Big Thicket National Preserve (TX)
Methamphetamine Seizure, Seven Arrests
Ranger Johnny Stafford received reports of an alleged methamphetamine
operation on the Neches River within the boundaries of the park about
seven months ago. At least one of the houseboats located on this section
of the Neches River was suspected of being used as a methamphetamine
lab. Stafford relayed this and other information to investigators with
the Jefferson-Hardin County narcotics task force. The task force had
received similar reports and had begun an investigation named "Operation
River Rat." The investigation, which spanned seven months, resulted in
seven arrests and the seizure of four ounces of methamphetamine "ice,"
approximately one pound of marijuana, two clandestine methamphetamine
laboratories, two vehicles, and $16,700 in cash. The methamphetamine
taken was worth more than $300,000. The task force credited Stafford and
a Texas Parks and Wildlife game warden for their keen knowledge of the
area along the Neches River and its inhabitants and for their constant
surveillance of the area as invaluable to the investigation and the
establishment of the case against the suspects. Based on their
intelligence and other reports, a sting operation was conducted on the
night of November 18th. Involved in the sting operation were National
Park Service rangers and narcotics and other officers from Hardin
County, Texas DPS, Jefferson County, Beaumont PD, and Texas Parks and
Wildlife. The sting operation resulted in the immediate arrest of R.H.C.,
Jr., J.W.G., and another male, and the later arrest of
four others. The United States Attorney's Office accepted the case and a
federal grand jury returned indictments against R.H.C., J.W.G., and J.L.E.
The three are being charged with conspiracy to distribute
methamphetamine, which could result in sentences of 40 years to life in
federal prison. The investigation is ongoing, and other indictments are
expected.
[Submitted by Mark Peapenburg, Chief Ranger]
Suitland Parkway (MD)
Weapons and Narcotics Arrests
Two USPP officers from Anacostia Station were on patrol on the
parkway on the afternoon of December 10th when they saw a Cadillac with
two occupants who were not wearing seatbelts and stopped it. A check on
the vehicle revealed that the owner was wanted for homicide, but it
turned out that neither the driver nor passenger was the wanted person.
But an additional check showed that the driver was operating on a
suspended license. A search incident to arrest led to the recovery of a
loaded .40 caliber Glock semi-automatic pistol and a glass vile of
liquid PCP inside a potato chip bag on the passenger's person. Cases
involving firearms and phencyclidine have increased throughout this year
in the parks in Southeast Washington and along the Suitland Parkway. So
far this year, the 22 officers assigned to this station have recovered
62 firearms, the great majority of them semi-automatic handguns. Two
were submachine guns with extended magazines.
[Submitted by
Commander, Planning and Development Unit, USPP]
OPERATIONAL NOTES
Health and Fitness
Memorandum: "New Medical Provider"
December 12, 2003
MEMORANDUM
To: Regional Chief Rangers
Regional Human Resource Specialists
Regional Special Agents in Charge
From: Chief, Health and Fitness Division, Visitor and Resource Protection, WASO
Subject: New Medical Provider
Effective immediately, Park Rangers (LE) and Special Agents may resume scheduling medical examinations with our new medical services contractor, Comprehensive Health Services (CHS). Details on CHS, and our new Medical Review Officer, Lawrence Saladino, M. D., will be provided in the near future.
CHS presently has a large number of clinics currently under contract throughout the country through which they will work with our officers on setting up convenient appointments. CHS has also agreed to seek placing new clinics on their contracts if our officers have a preferred medical provider they would rather use. Public Health Service owned and staffed facilities, not PHS contractors, will no longer be utilized for our program.
Thank you for your patience as we transition to a new medical provider. The selection criteria for a new contractor was largely based on field input. Please let this office know of any concerns or problems as you work with CHS. They are very responsive to customer issues.
The system for making appointments may be modified in the coming weeks as we work out the details but officers may now make appointments by calling CHS directly:
Ms. Jean Hazou at 800-638-8083.
Servicewide Training
Weekly Listing of Operations Training Opportunities
This calendar appears every Monday as an addendum to the Morning Report and a separate entry for InsideNPS. It is not meant to be replace the Learning Place; rather it is a quick summary of available training with links (as available) to relevant Learning Place pages. Please note:
- New and revised entries are in bold face.
- Submissions for other training courses should conform to the style used here.
- Please include the URL to the web sites where readers can obtain the requisite forms and/or find out additional information about the training course. If a URL is not specifically listed, the announcement can likely be found on the Learning Place, the NPS training page found at http://www.nps.gov/training/announcements/index.doc.
