Sunnyside Police: Gang Unit Now Active

Exclusive Audio Interview With Deputy Chief Phil Schenck

Deputy Chief Schenck Explains the Newly Activated Gang Unit

During last night’s meeting of the Sunnyside City Council, Deputy Police Chief Phil Schenck announced that the long discussed Gang Unit will be activated, and in the field today.  Following the meeting, I interviewed him in his office, and obtained his permission to release this audio recording:


Sunnyside's New Crime Analyst, Courtney Percival, Is Introduced To The City Council At Monday's Meeting.

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Sunnyside’s Promise on YouTube

Yes friends, Sunnyside’s Promise has a video posted online for the world to see.  I am now aware of this fact, and will enlighten you on it momentarily.  Recently, I wrote a post about a video that Transformation Sunnyside has online.  That post got the attention of Nate Bridges, who let me know about the Sunnyside’s Promise video.

After viewing the Sunnyside’s Promise video, I asked Mr. Bridges if I could sit down and discuss it with him.  He readily agreed, and we met Tuesday morning.  After the meeting, I came away impressed with how driven he is in supporting the Sunnyside’s Promise organization.  In terms of the gang problem, it is important to have positive outlets for youth to engage in, as an alternative to the dead-end that gangs will bring.  As law enforcement brings greater pressure on the criminal element in our city, we also need to have positive alternatives for our youth.

Sunnyside's Promise Board Chair Nate Bridges

Funding is always an issue in the non-profit world, and Sunnyside’s Promise has some unique challenges in this regard.  While getting support from the City of Sunnyside, the Sunnyside School District, and Sunnyside Community Hospital, the organization is looking to also get increased support from the private sector.  Many of the grant programs that Sunnyside’s Promise is engaged in pay for the programs and employees, but allow only a small percentage to be spent on administrative overhead.

Bridges says one of the reasons for making this video, is for corporate boards to see some of the things that Sunnyside’s Promise has going on, so they can consider including the group in their budgets for charity and community activities.  These programs do not come cheap, as the group needs $180,000 each year to pay for its executive director, secretary, office space, insurance obligations, and employee benefits.  Most of the other employees are paid through various grants.

The Yakima County Gang Commission failed to include substantial money for Sunnyside’s Promise in its allocation of funding to fight gangs in the county, an oversight that Nate Bridges says he has been told will not occur again in the future.  Mr. Bridges is an appointed representative for the City of Sunnyside on the Gang Commission, but was out of town when the rest of the commission disbursed its funds last year.  Mayor Jim Restucci also represents the City of Sunnyside on this commission.

The Yakima Herald-Republic reported on the agencies that did receive funds through the gang commission, and a link to that article is at the bottom of this post.

In the YouTube video, Mr. Bridges says they were unable to show much of what the group does, due to concerns for the at-risk youth they are working with.  If it becomes public knowledge that a gang member is trying to leave the gang, they may be victims of violence from other gang members.

One such case involved Diane Lopez from Outlook, that according to Bridges, had made the decision to leave the gang.  She was involved with services from Sunnyside’s Promise, and unfortunately died after being shot in her home in Outlook.

Sunnyside’s Promise has helped eight or nine youth to remove tattoos, which also can not be pictured publicly.  Those removing tattoos are also at risk from other gang members that may respond in a violent fashion at this.  Such is the culture of those caught up in gangs.

The Sunnyside School District has referred over 90 students to Sunnyside’s Promise for its prevention and intervention programs.  Bridges says the kids typically are referred after flashing gang signs and colors, or engaging in other behavior linked to gangs.  School counselors are not equipped to deal with these kids to the extent that Sunnyside’s Promise is working with them.

In conclusion, the gang problem is complex.  No simple cure, like getting a job at the local Wal-Mart, will cure it.  The culture of gang life must not be allowed to take over the lives of our youth.  Sunnyside’s Promise is striving to prevent that from happening.  I wish them the best of luck in their endeavors.

