Past Journals
Current Journal
|
Badges On The Bayou Vol. III Issue 2
View From the Doc By Dr. JD Brown It always is pleasant to see the feedback we receive from putting this journal out every so often. What began as a mere resource for both professional information and smiles for local membership, has drawn praise and further discussion from all over the United States in every level of Law Enforcement. We are proud, but humbled by the kind comments made and welcome feedback and suggestions for future articles. For those who may be reading this for the first time, allow me to explain the “Why” of having one more cop magazine. The answer is rather simplistic. With all the junk out there, we felt there should be one collection of work regarding police that is actually done by experts. Glancing across the past issues, one can readily notice most of our content was written by folks with earned doctorates. Those who do not hold the title are nonetheless from the top in their respective field. One simply will not find a more authoritative journal for our line of work. That having been said let me give a preview of this edition. We introduce one of the military’s leading doctors, Ken Shaw, who will deliver a rundown in what should raise your suspicions if you encounter certain chemicals on a carstop or upon arrival at a crime scene. A curator at the Museum of Southern History, Ms. Emily Brown takes us down the trail of a proud Law Enforcement past. Additionally, Marcus Wells, a firearms dealer based in Cypress, TX takes the huge weapons industry and narrows it down to a fine list to consider. Enjoy!!
With delight we welcome this most helpful contribution to Badges On The
Bayou
What Police Need to Know About Chemicals in Meth Labs By Kenneth S. Shaw, OD, MS, Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army As all Law Enforcement Officers (LEOs) well know, methamphetamine laboratories are a growing “business” in the U.S. LEOs are increasingly called on to investigate suspected labs and are more likely to stop vehicles transporting chemicals on the roads. LEOs would be wise to be prepared with knowledge and resources ahead of time. This article is intended to familiarize the officer with the threat and provide a very easy to use and accessible resource. There are at least 32 different toxic chemicals that can be used in the manufacture of methamphetamine.1 The number varies depending on the manufacturing method used. The methods are increasing in sophistication, with the amount of equipment and chemicals required getting smaller. Methods have even been developed that allow an entire lab to fit in an average car.2 This means that any routine traffic stop may turn out be a meth lab investigation! Small, mobile meth labs may also be involved in traffic accidents, releasing their contents. This increases the chance that LEOs may be exposed to the chemical precursors. Are you prepared for this eventuality? There are many different methods used to produce methamphetamine, and all involve the use of toxic chemicals in the production. There are three classes of toxic chemicals used in every method: 1. solvents 2. metals and salts 3. strong acids or bases (aka corrosives and irritants) Most of these chemicals are transported and stored as liquids, although some may be in gaseous form, and a very few are in solid form. Because of this, there are common routes of exposure, meaning that it is possible to protect oneself from them. The primary routes of exposure are through inhaling the vapors, absorbing the chemicals through the skin, or through the eyes. It is easier to store and use many of these chemicals in liquid form rather than as gases. Most of these chemicals must be kept very cold to remain as liquids, and must be stored refrigerated at very low temperatures and moderately high pressures. This means that there may be a lot of pressurized containers that can release supercooled liquids that will convert to gases rapidly. Obviously great care must be used around these. Fires produce toxic vapors that can mix multiple chemicals with very toxic results. Some of the precursors and the resulting product may exist as a solid. Some of these solids may be very fine powders that can be inhaled very easily. Protection is discussed later in this article. The following tables are taken from Chemicals Used In Methamphetamine Manufacture (cited in References): CHEMICAL TOXICITY AND ROUTES OF EXPOSURE (Skin and Respiratory) SOLVENTS
