gustav’s damage is expected to cost up to $7 billion, $65 million alone just for evacuating nearly two-million residents out of Louisiana and $372 million so far in agricultural damage. At the time of this writing there were still more than 140,000 homes still without power and the power company says that it may take up to several more weeks to get power completely restored. That sucks!

FAST-FORWARD to today and now we have HURRICANE IKE (currently a Category-2 w/100+mph winds), which just finished pounding Cuba and the Caribbean is currently in the Gulf heading for a landfall strike along the Texas coastline, most likely Corpus Christi, sometime in the early hours of Saturday morning. 

Hurricane Ike Projected Path / National Hurricane Center

Ike is predicted to be a Category-3 or 4 at landfall. Texas has declared a state of emergency and mandatory evacuations are under way along the Texas gulf coast in what will is the first mass-evacuation in South Texas history with an estimated one-million people being relocated.

Ike has already killed an estimated 81 people in it’s wake after pounding Haiti (75 deaths), the Dominican Republic (1 deaths) and Cuba (5 deaths). This does not look good for the Texas coast line. I will be updating this page with live scanner feeds and webcams from the affected area so stay tuned!   

IF YOU HAVE A SCANNER, MONITOR YOUR LOCAL PUBLIC SAFETY FREQUENCIES AND/OR THE WEATHER FREQUENCIES AT THE LINK BELOW FOR THE LATEST WEATHER ADVISORIES! IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A SCANNER, MONITOR YOUR LOCAL TV OR NEWS RADIO FOR THE LATEST NEWS AND/OR ADVISORIES! Make sure you have extra batteries for your portable scanner or portable radio. 

For preparedness information see: Police Scanners & Emergency Preparedness and NOAA Weather Service & SKYWARN Severe Weather Frequencies

 Links of Interest: 

——————————————————-
Hurricane Ike Information
——————————————————-

+ Hurricane Ike Latest Public Advisory

+ National Hurricane Center - Hurricane Ike

+ Live Radar Loop for Southeast Texas 

+ NOAA National Hurricane Center 

+ Hurricane Ike Interactive Trajectory Map

+ Hurricane Ike Wiki

+ National Weather Service (NWS)

+ US Doppler Radar Sites

+ Weather Channel Online

+ Intellicast Weather

+ AccuWeather.com 

——————————————————-
Live Scanner Feeds
——————————————————-

+ Texas - Galveston Police & Fire Live Scanner Feed
Note: Would not work with WinMedia, but worked fine with WinAmp. includes Amateur Radio.

+ Texas - Houston Fire Department Scanner Feed 
Note: Would not work with WinMedia, but worked fine with WinAmp.

+ Texas - Dallas/Fort Worth Police & Fire Scanner Feed  

+ Texas - Killeen & Fort Hood Police & Fire Scanner Feed 
(Approx. 212 miles NW of Galveston, TX)

+ Texas - SKYWARN Hurricane Net

——————————————————-
Live Web Cam Feeds
——————————————————-  

+ LiveNewsCameras.com - Up to 12 Live News Video Feed on One Page

+ MyFoxHouston - Live Streaming News Videos in the Houston Area

+ KHOU TV Live News Video & Updates

+ KTRH 740 AM News Radio Live Stream

+ ABC 13 Live Streaming Video

+ Evacuation Route: IH-10 @ SH-71 in Columbus, Texas       

09/07/08, 11:09PM PT - Hello everyone. Here are some interesting news articles that I recently came across involving police scanners:

+ Man sentenced to 75 hours community service for having police scanner
The director of a church-security ministry in Virginia says he was treated unfairly by the Tallahassee Police Department when he was arrested three months ago on misdemeanor charges of having a police scanner and blue lights installed in his car.
Read full story…

+ 32 federally-funded computers head for Bay County patrol cars
A once-indispensable tool of police on patrol may soon be a relic of the past. With laptop computers rapidly gaining in popularity, the old-fashioned police radio may soon go the way of the horse-drawn paddywagon.  That’s bad news for folks who love listening to police scanners at home, but good news for law enforcement. 
Read full story…

+ EPD sees largest cocaine bust in its history
During a search of a home police recovered a stolen handgun taken in a 2001 burglary, several hundred rounds of ammunition, digital scales and a police scanner. 
Read full story…

