Election Reflection

Having cast and mailed in my voter ballot I've taken the opportunity to sit back and just reflect over this very unprecedented campaign.

My thoughts on the subject is that if any American, right from the start runs a presidential campaign whose initial platform is one of hate, does not want to win.

When he calls a group of people criminals and rapists, and then over a year continually bombards us with it, only brings to life the covert racists lying in the underbelly of America.

It doesn't take a whole lot of research to find that people of ALL nationalities commit crimes. One would think that putting all of America's crimes on one race of people is about as racists as one can get.

But not Donald Trump. He took it to a new low by openly espousing that a prominent judge can't be fair because of his Hispanic heritage. What did Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan call it? "The textbook definition of a racist". But Ryan still supported Trump.

Not stopping there, Trump actually accused just about every race of people on the planet, other than his own of human short comings, a quality most thought only the now extinct German Nazi Party possessed.

We learned way back that most Americans have a keen sense of equality. In '64, when blacks were just coming out of the Jim Crow era and making an attempt to assimilate into the American culture many racist whites felt that although public assistance helped poor whites, helping blacks was too much of a hand out.

Programs like Affirmative Action were vehemently fought against by then presidential candidate Barry Goldwater who in his nomination speech said, "I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice! And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue!”

Reagan's "A Time of Choosing" speech meant to propel Barry Goldwater into the White House became a presidential landslide for LBJ.

(can you say backfire?)

Apparently Trump learned nothing from politics of the 60's. With her faults, Hillary is the experienced nominee while most of what Trump says are some of the dumbest and divisive things an American nominee can say.

In essence one candidate is presidential, the other is Donald Trump.

The Trainwreck Trump

The Trump Trainwreck Trump says they're liars. There was no inappropriate touching. Only circumstantial to virtually no physical evidence. So why step forward after 30 years claiming, "I was a victim of Donald Trump's groping?" After all, it's he said/she said in both Bill Cosby's case and Donald Trump's case.

But there are 2 courts. One is the court of law. If they're gonna investigate, investigations 101 teaches us to interview everyone involved except the subject of the investigation. Then investigate the who, what, when, where and then how and why. Armed with that, call the subject of the investigation in as more women come forward.

Then we'll see how they fair in the other court, the court of public opinion.

HOW DO WE FIGHT STREET GANGS?

Fighting street gang violence involves problem solving. As in any battle, it is crucial that we muster the human resolve to succeed. In law enforcement many departments use a 4 phase process called the S.A.R.A. model.

The word SARA is an acronym for (Scan, Analyze, Respond, and Assess) and has been used in fighting crime with great success and tenacity by police departments nationwide. The following is an example of how this works beginning with Phase One.

SCAN

Let’s say that there are reports of criminal activity occurring daily at a nearby park. During Phase One, the scanning phase of S.A.R.A we make a crime analysis check which reveals that area gangs are conducting criminal activities there.

The crime checks include reports to police, assaults and gang-related activities. A bad place for park goers, but a haven for gangs.

With the scanning phase complete, the next challenge is for officers to gain a better prospective on exactly what is occurring at the park. This brings us to Phase Two.

ANALYZE

From setting up surveillance to looking at crime reports, there are several ways to analyze. For this particular scenario it’s best we use house-to-house survey campaigns.

By talking to the grassroots citizens who use the park and the residents living around it, many facts about the park can be revealed. Surveys are the only way to find those people who were inconvenienced and many more who were unreported crime victims.

Sample questions specifically might be:

Do you visit the park?

When using the park, do you feel safe?

Do you think problems exist in the park?

What are the major problems in the park?

Have you or anyone you know been a victim in the park? And the most important.

How can the park be improved?

Now with a sufficient number of people surveyed and the answers analyzed we can now provide for S.A.R.A.’s Phase Three.

RESPOND

Having scanned and analyzed the problems we can now make our recommendations. Here’s a sample of some that are typical:

Paint over all graffiti

Install more lighting

Post signs prohibiting criminal acts. And most important.

Increase in police presence with a positive interaction with the citizens. High police visibility being the design.

The plan is set to make the park a positive, safe place again and making way for the opportunity to move on to the final Phase Four.

