On Saturday the goon squad was on full patrol in Onset & Swifts Beach! Although Coleman just sat in the car~ two guy's would walk around and check for parking stickers in Swifts beach.  The old guy seemed to walk around in Onset and tag the car tires with chalk. Then he would come back in an hour and issue a ticket, even though Off. Lopes was sitting in a marked patrol car # 6 on Onset Ave..

THANK YOU STEVE URBON

I know I harp on the cruisers...
but here's a solution if we MUST have the parking enforcement.

Better yet, give them mileage and let them use their own cars.

Therefore unless the town employee speaks anonymously, there will be no news forthcoming.  The slager will be able to rip the s-t apart for  using an anonymous source.  It is only ok when bobo uses a reliable source who asked not to be identified.

What is the procedure for naming a new head of the Crimewatch?  Who appoints the head in the first place?  Surely, you're not Crimewatch head for life, especially if it's a volunteer group.

In other words, who does Crimewatch man answer to?  Since the BOS shrug off all complaints, even from BOS supporters like Stevie, it looks like he doesn't answer to anyone.

Last edited by Hamatron5000 (2009-07-13 16:30:46)

Using the Guardian Angels as an example of a citizen crime watch (they're in the news now as they are considering putting patrols in New Bedford See Article i Herald), just patrolling an area and calling in suspicious activity to the police department without intervening can be done by any group. An individual can even do it themselves.

There's no need for an official sanction or permission.

Writing parking tickets is entirely different. As Capt. Carilino pointed out parking enforcement officers have to be authorized in a way that apparently Wareham's haven't been.

I really think the town of Wareham is asking for a serious problem the way they have the Crime Watch set up, driving around in cars that except for one green light and a logo of an eye on the side look just like real police cruisers.

We already have one person reporting that Coleman used the lights on his cruiser to stop someone from leaving a parking spot so he could write him a ticket. As I wrote, I also saw the car with lights flashing last summer driving into and while parked at one of the beaches.

These aren't police officers. Outside the car with their yellow t-shirts and jeans or shorts there's no doubt they aren't police. But inside the vehicle it can be hard to tell. If the wrong person mistakes them for real officers there's no telling what may happen.

I strongly suggest that if he has the authority the acting chief make them take the light bars off their cars and write "VOLUNTEER PARKING ENFORCEMENT AND CRIME WATCH" in big letters on both sides.

Take "Emergency 911" off the back too. and replace it with the same lettering. By now everyone knows that you call 911 in emergencies.

Green strobes are easily mistaken for blue - when it is flashing these lights still look like this is a police car. The second they are turned on I think a case can be made that they are impersonating a police officer.



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Let's get this straight.  The BOS is more than happy to turn the BOS meeting room into a Kangaroo court, where real police officers are tried and convicted in the court of public opinion, giving a public airing to anyone's complaint, no matter how absurd, with no advance notice to the officers.  They've done this again and again, and no doubt, they will continue to do it.

But, a former police officer comes in last week to complain about Crimewatchman and his complaint is ignored and he is cut off.

You can complain about the real police, but no complaints will be heard about the wannabe police.

If you are going to give people police powers, then the town granting those police powers is responsible for their actions when they are using those police powers.  There needs to be some kind of complaint system other than the current "Crimewatch can do no wrong" approach.

Tailing someone over parking?  Seriously?  This time, the retired and respected former police officer was nice enough to bring his complaint to the town.  The next person it happens to may not be as nice and may just proceed right to a lawsuit.

When you have people that are not police officers exercising police powers, its a recipe for disaster.

But who cares if 2 former police officers told the BOS they have a problem...the BOS knows all.

It's a recipe for disaster!

What do you mean, Mixie? I don't know what you mean by a listerv..please explain...thanks..

As you know I was the third person to speak on the Crime Watch issue at the last meeting. No again Mr Slager I am not an employee of a local establishment please correct your story, and as far as I know the former Captain does not work at Pier View either.

My questions were about cost and liability you can review the tape for the answers but I was told by the BOS and ITA that ZERO dollars come from the town for the cars,gas,insurance,or registrations, the town gives them no money.

Second on the liability issue again I was told the volunteers sign waivers and God forbid they injure someone or get injured according to the BOS and ITA the town has no liability risk.

They stated that this is a private organization and any duties given to them involve the ITA and the Chief of Police.

Not sure I buy all of that but that is what was stated by them.

COLEMAN CLAIMS HIMSELF HE ONLY ANSWERS TO THE BOS AND THE ITA

searay240 wrote:

My questions were about cost and liability you can review the tape for the answers but I was told by the BOS and ITA that ZERO dollars come from the town for the cars,gas,insurance,or registrations, the town gives them no money.

Hmmm... I guess the board LIED AGAIN. From Bobo...

   Crime Watch is a joint program between the group's board of directors, the police department, and the town. The group is financially self-suffient except for a gas allowance, which is paid for by the town. During last night's regularly scheduled selectmen's meeting, Sauvageau erronously stated that the town receives no revenue from tickets issued by Crime Watch. He admitted his error in a phone call to the Observer this morning, saying he misspoke on that point Tuesday night.

Make up you minds! If your going to lie, tell the same story every time. What lying scumbags we have on the BOS.

Ha. Beat you by seconds.