The Cyber Star - January 2014

1/9/14 The Cyber Star - News from Polk County Sheriff's Office

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January 2014

Dear Friend, We've all made New Year's resolutions we've failed to keep, sothis year, let me offer New Year's resolution you can keep. Byfollowing just a few tips, you can resolve to improve your crimeprevention skills in 2014 and make this year safe and crime freefor you and your family. Increase your home security: According to the FloridaDepartment of Law Enforcement, every three minutes, oneburglary occurs.

Ensure windows and doors are locked at all times.Lighting should be mounted on all sides of your home. Burglars love dark houses. Install a security alarm system that is monitored 24 hoursa day. If that doesn't fit into your budget, opt for an audiblealarm-noise of the alarm can scare off would be burglars.Our Crime Prevention Section will help by providing youwith a FREE home security survey (call 298.6677).

Protect your vehicle and identity: Criminals only need 60seconds to break into a vehicle and steal your valuablesincluding your money and your identity. Within minutes, thecriminal will be working to deplete the funds in your bankaccount or max out your credit cards.

Lock your vehicle and keep the windows rolled upcompletely.Remove all valuables from your vehicle or store itemsaway from view. Be especially cautious at locations suchas the gym, daycare, ball field, jogging trails, dog parks,churches, and hospitals. Criminals target these locationsbecause women typically leave their purses in theirvehicles. Thieves also look for laptop cases, smartphones, and briefcases left in parked vehicles.

Use the Internet wisely: Online resources are a part of oureveryday use. But we must remain vigilant in how we use thispowerful resource.

Change your passwords to increase your online security. Create a strong password, using a mixture of uppercase

Polk County Sheriff

Grady Judd

Join us on:

1/9/14 The Cyber Star - News from Polk County Sheriff's Office

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and lowercase letters, numbers and/or other characters. Use parental controls if you have youth who use thecomputer or any other electronic device. Set boundariesregarding usage, permissible websites/apps, and properbehaviors online. Monitor online activity to ensure youthare not engaging in inappropriate behaviors like talking toor agreeing to meet strangers offline, cyberbullyingothers, or using/viewing inappropriate sites. Think before you post on social media sites. Preventissues from arising by changing your page to private andavoid posting before or during vacations; criminals mayuse this information as an invitation to visit yourunoccupied home.Avoid opening emails from unknown sources and besuspicious of email attachments.Don't respond to any e-mail solicitations asking for moneyto avoid being scammed.Eliminate distractions in the vehicle: Avoid any action thattakes your eyes off the road and/or prevents 100% of yourattention going towards driving.Make the decision to ban these dangerous activities whiledriving: texting or talking on the phone, eating or drinking,use of drugs or alcohol before or during your travels, anddriving while drowsy. These activities can slow yourreaction time and alter your ability to think clearly andmake good choices.

Start a Neighborhood Watch group in your community: Talk toyour community about looking out for each other by becoming aNeighborhood Watch group. Our Crime Prevention Section canhelp you by informing your community of the crimes in your areaand educating you on how to prevent those crimes. Together, we can make 2014 one of the safest years yet. Sincerely, Grady Judd

January is Personal Self-Defense

Awareness Month

1/9/14 The Cyber Star - News from Polk County Sheriff's Office

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Did you know every 2 minutes someone in the U.S. is sexuallyassaulted? That adds up to 720 people a day. Violence is prevalent on the news, in movies and in video games. Somemay even live in a home where violence is present. According to RAINN(Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network), approximately 2/3 ofassaults are committed by someone known to the victim. No ethnic orage group is exempt from this threat. No one likes to feel powerless andwithout options when involved in a physical or emotional confrontation.Whether verbal or physical, violent attacks can leave victims scarred forlife. In an effort to empower women to prevent and defend against violence,the Polk County Sheriff's Office offers free Personal Safety and Women'sBasic Self Defense classes to our female citizens, year round. Thisprogram provides basic tips and techniques to enable women to escapeless than desirable situations. Active participation is encouraged so thatskills can be practiced; however, those wishing to only observe are alsowelcome. The class is open to any female age 13 or older; ladies under18 must have a parent/caregiver present to sign a PCSO waiver beforethey can attend the class. Remember, it is better to be prepared and never have to use any skills ortechniques learned, than to be unprepared and defenseless in a criticalsituation. If you are interested in this program, please contact the Polk CountySheriff's Office Crime Prevention Section at 863-298-6677 to coordinate apresentation in your neighborhood, workplace, church, or any locationconvenient to you.