ASSESS

With the implementation of these combined recommendations we can evaluate and hopefully discover an anti-gang atmosphere emerging. If not, the plan may require some additional tweaking like ramping up enforcement and visibility.

In just a few short months if area residents begin coming back and using the park again then we’ve arrived successfully.

Youth gangs not only significantly affects their future but can cause community decay. It would be preferable to prevent this. By responding with environmental management using the S.A.R.A. model, a better life can be attained for a community; a testament to how fighting street gang violence involves problem solving.

Is the struggle to keep the park safe over? Not by a long shot; as long as there are gangs it will remain an ongoing battle. But it’s the good fight.

Johnny Russell, SDPD retired

Johnny Russell has had a 30 year career in law enforcement and is author of the gang/cops novel, First Blood, available at all online bookstores.

I was a police officer for 30 years and have had people on traffic stops run from me. I've been on DUI field coordination tests and had subjects run, jump back into their car and flee. I've seen a lot and done a lot in my 30. I was a training officer for 15 years, the longest FTO ever on a major metropolitan police dept. Nothing I saw on the video warranted the officer removing his weapon from it's holster and frankly it left me with a blank stare wondering ... why? Was the officer wrong? No question, but murder in California requires one necessary element. Malice aforethought. Dunnow the law in Ohio, but short of self-defense the officer had no authority and now faces manslaughter at a minimum. I was a police officer working the hood mostly and was consistently faced day in and day out with non-compliance, it's part of the job. Unless you work Lilly white neighborhoods, as a cop you learn to deal with it otherwise you don't last 30 years.

THE COWARD GANG MEMBER IN PRISON FOR THE MURDER OF OFFICER ARCHIE BUGGS IN COLD BLOOD IS UP FOR PAROLE. LET'S SEE THAT HE STAYS THERE

 

Officer  Archie Calvin Buggs was a native San Diegan having attended Gompers Middle School and Morse High School. After his 1966 graduation, Buggs joined the Army and did a tour of duty in Vietnam before receiving a hardship discharge to care for his ailing father. 

Officer Buggs joined the SDPD on October 18, 1974. After completing his academy training, he found himself patrolling the streets he grew up in. In Nov 1978 Jesus Cecena made a decision to take the life of Officer Archie Buggs and drew the life penalty card.  Let's tell Governor Jerry Brown to let him do it his time. Drop him an  email at https://govnews.ca.gov/gov39mail/mail.php with the following message:

Dear Governor Brown

I ask that you DENY PAROLE to Jesus Cecena, inmate C08487. This inmate's violent murder of San Diego Patrolman Archie Buggs in 1978 should preclude any consideration for parole." Thanks.

The Story of how I met Archie Buggs and what he meant to me.  

Many semesters ago, I suddenly heard a police siren. I pulled over and a San Diego Police Officer stopped behind me. He drove a white 1975 Ford Torino. The police car was all white with a bubblegum machine on top flashing red and blue. 

I faced straight ahead and peered into my rear view mirror. A black police officer of average height and weight got out. He was dressed in a tan uniform with a shiny breast badge and no patch insignias. He walked towards me.

“Driver’s license and registration please?”

“Sure officer, I do something wrong?” The officer opened his ticket book.

“You made a left turn in violation of the, ‘No left turn sign,’ see it there?” he asked. I turned to look and saw the sign plain as day.

 “I’m sorry officer, just last week I got a speeding ticket.

“Tickets hurt your record. You need to slow down and pay attention to the road signs,” said the officer. Those words sounded a lot like my mom.

“Sign here,” he said. Hell! He’s written me a ticket.

“Drive safely,” he said as he tore me off a copy, then he was gone.

As I just sat there brooding, I looked at the cite. The bold letters at the top read, “TRAFFIC WARNING.”  I breathed a sigh of relief then I looked at where the officer signed his name. It read, “A. Buggs.” I whispered to myself thank-you.

This was the very first time I had ever been stopped by a police officer that had listened and cut me some slack. I screwed up and should have gotten a ticket. But at least he listened, just as I would have had I been in his position. 

An officer that can do the job professionally and still treat people the way he would want to be treated, someone that would listen to people first?  Although I was talking about Officer Buggs, subconsciously I was also talking to the man in the mirror.

