11-16-01

Dumb Crooks™

Hanger Snags in Drug-Swallowing Man's Throat

A man who used a wire coat hanger to fish a cocaine-filled balloon from his throat wound up in surgery Tuesday after accidentally hooking himself.

Police, however, are having a hard time swallowing the man's story of how he ingested the balloon and came to use the hanger that ended up lodged in his throat.

"I've been here for 23 years, and I've never seen anything like it," Sgt. Jeff Davis said.

Police were summoned to Via Christi Regional Medical Center-St. Joseph Campus about 10:30 a.m. by doctors reporting they had a man in his 20s with a coat hanger stuck in his throat.

Doctors cut the hanger near the man's mouth to help him to speak more easily and to offer police an explanation before being rushed to surgery.

The man said he was at a party Monday night when someone slipped a balloon full of cocaine into his drink.

He said he finished his drink, swallowing its contents and the balloon in a big gulp. His explanation of how he came to realize he had swallowed a balloon full of cocaine wasn't clear, Davis said.

Tuesday morning, he straightened a hanger and, tilting back his head, he worked the hooked end down his throat, hoping to snag the balloon and pull it out.

Instead, he snared his throat. A friend drove him to the hospital.

"He was in a lot of pain," Davis said. "He couldn't talk to us a whole lot."

The man was transferred to the trauma ward at Via Christi Regional Medical Center-St. Francis Campus, Davis said. His injuries weren't life-threatening.

Doctors made a large incision in his throat to unhook the hanger, Davis said.

Hiding drugs in an ingested balloon or condom is not unheard of, he said. Removing the balloon with a coat hanger is.

If doctors or police find the balloon of cocaine the man swallowed, Davis said, he could face drug possession charges.

Story courtesy of Alex Branch at The Wichita Eagle

1. The best way to get even is to forget.
2. Feed your faith and your doubts will starve to death.
3. God wants spiritual fruit, not religious nuts.
4. Some folks wear their halos much too tight.
5. Some marriages are made in heaven, but they ALL have to be maintained on earth.
6. Unless you can create the WHOLE universe in five days, then perhaps giving "advice" to God, isn't such a good idea.
7. Sorrow looks back, worry looks around, and faith looks up...(I LOVE THIS ONE!!)
8. Standing in the middle of the road is dangerous. You will get knocked down by the traffic from both ways.
9. Words are windows to the heart.
10. A skeptic is a person who, when he sees the handwriting on the wall, claims it's a forgery.
11. It isn't difficult to make a mountain out of a molehill, just add a little dirt.
12. A successful marriage isn't finding the right person--it's being the right person.
13. The mighty oak tree was once a little nut that held its ground.
14. Too many people offer God prayers with claw marks all over them.
15. The tongue must be heavy indeed, because so few people can hold it.
16. To forgive is to set the prisoner free, and then discover the prisoner was you.
17. You have to wonder about humans, they think God is dead and Elvis is alive.
18. It's all right to sit on your pity pot every now and again. Just be sure to flush when you are done.
19. You'll notice that a turtle only makes progress when it sticks out its neck.
20. If the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, you can bet the water bill is higher.
21. And last but not least -- God gave the angels wings, and He gave humans CHOCOLATE!!!!!YYAHHOOOOOO

Our jobs are always stressful at best, but since Sept. 11^th, and the events that have followed, we are at another level of service, that of being outreach workers, therapists, advocates, reporters, etc. We must be aware of the needs of others more than ever.

Sensitivity is important. Sensitivity has two distinct meanings. One meaning is emotional awareness and accurate perception. To be sensitive is to be able to experience fully and correctly. But the second meaning of sensitivity is vulnerability to pain. Often these two forms of sensitivity exist side by side in us.

When the price is “compassion fatigue,” a pattern of tiredness and emotional depletion occurs. The price of burnout is paid after weeks or months on the job, with relentless responsibility and few emotional rewards. We are past anxiety, guilt and pain. Past sensitivity. We drink, we shout, we resent. We lack humor, tact and grace. Cynicism is a defense against ourselves.

Above all, we must be aware. The signs are not that subtle, but we as healers and crisis interveners are notorious for seeing problems in others and not in ourselves. We have contacts and conversations with peers who are willing to tell us when to “take a break.” Practice what you preach—remember; things like good meals, sufficient rest, exercise, and alteration of routine can help.

Good humor is a gift. However, it may not be easy to find a way to smile on this job. Get away from the job and lighten up, if that is the only way. The homilies about stress reduction may not work when symptoms are entrenched, when the job tension is inescapable.

Everyone who comforts someone; everyone who listens closely, with sensitivity, is a potential casualty. But everyone of us is also a source of comfort, information and inspiration. More than anything else, we have each other. We are a growing family of trauma workers. In this new age, almost everyone is a trauma worker.

Helping sustains the helper. Let’s not forget that truth. Let’s look out for one another. We’re all in this together!

Suggested by Captain Harold Denney, from PORAC Law Enforcement News

ABANDONMENT OF CONTRABAND NOT THE PRODUCT OF UNLAWFUL DETENTION

A police officer had received complaints about drug activity in a neighborhood. As a result, he conducted surveillance of the neighborhood for about six weeks, during which time he saw what he believed to be narcotics activity associated with the defendant’s house.