Georgia Man with Roving Door-To-Door

Sales Force Arrested

1/9/14 The Cyber Star - News from Polk County Sheriff's Office

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On Monday, December 30,2013, Polk County Sheriff'sOffice detectives arrested 48-year-old Timothy LamontBurgess, DOB 09/28/65,Riverdale, Georgia, charging himwith one count of ConductingHome Solicitation without aLicense; (M1). Burgess wasbooked into the Polk County Jailand has since bonded out. Burgess and his door-to-doorsales company have received anumber of complaints. According to a news report: "The Better Business Bureauhas given an 'F' rating to the

Georgia-based company due to the high number of complaints aboutsales practices, billing, customer service, products and refunds." Somehave complained that the product is worthless, many complain about theaggressive sales tactics, and some said they were employees andcomplained that the company ripped them off. Polk County Sheriff's Office detectives began receiving information andcomplaints in late December that people were observed soliciting inneighborhoods in and around the Lakeland area. People werecomplaining that the door-to-door salesmen were overly aggressive, rude,walking into open garages, looking into homes while at the front door, andwalking around houses when there was no answer at the door. Thesolicitors were going door-to-door selling a cleaning product.

"Any legitimate business soliciting work will have a Business Tax Receiptfrom the Polk County Tax Collector, a soliciting permit from the Clerk ofthe Courts, and a Business License. If they do not have all of these, donot do business with them. Complaints follow Burgess wherever hegoes. He moves from town to town selling a questionable product. Burgess' aggressive and illegal solicitation is reported over and over butto avoid more serious prosecution, he continues to move his crew aroundthe country. Good riddance, Mr. Burgess, and don't come back." SheriffGrady Judd

For more details about this investigation, pleasevisit http://bit.ly/1dnDTKL.

Tattoo Policy Modified

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(Under Armor Garment Style) Like many law enforcement agencies, the Polk County Sheriff's Officehas had a "no visible tattoo" policy for many years. This policy meantthat law enforcement and detention deputies could not have tattoos thatwere visible while wearing the "Class B" uniform (a short-sleeveduniform). PCSO members can have tattoos in other locations, so long asthey are covered by the uniform during work. The purpose of the policyhas been to maintain a uniform, professional appearance for allmembers. Well, you have probably noticed that tattoos have becomevery popular over the last five to ten years. Because of the tattoo policy, we were finding that many otherwisequalified candidates-including many military veterans-applied to otheragencies. We've been receiving feedback for a number of years sayingthat we should reconsider this policy, and we have. As of the first of the year we have changed the policy to allow tattoos onthe arms, as long as they are covered with long sleeves on duty. Members will be able to wear fitted long-sleeved Under Armor (style)shirts that are already popular with members-for wearing as cool-breathing sun protection during the hotter months and as colder weathergear. The policy has already proved popular with members and newapplicants. Through this policy we can now accommodate men and women who havetattoos (and members who want to get tattoos), while still maintaining asharp, professional, and uniformed look. If you have friends or family whohave been unable to apply for employment with the Polk County Sheriff'sOffice because of our old policy, please pass on the word. We arealways looking for good people who are looking for a great career inpublic service.

1/9/14 The Cyber Star - News from Polk County Sheriff's Office

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PCSO Members Love Christmas!

Polk County Sheriff's Office members work hard every day to provideexcellent customer service to those we serve, but during the holidayseason, it's even more important to go above and beyond to show ourcitizens how much we care. Agency members begin at Thanksgiving and continue through Christmasand the New Year. Some of our holiday "missions" are below: West Division:

The West DivisionCrime SuppressionTeams raisedthousands of dollarsand secureddonations, includingfood, to have a partyfor 29 children whowouldn't otherwisehave Christmas, atthe WabashCommunity Center. Thanks to McGeeTire and Publix, thekids and theirfamilies were treatedto BBQ and hotdogs, donuts,cookies, juice andwater. SergeantChad Anderson'sfather-in-law filled inas Santa Claus, andthe looks of joy onthe kids' faces asthey opened upmany, manypresents, werepriceless.