I’d always had an interest in Law Enforcement but because of Officer Buggs, it became stronger. I applied and started at the San Diego Police Reserve Academy.  One of the recruits in our academy class was George “Rex” Cason. 

He was in his late thirty’s to early forty’s and had retired from the military. On September 14, 1978 we finished the academy and became San Diego Police Reserve Officers.

Still green I arrived for patrol one evening. I worked with my classmate George that night. It was about midshift, and we had just finished transporting two prisoners to jail. We got the call of an officer involved shooting and were reassigned.

Our duties were to patrol the area of 5800 to 8500 Skyline drive. Communications put out the description and advised that the suspects had just shot a police officer; they may still be in the area.

We looked for them and drove to the 7100 block of Skyline Drive.

“I gotta stop at the scene of this shooting, I wanna know what happened,” I said.

“We both wanna know, said George”

It was November 4, 1978. I stepped out of the driver’s side of the police car. George got out on the other. There was a chill in the night air. A fur like material lined the lapels of my tuffy jacket. I lifted them high to cover my ears. My hands were cold.  

I placed them deep inside my jacket pockets to keep them warm. The first officers at the scene had roped off the area with plastic tape bearing the words, “Police Lines Do Not Cross.” George and I lifted it above our heads and walked into the crime scene.

We stood there and saw Archie Buggs, my inspiration as he lie dead at the curb, shot six times. My hands fell. I wasn’t cold anymore. George’s eyes got misty.

“They told me he was shot to death making a traffic stop,” he said.

Buggs was wearing the same uniform we had on. I was slapped in the face with the realization that we were all brothers and sisters. As it has with so many of us, human frailty had its way. I looked at George, he and I wiped our eyes, it’s not easy watching a grown man cry, I looked away.

I was pissed, I was so damn mad I wanted to scream. Buggs was my motivation. I wanted to get to know him, perhaps work with him, be his friend. I wanted to, “be like Buggs.” George and I patrolled the area looking for his killers.

Another officer located the car that was used in the crime. The mother of the suspects owned the vehicle. Buggs’s two assailants were members of a street gang. Both of them were later taken into custody, found guilty and incarcerated. Archie had a huge funeral and was laid to rest.

What I did next I was compelled to do. I went back to the police academy and on July 30^th 1980 I finished the 98^th regular police academy.

Now thirty-four years after his death, and after thirty years of public service, my friend and colleague George has joined Archie and passed on to glory. I hope that during both our tours of duty we had occasion to inspire someone as Buggs did. 

It is also my sincere hope that Jesus Cecena (CDC # C-08487) one of his killers never gets to see the light of day again.

May Officer Archie Buggs forever rest in peace.

TEEN SUES PARENTS

Oddly enough during my 30 year tenure as an officer in a major metropolitan city being called to quell numerous family disputes, I've found many parents dysfunction is allowing their offspring to curse them. 

Some even beat their parents, while mom and dad continue coddling and financing them.  Often times providing a roof to their kid's boy/girlfriends and whatever children might come from that union.

And if the child leaves, after a good sob story many times a kind hearted person will take them in and believe the child is being mistreated.

Phone message left for Liz Canning from Rachel at July 2, 2013 1:18pm, submitted to Morris County Court, which got the judge apparently so angry:
'Hi mom just to let you know you're a real f**king winner aren't you you think you're so cool and you think you caught me throwing up in the bathroom after eating an egg frittatta, yeah sorry that you have problems now and you need to harp on mine because i didn't and i actually took a s*** which i really just wanna s*** all over your face right now because it looks like that anyway, anyway i f***ing hate you and um I've written you off so don't talk to me, don't do anything I'm blocking you from just about everything, have a nice life, bye mom'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2573165/My-mom-called-porky-dad-got-drunk-told-I-just-daughter-Explosive-claims-spoiled-cheerleader-18-suing-parents-support-ran-away.html#ixzz2v7IzGc7b
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The Haunting of Leigh Maxwell

I can't tell you how excited I was. My friend and mentor Esther Luttrell asked me to do a voice over.

It's not everyday one gets asked to perform by a producer of the off beat comedy LITHIUM SPRINGS who is also the author of several book titles including:

The fun children’s book SPEARFINGER.

