SLCPD to Conduct Administrative Traffic Checkpoint Tonight

The Salt Lake City Police Department will be conducting an administrative traffic checkpoint from 10 p.m. Friday, December 4, to 3 a.m. Saturday, December 5, 2009, in the vicinity of westbound 400 South from 600 West to 750 West in Salt Lake City, Utah.

All motor vehicles will be stopped. The inspection and inquiry procedures are estimated to take approximately two minutes in duration for most vehicles. The checkpoint will serve to enhance vehicular safety in the area by checking for valid registrations, proof of insurance, valid driver licenses, and drivers impaired by alcohol or drugs.

SLCPD K9 Team Named Top Agency at 2009 K9 Trials

With seven individual trophies and high scores in multiple events, the Salt Lake City Police Department’s K9 team earned Top Agency honors at the 19th Annual Las Vegas Metro K-9 Trials October 24–25, 2009.

K9 Officers Cale Lennberg/K9 Troll and Tony Brereton/K9 Jinx competed against 40 other teams from five western states and an international team from Mexico. Events building searches, open area searches, tactical obedience, agility/obstacles, apprehension/bite work, and narcotics searches.

Officer Lennberg and Troll won 2nd place overall for Top Dog, two 4th place trophies for narcotics, a 2nd place trophy in Top Narcotic Dog, and a 4th place trophy in tactical obedience. Officer Brereton and Jinx won 2nd place in the building search event and 2nd place in tactical obedience. With a combined seven individual trophies and high scores in five of nine events, the SLCPD team took home the 1st place Top Agency trophy this year.

Over the last six years, Salt Lake City Police K9 teams have competed in four Las Vegas Metro K9 Trials. Of those four trials, the Salt Lake K9 team has won 1st place Top Agency three times and 3rd place Top Agency once.

In Memoriam: Officer Harold A. Peterson Jr.

The Salt Lake City Police Department today remembers the loss of one its own: Officer Harold A. Peterson Jr., killed in the line of duty October 27, 1954.

Officer Peterson was killed in a traffic accident. At approximately 10 a.m., the 54-year-old victim was patrolling on his three-wheel motorcycle. As he entered the intersection of 1300 South and 1300 East, a vehicle driven by an elderly man turned in front of him.

The collision knocked Officer Peterson from his motorcycle, dragged him more than 30 feet, and pinned him beneath the vehicle. He died of severe head trauma.

Officer Peterson was married and the father of a son, who later became a Salt Lake City police officer. He is buried at Wasatch Lawn Memorial Park.

If you have memories or photos of Officer Peterson to share, please email policehistory@slcgov.com or call (801) 799-3340. To learn more about our Fallen Officers, please visit http://www.slcpd.com/. Click on “Honoring Our Own.”

The Police Department wishes to thank the Utah Law Enforcement Memorial for its assistance in this remembrance.

SLCPD Public Safety Tip:

Despite Cold Weather, Leaving Car Unattended To Warm Up Invites Crime

With the advent of winter weather, the Salt Lake City Police Department would like to remind citizens that leaving a car unattended while it warms up makes them a target. Be alert to this fact; don’t become a victim of car theft. The convenience of the practice also makes it easy for thieves to steal vehicles and the valuables inside them. More safety tips can be found on the official SLCPD Web site: http://www.slcpd.com/getinformed/infobrochures.html.

In Memoriam: Officer William Cooke, Killed in the Line of Duty 151 Years Ago

The Salt Lake City Police Department today remembers the loss of one its own: Officer William Cooke, killed in the line of duty October 18, 1858.

Officer Cooke was the first Utah police officer to be murdered in the line of duty.

On the afternoon of October 13, the 55-year-old victim was on duty and alone at the city jail. Two men came to the jail and demanded the release of an inmate. When Officer Cooke refused, one of the men shot him in the thigh. Officer Cooke died five days later.

The killer fled Salt Lake City. He was shot and killed October 21, 1858, near Fort Bridger, Wyoming, by a Salt Lake mail carrier familiar with the murder.

Officer Cooke was married and the father of six children. He is buried in Salt Lake City Cemetery.

If you have family history or photos of Officer Cooke to share, please email policehistory@slcgov.com or call (801) 799-3340. To learn more about our Fallen Officers, please visit http://www.slcpd.com/. Click on “Honoring Our Own.”