+ Two arrested, pit bull killed during drug raid 
During a search of a home, police found marijuana, drug paraphernalia, a shotgun and rifle, a police scanner and cash. One man was arrested on suspicion of possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and use of a police scanner during the commission of a felony.
Read full story…

+ Lakewood police suspect impersonator made stops
Police arrested a man with a gun, handcuffs, badges in a vehicle equipped with flashing lights, police scanner and public address system.
Read full story…

+ Spitz: Cops speak their own language
The GOA fox didn’t make the cut. Neither did the DK in need of a good PC. Or the female party who was sectioned. That’s the way it goes with police scanner talk.
Read full story…

09/01/08, 1:40PM PT - Good news! Looks like New Orleans escaped a direct hit by Gustav as the hurricane, now downgraded to a Cat-1, veered to the west of New Orleans. Althought Louisiana is not out of the woods yet, so to speak, the worst seems to be over and the levees appear to have held up to the storm surge. That said, this will be my last update to this page unless something major occurrs.    

09/01/08, 3:47AM PT - So, I’m sitting here in Southern California working on my site, watching live coverage on CNN, MSNBC, the Weather Channel and listening to the live feed of the Louisiana Statewide EOC (Emer. Ops. Center) Comms and I just heard the command post let field units that they just lost power and the generator kicked on but then kicked off and that they are on back-up UPS power and don’t know how long they can stay operational. Hear the EOC comms yourself by following the links on the following page:

+ Cat-4 Hurricane Gustav vs. Louisiana

Also, MSNBC News is reporting a tornado on the ground North of Gulfport, MS moving West at 70mpr…more to follow…   

~ Scroll down for Live Scanner Feeds & Webcams ~ 

Just days after the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina (8/29), one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history, once again Louisiana (& New Orleans) is in the crosshairs of yet another major hurricane as Category 4 Gustav heads for US after pounding Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Cuba. Hurricane Gustav is predicted to remain a Category-4, possibly Cat-5 hurricane when it slams into the Gulf Coast of Louisiana on Monday morning around 11:00AM.

Both Louisiana and Mississippi have declared a state of emergency and mandatory evacuations are already under way in Louisiana. Gustav already has killed 85 people in it’s wake after pounding Haiti (66 deaths), the Dominican Republic (8 deaths), Jamaica (11 deaths) and Cuba (unknown number of deaths).

Links of Interest:

—————————————
Live Scanner Feeds
—————————————

+ New Orleans PD, Fire, EMS, Public Safety Feed - WinAmp Required
http://www.radioreference.com:8000/nola_ps.mp3.m3u

+ Louisiana Statewide EOC (Emer. Ops. Center) Operations - WinAmp Required
http://www.radioreference.com:8000/nola.mp3.m3u

+ NOLA Police Streamed on Ustream
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/hurricane-gustav-communications—new-orleans

+ Mississippi Public Broadcasting Online Live Feed
http://www.mpbonline.org/

+ WWL-AM870/FM105.3 Audio Feed Radio Broadcast for Louisiana
http://www.wwl.com/

—————————————
Live Web Cam Feeds
—————————————

NOLA.com Camera Central
Several Webcam feeds from New Orleans
http://www.nola.com/bourbocam/

+ Bourbon Street Live Cam
http://www.icorp.net/carnival/live.html

+ LiveNewsCamera.com
Here you will find live video feeds of several news channels in the Gulf coast area.
http://www.livenewscameras.com/map.html

+ WebCamPlaza.net Hurricane Webcam List
A list of many webcams which are streaming video in the areas affected by the hurricane.
http://www.webcamplaza.net/cams/hurricane1.html

+ Gustav Live Video Coverage
Here you will find live video feeds of four tv news stations (WGNO, WWLTV, WDSU and WVUE) from the New Orleans area.
http://www.maroonspoon.com/wx/gustav.html

+ WWLTV.com Video Feed from New Orleans Area
http://www.wwltv.com/video/?nvid=57429&live=yes

+ WDSU Live Video Feed from New Orleans Area
http://www.wdsu.com/index.html

+ KALB NBC Video Feed
Video feed from Alexandria, LA
http://www.kalb.com/

+ WBRZ Video Feed
Video feed from Baton Rouge, LA
http://www.2theadvocate.com/wbrz/videos/live/27725044.html

