Steve Herlth in Southwest Baltimore, whom I met on a police community ride-along, is one of the expert organizers of community crime walks, called Citizens On Patrol. Earlier this month, about 100 people swarmed over Carrollton Ridge after a child was hit and critically wounded by a stray bullet. The mayor and practically everyone in City Hall, as well as residents from across the city, turned out.

But the real test is what comes after the walks and then who shows up when there's no tragedy to mobilize and outrage a community. I was heartened to get this e-mail from Steve last night, and a picture, though grainy, of a good deed by residents who combined the walks with a trash detail, and the helpful hand of a city police officer:

Hi Friends, 

It has been a while since I wrote one of these Walk Status Reports, as you know, we have fun and communication between the communities is getting better all the time. However, tonight was a little better than usual.

Hunting Ridge came out with a plan tonight. Their walkers were armed with trash bags, what in the world are they going to do. Well, as soon as we got started, it became obvious. They started picking up trash as they walked. Well, that was cool all by itself, but the walk leader who I will name Dana, has a young child in the stroller.  She cannot pick up trash and push the stroller. Who came to the rescue?  The picture is worth a thousand words.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 7:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Confronting crime, Heroes, Neighborhoods
        

Baltimore police are announcing a "major development" in the case of the pit bull that was burned last month when someone poured gasoline on it and set it on fire. I can only guess that the cops have made an arrest.

This case got nationwide attention. Last week, the police commissioner and mayor honored the officer (Officer Syreeta Teel is congratulated by Commissioner Frederic H. Bealefeld at left) who came across the dog burning on Presbury Street in West Baltimore and put out the flames with her sweater. Unfortunately, the dog had to be put down several days later. A reward climbed to $23,000.

Stay tuned for updates throughout the day.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 10:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Breaking crime, Heroes
        

Flanked by per parents, her boss, the police commissioner and the mayor, Baltimore Police Officer Syreeta Teel was honored this afternoon for her work in saving a pit bull that had been doused with gasoline and set on fire last month on the city's Westside.

Mayor Sheila Dixon talked about the "overwhelming response" to the fate of the dog, nicknamed Phoeinix, who had to be put down despite Teel's quick work to put out the fire and get the dog to help. An award, through private donations, has reached $23,500. "We are very committed to finding this individual," Dixon said, though police wouldn't comment on leads.

It was nice to see a city cop honored and Teel stood at attention in her dress blues as Dixon stood by her side and read a certificate thanking her for her work. Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld pointed to the officer's parents, Thurman and Deborah Evon Teel, and said it was they, not the department, who best trained the officer.

"Officer Teel didn't need us to teach her to be a good person," the commissioner said. "Officer Teel didn't need the city of Baltimore to teach her to be a humane person."

Posted by Peter Hermann at 3:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Confronting crime, Heroes
        

The Baltimore Retired Police Benevolent Association on Wednesday night named a city homicide detective, 40-year veteran Randy Wynn (left, in a picture taken by the Baltimore Sun's Chiaki kawajiri), officer of the year for investigating the tragic suicide of a fellow cop who had no friends and family.

It was a touching ceremony at Heritage Gardens in Parkville that brought veteran cops to tears. Wynn told the group he had done nothing special, "I did what I felt needed to be done." But his Baltimore police colleagues disagreed -- the story of Patrolman Edward William Eldridge, who shot himself in the head in January and was buried without family or friends, spurned a new movement among cops to help their retirees.

Wynn had responded to the shooting in Northeast Baltimore but didn't know the victim was a fellow officer until a day later; the condition of the body made it hard to immediately identify. Eldridge (left) was having financial problems -- he had lost much of his $550,000 savings to the stock market, and couldn't find anybody to wait for him at a hospital for simple knee surgery.

"His way of dealing with this was to pick up a .40 caliber Glock and put two bullets in his head," Wynn told those gathered. Wynn spent days picking through Eldridge's things but could not find a friend or a relatives. All his phone numbers, listed on his fridge and programmed into his cell phone, went to an accountant, a take-out pizza place, a video rental store, a repairman for his house. He spent his time polishing his gun collection and watching movies; he had been robbed in a home invasion a few years earlier and he kept a hunting knife in each room and had black garbage bags covering all his windows.

"He was as paranoid as you can get," Wynn said.

Eldridge was buried with police honors; people came who never even knew him to pay their respects and Wynn tried but failed to find a relative. One did finally surface just a few weeks ago, but only after a probate firm hired to dispose of the dead officer's estate found a cousin. Karen Zglobicki told Wynn that she would use money from Eldridge's estate to help the retired officer's fund.

Wynn came to the ceremony with his wife and boss, Maj. Terrence McLarney, head of the homicide unit. One of the heads of the retirement association, Richard D. Nevin, spoke of Wynn's hard work that brought attention to a long-hidden problem.

