Law Enforcement

BURBANK — Trevore Jones has always thought about becoming a police officer, and since he's been taking a law-enforcement class, his interest is even greater. "I've learned a lot about what they do and how they help the community and it's helped me want to become a police officer more, knowing what they do," the 17-year-old said. Trevore is one of about 18 students enrolled in Burbank Unified School District's Regional Occupational Programs (ROP) class on law enforcement.

Burbank Police Department Youth Academy students got a little on-the-job training this summer through a partnership with the Burbank Unified School District's Regional Occupation Program. The youth academy has been missing an academic element since the involvement of the district's Regional Occupation Program was cut more than six years ago, said Burbank Police officer Peter Eirich, the academy's director. "Now with the Regional Occupation Program we added additional ways of making the students all successful entry-level law enforcement candidates," Eirich said.

A federal fund to assist communities in building law-enforcement memorials might receive $250,000 in grants, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) announced recently. The money for the Law Enforcement Act fund, secured by Schiff for the 2004 fiscal year, has been appropriated by the House of Representatives. The Senate will take up the measure in January. The money goes to assist communities in building law enforcement memorials. Schiff introduced the legislation and was inspired by the Glendale Police Officers Assn.

Darleene Barrientos Federal money could help Burbank police buy specialized equipment and rebuild youth and community education programs if the House of Representatives approves an amendment made by a Burbank lawmaker. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) offered the amendment last week to restore $1.3 billion in local law enforcement grants that were cut from the president's budget. The amendment, if approved, could help Burbank Police curb crime by beefing up special programs.

Lolita Harper CIVIC CENTER -- It might sound like a fun way to spend a few weeks during the summer, but police officials are not ashamed to admit they have ulterior motives for offering the summertime Youth Academy. "Ideally, this is step one in a long-term strategy to help our long-term recruiting efforts," Burbank Police Chief Tom Hoefel said. "The idea is to get these young adults and get them interested in law enforcement at an early age." Youth Academy is a three-week-long program designed to educate and interest Burbank youth in grades 9 through 12 in a law enforcement career, Burbank Officer Darin Ryburn said.

Mark R. Madler Area businesses are approaching a goal of $100,000 to help fund a proposed law enforcement museum in the nation's capital. As of Tuesday, nearly $90,000 had been collected by the city's business community to be given to the Burbank Police Officers Assn. for the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. The recognition for police officers who keep streets safe across the country is long overdue, said Vic Georgino, a fundraising committee member and former Burbank Police reserve officer.

BURBANK — The U.S. House Appropriations Committee approved a bill on Thursday that would pad Glendale and Burbank's coffers with $750,000 in law enforcement funds. Earmarked by Rep. Adam Schiff — whose district includes Glendale and Burbank — the funds include $500,000 for the Glendale-based Interagency Communications Interoperability System, known as ICIS, and $250,000 for Burbank Police Department's Park Patrol Detail, Schiff said. The funds are part of a $53.7-billion spending bill that encompasses the budgets of the U.S. Justice and Commerce departments, NASA and the National Science Foundation, Schiff said.

Lolita Harper HILLSIDE DISTRICT -- She was hunched over, with her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath in the 80-degree weather. Burbank police recruit Mary Eltz had just successfully completed the department's physical agility test, and it was hard to tell if she was deliriously happy or stillsuffering from a lack of oxygen. "Thank God I'll never have to do that again," Eltz said. Eltz, 28, completed the course in 111 seconds, beating the times of many of her male counterparts.

Ben Godar The Planning Board has unanimously approved a conditional-use permit for a private security firm to open an indoor shooting range at 455 North Moss St. The facility, to be operated by Andrews International/ Advanced-Tech Security, Inc., will be open only to state- licensed security and law- enforcement personnel and not the general public. It will feature nine shooting lanes and a computerized Firearms Training Simulator, city officials said.

Jackson Bell While many local top cops push for a measure to increase funds for law-enforcement agencies in Los Angeles County, some argue that the proposed sales-tax increase is misguided and blame local politicians for raiding funds already set aside for that purpose. Measure A, which needs a two-thirds majority in the Nov. 2 election, could generate an additional $560 million yearly for law enforcement by raising sales taxes a half-cent to 8.75%.

