December 2013

Newsletter Publication of the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office

As the holiday season appraoches, many people are spending time shopping and visiting with friends and family members.  This issue includes some important safety tips to keep in mind while shopping at the local malls and or when out with young children. 

I welcome your suggestions, photos and story ideas for upcoming issues. Send me an email anytime.

Enjoy the holidays, and may your New Year be filled with peace, good health and prosperity. 

VINCENT  F. DeMARCO
Suffolk County Sheriff

Most people don’t realize the extent of gang activity in Suffolk County, and the fact that one of the most highly trained and effective gang units in the State of New York operates out of the Suffolk County Correctional Facility.

The annual Gang Intelligence Seminar was recently hosted by the Sheriff's Office at the Upsky Long Island Hotel in Smithtown in conjunction with the Middle Atlantic-Great Lakes Organized Crime Law Enforcement Network.  This marked the 7th year the conference has been held and featured presentations by experts in criminal street gangs on a range of topics including gang interdiction and investigations, strategies for gathering gang intelligence and social network investigations. The event is attended by hundreds of law enforcement personnel from across the country. Approximately 330 people attended this year's forum.

Inmate work crews were dispatched to help renovate Brendan House, a planned home on Sound Avenue in Riverhead for individuals with brain injuries and other cognitive issues.  The project is being spearheaded by the non-profit organization New Beginnings Community Center for Brain Injury, Inc. of Medford and will accommodate up to 12 residents at a time. 

“There are very few places in Suffolk County for individuals with traumatic brain injuries to find specialized residential medical care, and this is especially true for young people with this affliction.  I am pleased to be able to have our skilled inmates help renovate this home to alleviate some of the expense of launching this worthy project,” stated Sheriff DeMarco.

The inmates participating on the work crews are considered low-risk offenders and assist in the community under supervision by Correction Officers and Deputy Sheriffs. The work done by these inmate crews provides a public benefit, assists in correctional rehabilitation and offers a way for individuals who committed crimes to give something back to our communities.

The Caron Legal Professional/Uniformed Public Service Award recognizes an individual who has done an outstanding job in either the legal or public service fields by combating the fight against chemical dependency through due process of the law, prevention and education. Suffolk County Sheriff Vincent F. DeMarco was recently selected to receive this award. He was nominated for the award by Dr. Jeffrey Reynolds, the Executive Director of the Long Island Council on Drug and Alcoholism.

During the award ceremony at Adelphi University, Sheriff DeMarco thanked the Caron Center and Dr. Reynolds for their support, and stated “Our success is a credit to the many officers, community groups and volunteers who help us reach hundreds of young people each year with our prevention and rehabilitation initiatives.”

Sheriff DeMarco has devoted significant resources to helping combat teen drug use through  prevention programs, such as “Test, Don’t Guess” and the “S.T.O.P.P.E.D. Program,” as well as by connecting criminally drug-involved youth to appropriate treatment programs during and following a period of incarceration.

The Sheriff’s Office maintains a list of its specialized prevention programs on its website at www.suffolksheriff.com. Many of these programs are available to community groups, schools and for public events.

Correction Officer Julius Nelson, Deputy Sheriff Thomas Indence, and Correction Officer Everett Oliver visited Cub Scout Pack 1439 in Ronkonkoma along with McGruff the Crime Dog. The scouts watched two short McGruff specials about bullying, learned about bike safety, and then had a presentation on the law enforcement equipment the officers carry. Everyone was able to shake hands and take pictures with McGruff before going home. 

A standard request for an accident report takes about 7-10 days to process, and vehicle owners must wait to start the insurance process. However, the Sheriff's Office recently announced a new partnership with GetCrashReports.com  to provide online access to vehicular accident reports generated by Suffolk County Deputy Sheriffs.  Most accident reports will now be available online within 72 hours of a crash, except for fatal crashes and accidents under investigation. A $5.00 convenience fee will be charged when obtaining crash reports online.

Walk-in public records requests will still be accepted for the general public at the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office, Police Records Section, located at 360 Yaphank Avenue, Yaphank NY 11980.  Accident reports involving fatalities will only be available in person.

Users will be prompted to enter various search values to obtain reports, such as the blotter or TRACs number, the name of an individual involved in the accident and the location where it occurred.  Further information and instructions are available on the Sheriff’s Office website at www.suffolksheriff.com.  Simply click on “Traffic and Accident Reports” on the top menu bar.