Sunnyside Needs A Conversation On Both Problems And Solutions

Sunnyside needs to have a meaningful conversation about both problems and solutions.  By Sunnyside, I mean everyone in the community.  By community, I mean Sunnyside, Outlook, Mabton, and other nearby areas that may or may not be in the city limits.  By everyone, I mean all of us.

What I am about to suggest can be implemented in a multitude of ways, by any number of churches and organizations.  Yes, I mentioned churches, and I will come back to that in a moment.

In a recent post, I mentioned some things I have heard in the community about why we have a gang problem that is so disruptive to our quality of life in Sunnyside.  The series of “I blame” statements have really ticked off some people, that would just rather not have that kind of conversation.  You know the type of person I am talking about here, they might be a family member saying something like:

“It’s really not proper for us to discuss your uncle’s alcohol problem.”

They will say this to you after your critical statement, immediately following your uncle’s arrest for DUI for the eighth time.

Much like families and individuals need to admit when alcoholism is a problem, we as a community need to come together to find solutions to our gang problem.  Ignoring the issue, or not wanting to discuss it will not help the situation.

“Blaming” people or organizations will not solve the problem, but we need to understand different perspectives to help us all work together.  All of the “blame” statements I listed, have been things people have said to me since I moved here.  There are more that I did not list, and I am sure you have heard enough to fill entire books yourself.

I met an acquaintance of mine for coffee recently, and he shared with me an idea for churches to implement a mentoring program to help with youth.  He said that he believes the median age of Sunnyside residents is 25.  This means we need to engage this youthful population in more substantial ways than we are doing now.

Personally, I like his idea.  I am aware of some conversation taking place between the City Manager and Council Members about the feasibility of starting Boys and Girls Clubs here, or having Big Brothers Big Sisters programs in Sunnyside.

“Big Brothers Big Sisters is proven by independent research to improve children’s odds for succeeding in school, behaving nonviolently, avoiding drugs and alcohol, and breaking negative cycles.” Source: Big Brothers Big Sisters

I am in favor of all of these types of approaches.

There is no silver bullet that will solve what is a deeply entrenched problem that exists in a culture that has allowed it to grow.

News coverage of late has reported on suppression plan ideas from the Sunnyside Police Department.  These are critical in eliminating the really bad offenders from the City.  However, there is more that will need to be done by others outside of the law enforcement community.

If mentoring programs can help some of our youth, I am all for them.  Let’s continue that conversation in Sunnyside.  Let’s talk about some concrete steps we can take to stop the violence, while engaging those that are in the age group where they are most susceptible to falling into the destructive lifestyle of a gang member.

This should not be something we put off on government, although local government may be in a position to help facilitate some of the efforts.  We need churches to engage the youth directly, and in a meaningful way.  We need businesses and individuals to support these efforts, financially, and through volunteering.

To defeat the enemy, we need the entire community involved.  The police department’s gang elimination strategy recognizes that other agencies and organizations need to help in this effort.

Let’s all have a meaningful conversation about it.  We can not ignore the problem, and expect things to improve.

Speakers At Republican Club Address Bird Bombs and Gangs

Grandview Police Chief David Charvet speaking to Sunnyside Republican Club

The Sunnyside Republican Club heard Grandview Police Chief David Charvet and Sunnyside Council Member Don Vlieger address political and law enforcement issues ranging from controlling birds in area orchards, to controlling nuisance behaviors of gangs.

Chief Charvet spoke to the issue of “Bird Bombs” which has been the subject of some recent media coverage.  Local orchards use these and other devices to scare away birds from their fruit trees.  ”Bird Bangers” is another name for them.  Charvet said that propane powered noise makers are another method commonly used.

The bird bombs have been in the news because agents of the federal government have started enforcing regulations that require background checks and other controls related to their usage.  Charvet said as a law enforcement officer, he has never responded to a situation where these devices are used in a crime, and personally did not see the need for these new regulations.

