Memorial Day “Click It or Ticket” Campaign

The Overland Park, Kansas Police Department will be conducting a Memorial Day “Click It or Ticket” S.T.E.P. Campaign from May 20th, 2013 through June 2nd, 2013. This task is being conducted with the principle focus on Child Seat Restraints and Seat belt enforcement. Officers will aggressively enforce Kansas occupant restraints and other traffic laws as part of the 2013 Kansas Click It or Ticket traffic enforcement Campaign. This activity is supported by a grant from the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT).

 

Drivers on the roadways of Overland Park can expect strict enforcement of the Safety Belt Use and Child Passenger Safety Acts.

Briefly, these acts require that all persons in a motor vehicle manufactured or assembled after January 1, 1968 or assembled prior to 1968 which was manufactured with safety belts carrying 10 passengers or fewer, including vans, must be buckled in. In the event that a passenger under the age of 14 is unrestrained the driver will be cited. Where a driver or passenger aged 14 through 17, is seen to be unrestrained, that person will be cited.

Children under the age of four must be secured in an approved child safety seat; children ages four through seven who are under 80 pounds and under 4’9” tall must be securely belted into an approved booster seat; and children ages eight through 13 must be secured in a safety belt.

Officers working this campaign will also be strictly enforcing speeding and DUI violations. During last year’s campaign, officers stopped a total of 860 vehicles, of which, 833 citations were issued for some type of seat belt or child seat restraint violation.

Buckling up your seat belt has been proven to be the single most effective way to reduce the risk of injury or death in motor vehicle crashes. Most people who die in collisions are not wearing a safety belt.

The chart below is a comparison of the results for the last two years.

Inquiring Minds, Even Young Ones, Want to Know

The little ones always ask the most candid questions.  One can really never know in advance what they will say or what they are wondering until the moment they open their mouths.  That is probably one of the main reasons police station tours can be so entertaining for the officers who have the privilege of conducting them.

Monday through Thursday each week from 4 pm to 5 pm, the police department opens its doors, by appointment only, for youth groups of all kinds--scouts, church groups, and school groups alike--so these young minds can get a glimpse of what a police station looks like.  They visit areas such as the municipal courts, equipment rooms, report writing areas, and everybody’s favorite, the booking area.  Children often comment about how surprised they are that the holding cells are so sparse with no bed, no table, no lamp, and a toilet out in the open!

To learn more about tours or to schedule a tour for your group please visit http://www.opkansas.org/city-government/police-department/police-special-services-and-programs/police-station-tours/

Some Things Can't Be Changed

On Jan. 24, 1985, the interchange of I-35 and 75^th Street looked very different than it does today. While the interchange has been redone and I-35 widened, what happened that night can’t be changed.

That night and the story of Officer Deanna Rose affected the way officers responded to calls and forever altered the way we would do business.

In 1983, Officer Rose became one of seven female officers in the Overland Park Police Department.  The department had about 100 officers at the time.

At 1:42 am on the night of Jan. 24, 1985 Officer Rose stopped a vehicle going northbound on I-35, just south of 75^th Street.  She began a DUI investigation on the 19-year-old driver. A struggle began as she attempted to arrest the driver, who already had one DUI charge pending.  The suspect knocked Officer Rose to the ground and as he was driving away, ran over her.  Officer Rose died from her injuries two days later.  She was the first female officer in Kansas to be killed in the line of duty, and the first and only Overland Park officer killed in the line of duty.

The man who killed Officer Rose pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter on April 17, 1985.  He served six years before he was released on parole. In 1996, he attempted unsuccessfully to have his record and the charge of voluntary manslaughter expunged.

There are now 248 sworn officers in the Overland Park Police Department; 23 of those officers were working in 1985.

Some have clear memories of Officer Rose, that cold winter night of Jan. 24, and her memorial service a few days later.  Many remember who spoke at the service and what was said.  One recalled several officers standing at attention through the entire service because there were no seats available.  Another remembered not being able to attend the funeral of someone he respected because he was working undercover at the time. Not exactly a challenge you might think of if you had to make plans to attend a memorial service of a friend.

Even after her death Officer Rose continued to help those in need.  As an organ donor she helped several other people.  The recipient of her heart was a 49-year-old father of three daughters.

Many are familiar with the name Deanna Rose.  Hundreds of thousands of visitors each year walk through the Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead.  The Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead, originally named “The Children’s Farmstead” was renamed in 1985 in honor of Officer Rose, who loved animals and was considered an accomplished equestrian.



Today is National Peace Officers Memorial Day.  A day set apart from others to give recognition to law enforcement officers who lost their lives while doing their job - protecting others and upholding the laws. 

Today we remember those officers and for those of us in Overland Park, we especially remember Officer Deanna Rose.



Officer Rose's Memorial, Jan. 28, 1985





Officer Rose's huband, David Rose



Archived photos courtesy of Olathe Daily News and Kansas City Star

Katy Bar The Door – Or At Least Close It

There were 57 in 2010, 68 in 2011, 70 in 2012, and 6 already this year.  What are we talking about?  Only one of easiest crimes to prevent.  Open garage door burglaries.

People have different reasons for leaving the garage doors open.  They like the convenience of being able to quickly access lawn care items or want to allow children to get their bikes and toys.  However, that convenience for you is equally convenient for others.  It only takes a moment for an uninvited individual to step into your garage and have access to anything inside of it.  Think of all the things in your garage, or in your unlocked car in your garage, that can be easily picked up and gone while you are in the backyard.