Health effects of solvents: Breathing solvent vapors can cause mild eye, nose, and throat irritation. They may also cause symptoms of intoxication (drowsiness and lack of coordination) or loss of consciousness at high concentrations. Breathing solvent vapors is the likely reason the driver of the vehicle in this news story passed out (“Driver passes out, meth lab in back seat”, see reference below). High doses can also cause permanent liver and kidney damage. Remember, we said that many of the chemicals must be kept in a liquid state by keeping them super-cold. Freon is used to keep them cold, and is toxic if ingested, but the primary danger is freezing injuries if spilled on the skin. CHEMICAL TOXICITY AND ROUTES OF EXPOSURE (Skin and Respiratory) METAL/SALTS
Health effects of metals and salts: Most metals and salts are stored as solids although they are dissolved in a solvent when they are being used. The primary routes of exposure are through getting them on the skin and in the eyes through dust, vapors, or fumes. Lithium aluminum hydride is a fire and explosive hazard. CHEMICAL TOXICITY AND ROUTES OF EXPOSURE (Skin and Respiratory) CORROSIVES AND IRRITANTS
Health effects of corrosives and irritants: These chemicals are very irritating to the eyes, nose, throat, and lungs. Breathing the fumes can cause cough, chest pain, and shortness of breath. They will cause severe eye or skin burns from direct contact. It must also be kept in mind that vehicles must transport the chemical supplies in and out of the facility, or may actually be a mobile manufacturing lab itself. A motor vehicle accident involving one of these vehicles has a very high chance of releasing these toxic chemicals. At the first suspicion or indication that meth lab chemicals are involved, the responding officer should take precautions to protect him/herself with the use of personal protective equipment during the investigation. These should include respiratory, eye, and skin protection. What to do if exposed: If an officer is exposed to any of these chemicals he/she should immediately take action to perform decontamination. In general, with chemicals, “dilution is the solution to pollution”. The vast majority of chemicals encountered can be safely decontaminated with high flow rates of water; a garden hose or fire hose is ideal for that. Any type of soap can be added to enhance the decontamination if it is available. However, meth lab chemicals are often exceptions to this. It is important to remember that a high percentage of these chemicals are violently reactive to water, so it is important to know what chemicals are involved. Magnesium, lithium, potassium, phosphorous, benzyl chloride and all sodium metals and compounds are all reactive with water. There are others as well, but I do not recommend trying to remember them. Each officer should have an easily accessible reference to look up these chemicals and know immediately how to respond. Resources: This article is one resource, but there is a more comprehensive and easy to use reference available. The Wireless Information System for Emergency Responders (WISER)3 is a free electronic database/reference produced by the National Library of Medicine that includes the entire Emergency Response Guidebook, WMD Response Guidebook, and many other tools that are instantly searchable. It is available in several formats. It can be downloaded to the laptop computer mounted in most patrol cars, downloaded to Windows Mobile devices, Palm OS PDAs and directly on the internet through WebWISER. The link is http://wiser.nlm.nih.gov/. I recommend that every computer and smartphone used by police officers have this resource loaded. It is so easy to use that officers can be trained to use it effectively in just minutes. It is increasingly probable that officers will encounter meth labs in their duties. It is even possible that mobile meth labs will be a hazard that they will face. These contain a number of hazardous chemicals that pose a threat to the responding officers, and it is important for each to become educated on these chemicals and have resources available. WISER is a free, comprehensive, and easy to use reference that should be available to all officers. There is no reason any patrol car should not have it loaded on the mounted computer. References: 1. Associated Press. (2010, January 2). Police: Driver passes out, meth lab in back seat. Retrieved January 17, 2010, from http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/01/02/national/a114528S82.DTL 2. Oregon Department of Human Services. (2007, September 21). Chemicals Used In Methamphetamine Manufacture. Retrieved January 13, 2010, from http://www.oregon.gov/DHS/ph/druglab/chemicals.shtml.
Emily Brown is from the
Department of Curation and Education at the Museum of Southern History.