He pointed out that other similar explosives are available, without these regulatory controls, in the form of flare guns, shotgun blanks, and even regular shotgun ammunition loads.  Charvet also pointed out that background checks are not required to purchase rifle or pistol ammunition either.

A "Bird Bomb" explosive noise maker subject to new federal enforcement and regulations.

I asked if explosives by model rocket hobbyists were subject to these type of restrictions, and again Charvet said they were not.  Some other comments in the room expressed concern about the government spending its resources enforcing these types of regulations, while public safety is being jeopardized by dangerous criminal gangs in our area.

While speaking, Chief Charvet passed around “Bird Bomb” explosive charges for the audience to see and handle.  Charvet said he had absolutely no concerns about anyone being harmed by handling the small explosives, which are little larger than a firecracker.

Following Chief Charvet’s presentation, Sunnyside Council Member Don Vlieger addressed the topic of gangs in our community.

Don Vlieger said that he did not distinguish between “wannabe” gang members and “actual” gang members.  He compared it to someone who steals a TV from a person’s home.  ”Are they a burglar or not?”, he asked.

Vlieger said that if they are committing acts of a gang member, then are a gang member.  However, Vlieger did say that there are different levels of gang involvement.

Drawing from his background in gang prevention while a deputy for the Los Angeles County Sheriff, and his experience working with school districts as a gang prevention officer and nationally travelled seminar speaker on this topic, Vlieger spoke of the hundreds of troubled kids he has counseled.

His counseling experience covers both Washington and California.

“Poverty does not cause gangs.  Most people in poverty are not in gangs” said Vlieger.

He continued, “A nest does not produce eggs, although it might provide an environment where they can be nurtered.”

Vlieger said that some kids think it is “fun” to be in a gang, adding that mainstream middle class values can not be used to relate to this alternative culture.

“Going to jail for some of these kids means that they have better food, better healthcare, and that they will be surrounded by friends they already know.  Most of us in this room would not have friends there, and would not be a good time for us,” said Vlieger.

Speaking of the Sunnyside Police Department’s proposed Gang Elimination Plan, Vlieger said “The police have a plan to deny sanctuary and support to gangs.”  He said that to be successful, the city must create pressure while also providing opportunity.  With police providing suppression efforts and increasing the pressure on gang members, they will have more incentive to seek help from Sunnyside’s Promise, he said.

Council Member Don Vlieger addresses the Sunnyside Republican Club while Council Member Theresa Hancock sits nearby.

A question was asked about why the Sunnyside Council was not strongly supporting the plan proposed by police.  Sunnyside Council Member Theresa Hancock, who was also in the audience, spoke up and said she is opposed to the idea of notifying employers if they had gang members on their payroll.

“While they are at work, they are not committing crimes”, said Hancock.

Vlieger countered, “If an employer has a child molester or an Al Qaeda member at their business, they have a right to know that.  The same is true for gang members.  We would be negligent if we did not tell them.”

Police Present Gang Elimination Plan

The Sunnyside City Council held a workshop meeting Monday night which included an update on the Yakima County Detention Facility, and a presentation from Sunnyside Police on their Gang Elimination Plan.

All members of the council were present, with the exception of Pablo Garcia, who begged off due to a work conflict.  Council Members voted to excuse the absence.  Theresa Hancock asked if it was required for Council Members to attend workshops.  Mayor Restucci informed her that Council Members are required to attend ALL meetings.

County Commissioner Kevin Bouchey, who is also Chairman of the county’s gang commission, addressed the City Council and informed them that the county would continue to cut bed space for juvenile defenders unless municipalities like Sunnyside dramatically increase funding for them.  Bouchey said that the county currently spends 82% of its budget on law, justice, and public safety issues, but it is still not enough to provide jail space for juveniles.

Municipalities like Sunnyside rely on the county to house juvenile offenders because it falls under the auspices of Yakima County Superior Court.  Under the proposed plan, the county would commit to keeping at least 42 beds for juveniles, and use additional funds from municipalities to pay for some additional beds.