We typically see an increase of open garage door burglary reports with the warmer months.  Some of these are reports about incidents that happen during the day time hours, but a larger number of these types of calls occur during the overnight hours when someone forgot to close the door before going to bed.  These overnight crimes happen while victims are usually fast asleep and without a clue that someone is rummaging through their garage.

Officers who see open garage doors, especially those seen overnight, regularly attempt to make contact with residents about the open doors.  To avoid your own late night wake up call, remember to close those doors.

Results of May 10th DUI Check Lane

The Overland Park Police Department and several Kansas police agencies conducted a DUI Check Lane on Friday, May 10th, 2013. The DUI Check Lane was conducted with the intent to reduce alcohol related auto accidents and discourage impaired driving.


Please review the statistical results:

433 - Vehicles entered the Check Lane

29 - Drivers tested for DUI

3 - Drivers arrested for DUI

2 - Transporting Open Container (Alcohol)

1 – Narcotics Arrest

2 – Refusal of Preliminary Breath Test (PBT)

1 – No Driver’s License

On The List

When your name appears on a list, it can either be a good thing or, unfortunately, sometimes a bad thing. Recently, the City of Overland Park has seen its name atop a few lists of its own. These lists however, are something cities our size around the country would love to make.

Yesterday, it was brought to our attention that Overland Park was ranked #3 by Movoto.com as one of the Top 11 Cities for Raising a Family. The article mentioned “The second biggest city in Kansas, it’s pretty inexpensive ($215K median home prices) to live here. The schools are better than good, there’s no crime, and parents have a place to work at Sprint/Nextel headquarters, just a stone’s throw from Kansas City.”

Movoto.com is a real estate brokerage company specializing in providing prospective clients with the scoop on nearby school districts, neighborhood demographics, crime rates and market trends.

Back in 2012, CNN Money Magazine rated Overland Park ninth as one of the Top Ten Places to Live. In ranking the top 100 cities, CNN Money Magazine said Overland Park had no lack of town spirit; residents rave about friendly neighborhoods; people flock to the biweekly Downtown Overland Park Farmers' Market, known as one of the best in the area; enjoy the Overland Park Arboretum & Botanical Gardens; Overland Park Soccer Complex and Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead. Overland Park is one of three cities in the nation to be consistently named in the Top 10 since 2006.

25 Top Suburbs for Retirement - Overland Park was recognized by Forbes Magazine in its ranking of cities for various categories. Forbes noted that Overland Park with its population of approximately 175,000 residents, has four hospitals, colleges, low crime rates, average home prices in the mid-$200,000 and a cost of living at a "whopping 12 percent below the national average."

Some of the common amenities mentioned by these sources are the city’s superior schools and low crime rates. This is a testament to the hard work provided each day by the city’s roughly 950 full and part-time employees and volunteers, as well as the residents who choose to live here and make Overland Park one of the nation’s best places to call “home”.

All Things Noisy and Loud – Part 2

Barking dogs, loud parties, and construction are all things we see more of during the warmer months of the year.  And the more we see of them, the less patience we have for them.  We covered all things noisy and loud in regards to motor vehicles.  This time we’re going over a few of the other noise complaints we commonly receive.

The barking dog that just goes on and on and on is something you might have endured yourself at some point.  They are one of our most common types of noise complaints.  There is an understanding that dogs bark, but allowing a dog to be unreasonably loud or disturbing to the point that it disrupts the peace and quiet of a reasonable person in the neighborhood, well, that’s where we start to take notice. 

Now, there is a bit more to it than just being loud and disturbing.  Keeping in mind dogs will be dogs, a formal complaint has to involve an ongoing barking issue.  A dog that barks for a few minutes and then is stopped by the owner doesn’t qualify.  The ordinance specifically says the animal barks, howls or emits audible sounds, without provocation from the complainant, with intensity and duration.  What’s duration?  The Animal Control Officers advise they use a thirty-minute time frame as a measure.

Are you now asking yourself, “How long do I have to listen to construction, the neighbor’s yard work, or even their automotive repair before I can call?”  Don’t worry, we’re about to answer that question.  Generally speaking, these types of noise complaints become an issue between the hours of 10:00 pm and 7:00 am.  So if you decide to rebuild your deck, mow your lawn or tune your hot rod in the middle of the night, don’t be too surprised to see us stopping by for a visit.

This finally brings us to the loud party call.  Unless you’ve invited all your neighbors and there’s no one left to be upset, parties that can be heard across any property boundary line and include operating, playing, or permitting any sound amplification or producing device to go on between the hours of 12:00 am (midnight) and 6:00 am are likely going to be called in to the police department.  We don’t like being the spoiler of a good time, but unfortunately sometimes we do have to offer a reminder that not everyone was invited to the party.

There are a few other less common types of noise complaints. Some have to do with trash collection in the early morning hours and others have to do with motor homes or semi trucks with sleepers running their air conditioning units in the middle of the night.   These are subject to the 10:00 pm to 7:00 am time frame and “across property boundary lines” we addressed with construction, yard work and automotive repairs.

That just leaves us with one question to ask at the end of all this… heard enough yet?  Well then, call us if you need to.