+ ABC 33/40 Birmingham
Live News Video from Birmingham, Alabama
http://www.abc3340.com/

+ WKRG News 5 Mobile
Live News Video from Mobile, Alabama
http://wkrg.com/

+ Fox10 TV Mobile
Live News Video from Mobile, Alabama
http://www.fox10tv.com/

—————————————
Hurricane Information
—————————————

+ Live Radar Loop for New Orleans, LA http://www.intellicast.com/National/Radar/Current.aspx?location=USLA0338&enlarge=true&animate=true

+ National Hurricane Center
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/

+ National Hurricane Center - Hurricane GUSTAV
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/graphics_at2.shtml?5day#contents

+ Hurricane Gustav Interactive Map
http://www.stormpulse.com/

+ Yahoo! Full Coverage - Hurricane Gustav
http://news.yahoo.com/topics/hurricane-gustav

+ Hurricane Gustav Wiki
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Gustav_(2008)

+ Police Scanners & Emergency Preparedness
http://www.police-scanner.info/emergency-preparedness/

I’M BACK! Hello to all my faithful visitors and new arrivers. I hope my return finds all of you safe and healthy. It’s been awhile since this site was updated, five months to be exact! Let me start by saying that I was not sure if I was gonna continue updating this site or just leave it up as a archived relic. After many months of contemplating the decision to end this site because of the many factors in play, to which I will spare you the details (no, I was not in jail), I have decided to not only keep this site (my pride and joy) alive, but to expand it. 

That said, there are some great things to come in mid-September and early October. This includes a huge Bulletin Board Discussion Forum for police scanner and public safety scanning topics. There will also be a “Police Scanning Community” page that will include Police Scanner Yahoo Groups!, Police Scanner Newsgroups, Police Scanner Webrings, Police Scanner Magazines, Regional Scanner Meeting Clubs, Police Scanner Repair Services, Scanning-related Books and more! 

In addition, this scanner blog with be updated on a regular basis with scanner-related articles, news, and other police scanner-related information and topics, the way I originally intended. So stick around cause there is much more to come!

That’s it for now, as always, stay safe!

Ruben Flores
Your “happy to be back!” Webmaster

This past weekend, I came across a blog on the Los Angeles Times Website that, well, is very sad to say the least. The blog, “the Homicide Report”, lists a running archive of all murders that occurr to-date here in Los Angeles County, CA. WOW! I know that all these murders go on and have even heard many of them over the scanner, but just reading about them is so sad. And it’s not just Los Angeles, it’s happening all over the United States - the senseless killing of another human. This when the murder rate in Los Angeles is supposedly down by almost 50%. Huh? 

+ LATimes: The Homicide Report
This the coroner’s official weekly list, combined with information from law enforcement. Homicides reported in 
previous days are updated here, and archived.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/homicidereport/

+ U.S. Dept. of Justice - Bureau of Crime Statistics
Statistics about - Crime and victims, Drugs and crime, Criminal offenders, The justice system in the United States, Law enforcement, Prosecution and more.
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/

 
Nobody Pays List Price Anymore, Why Should You!

 Well, unless you live on another planet, you may already know that we here in SoCal are burning up. There are 17 active brush/wildfires raging here in the Southland (see links below) and my scanner has been going crazy with activity. Everything was fine until the fierce Santa Ana winds kicked up on Saturday afternoon. All hell broke loose after that.

Here is a partial list of some of the bigger fires:

+ Malibu Fire - “Canyon IC” (Los Angeles County)
+ Stevenson Ranch Fire - “Magic IC” (Los Angeles County)
+ Grass Valley Fire - Also called the “Slide Fire” (San Bernardino County)
+ Lake Arrowhead Fire (San Bernardino County)
+ Cajon Fire (San Bernardino County)
+ Piru Fire (Ventura County)
+ Santiago Fire (Orange County) 

For those of you here in Southern California, I have included some frequency information below. There are also links to live audio feeds for a couple of the fires above.