The Proud
History of Harris County Law Enforcement When one thinks of the history of law enforcement in Texas, images of gunslingers, tough living, and shootouts usually emerge. The entire history of Texas and local law proves to be much more than just scenes from a Wild West movie, however, as its formation and evolution reflect the events and situations of the time. What is left is one of the proudest and oldest histories of law enforcement in the country. By 1821, Mexico gained its independence from Spain, and Texas thereby saw a flood of families pour in. Because there was no regular army to offer protection, attacks from bandits and Native Americans became rampant. In 1823, Stephen F. Austin created an informal organization of armed men who could “range” over the countryside. Thus the Texas Rangers were born. These forces were central during the Texas Revolution, aiding in obtaining independence for Texas. By 1837, the Rangers grew to over 300 men. At the same time, regional counties were beginning to create law enforcement offices, including Harris County (or Harrisburg County as it was known) sheriff’s office in February 1837. As Texas began to grow and develop, cities also began to emerge. Brothers Augustus and John Kirby Allen founded Houston in 1836, and it was incorporated in 1837. With the growth of cities came a need for a law enforcement agency, so in 1841 the Houston Police Department was founded. While Texas was its own country from 1836-46, the city and county law enforcement agencies served to protect their respective areas, while the Rangers remained the prime force of the Texas frontier. When the United States annexed Texas in 1846, the Rangers became guides to the federal army of the unfamiliar and rugged territory that still defined Texas still. In addition to this, they served in the Mexican-American War by using unconventional guerilla-like tactics during battles. This compounded with their abilities to reload on horseback earned them a feared reputation. In fact, when Rangers entered Mexico City, they were known as “los Diablos Tejanos”, or Texas Devils. After the Mexican-American War ended in 1848, the Texas Rangers were disbanded because the U.S. Army took responsibility for the frontier. Life without the Rangers was short-lived, however. The federal army found itself unable to cope with the threats of the frontier. With the election of Hardin Richard Runnels as governor in 1857, the Rangers were fully reinstated and took no time getting back to business. They immediately led a campaign against Comanche raids, then went south to the Mexican border where attacks on American landowners were plaguing the area. While the impending Civil War was at the forefront of the nation’s mind, the efforts of the Texas Rangers firmly established them as an effective law enforcement agency, and thus set their reputation. During the years of the Civil War, agents of law enforcement throughout Texas found themselves immersed in the ravages of the event. Many Rangers, such as George W. Baylor and Thomas S. Lubbock volunteered themselves into the service of the Confederacy. After the war, the Rangers were replaced by a Union created force called the Texas State Police. Being the imposers of new Union laws caused this organization to fall into instant unpopularity. This group only lasted from July 22, 1870 to April 22, 1873. The difficult economic time of Reconstruction demanded a control over frontier and town alike that was unprecedented. It is during this time that many of the idealized gunfights and notorious criminals of the “wild west” emerge. To further control the area, a Special Force was created with the specific task of bringing order to the Gulf area between the Nueces River and the Rio Grande. By the end of the 19th century, Texas saw comparable stability that would prove impossible were it not for the efforts of the law enforcement officials of the regional and state levels. With the dawn of the 20th century, cities continued to emerge and Texas saw a decline in what is considered the “frontier”. As a result, many law enforcement agencies had to alter their main operations. The Texas Rangers, for example, disbanded their Frontier Battalion in 1901, and all Rangers provided law enforcement directed towards the citizens. Many of the regional sheriff’s offices, Harris County included, shifted their focus towards being “peace officers”, rather than gunfighters and horse thief catchers. From here, Texas saw two World Wars, the prohibition movement, and an oil boom. All of these events brought with them various struggles and necessitated adjustment in law enforcement agencies. The jurisdiction of many organizations overlapped in an effort to maximize citizen’s protection. Thus, today, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office overlaps with such organizations as the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Houston Police Department to name a few. Today, the