Deputy Mayor Paulakis asked if parents of juveniles could shoulder some of the cost of keeping their kids in jail.  He was told that in Yakima County the sliding fee scale that is charged to parents does not collect very much, if at all, in most circumstances.

Council Member Vlieger noted that in 1995 the county had twice as many juvenile beds, despite not having revenue from the 3/10 sales tax for law and justice.  ”What happened?”, asked Vlieger.  Bouchey said expenses have outpaced revenue.

Mayor Restucci noted that even if Sunnyside joins the plan as proposed, the city would still not have any dedicated juvenile bed-space, but would be sharing with everyone in the county.

Council consensus is to bring the matter back for further discussion at another workshop, with greater detail from the county on how funds are being spent, and how a new “gang court” for juveniles will impact the detention center.

Sunnyside Deputy Police Chief Phil Schenck

A large portion of the meeting was spent as Deputy Police Chief Schenck and Officer Chumley reviewed their strategy for making Sunnyside the safest community in the state of Washington.

Schenck said that we need to break with some of the ideas that have been tried in the past because they are not working.  He said that the police can not be everything for everybody, and that they need to focus on what they do best: suppression.  Schenck said it is critical to work with other agencies like CPS, the hospital, and Sunnyside’s Promise, as they are needed to solve the problem.  However, he said, the role of the police should be on stopping gangs.

“If we don’t stop gangs, we will not see businesses take off, or new industries come to Sunnyside.  That is not acceptable; we want opportunities for our kids,” said Schenck.

The presentation was patterned in some respects after military doctrine for fighting terrorism, with counter-insurgency strategies being employed.  Schenck is a former U.S. Army officer, and has a lengthy career in law enforcement.  The call for “total warfare” against gangs was made, with a community-wide effort required to make it successful.

Schenck cautioned that trying to implement everything in the plan immediately would not effective, as additional resources and staffing are needed for some of the component pieces.  For example, the Sunnyside Police have not yet hired a crime analyst that will help them target patrols to problem areas, while maintaining general security for the rest of the city.

Officer Chumley spoke of Winston Churchill calling for eliminating every means of support for the enemy in World War II.  He said the same needs to be done in the fight against gangs.  Chumley also noted that Sunnyside is not the first to compare gangs to terrorists.  He said the state of California labelled them as domestic terrorists in legislation passed in the 1980′s.

Schenck and Chumley both said that the community feels terrorized, and cited increasing numbers of applications for concealed weapons permits to back it up.

Schenck said that prevention and intervention efforts are useful and needed in the community, but can only be effective if we have suppression that works.  He added, “The suppression side is the most cost effective thing that is needed right now.”

The council decided to consider a resolution of support for the plan at a future meeting.

  • Additional Information:

PowerPoint – Gang Elimination

Gang Elimination Strategy

Gang Suppression Plan

Bad News For The Bad Guys

COUNCIL VOTES 4-2 TO STRENGTHEN POLICE DEPARTMENT

Surenos affiliated gangs are among those causing problems in Sunnyside. (Kennewick Police Department Photo)

Last night, another large crowd turned out to support the recommendations of the Public Safety Committee. The City Council adjusted its agenda to make discussion of adding a Crime Analyst position the first item of the meeting. However, before debate on that topic began, the Council received public comment from citizens gathered during the dinner hour of Valentine’s Day. All of those that rose to speak at the microphone supported both a Crime Analyst and also additional police officers for the City of Sunnyside.  All members of the Council were present, with the exception of Theresa Hancock, who had asked for an excused absence at a previous meeting.

A large crowd turned out on Valentine's Day evening to ask the City Council to make public safety a priority.

The City Council unanimously approved the recommendation of the police department to hire a full time Crime Analyst.  The cities of Kennewick, Pasco, Richland, Yakima, and Spokane have a full time Crime Analyst to name a few.  Last week Kim Hathaway of the Kennewick Police Department came and shared how she uses computer software to analyze and predict crime patterns.  The council was sold on the idea.