————————————————–
INCIDENT FREQUENCY INFORMATION:
————————————————–

+ Stevenson Ranch Fire Communications Plan - (”Magic Incident” or “Magic IC”) - Near Magic Mountain Theme Park

Los Angeles County Fire Frequencies:

470.5125 - Command (”Blue-4″)
153.8300 - Fireground Tactical (”Tac 20″)
159.0900 - Fireground Tactical (”Tac 22″)
154.4000 - Air-to-Ground (”Tac 19″)
470.6625 - Dozer/Crew Net (”Blue 5″)

————————————————– ADDITIONAL SCANNER FREQUENCIES FOR SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FIRES

119.975 Air to Air
122.925 CSF Secondary
123.975 Air Attack Base
128.475 Or. Co. Air Attack
130.200 Air Tactics 2
135.975 L.A. Co. Air Attack
136.400 Air to Air
151.220 CDF Air/Ground
151.265 CDF Command 2
151.280 CDF Air Tactics 4
151.295 CDF Air Tactics 5
151.340 CDF Command 3
151.355 CDF Command 1
154.265 White 2
154.280 White 1
154.400 Air to Ground
166.5625 South Ops input to 164.9125 link w/415.525
167.950 BLM
168.200 NIFC T2
168.625 Airguard simulcast on 415.55
169.150 Air tactics 2
169.200 Air tactics 3
170.000 US Forest service Air/Ground
415.550 Airguard simulcast on 168.625————————————————-

+ PHOTOS: NASA Satellite Photos of Fires in Southern California
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/natural_hazards_v2.php3?img_id=11799 + INFORMATION: Southern California Fire Report (List of all active fires)
http://www.calfires.com/+ INFORMATION: Incident Information Page
http://inciweb.org/

As many of you already know, I have several relatives and friends in law enforcement; my cousin Joel (LAPD), my brother-in-law John (San Bernardino Co. Sheriff), my cousin’s husband Manual (CA State Corrections), and my future son-in-law Miguel (San Bernardino Co. Sheriff) - to name a few. 

Last week, I emailed my cousin Joel and jokingly told him that I thought I seen him on TV during the clash between LAPD and a crowd at an immigration rally that turned violent - this knowing that that was not his patrol area. He then replied that at the time he was working a fatal crash involving a undercover sheriff’s deputy in North Hollywood. A teen driving under the influence slammed into a van parked on the side of the street. It turns out that the van was part of a L.A. County Sheriff’s Department surveillance operation involving the major crimes unit.  Joel was the first officer to arrive on the scene and after taking the driver into custody, realized that the van’s engine was running. He went over to shut the van off and upon opening the door discovered the fatally injured deputy.

Deputy Raul Gama, a 20-year veteran of the LA Sheriff’s Department and father of four young children was buried today. The funeral mass was held in Chino Hills (SBCO) across the street from the Chino Hill’s Sheriff Station (my brother-in-law’s patrol station) - it’s a small world indeed…

Links of Interest:

+ Sheriff’s Deputy on Stakeout Killed When Car Hits His Vehicle

+ Funeral Held for Fallen L.A. County Deputy (Story & Video)

+ Officer Down Memorial Page - Deputy Sheriff Raul V. Gama

A half-mile wide struck tornado overnight in Greensburg, Kansas (Pop. 1,600+) literally leveling the town. I’m watching the video coming in over CNN & MSNBC and the damage is just devastating. The death count is at seven, but it is unfortunately going to rise. City official says the entire town has been evacuated and that about 90 percent of Greensburg is heavily damaged or destroyed. Read more below:

+ Deadly twister flattens Kansas town
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WEATHER/05/05/severe.weather/index.html

People looking for friends or family members from Greensburg should call the American Red Cross in Pratt, Kansas, at 620-672-3651, according to Greensburg City Administrator Steve Hewitt.

If you are experiencing severe weather conditions in your local area, see our Severe Weather Scanning page for National Weather Service frequencies, National SKYWARN information, and links to online weather resources. 

+ Severe Weather Scanning Page - Police-Scanner.info
http://www.police-scanner.info/emergency-preparedness/scanner-preparedness/severe-weather-scanning.htm

And more importantly, be prepared! See our emergency preparedness page for more information:

+ Police Scanners & Emergency Preparedness - Police-Scanner.info
http://www.police-scanner.info/emergency-preparedness/ 

PoliceScanners4Less.com

Find the Right Scanner, Right Price, Right Now!