law enforcement agencies that protect and serve Harris County and its surrounding areas look far different than they would have at their beginnings. Their rich history goes back over 150 years, from the very beginning of Texas itself. Through it all, there have been many changes to the state, and law enforcement has evolved accordingly. The very fact that such agencies as the Harris County Sheriff’s Department and the Texas Rangers are among the oldest law enforcement agencies in the country attest to the dedication and commitment of the men and women who have been part of such esteemed organizations. In the end, the history of Harris County law enforcement is a proud one, and as that history continues to be written by the deeds and efforts of those part of it today, future generations will look back and see the same spirit that is as big as the state itself. Fred’s
Guncase
FREDERICK M. WENTLING WHAT CAN AN EXPERT IN SHOOTING SCENES AND FORENSIC BALLISTICS BRING TO YOUR CASE? I've yet to encounter a homicide where a careful review of the case file, including investigative reports, scene and autopsy pictures, drawings and all laboratory reports plus the examiner's case notes has not proven useful. The opposite side usually errs in either placing too much weight on laboratory findings indicating the comparison of items was inconclusive or "could have been", portraying this result as a positive identification. Your expert would review the tests and corresponding case notes to ensure the work was done to accepted standards. To explain what the tests mean and as importantly what they do not mean. COMMON TESTS: Gunshot residue: Atomic absorption done by the chemistry section of swabbing taken of individual's hands Muzzle to target tests done by the Ballistics section, this can include examination of items not penetrated by a bullet but thought to be in the residue cloud Scanning Electron Microscopy, the examination of discrete swabbing by SEM This examination is done at the molecular level. The test is very useful as there is no confusion as to a particle being gunshot residue. Identification: Comparison of bullets and cartridge cases recovered from a body, scene or a combination to determine if they were discharged in or from a common firearm, different firearms and what firearms are capable of discharging them. Additionally, a cartridge found at a scene and a firearm recovered at some later date and place can be tested to determine if the cartridge had been chambered in and ejected from it. The same would be true of ammunition recovered at the scene as well as that recovered from searches etc. Distance Determination; GSR used for muzzle to target distances. "Residues" are useful to a distance of several feet. Shotgun patterns are used for distance determination. Shooting Scene: A determination of the angle the shot(s) were discharged from is useful to locate a shooter's position. This is also useful to determine where shots could not have originated from. The geometric interpretation of bloodstain patterns is used to the same goal. The resultant type of bloodstain, "High Velocity Impact Spatter", is unique to high velocity events such as gunfire. The location of discharged cartridge cases and the subsequent ejection pattern of the evidence firearm are useful in locating a shooter or shooters and discerning movement of a shooter. Cartridge cases do not bounce about like basket balls although they may be moved or picked up. The location of and the ejection pattern of a given firearm, rifle or shotgun are important facts in any shooting investigation. The firearm, rifle or shotgun: The "gun" needs to be examined not only to determine if it will discharge, but to determine what mechanical condition it's in, how it functions, the weight of trigger pull and anything else relating to the arm. Counsel already knows it works or they wouldn't be in a shooting case. How it works is the issue. This is often overlooked. The ammunition: Certain types of ammunition are unique to a given manufacturer. An example is many think Brass colored jackets are unique to Remington brand Golden Saber Cartridges. It's not; Mag-Tech and Fiocchi also produce ammunition with brass or brass colored jackets. The care and feeding of your expert: The earlier you involve the expert the better they can serve your case. This can be useful in providing questions for preliminary hearings and items to have your investigator aware of as they follow leads and interview individuals. What have I seen in cases? The most common error is the investigators will posit a theory of the incident and then remain blind to any fact not fitting their theory. The second most common failing is to not submit evidence to the laboratory or the laboratory not conducting exams. The defense expert shouldn't be the first one looking at bullet holes in the garments worn by the deceased. The third is investigator's are always in a hurry and "burn bridges" in a rush to make an arrest. Evidence not identified and gathered is a common event. Experience suggests the desire to make a prompt arrest will over ride proper investigative techniques and becomes an end instead of a full and complete investigation. The nearly mythical faith placed in "the high tech exam". A recent homicide had the pistol being tested for DNA evidence, but neglecting to submit the recovered discharged bullet and cartridge case to determine if they had been discharged from that pistol. I hope this memo will prove of value to you in your casework. Respectfully submitted, |