Another large crowd turns out to urge the City Council to take action to increase public safety.

Following this, a motion was made to proceed with hiring two additional police officers.  The intent of hiring these new officers is for the police department to have a dedicated apprehension team to arrest bad guys.  They would not be distracted with responding to traffic collisions, for example, while following up leads on wanted individuals.  At various times this concept has been referred to as a “Gang Task Force” or “Gang Suppression Unit”.

Pablo Garcia objected to the motion, saying that the Council should wait to take action for the City Manager and Finance Director to come back with ever more information.  Last week, the Finance Director stated that the money was in the current budget to hire the officers.  Council Member Don Vlieger pointed out that the current time is a good one to seek lateral hires from other departments (some of which are downsizing) and that the city needs to proceed on this now.

The Finance Director put it in writing for the council this week that the funds are there to make the hires.  Still, Garcia persisted in the need to kick the can down the road and wait for more information.  Council Member Mike Farmer said he saw no reason to wait.  Council Member Tom Gehlen said he saw no need to discuss this issue at this time, and that the Council could wait until later to take action.

The council took a vote, with Mayor Jim Restucci, Deputy Mayor Paulakis, Council Member Don Vlieger, and Council Member Mike Farmer voting to hire the officers.  Pablo Garcia and Tom Gehlen voted against the motion.  Following the vote, the audience members broke out in applause.

Mayor Apologizes To Councilman

Mayor Restucci Apologizes To Councilman Vlieger

On February 8th, Mayor Jim Restucci made a public apology to Council Member Don Vlieger in an interview televised on the local NBC affiliate.  The apology came shortly after this blog published a post that was critical of some comments made by the Mayor at last Monday’s workshop meeting.

A blog reader was kind enough to Email me information related to the story that aired on the local news.  As I do not generally watch much television, I was unaware of the interview.  The local TV news typically does not send anyone to cover City Council meetings, so I was not actively looking for the story.

I appreciate the Mayor showing some class in making his apology.  Although we do not agree on issues from time to time, I have found that he is generally responsive to his constituents.  In addition, he is good at responding to questions from reporters and is usually available to answer questions from this blog.

It appears that the friction that heated up to a near boiling point at the workshop meeting has now been abated.  However, the seriousness of the issues confronting the city has not.  The City Council will be meeting Monday, February 14, 2011 at 6:30 PM.  Please attend this meeting, and let the Council know by your presence, that you consider crime a serious enough issue to warrant immediate action.

Soft On Crime Hall Of Shame

The first nominee for the “Soft On Crime Hall Of Shame” was first announced on the Friends of Sunnyside website, and is now being listed here:

HALL OF SHAME

Politicians Soft on Crime

WA State Senator Prentice

Senator Margarita Prentice of Seattle killed an anti-gang bill that was overwhelmingly passed in the State House and endorsed by every police chief in Washington.  She is our first nominee for the “Soft on Crime Hall of Shame.”

DAY OF DECISION IN SUNNYSIDE

February 14, 2011

  • City Council debates adding two police officers to form an anti-gang unit.
  • A “YES” vote is bad news for the bad guys.
  • Former police officer and Councilman Don Vlieger says there is no greater priority and he can demonstrate the money is available.  ”We can afford it,” says Vlieger, “what we can’t afford is to let the gangs take over Sunnyside.
  • The top Sunnyside Police commanders have long been in favor of a dedicated gang unit.
  • Mayor Jim Restucci has told people he has always wanted an Anti-Gang Squad.
  • Councilman Mike Farmer says “It is time to stop studying the problem, and time to start solving the problem.
  • Packed public meetings have enthusiastically supported hiring more officers.