Burbank police raised roughly $2,500 for the Special Olympics on Thursday by waiting on tables and serving food at the annual “Tip-A-Cop” event, officials said. A dozen police officers, cadets and explorers in uniform collected tips at the Claim Jumper in Burbank to benefit athletes in the Special Olympics. “It just gives us another opportunity to help others,” said Burbank Police Officer Joshua Kendrick. “It's a very selfless act not only for the police department, but for those who are willing to donate as well.” The funds will help cover costs for the year-round program, including transportation, facility rentals and uniforms for the roughly 500 athletes in the Tri-Valley and Santa Clarita area, according to Laura Mayo, regional director for the Special Olympics.

If you want to know how bad the helicopter noise gets in Burbank, ask a horse. Residents in the Rancho neighborhood around the L.A. Equestrian Center are accustomed to the thwap-thwapping of the choppers that zip along the Ventura (134) Freeway on their way to wherever. In the eight months I lived near Pickwick Gardens, the window-rattling gong of the helicopter shook me to sleep and shook me awake. My former neighbors and I should all get over ourselves, some may say. One person did say as much in a letter to this newspaper last June.

The recent leaks of NSA programs to the Washington Post and Guardian newspapers have awakened a strong desire among many Americans to know more about how the Intelligence Community conducts its business. Americans expect their government to do the utmost to protect our country, but that cannot mean trading our 4th Amendment right to privacy for the promise of security. Most Americans understand the need to “connect the dots” to avoid another 9/11, as long as the intelligence community has a legitimate need for the information it seeks and is no more intrusive than absolutely necessary.

Authorities say they've found the body of an FBI agent who was reported missing more than two months ago. The special agent, Stephen Ivens, reported missing on May 11, was found Monday night in a wooded area in the 3600 block of Scott Road near St. Francis Xavier School, Burbank police Sgt. Darin Ryburn said. The body was discovered by two hikers who noticed a foul smell, according to police. Police were working with Los Angeles County coroner's officials to determine the cause of death and “official identification.” "Every indication is that he's been there from the first day,” Ryburn said.

Burbank Police will host its first Spanish-language community academy next year. If it is successful, an academy in Armenian could follow. Police said they plan to reach to out to Spanish speakers to help them understand U.S. laws. They also hope to familiarize people with the services police offer. Police officials feel the need for additional outreach to the city's Latino community, according to Burbank Police Sgt. Darin Ryburn, who was involved in one of the first community academies in 2000.

Burbank police are pushing to get a major technology upgrade that officials say will give the department better tools in the field and will end an antiquated system of record keeping. Burbank Police Deputy Chief Tom Angel said the department is discussing developing a request for proposals for a new database for records and management because police don't believe they are getting accurate response times and don't have the means to track the information digitally. “There's not enough detail on how much time is spent on a call, report writing and proactive enforcement we're conducting,” Angel said.

Interaction between members of the public and law enforcement officials is often limited to traffic citations and the occasional stolen bicycle report. But on Tuesday they mixed and mingled at dozens of spots across Glendale and Burbank as part of National Night Out, a grass-roots movement aimed at improving neighborhood safety. “I think it is cool because it is really developed by the community,” said Glendale Police Officer Renae Kerner as she handed out stickers to children at Pacific Park.

The House of Representatives passed a bill this week to create a national registry of arsonists, a system modeled after California’s electronic database that tracks sex offenders. The proposed registry would give law enforcement and fire officials access to a national resource cataloging convicted arsonists and bombers from every state. While most states have their own registries, they are independent, and many do not match up with all of the requirements of the proposed database.

BURBANK — Despite a visit by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and raucous demonstrations by local teachers, last week was quiet in Burbank — at least according to the Police Department. Officials in the city’s law enforcement unit reported that since Taser guns debuted Sept. 1, not one officer has been forced to press the nonlethal weapon into action. “Frankly it’s surprising,” Sgt. Thor Merich said. “We contacted 50 police departments in California and the United States to find out the good, the bad and what we can expect.