|
Marcus Wells (813-495-7911, www.SHTFFIREARMS.com) is a Texas Firearms Dealer, and a close friend to the FOP. Having donated a gun to Lodge 39 to earn money for our charities, he offers deep discounts for FOP members, locally or to be shipped anywhere in the U.S. We asked him to briefly describe the current law enforcement retail market. Ed. A Glance at Guns Police Are Buying by Marcus Wells The gun market within the Law Enforcement community is always in transition, with the manufacturers responding to the needs of clients. Let’s take a snapshot of what police are using. First, there will always be the purists who have an almost religious commitment to the 1911 platform. Most of these fellows save their money and go towards the upper end, usually Kimber or Colt, each having a multitude of models with myriad lights, lasers and sights to place on a .45 ACP. Across the country, a very rapid expanse in the Smith and Wesson M&P model can be seen, especially in departments that issue weapons. While midrange in price, they offer a good deal. First, each weapon comes in the box with three grips, one of which will certainly fit any hand. It takes a total of sixty seconds to switch these various sizes. For the left handed officers, each M&P can have all the controls switched over for southpaws in 10 minutes, making it a great choice for all department members. The M&P is available in 9mm, 357 Sig, 40SW, and .45 ACP, all with generous magazine capacity. Noteworthy is the fact Smith makes a traditional 1911 style safety an option. The magazines for the 357 Sig and 40mm models are interchangeable. Anyone who looks at gun literature knows there is a huge push in the vogue of 380 ACPs. These are a fashion statement for the public, but for police, most experts clearly declare them underpowered, and with ammunition extremely difficult to find. Therefore, it is suggested that police not even consider a 380 for their protection, on or off duty. For a backup gun strapped to an ankle, many manufacturers have stepped into the market place. Ruger has introduced their LCR polymer revolver which is +P capable while weighing a minute 13.5 ounces. Charter Arms has also taken a long glance at police needs and has responded with determination. Understandably, this is the life and death moment of last chance. If one draws a backup gun, there is no time to think about whether a round has been chambered or if the safety is on. Both companies make very reliable revolvers that go bang with each pull of the trigger. Knowing that police are never paid commensurate with the service they provide, Charter Arms and Ruger have managed to keep prices down, while not compromising on quality. Many companies manufacture revolvers, but Charter and Ruger have rethought the market demographics, and in response to the vast increase in female officers, have designed full lines of the proven 38SP in weapons designed for both men and women officers.
Glock has also stormed the marketplace, particularly with their subcompact line for off duty carry. These models come in 9mm, 357 Sig, 40 SW, and .45 ACP. , and when dropped into a DeSantis Nemesis holster which sells for less $20.00 becomes virtually invisible in your shorts under the hot Texas sun. It would be remiss to forego mention that Glock presented their new Gen 4 handguns at the 2010 Shot Show, with a new trigger , redesigned grip and adjustable back straps. Currently available in the 17 series 9 m.m. and 22 series .40 S&W, these are soon to become a favorite of Officers and Departments alike. Finally, as is the case with handguns, the patrol rifle is a weapon made by a plethora of firms. Quality varies, but one would do well to look at the mid-priced range Ruger Sr-556. Quite dependable, this is a gas piston AR available with a full length quad rail, Troy Industries flip up sights, and three30 round magazines. Perhaps on a police budget, an officer can view this weapon also as an investment due to a deliberate effort by Ruger to present as standard much of what other companies offer as options. They are expected to retain value financially, to say nothing of the obvious ability to save one’s life. Clearly, this is an
extremely brief overview. The point is, many selections in firearms are
readily available for law enforcement officers, and FOP members should not
hesitate to contact us for further information. |