"There is compassion," Nevin said. "There is kindness and mercy. He could've just written the reports and left. Nobody would've known and I don't think anybody would've cared, because there were no family members involved. He sat down and went through this man's history."

Nevin said he was heartened that "the department let him" take the time to investigate a case that could've easily been closed. "It shows there are some thinkers still in the department."

Nevin told the group that he started getting calls about Eldridge the morning the story appeared in the Baltimore Sun, before he even had seen it, and that calls kept coming all day. I got more than 100 e-mails about this topic, more than I've ever gotten throughout my 20-year career.

Wynn prepared well for his speech. He researched suicide on the Internet and couldn't believe that he found a manual on how to kill yourself, published just a few years ago in Japan. "One million people have bought this thing," he told me over dinner. He then went down a long list of various ways to take your own life. I asked how many of these he had seen in his career. He paused, read through the list and said, "Well, I just had a freezing the other day."

The detective warned the retired cops that they are in a high-risk category for sucide -- over 65, male and in law enforcement. He urged them to reach out to friends and old partners, "They're not going to ask you for help. Edward Eldridge wouldn't have asked for help if he was on fire."

Posted by Peter Hermann at 9:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Heroes
        

It's been more than three months since I wrote about Edward William Eldridge Jr., the retired Baltimore police officer who killed himself after he couldn't find anyone to stay with him for out-patient surgery. His death served as a stark reminder to our retirees who sometimes have no one to help them in their times of need.

A city homicide detective, Randy Wynn, who had the awful task of investgating the death, spent hours upon hours inside the former officer's home searching for a relative. He found none, and Eldridge was honored at his funeral service by former colleagues and strangers. His story touched many, and left those who did know him sad that they hadn't kept up and known he was in trouble.

This morning, I awoke to an e-mail from a cousin, the first correspondence I've received from any relative. The officer's parents are dead, he was an only child and he never married. It's another sad chapter in the day of Officer Eldridge:

Dear Mr. Hermann,
 
I little over a week ago, I learned of my cousin's death from an opportunistic, probate-research firm based in California. It appears their researchers saw your story and promptly went about digging for those missing family members and an easy cut of an unclaimed estate. Within minutes, I located Ed's obituary and your Baltimore Sun articles about his death.  I've read those articles and comments many times over. My sense of sadness growing more profound each time. Here, I am in Philadelphia reading about the tragic end and circumstances of a stranger, my relative just an hour plus away.
 
Ed's father, Ed Sr., was the brother of my grandmother, Edna Eldridge Oelschlegel. He also had three more brothers and a second sister, all of which have passed. Ed Jr. was one of eight, Eldridge first cousins and some of them, including my mom and her sister, are gone as well.
 
I've tried to remember times spent with Uncle Ed, Aunt Ruth and cousin Ed, but I only remember bits and pieces of holidays of when I was little. The last few times I saw them were at family funerals in the 80s. Christmas cards and periodic phone calls were still being exchanged then, but responses decreased with time and ceased all together at some point; not to be noticed nor picked-up by the next generation. The sad truth is that there are several Eldridge family decedents in the Philadelphia area, and none of us had any contact with cousin Ed since those funerals from what I can tell.
 
I remember Ed as Mom's nice, soft-spoken cousin who knew a lot about everything and was a policeman down in Baltimore. I was glad to read that those traits were true throughout his life & career. Thank you for bringing his story to light and raising the awareness of isolation with age and the tragic consequences of not keeping-in-touch. Thank you for helping to start the discussion within the police community about retiree outreach. Thank you for bringing me reflection on what's important.
 
Sincerely,
Karen Zglobicki

Posted by Peter Hermann at 5:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Heroes
        

This week, I visited with Maryland State Police pilots, medics and maintenance workers at the aviation unit at Martin State Airport in Middle River. This is a family still grieving the loss of two of its members, along with another paramedic and a patient, when one of the MedEvac choppers crashed in September in Prince George's County.

Investigators have not determined a cause but have criticized air traffic controllers as being sloppy for not guiding the chopper properly and for providing outdated weather information during heavy fog. Changes also have been made to ensure that medics consult more often with trauma surgeons to make sure patients are suffering from traumatic injuries before calling for the helicopter.

Medevac pilots have one of the most dangerous jobs in the country, often flying under less-than-ideal conditions, having to quickly change routes without flight plants, performing high-altitude rescues and landing on highway overpasses and areas littered with power lines.

I spoke with several people, all of whom addressed the political issues, but they also talked from the heart about their committment to saving lives. We can debate all day whether some flights are unnecessary or whether the state would be better served by privatizing the unit, but there is no doubt that the crews I met believe the money Maryland spends on this program saves lives.

"It doesnt matter if you are a homeless person hit on I-95 or Donald Trump hit in his limo, you will get a helicopter and a committment from the state of Maryland to do everything to save your life," the operations director, Bill Bernard, told me.

