Friday, November 4, 2011

Police Chief Chat

Drug watch: On October 30, 2011 Deputies from the Phelps County Sheriff’s Department completed a two month narcotics investigation that resulted in the arrest of two men from Phelps County. During the two month period information was gathered from a number of sources and short term surveillances. Upon consolidation of this information, it was presented to the Phelps County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office and a Search warrant was issued. In the late afternoon hours of October 30, 2011 the Phelps County Warrant Service Team served the Search Warrant at 12320 County Road 2030, the residence of Mr. Samuel Dean Schendel, age 55. During the service of the warrant, multiple pounds of marijuana, drug paraphernalia and prescription medications were seized. Mr. Schendel and Mr. Payton Wade Paxston, age 31, of Rural Rolla were both arrested on the scene. Mr. Schendel is presently incarcerated in the Phelps County Jail pending the posting of $100,000.00 bond. Mr. Paxston was released without formal charges pending further investigation. The charges for which Mr. Schendel and Paxston have been arrested are merely accusations and are not evidence of guilt. Evidence in support of the charges must be presented before a court of competent jurisdiction whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence. Great job PCSD!

This past week, the Rolla Police Department handled 688 calls for service. Of these calls there were: 29 arrests, 13 alarms, 23 accidents, 41 traffic complaints, 19 check the well being, 95 traffic stops, 18 disturbance (including domestics), 13 suspicious nature, 21 assists of other agencies, 3 field interviews, 12 escorts, 5 leave without pays, 47 animal control, 2 shots fired, 4 fingerprint requests, 3 mental health. 2 trespassing and 3 destruction of properties. This call total is down 29 calls from last week and although a little better, it was still a busy week.

S/Sgt. Jim Macormic reports that a Nationwide Emergency Alert System Test will take place on November 9, 2011 The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will conduct the first nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS). The nationwide test will occur on Wednesday, November 9 at 1 p.m. central time and may last up to three and a half minutes. The public will hear a message indicating that "This is a test." The audio message will be the same for both radio, television, and cable. The National-level EAS is a public alert and warning system that enables the President of the United States to address the American public during extreme emergencies. Similar to local EAS tests that are conducted frequently, the Nationwide Test will involve broadcast radio and television stations, cable television, satellite radio and television. For more information visit

Monday, October 31, 2011 was Halloween and the Rolla community celebrated with the Downtown Business Owner’s Associations “Have a Safe Trick or Treat Night” where hundreds of children and parents converged on the downtown businesses in search of Halloween candy. In addition to some great candy and other goodies there were many other attractions all along Pine St. There was at least one haunted house, a presentation by the Drama Force crew and a surprise “Flash Mob” dance, that all took place throughout the night. We had our Reserve Officers paired with Police Explorers patrolling the downtown area. We had Staff Officers and Patrol Officers patrolling the neighborhoods and VIPS Volunteers checking parks and cemeteries. The unseasonably warm and dry evening was responsible for larger crowds both downtown and in the neighborhoods. In spite of the additional crowds the entire event went very well with little or no problems reported. We would like to thank both our Reserve and VIPS Volunteers and you the community for helping us keep this Halloween event safe for all who participated. We could not have done it without you.

On Friday, November 04, 2011, we participated in the 4th Annual Operation Neighborhood Clean-up were we partner with the Rolla Ministerial Alliance and other government agencies such as the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Phelps County Sheriff’s Department, CenturyLink, Fidelity Communications, City of Rolla entities to include Public Works, Solid Waste and the Rolla City Council to join in with volunteers from the community to target a particular area within the community and work together in a clean-up event. Typically we trim trees shrubs, mow lawns, remove trash and debris, clear fence lines and haul away old appliances. We try to provide this service to those that are unable to do the work themselves, but many times the resident will jump right in there with us. This year we chose the Johnson/Laird subdivision and the adjoining Huffman Trailer Park. Crews went in followed pre-submitted work orders that were prepared as per the resident. The operation began at around 7:00 am and concluded a little after 12:00 p.m. We would like to thank all the previously named agencies as well as our diligent volunteers for making this year’s event a success. We would also like to thank our sponsors to include Panera Bread, Kroger, Pepsi-Cola, Coca-Cola and Jim Butler and the Carpenter’s Local Union No. 2298 for all their help.

Have a great week!

Lieutenant Rick Williams

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