Ah yes…we had another wild televised pursuit here in Los Angeles County. LAPD chased this nut in a stolen car around the city for almost two hours. Most of the time it was a slow-speed chase, but it did get wild at time as he rode around on rims because of being “spike-stripped”. As usual, we had a choice of TV channels to watch including; KCBS-2, KABC-7, KCAL-9, and KTTV-11. I watched the pursuit, often switching channels, with the volume muted while listening to the play-by-play on my scanner over LAPD’s Citywide TAC-3 frequency. Check out the links below for the complete story and video:

• CBS2 News: “Police Nab Half-Naked Suspect After Chase Downtown“

While on the subject of police pursuits, I previously mentioned in the current audio recording that Los Angeles is the pursuit capital of the world. On average we get 1-2 or more televised pursuits per week - and that’s just televised pursuits. In reality, there are dozen’s of pursuits that take place throughout Los Angeles County on any given day.

Here are some police pursuit stats:

• In 2001, there were 781 chases in Los Angeles-more than in any other city in the nation. Dallas, for instance, had 424. (Webmaster’s Note: If you include all areas of Los Angeles County, the number of pursuits is probably around 2,000+!)
• One of five chases typically ends in a crash.
• In 2001 alone, 365 people died nationwide, including 140 who were not in a police car or the vehicle being chased.
• More than 3,000 people have been killed in police pursuits in the past decade, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Source: US World News Article: “And the Chase Is Off“

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So much for updating this blog every couple of days…

Sorry. I’m trying to get used to remembering that I run this blog now. I’m still trying to catch up on updating the audio page on PSI. I been busy with PoliceScanners4Less, trying to get that site running smoothly. It’s just me running all three sites and being a single father with three teenage daughters does not help…  

Anyway, I’ve decided to delay the audio update on PSI until May 1st. I’ll keep you posted.

Items of Interest: 

In all my years of listening to police and fire communications, there have been several occasions where I have heard a call involving a family member or friend - fotunately nothing serious. This one has got to be one of the worst things to hear on a scanner - a mother hears a fatal accident over the scanner involving her son:

+ “Four teens are killed in Leicester car crash”
http://shorterlink.com/?GXE1D2

Regarding the tragic shootings at Virgina Tech last week, some students learned there was a gunman on the loose over a police scanner that someone had before the school put out warnings:
 
+ “Killen resident on Tech campus during shooting”
http://shorterlink.com/?K7Z6MK

And finally, an amendment to Michigan state law MCL750.508 regarding mobile scanner use. The amendment removes the penalty for having a scanner equipped in a vehicle, but making it illegal to commit a crime while in possession of a scanner. According to the ECPA of 1986, it is already illegal to use a scanner to commit a crime. This bill establish enhanced criminal penalties for a person who uses a scanner in the commission of a crime. 

+ “2005 House Bill 4544 (Enhanced penalty if police scanner used in crime)”
http://www.michiganvotes.org/2005-HB-4544

More information and resources on scanner laws can be found at:

+ Police Scanners & the Law
http://www.police-scanner.info/scanning/police-scanner-laws.htm

That’s it for now, type to you soon. As always, stay safe and happy scanning!

-RF

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Hello everyone! Welcome to Police-Scanner.info’s Scanner Blog! I am Ruben Flores, Police-Scanner.info’s Webmaster. Here is where I will regularly post articles, news, and other police scanner-related information and topics - even my own rants. I hope to update this page every few days or as events dictates.

In other stuff, I just got my first digital scanner, the BCD396T, a couple of weeks ago and must say I very happy with the scanner, but not too fond of digital radio transmissions. Digital is supposed to be crisp and clear. I personally do not think so. I have been recording some digital scanner audio files and will put them up this weekend so you can hear for yourself.

Below are a couple of interesting articles I recently found:

+ “Crash biker had drugs in undies, helmet scanner“

+ “Sound of scanner yields pot, $30,000“

This one was not scanner-related, but was an interesting read:

+ “Dozens Arrested For Posing As Police“

and don’t forget to visit our official scanner sales site for great deals on police scanners: 

PoliceScanners4Less.com

Well, that’s all for now - type to you in a couple of days…