During one period of surveillance, the officer saw five cars drive into the defendant’s driveway within a period of approximately 30 to 45 minutes while the defendant was outside his house. He would either approach the car or the driver would get out and walk to the back of the house with the defendant.

Some kind of exchange transpired between the drivers and the defendant, although the officer could not see what it was. Backup officers were called to the scene and more of this kind of activity was observed.

During one exchange, the officers decided to approach the defendant. They pulled into the defendant’s driveway, and as they got out of their patrol car, the man turned and walked toward the front door of his house.

Despite the officers’ directing the suspect to stop, he kept walking, but could not get in the house because the door was locked. He turned to face the officers and put his hand in his pants pocket.

At that point, the officers drew their weapons and ordered the defendant to take his hand out of his pocket. When he did so, a small bag containing a white substance dropped to the ground and the defendant ran.

During the foot chase, the defendant dropped another small white bag before he was caught. As he lay on the ground the defendant bit through a third plastic bag containing a white powder that turned out to be cocaine.

The defendant later moved to suppress the drugs, claiming that he was illegally detained when the officers pulled their patrol car into his driveway and approached him.

Holding: Some police encounters with citizens are consensual, and the Fourth Amendment is not violated by “merely approaching an individual in public to ask questions.” No justification is required for such encounters.

In deciding whether an encounter occurred, courts consider whether the police conduct “would have communicated to a reasonable person that the person was not free to decline the officer’s requests or otherwise terminate the encounter.”

An investigative detention, on the other hand, must be supported by reasonable suspicion. Officers must be able to articulate specific facts and reasonable inferences from those facts that create a suspicion that a person is involved in some criminal activity.

In the absence of “express orders” to the contrary from the property owner, anyone may approach the front porch of a home. The officers’ actions in this case were not transformed into a detention merely because they did not tell him that he was free to terminate the encounter.

By refusing to stop when he was asked to do so, the defendant demonstrated that he felt free to “decline the officers’ request.” Merely approaching the defendant in public to ask him questions required no justification at all, so the officers’ initial contact was an “encounter” requiring no reasonable suspicion.

A “seizure” does not occur for Fourth Amendment purposes “until a reasonable person would believe he or she was not free to leave, and that person has yielded to the officer’s show of authority or been physically forced to yield.”

The defendant in this case was not seized until after he had fled and the officers caught him. At the time he was seized, the officers knew from surveillance that there was drug activity in the neighborhood, which was centered around the defendant’s residence; that approximately nine vehicles had pulled into the driveway within two hours; that the defendant had some exchange with each driver; and that a bag with white powder fell from the man’s pocket before he fled.

Based on what the officers knew, they had more than reasonable suspicion for a detention; they had probable cause to arrest. The seizure of the defendant therefore was lawful.

Because the officers feared for their safety when the suspect put his hand in his pocket, they were entitled to pull their weapons and order the man to withdraw his hand. By running from the officers, the defendant was not seized until he was caught and physically restrained. He had already abandoned the cocaine by the time he was seized.

The abandonment was voluntary and not the product of police misconduct. Consequently, the defendant gave up his Fourth Amendment protection in the contraband, and his suppression motion was properly denied. Citizen v. State, 39 S.W.3d 367 (Tex.App. – Houston 2001).

Speedtrap

From the Chaplain—Marilyn Featherstone

An American tells of a visit to Thailand. His Thai guide asked him several questions as he drove him around. He knew a little English and was delighted to carry on a conversation. When he asked where the American lived, he told him Richmond, Virginia.

“Oh, you are a rich man?” asked the boy.

The man laughed and told him no, he wasn’t rich.

The man recalled, “Then he asked if we owned an automobile, and I told him we had two cars in our family. His next question was about the house where we lived. I told him it was a rather simple house with ten rooms. He was amazed at its size, especially when he related that he and his family lived in just two small rooms.

The man recalled, “Then he asked about our family. I told him I had four healthy children, two in college and two still at home.

“He was silent for a minute, then replied, ‘You are a rich man.’

I laughed but in my heart I knew he was right, though I had never thought of it like that. We were rich. But were we thankful?”

October 31, 2001

Dear friends in Public Service,

The courageous, selfless acts performed by the heroes of the police and fire departments in New York City and Washington D.C. last month were an inspiring demonstration of the American spirit in action. We at Dillard’s would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere appreciation of the valued police officers and firefighters in our communities, as well. Your assuring presence in our cities and towns has positively enhanced the quality of life of our Dillard’s customers and associates.

To express our appreciation, we invite our police officers and firefighters to enjoy a special discount on your purchases at Dillard’s on December 5^th and 6^th, 200l. We are pleased to extend to you a 20% discount on all merchandise purchased on these days.

We are pleased to extend this special discount to sworn police officers and firefighters who are in active service and your immediate families (spouse and/or dependents living in the same household). Please feel free to shop any area Dillard’s store on either or both days. We accept cash, your Dillard’s credit card and other major credit cards. Important:

SAVE your sales receipts. When you have completed shopping, take your receipts for those two days to our customer service area and show your police or firefighter I.D. We will gladly deduct the discount from your total purchases in the same form of payment you chose to use for those purchases.

The American spirit is alive and well at Dillard’s! We are committed to serving YOU on December 5^th and 6^th with the same high level of service you have shown to our communities.

Warmest regards,