The writer’s informative SCREENWRITER’S Q & A

The mystery novel INVITATION TO A MURDER

The highly therapeutic MURDER IN THE MOVIES

Two inspirational books DEAR DEAN … LOVE, MOM

& BETWEEN HEAVEN AND EARTH

Esther has been involved in many films and television productions, ie. Little House on the Prairie and LA Confidential, just to name a few. She was also production coordinator of the hit television series CHiPs.

Although I’d been writing a long time, Esther basically taught me how to write a screenplay. So there was no question as to whether I would graciously accept the opportunity to promote her novel. 

Find out more about Esther and see all of her titles at estherluttrell.com. Or copy and paste, http://www.estherluttrell.com/index.html

Presenting a 44 sec. book trailer.

THE HAUNTING OF LEIGH MAXWELL
from Author ESTHER LUTTRELL

New Horizons

Hi friends! Remember that guy that gave up? Yeah, nobody else does either. 

The past year came and went in the blink of an eye. Although I finished as a Finalist in the 2013 WriteMovies32 screenplay contest, and placed in the Quarter finals of several other top rated competitions, I'm still working hard at marketing my envisions.

I thought I'd share with you my new envision for the Sci-Fi horror movie project HIGHER DIVINE.

                        A tale of when Pinocchio meets the sisters of Medusa.

An extraterrestrial puppet evolves into a soldier. After a war destroys his planet, he looks to Earth for his destiny. While his foes plot to eradicate Earths people, he defends it taking them on head to head.

So why are the authorities trying to stop him?

Watch Actor Jeff Solomon read the role of

the dynamic Israeli Security Agent Martin Llessur.

The other is my envision for the movie project THEIR PRESENCE. It's a gripping, chilling crime-drama about the inception of the Bloods and the Crips street gangs.

Neon, the protagonist of this police drama becomes Kingpin, out for money and territory. His tumultuous journey of drugs, robbery, and murder takes us on a gripping police investigation.

Can the story of the beginnings of two of the most infamous Street Gangs in American history become one of inspiration, change and positive resolve?

 

 THEIR PRESENCE was featured on Juntobox.com

 

Hi friends just a note to let you know April Brewster Smythe- Fort Wayne's Business Writer interviewed yours truly.  I agreed with her idea of using social media as a great way to benefit those who are entering the field of police work. Inquiring minds can follow the link. Thanks for the chat.

http://www.how-to-become-a-police-officer.com/expert-advice/johnny-russell/ 

Formerly Bradley Ashe | JuntoBox Films

Formerly Bradley Ashe | JuntoBox Films

The screenplay won first place in the 2010 PSWA contest under the title Bradley Ashe. Since then I got the idea for a rewrite based on ancient Archeological markings found in Jerusalem.

It needed a new title. I changed it from Bradley Ashe and went with HIGHER DIVINE. Hopefully it enhanced the story.  It's a Sci-fi action thriller about how Peace in the Middle East was Won.

The Rise ~ The Screenplay Takes First Place at the 2011 PSWA Conference in Las Vegas

It is an honor to be recognized for the countless days of dedication and work it took to receive the First Place award, and for the second year in a row. Congratulations to all the 2011 winners and a special thank-you for those in attendance as well, for we all are winners in this fun and fantastic organization.

PLAYING FOR THEIR LIVES

When I was a child, my mother used to tell me “If you don’t have anything good to say to someone, don’t say anything at all.” Then she added, “…while they are in the area.” A few of my gentlemen associates and I, when we are together on the golf course, will occasionally miss hit the ball sending it errant.

On those occasions I’ve come to expect an occasional expletive. But as associates go, there is always someone who appears to be an otherwise “calm gentleman” that takes it a bit further. He will use the occasion to reak pompous arrogance, a seemingly delirium of dismay. He will air a wild vulgar tirade which I’ve dubbed the disease of “Potty mouth.” You’d think he was playing for his life.

Over the years I’ve come to understand that what mom was trying to do was teach me to be civil, to educate me in the fine art of political correctness. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve heard bad words. Offending good taste, I’ve spoken them to others. Equally, after my first thirty years of life I’ve been called every name but a child of God. Because of it, I’ve grown a very thick skin.

