Over the many years, I have come to expect the criminal element to hide drugs, contraband, blades, handcuff keys, nail files, cellphones, liquid explosives, thumb drives, bullets, and, yes, guns in every nook and cranny of their bodies. Every time I think about Officer Melissa Jayne Schmidt of the Minneapolis Police Department, I wish she would have had some sort of portable scanner back on August 1st, 2002, but she and her backup officer didn’t. The rest is a tragic asterisk in law enforcement history. And as do so many incidents where police officers tried to deal with the nuts and berries in the passing parade, questions remain, too. Continue reading Podcast: How a Concealed Weapon in a Bathroom Led to Melissa Schmidt’s Death
Podcast: A Jack-in-the-Box that Could Kill You
Continue reading Podcast: A Jack-in-the-Box that Could Kill You
Podcast: Burned Fingers
Do you remember the first time you played with fire? I mean, literally played with fire. Chances are it involved matches or your parents lighter? Because as kids, those were the likely, most accessible firestarters. And for us middle-aged or older, one or both of our parents probably smoked back in the day. There were always matches or lighters kids could pilfer or lift from dad’s pants pocket or mom’s purse. Remember that very first sensation of extreme heat on your fingertips, whoa, son of a bitch, that got your attention. And unless you were a complete imbecile as a kid, you didn’t go back for a repeat performance. Nowadays, kids can show off in other ways, like ramming their skateboard into a brick wall. Continue reading Podcast: Burned Fingers
TX cops come under gunfire multiple times during weekend
Continue reading TX cops come under gunfire multiple times during weekend
Pro-Active policing in Minneapolis way down; crime way up
Continue reading Pro-Active policing in Minneapolis way down; crime way up