With the holiday shopping season upon us, here are some important safety tips that will help everyone have a safe shopping experience.  

Parking Lots:
 When walking through parking lots, be aware of your surroundings.
 Always park where there is plenty of light between your car and the store.
 Keep your car locked and have your keys in hand before you go to your car.
 Before leaving your vehicle, make sure there isn’t anything of value in sight, including cell phones, GPS units and holiday purchases.
 Parking lots are typically very crowded at the start of the holiday season.  Use patience when looking for parking and pay extra attention when pulling out of a parking spot.

Shopping:

 Expect long lines and be patient. Enter stores safely; there is no item worth rushing through a crowd and risking injury.
 Shop with others; there is safety in numbers.
 Don’t leave your purse unattended in your cart, even for a few seconds.
 Don’t carry large amounts of money. Keep money in a front pocket.
 Only carry one or two credit cards and make sure you secure them after use.
 If shopping online, stick with established retailers and retailers from our local community with a presence online.
Shopping with Children:
 Always supervise your children in public places. Accompany young children to the restroom.
 Remind children to remain in the same area in the event they lose sight of you.
 Never dress children in clothing that displays their first or last names.

Please remember that if you are a victim of crime, you should call 911 immediately. If we all follow these common sense tips, we can enjoy a safe holiday season.
                                     

Representatives of the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office recently delivered a Project Lifesaver transmitter bracelet to Kim Covell of Watermill whose son has autism. The start-up cost of getting the device for the family was underwritten by the East End Police Foundation, which has recently partnered with the Sheriff’s Office to help promote the initiative.  Ms. Covell is the founder of the Flying Point Foundation for Autism.

Project Lifesaver is a tracking system for Suffolk County residents who care for children or adults that have the propensity to wander from their homes or care facilities. The system is designed to assist law enforcement and rescue agencies with locating lost or missing persons.

Registered Project Lifesaver clients wear a personalized one ounce battery-operated transmitter bracelet that emits an automatic tracking signal every second, 24 hours a day.  Each transmitter has a range of several miles, and has its own frequency, enabling Deputy Sheriffs to positively locate and identify a missing person. To date, the Sheriff’s Office has purchased a total of ten tracking units with asset forfeiture funds, and recently expanded the number of Deputy Sheriffs trained to use the equipment. 

“I encourage anyone caring for a loved one with autism or other cognitive challenges to look into Project Lifesaver. It offers great peace of mind to know that we have the capability to find them if they wander away unnoticed, and more importantly, to find them quickly to best ensure they are brought home safely,” stated Sheriff Vincent DeMarco.

Detailed information about Project Lifesaver is available on the Sheriff’s website at www.suffolksheriff.com, under the Community Programs link, or by calling (631) 852-4028.

Hope House Ministries Overdose Prevention Endeavor is offering an Opioid Overdose Responder Training program on Friday, January 24th at 6 PM at Hope House Ministries in Port Jefferson.

This is a free workshop in which participants will learn the essentials of opioid overdose prevention,  will receive certification as Trained Overdose Responders, and will receive overdose response kits that include naloxone (Narcan).

Please follow this link to register.

During a recent meeting of Cub Scout Pack 244, Deputy Sheriff Thomas Indence spoke to a group of 7-10 year old Cub Scouts about bullying, safety, and being a good citizen. 

It is very important to teach children how to protect themselves and respond to threatening situations. 

• Rehearse with children their full name, address, and phone number (including area code) and how to make emergency phone calls from home, cellular and public phones.
• Walk the neighborhood with your children. Show them safe places they can go to in an emergency, like a neighbor’s house, or an open store. Check areas that threaten children’s safety, like brush in wooded areas, overgrown shrubbery, abandoned buildings, bad lighting, and vacant lots littered with debris.
• Make sure your children are taking the safest route to school and friends' houses, one that avoids danger spots like alleys, new construction, and wooded areas. To test, walk it together.
• Tell children never to accept gifts or rides from someone they don’t know well. Tell your children to stay away from strangers who hang around playgrounds, public restrooms and empty buildings.
• Accompany your children to public restrooms.

Invite the crime prevention specialist from the Sheriff’s Office to talk about children’s safety. Call the Community Relations Unit at 852-3763 for more information.