The disease is not a problem for me per se; it is only when someone not an associate, a respected personal friend, girlfriend or Church member if you will, joins our group. That’s when my spider senses begin to tingle.

“HEY, A LADY IS PRESENT!” is invoked. There, I have declared the unwritten rule; the line that gentlemen don’t cross. But it is only met with defiance. Without question a clear and distinct wanton disregard for the newcomer replayed in a second exhibition, only this time showcased to be the pièce de résistance. Avoiding an altercation we journey on to the next hole accepting the fact that he’s an asshole.

Over the years, I’ve enjoyed golfing with both genders. If in his highest professional manner the golf starter pairs the fairer sex with men, far be it from me to object, after all everybody has a right to play the game.

As thick skinned as I might be, I’ve found an aversion for embarrassment by a verdict of guilt by association, and cringe at the sight of my associate’s next wayward strike. Usually during these times I perceive the distastefulness of the Potty mouth disease. I am overcome by a desire to distance myself from the irreverence profanities of my associate. Call it chevalier, even a bit archaic, but we’re talking about the sex that bears our young.

And so we continue our game trying to stay positive. By the eighteen hole, if he’s kept the ball in the fairway, we’ve got little to complain about. We walk away from the game now knowing the countenance to avoid. We now have something to talk about, maybe even tell the grand kids, but it will be a long time before we play with the associate again. But what on earth would we tell the grand kids? Maybe only a riddle.

When does an associate become an asshole? Answer: When he leaves the area.

IT'S THE VOTER'S DECISION

"Congressman Anthony D. Weiner A Fighter for New York"
is what his website reads.

As the ninth district representative his site also says that he has brought millions of dollars home to New York City: restored the city's parks and beaches; used funds to solve crimes against women; funded programs for developmentally disabled; combated pests that have ravaged trees; funded additional police officers; improved pedestrian safety; funded ferry transportation to more New Yorkers; and even funded graffiti cleanup.

He has also fought to uphold New York values. In 2005 he ran for Mayor of the city of New York but didn't win.

Sure he was a leader with a good name, but the congressman did several things wrong which amounted to one huge lapse in judgement. Anthony Weiner stepped on his Weiner, but let he who has not sinned cast the first stone.

No need to resign, the man already committed professional suicide. How many of us have received a sexting message? I know I have but the one thing I learned is to respect tape recordings, videos and cameras.

As they say, THIS TOO SHALL PASS. But before he allowed it to, the heat became too hot in the kitchen and the Congressman did resign. However I truly believe that Anthony Weiner should have been afforded the same concessions that President William Jefferson Clinton was granted. Given Clinton's BJ in the Oval office was a lot worst, it surely didn't suck him out of the White House.

I think the main reason I did not want to see Weiner leave is because he fought for the bill that Congress refused to pass for health care to the 911 responders. He referred to the GOP as "Cowards", but Liberal or Conservative I think you will agree that the man was a hell of a lightening rod. See him in action here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4zwCMf8dsc&feature=player_detailpage

Let Congresssman Weiner's resignation serve as a learning moment to all those who desecrate their names by stepping on it.

PSWA’s (Public Safety Writers Association) annual conference Las Vegas, June 17-20, 2010 at the Orleans Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas.

It was a 2008 task that I had accomplished but it kept calling me back. I added a line or two here, a paragraph there. Then I decided to just go code three and put my imagination into flashjump. Here it is now June of 2010 and Bradley Ashe has grown from one page to a 119 page screenplay. I entered it into the competition and low and behold, it held the judges in a puffery.

When an extraterrestrial's planet is invaded and destroyed, his new life brings him to Earth where he finds two friends and the invaders find their new target. To defend the planet, the three must take them on head to head. Together they have only twenty-four hours to prevent the end of the world and find peace at all costs.

Bradley Ashe was a word prompt that began as this: You wake up to discover that you are surrounded by friends, people you know. As you become more cognizant you realize that these people are trying to kill you, and you don't know why. Create a story where this happens and your job is to find out why they have marked you for death. And do it in five hundred words or less.

