99-180
Zion National Park (UT)
Follow-up on Attempted Armed Robbery, Carjacking
Last week, a federal grand jury indicted S.L.M. for the
attempted armed robbery and carjacking of two female visitors along the
Zion Canyon scenic drive on May 13, 1999. The indictment charges S.L.M.,
35, of Orange, Massachusetts, with attempted carjacking and use of a
firearm in commission of a violent crime. S.L.M. allegedly approached the
women while they were sitting in a car in the Great White Throne parking
area, brandished a handgun, demanded money, and attempted to take their
car keys. When the women fled, he fired numerous shots, striking the
vehicle several times and shattering its rear window. Rangers
established a roadblock upon receiving the report, but were unable to
locate a suspect. Over the next several months, numerous leads were
pursued without result. Investigators got a break in the case when the
FBI's St. George resident agency office received information from
Georgia about a prisoner who claimed to have committed crimes in federal
areas in Utah. Zion ranger Brent McGinn and FBI special agent Scott
Schons traveled to Nahunta, Georgia, and interviewed S.L.M. in the
Brantley County Jail, where he was serving time on unrelated charges.
During a lengthy interview, S.L.M. confessed to numerous armed robberies
and several other crimes committed during May and June 1999 while he was
driving across the United States. S.L.M. is currently serving a 20 year
prison sentence in the Georgia State Prison for rape, aggravated sodomy
and kidnapping. Additional state charges against S.L.M. are pending in
other jurisdictions.
[Submitted by Brent McGinn, District
Ranger, Canyon District]
02-583
Shenandoah National Park (VA)
Follow-up on Arrest for Marijuana Cultivation
Additional information has been received on the November 6 arrest of
Edison Crawford, 50, for growing marijuana in the park. The arrest
stemmed from an investigation that followed the discovery of a marijuana
plot in Shenandoah NP in October, 2001. Rangers pulled a large number of
plants from within the park; together, they had an estimated street
value of over $66,000. During the execution of the arrest and search
warrant at Crawford's house, rangers, federal marshals and county
officers, assisted by a Customs narcotics dog and handler, found
additional marijuana and a number of firearms. ATF has expressed an
interest in the case. Ranger Matt Stoffolano was IC for the operation;
Ken Mehne was the case ranger.
[Submitted by Ginny Rousseau,
Chief Ranger]
02-600
Wilson's Creek National Battlefield (MO)
Attempted Suicide
On the evening of November 16, a 20-year-old woman drove her car
around the park's front gate, smashed through a split rail fence, and
drove down the tour road and onto a dirt service road near a site known
as Sharp Stubblefield. She stopped there and set herself and her car on
fire. Unsuccessful in her suicide attempt, she walked about two miles to
a residence and asked for help. EMS responded and she was flown by
helicopter to St. John's Hospital in Springfield, Missouri, where she
was admitted with second and third degree burns. She is currently in
stable condition.
[Submitted by Bob Randall, Park Ranger]
OPERATIONAL NOTES
Law Enforcement and Emergency Services
Special Park Use Forms To Be Renewed
OMB approval for the application forms for special events and filming and photography (10-930, 10-931 and 10-932) expire in September, 2003. The OMB renewal process takes about nine months, so now is the time to get started. These forms were new when approved in 2000, so the last two years could be considered a trial run. Now is the time to make your suggestions on any revisions, before the forms are approved for another three years. If you have any comments or suggested changes, please email them to Lee Dickinson by December 31.
[Submitted by Lee Dickinson, Special Park Uses Program Manager]
Chief Information Officer
www.nps.gov To Undergo Maintenance on Friday, November 22
WASO-ITC will be moving www.nps.gov over to a dedicated circuit on Friday requiring an Internet Protocol (I.P.) address change. NPS users may experience temporary problems accessing the server but these should be short lived. The public may experience longer delays as global propagation of the new I.P. address may take 48-72 hours. Access should be completely restored by Sunday. If you have problems on Monday please let me know.
[Submitted by Steve Pittleman, steve_pittleman@nps.gov, 202-354-1429]
Submission standards for the Morning Report can be found on the left side of the front page of InsideNPS. All reports should be submitted via email to Bill Halainen at Delaware Water Gap NRA, with a copy to your regional office and a copy to Dennis Burnett in Division of Law Enforcement and Emergency Services, WASO.
Prepared by the Division of Law Enforcement and Emergency Services, WASO, with the cooperation and support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.