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City of Mulberryemployees and theMulberry Sheriff'sStation deputiesassisted with the 7thAnnual Candy Canesfor Kids Project,providing giftpackages to 15families and 36 kidsfrom MulberryChristian andKingsford ElementarySchools, thanks tosponsors likeEnvisors Engineering;Winter Haven Rotaryand Rotaract Clubs;Koala Outdoor;Garrison LandManagement; ProPakSoftware; Wings ofEagles; Legoland;

Sunbelt Marketing; and Merlin's Magic Wand. East Division: The Southeast District Crime Suppression Team also secured donationsand gifts, with help from the Eloise Resource Center, Art EnsembleEducation Foundation, and State Farm, to provide a Christmas meal for12 families and gifts for 33 children. Deputy Sheriff Andres Marin playedSanta Claus, and Crime Prevention Specialist Heather Strafford fittedbicycle helmets on each child who received a bike. Even Diego thebloodhound made a visit this Christmas Eve-eve at the Eloise CommunityCenter. The PCSO Frostproof Sheriff's Station members joined together thisholiday season to provide turkeys and Publix gift cards for needy families in Frostproof. OnMonday, November 25th, Sergeant Steve Parker and Deputy Sheriff BillyHood traveled through the city, delivering the food and gifts. Thank you toall the members of the Frostproof Station who truly embody the meaningof giving thanks, and giving back: Sergeant Steve Parker, SecretaryCindy Stone Byrd, Deputy Sheriffs Dan Cash, Matt Collins, Gary Grice,

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Billy Hood, David Lockard,Jordan Owens, and MattPhillips. South CountyJail: Members assigned tothe South County Jailadopted four less fortunatefamilies for Christmas, andprovided each with wrappedgifts, food, and gift cards. They also filled two tubswith toys for the USMC"Toys for Tots" program. Other Acts of Kindness: D/S Lyle Tripp and theCriminal JusticeAcademy students atKathleen High Schoolcollected and distributednearly 100 coats that weredonated by teachers andstudents, for the lessfortunate andhomeless throughLighthouse Ministries.

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Brownie Troop 590 of Frostproof also helped us spread joy thisholiday season. The little girls who belong to this troop decided to donatestuffed animals to PCSO instead of exchanging gifts with each other.They presented the toys to Deputy Sheriff Matt Collins. Special thanks toTroop Leader Candi Kenshalo. It was a Very Merry Christmas!

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Homicides Down

The Polk County Sheriff's Office investigated 9 homicides in 2013 whichis down from 19 homicides investigated in 2012. This is the lowestnumber of homicides recorded in the Sheriff's Office jurisdiction for thepast 8 years, and the second lowest in 18 years (there were 6 homicidesrecorded in 2005). The reduced number of homicides contributed to PolkCounty's historic overall crime reduction as reported in the first sixmonths of 2013. According to the Uniform Crime Report (UCR) statistics, reported semi-annually and annually to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement(FDLE), crime in the PCSO primary law enforcement response area wasdown 5.44% in the first six months of 2013 as compared to the first sixmonths of 2012 - one reason for the decrease - homicides were down70% during this time frame. The 2012 crime rate (the most recent yearfor which full year statistics are available-2013 overall statistics are notyet reported), which is the number of crimes per 100 residents, in is 2.48.This is the lowest crime rate ever measured in the Polk County Sheriff'sOffice jurisdiction, breaking the previous record low of 2.70 crimes per100 from 2011. Reliable crime statistics in Polk County started in 1971,when the crime rate was recorded at 4.16 crimes per 100. "Solving homicides is a priority. When we are assigned a homicide, ourdetectives, crime scene investigators, crime analysts, and support staffwork non-stop around the clock, to solve the crime as quickly aspossible. I am very proud of the hard work and dedication of thedetectives and agency members assigned to the Homicide Unit, and ofall the men and women in our agency who work to keep Polk Countysafe. As a team, using a holistic approach to fight crime, every memberof the agency partners with the community to solve and deter crime. Weare not satisfied until violent criminals are in jail where they can no longervictimize our citizens." Sheriff Grady Judd In addition to the nine homicides investigated in 2013, one homicide wasruled justified by the State Attorney's Office (SAO) of the 10th Judicial

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Circuit and two others were worked on behalf of municipalities, and one ofthose was also ruled justified by the SAO. 8 out of the 9 homicides inPCSO's jurisdiction have been cleared by arrest. A person of interesthas been identified in the other homicide investigation and a warrant for35-year-old Taurus Terrell Moye's arrest for Possession of Weapon byConvicted Felon has been issued. He is still at large. By way of comparison, in 2012 the PCSO Homicide Unit investigated 19homicides, all of which were cleared by arrest. Also in 2012, the PCSOHomicide Unit assisted other agencies with two homicide investigationsand worked two additional cases ruled justified by the SAO. In 2013 Homicide detectives also investigated: 388 natural deaths; 52suicides; and 66 accidental deaths, 17 of which were child deaths. These investigations are among the other cases routinely assigned to theunit.

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