I was most struck by David Rosenberger, who has spent 20 years repairing and inspecting the helicopters, and he knows the pilots and the crafts inside and out. He actually flies in them after he's fixed them, ensuring they are as safe as he can make them. "It's not just pride," he said, "It's a personal investment."

I met with this crew ahead of tomorrow's Fallen Heroes Day ceremony at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens in Timonium, an annual event to remember law enforcement officers from Maryland who died in the line of duty.

This year's ceremony, presided over the Ravens Matt Stover, will honor Prince George's County Sgt. Richard Findley, Baltimore County Lt. Michael P. Howe, Maryland State Police Pilot Stephen Bunker, MSP Trooper Mickey C. Lippy, Waldorf Volunteer EMT Tonya Mallard, Baltimore County Firefighters Brian D. Neville and Thomas E. Rice, Frederick City Police Officer Richard Bremer, and FBI Agent Sameul Hicks (the former Baltimore police officer was fatally shot in Pittsburgh).

The ceremony begins at 1 p.m. at the cemetery, 300 East Padonia Road in Timonium and is open to the public.

Posted by Peter Hermann at 11:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Heroes
        

The annual Fallen Heroes Day is scheduled for May 1 at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens in Timonium. Here is some background and a list of law enforcement officials to be honored, sent by the spokesperson for Dulaney Valley:

ANNUAL FALLEN HEROES DAY TO HONOR 8 WHO DIED IN LINE OF DUTY

Matt Stover, Baltimore Ravens, to Deliver Keynote Address

Maryland’s police officers and firefighters who have died in the line of duty during the past year will be honored at the 24th Annual Fallen Heroes Day Ceremony on Friday, May 1, 2009, 1:00 p.m. at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens. Fallen Heroes Day is the only statewide ceremony in the nation that brings together all segments of the public safety community. The ceremony salutes police and correctional officers, firefighters, emergency medical and rescue personnel who risk their lives everyday to protect the citizens of Maryland.

Fallen Heroes Day 2009 will honor the following: Sgt. Richard Findley, Prince George’s County Police Dept. (June 27, 2008); Lt. Michael P. Howe, Baltimore County Police Dept. (August 11, 2008); Pilot Stephen Bunker, Maryland State Police (September 28, 2008); TFC Mickey C. Lippy, Maryland State Police (September 28, 2008); EMT Tonya Mallard, Waldorf Volunteer Fire Dept. (September 28, 2008); PMFF Brian D. Neville, Baltimore County Fire Dept. (October 16, 2008); Officer Richard Bremer, Frederick City Police Dept. (October 23, 2008) and FADO Thomas E. Rice, Baltimore County Fire Dept. (January 21, 2009).

The ceremony will begin with a procession of more than 25 honor guard units from across the state, police motorcycles and mounted units, bagpipers and drummers. Memorial addresses will be given by elected leaders including, Governor Martin O’Malley, Baltimore County Executive Jim Smith and Prince George’s County Executive Jack Johnson. Matt Stover of the Baltimore Ravens will be the special guest speaker and Mary Beth Marsden of ABC 2NEWS will serve as the emcee.

“The 2009 Fallen Heroes Day ceremony truly captures the essence of  this occasion, as we honor a Maryland State Police pilot, and an emergency medical technician along with three police officers and three firefighters,”  said  John O. Mitchell, III Chairman of Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens.  “It is an opportunity for the public to show its appreciation and respect for all men and women of the public safety community.  When the community suffers the loss of one of these dedicated public servants we are reminded of the incredible risk that they face each day when they report to work.”

In 1976, 330 burial spaces at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens were set aside for fallen heroes and their spouses by John Armiger, Sr. founder of the cemetery. In 1986 John Armiger, Jr. established the tradition of honoring those who have given their lives for the community in the only statewide ceremony for fallen heroes.  In June 2007, Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens was purchased by John O. Mitchell III of the family-owned Mitchell-Wiedefeld Funeral Home in Rogers Forge/Towson, MD. The Mitchell family is proud to continue the tradition of Fallen Heroes Day.  Fifty-nine members of the public safety community are buried at the Fallen Heroes Memorial.

Keeping with tradition, Governor Martin O’Malley has issued a proclamation declaring May 1, 2009 Fallen Heroes Day in Maryland and has ordered flags flown at half-staff at the State House and all state facilities. During the service, a replica of the Fallen Heroes Memorial and a resolution from the Maryland General Assembly will be presented to the families of the fallen heroes being honored this year.

The Fallen Heroes Memorial is located within Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens, 200 East Padonia Road, Timonium, MD 21093.

Here are details on some being remembered:

Continue reading "Honoring fallen heroes" »

Posted by Peter Hermann at 1:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Heroes