I had written a few, ok more than a few screenplays before. The subtext of the coverages I got was that they needed to be set inside the toilet bowl while someone hit the lever. After studying several publications, namely, "The Screenwriter's Bible" by Dave Trottier and "Screenwriter's Q and A" by Esther Luttrell, and also receiving their consultations, I had begun to understand the three act premise, structure, shadowing and the big Hollywood ending. Many thanks to the both of them.

Bradley Ashe is like nothing I have ever written. It is a blend of three plays in one so you gotta keep up. It centers on the affirmation that the Earth is coming to an end. At the finish of the screenplay, with all its faults we're left feeling good about the world we live in.

If you should find yourself given a word prompt that you complete and it keeps calling you back, don't even think twice. Like Nike, JUST DO IT! I did.

http://www.johnnyrussell.net/

For a complete list of the PSWA winners follow this link: http://www.policewriter.com/writingcomp.htm

Tourists charged in Antigua blame plainclothes cops for brawl over disputed cab fare

Oh you gotta google this one, check it out. Last month American tourists who were visiting the Caribbean island of Antigua on a cruise ship stopover, refused to pay a driver who gave them a tour because they believed they were being overcharged.

The driver charged $50 for a tour ending at a beach, and the dispute started when he told them he would have to double the fee to take them back. A fight broke out after the driver drove them to a police station, two plainclothes officers were injured by the tourists, and the tourists were ultimately thrown in jail.Their defense attorney said the group will challenge the charges of malicious damage, assault and wounding the police officers. The Carnival Cruise Lines ship left without them. The oldest of the tourists was 27.

PERSONALLY

This smacks too much of the hundreds if not thousands of San Diego’s youth that I see flock across the international border to the glamour of the foreign nightlife. We have night life here in the US too; so, “what’s the draw?” you ask. Maybe I forgot to mention that eighteen is the drinking age in Mexico.

For years those living in areas of the United States located right next door to Mexico have watched American youth on the weekends as they herd south of the border. They get drunk, or in some other trouble, get arrested and their families are forced to pay astronomical sums to get their children out of jail. BTW, eighteen year olds are thrown in with the adults. Armed with this information an observation can easily be made. Whenever on vacation out of the country, be the most humble person on the planet. Like Mexico, the laws in other countries may be turned around too.

In the constitution of the United States one is supposedly innocent until proven guilty. In Mexico the law is directly opposite, which means that if arrested there, one is guilty until proven innocent. Jail is immediate and there is no American Civil Liberties in Mexico.
Stories from people who have been incarcerated in Mexican jails tell that everyone is placed into one big cell and the floor slants down like a huge funnel. In the center lies the rest room, a three inch hole called a bano.

The tourists in this incident in Antigua, an island which lies in the Caribbean Sea say the cops did not have on uniforms. In other countries it may be that some of the cops don't wear uniforms, or the police station may very well be a house. If not apprised of the customs and laws one may not know. Throughout the decades there has been many spoiled and arrogant tourists touring other countries, so the residents there have come to expect it, don’t be one. Still go and vacation out of the country, but check the ego at the border. Regardless of birthdates, tourists everywhere have one thing in common; the same astrological sign — a dollar sign.

There are those in Mexico and other tourist attractions like Antigua that are just like some of the people here in the U.S. You know; the ones who will try to take advantage of tourists. Be prepared for it. If it happens, pay the cab fare whatever it is. Making a scene, fighting with the police or becoming part of an incident in another country just about guarantees the aftermath will cost one hundred fold.

The tourist's defense is based on American law. Hellooo...News flash...When you leave American soil throw everything you know about US law out the window. There is no US Constitution over there.

SO WHAT! Scam or no scam, just pay the GD cab fare. You are in a third world country. There is no welfare, if an islander doesn't work, he/she doesn’t eat. In conclusion just a safety reminder, tourist should never venture too far away from where the other tourists are. If you do, don’t be shocked by what may happen to you: 1. Getting locked up in jail 2. Getting your butt whupped 3. Missing your cruise (the cruise ship left)4. Paying $5000 bail 5. Having to have a tender hearted resident of the island let you live there until trial. And 6. Having to attend a slow moving trial overseas

Here’s a Johnny Cochran quote that’s the best information one can get. "Get the names of the officers and call me." Life is like a chess game, think two or three moves ahead.