Stay tuned…

Mayor Insulting A Man’s Professional Experience Is Uncalled For

Last night, at a Sunnyside City Council workshop, Mayor Restucci rudely belittled the work experience of a Council Member.  It happened during a discussion about recommendations from the Public Safety Committee to the City Council.  Pablo Garcia questioned the proposal to hire additional police officers.  Don Vlieger chimed in, and mentioned that he had seven years of experience in law enforcement working specifically with gang suppression.  Mr. Vlieger said that we need to strengthen the suppression side of enforcement at this time.

In this exchange, Mr. Vlieger argues for making suppression a bigger part of enforcement in Sunnyside, followed by the Mayor belittling his experience.

Mayor Restucci interjected and said “and when was that, about twenty years ago?”  Mr. Vlieger replied in the affirmative, and then Mr. Restucci sneered: “Well, I want to hear from our police chief.”

Listen to this clip which runs just under two minutes:


Mr. Vlieger was the subject of a Los Angeles Times newspaper story on May 11, 1989, entititled: ‘Deputy Don’ is the first to be assigned to full-time anti-gang counseling and policing duties on campuses of the ABC Unified School District.  A link to this article is at the bottom of this post.

I bring this up to point out that even though it might have been a few years ago, Mr. Vlieger was a pioneer in using both prevention and suppression in fighting gangs.  Mr. Restucci’s claim to fame is that he has voted to cut police officers, and prevention, while spending $500,000 of  money, not in the budget, for city attorneys in a single year.  His misguided attempt to belittle Mr. Vlieger is out of line for what the City Council calls a “workshop” that is meant to facilitate discussion of issues.

While Mr. Restucci may feel that the Sunnyside Police Department does not need more officers, he should not be denigrating the relevant work experience of one of his colleagues.  That was out of line, and I told the Mayor the same following the meeting.  He replied saying, “I am the Mayor, I chair the meetings, and I didn’t think we needed to hear any more from him.”

Followup to Dumb Crook News: Sunnyside, Washington

On August 7, 2009 I wrote a post on this blog about a drunk driver that was passed out in the drive-thru lane of the Sunnyside McDonald’s.  In the post, I mentioned that additional information had been requested regarding this matter.  It has now been received.

In addition to being charged with DUI, the driver was also allegedly driving with a suspended license.  Despite these two infractions, and the fact that he was blocking the drive to a local business, costing the business owners revenue, his vehicle was not impounded, as allowed under Sunnyside Munical Code 10.04.080.

Under what circumstances then, would a vehicle actually get impounded?  This is something that the City Council and Police Chief need to address before someone gets hurt or killed when on the way to get a “Happy Meal” for their kids.  If we are not serious about cracking down on intoxicated drivers, then what is our priority?

The current City Council has gutted the police department, laying off multiple officers, eliminating vacant positions, and not hiring replacements for those that have retired.  In addition, manpower is further strained when officers are called upon for active duty military deployments (for those in the National Guard/Reserves), or when they must be absent for maternity leave, or to care for loved ones in need (such as a family medical leave situation).

The police department needs to be properly resourced, and also driven to enforce the laws in a more aggressive manner.  If we do not tolerate the “little things”, like drunk driving, then we will have less of the “big” things to deal with, such as gang shootings.

If a person is pulled over with a burned out headlight, has no license, no insurance, and possesses marijuana, they should not be getting off the hook with a verbal warning for the burned out headlight, as might be happening in Sunnyside.  There should be no question that the driver, in such a hypothetical situation, would face real and substantial penalties.

The City Council needs to address this in the budget, and also through policy guidance to the City Manager.  The Police Chief will respond if he knows that this is important to his superiors.  His department also needs the resources to complete the tasks they are given.

It is time for the City Council to demand more of the police department, and to back them up when it counts.

Bob Story wrote in the Daily Sun News that we should have a “zero tolerance” policy for those driving without a license or insurance, and that they should all have their vehicles impounded.   How about it, City Council?  Care to step up to the plate and fight for the safety of citizens in Sunnyside?

McDonalds Mugshot_Arresting Officers Report

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