The Police Department wishes to thank the Utah Law Enforcement Memorial for its assistance in this remembrance.

Police Department Completes ‘Neighborhood Operation’ in Glendale

Multiple units deployed on broad spectrum of public safety issues

The Salt Lake City Police Department today announced the successful completion of a “Neighborhood Operation,” a special project designed to deploy law enforcement resources on a broad spectrum of public safety issues in a specific area.

“We chose Glendale for a Neighborhood Operation, which is designed to respond to crime trends noted by the community and police officers,” said Chris Burbank, Chief of Police. “We learned a lot from this operation that will serve us well as we continue to work with other neighborhoods to address crime and public order issues in the future.”

The Police Department conducted its latest Neighborhood Operation October 8-10, 2009, in the area bordered by North Temple to 2100 South/State Road 201 and Interstate 15 to Redwood Road. Based on information gathered from Community Council meetings, constituent liaisons in the Mayor’s Office, tips from the Department’s Drug Hotline, and intelligence vetted by the Salt Lake Information Center, officers were able to make 23 felony and 28 misdemeanor arrests.

Neighborhood Operation Stats:

• 27 gang field cards
• 16 warrants served
• 1 firearm seized
• 266 traffic citations
• 37 vehicle impounds
• 9 DUI arrests
• 6 schools/2,050 kids visited by SLCPD

Other Highlights:

• Narcotics Unit reported that at least one drug dealer noticed the high level of police activity and chose to stay away from the area.
  
• SLCPD in conjunction with the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office, West Valley City Police Department and West Jordan Police Department served 7 search warrants and arrested 7 individuals regarding a long internal theft of high-value metals.
  
• In addition to traffic citations and impounds: 4,000+ License Plate reads, 1 stolen recovered vehicle, and 1 stolen license plate on a moving vehicle.
• Joint Criminal Apprehension Team detectives arrested 5 violent felons from the warrant sheet.
• Narcotics and Fusion Bike Units closed 27 narcotics intelligence reports. One report led to 4 felony arrests, 1 misdemeanor, and the seizure of 3 grams of methamphetamine and 1 ounce of cocaine.
  
• Special Victims Unit had 2 felony arrests. They were assisted by 4 agents and a supervisor from Adult Probation & Parole.
  
• Utah Motor Vehicle Enforcement Division netted 21 citations, 1 felony drug arrest (heroin), 1 failure to yield arrest, 1 impound, 1 stolen car recovered, and 4,268 License Plate Reader reads.
  
• The Vice Unit made 14 misdemeanor and 4 felony arrests (10 males sex solicitation, 4 females sex solicitation), plus 4 felony drug arrests. The squad seized 11 grams of methamphetamine and 3 grams of cocaine.

The Police Department would like to thank the following agencies for their assistance in this Neighborhood Operation: Utah Highway Patrol, Adult Probation & Parole, US Marshals Joint Criminal Apprehension Team, West Valley City Police Department, West Jordan Police Department, Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office, Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office, Utah Motor Vehicle Enforcement, and Mobile Neighborhood Watch.

In Memoriam: Officer David H. Crowther

The Salt Lake City Police Department today remembers the loss of one its own: Officer David H. Crowther, killed in the line of duty October 12, 1923.

Officer Crowther was shot to death by a transient. A search was launched when he failed to return home from patrol the previous night. At 10:00 a.m., the body of the 45-year-old victim was found on a bank of the Jordan River, three blocks from his home. He had been shot once in the head with a .32-caliber pistol. The officer’s vehicle, handgun and watch were missing.

On October 16, 1923, three men driving Officer Crowther’s bloodstained vehicle were arrested in Ludlow, California. The men were extradited to Utah, charged, tried, and found guilty of robbery and murder. Two of the men were eventually paroled. The suspect who shot Officer Crowther was executed at Utah State Prison in 1926.

At the time of his death, Officer Crowther was married and the father of three children. He is buried in Salt Lake City Cemetery. His nephew, Leonard C. Crowther, would rise through the ranks to become Police Chief.

If you have memories or photos of Officer Crowther to share, please email policehistory@slcgov.com or call (801) 799-3340. To learn more about our Fallen Officers, please visit http://www.slcpd.com/. Click on “Honoring Our Own.”

The Police Department wishes to thank the Utah Law Enforcement Memorial for its assistance in this remembrance.