- Closing dates for applications are underscored.
**********************************************************************************************
January
January 9 — January 11: National Registry EMT-Basic Refresher, Furnace Creek Inn, Death Valley NP, CA. $125 per student. For additional information, contact Laura_Wilvert@nps.gov, or call her at 760-786-3295. [Dennis Burnett, LE&ES/WASO]
January 26 — February 6: Physical Security (PSTP-403), FLETC, Glynco, GA. For a copy of the announcement, go to http://www.nps.gov/training/announcements/index.doc. The announcement closes on December 19th. [Wiley Golden, NPS/FLETC]
January 26 — February 6: Physical Fitness Coordinator Training (PFCTP-402), FLETC, Glynco, GA. For a copy of the announcement, go to http://www.nps.gov/training/announcements/index.doc. The announcement closes on December 19th. [Wiley Golden, NPS/FLETC]
January 27 — January 29: National Emergency Medical Services Conference, San Diego, CA. This training will provide participants with the latest updates on contemporary standards of pre-hospital patient care, instruction in the application of NPS EMS policy, and the coordination of EMS programs within the parks. Specific topics to be addressed include Director's Order 51, Reference Manual 51, the NPS EMS field manual, EMS program coordination, NPS national standard protocol development, the National Registry of EMT's, EMS data management, patient care reports, the NPS white card, medical-legal issues, and a presentation by the national NPS EMS medical advisor. An EMS medical advisor meeting will preceded the training conference — it will take place on the afternoon of January 25th and all day on the 26th. Nominations must be received by December 29th. For more information, contact Randy Coffman, Chief, Emergency Services, WASO at 202-513-7093. [Randy Coffman]
February
February 2 — February 6: Law Enforcement Advanced Interviewing training (LEAINTP-402), FLETC, Glynco, GA. For a copy of the announcement, go to http://www.nps.gov/training/announcements/index.doc. The announcement closes on December 29th. [Wiley Golden, NPS/FLETC]
February 2 — February 13: Advanced Driver Instructor Training (ADITP-401), FLETC, Glynco, GA. For a copy of the announcement, go to http://www.nps.gov/training/announcements/index.doc. The announcement closes on December 29th. [Wiley Golden, NPS/FLETC]
February 3 — February 6: Instructor Techniques for Non-Lethal Training Ammunition Training (ITNTA-402), FLETC, Glynco, GA. For a copy of the announcement, go to http://www.nps.gov/training/announcements/index.doc. The announcement closes on December 29th. [Wiley Golden, NPS/FLETC]
February 18 — June 11: National Park Ranger Basic Law Enforcement Training (NPRI-404), FLETC, Glynco, GA. For a copy of the announcement, go to http://www.nps.gov/training/announcements/index.doc. The announcement closes on January 8th. [Wiley Golden, NPS/FLETC]
March
March 1 — March 5: Wildland Fire Origin and Cause Determination (NWCG FI-210), FLETC, Glynco, GA. The FI-210 course is designed to provide the coursework portion of the task book requirements for red card certification as a Type III fire investigator (wildland fire cause and origin). The course is open to both commissioned law enforcement and non-commissioned fire and resource management employees who are interested in developing and/or refreshing skills in fire investigation. Fore more information, contact either John Carpenter at 912-267-2607 (John.Carpenter@associates.dhs.gov) or SA Alan Foster at 530-359-2108. [Alan Foster]
March 1 — March 12: Special Operations (SPECOPS-401), FLETC, Tucson, AZ. Training for personnel who are directly involved with special law enforcement operations in the National Park Service. It is intended for those who are actually engaged in such enforcement activities, including terrorism and security, counter-narcotics, and anti-poaching. Includes tactical firearms exercises and training in anti-terrorism concepts and planning, ground/aerial surveillance techniques, use of technical equipment, team building, resource violation scenarios, tactical tracking skills, physical fitness, and officer survival. For a copy of the announcement, go to http://www.nps.gov/training/announcements/index.doc. The announcement closes on January 9th. [Wiley Golden, NPS/FLETC]
March 30 — April 1: Colt M-16/AR-15 Rifle/Carbine/Submachine Gun Armorer's School, Delaware Water Gap NRA, Bushkill, PA. Those attending will be provided with a complete understanding of the design theory, nomenclature, dynamics, compatibility, interchangeability, detailed disassembly, assembly, maintenance and troubleshooting of the M-16/AR-15 family of weapons and certified for three years as a model-specific Colt law enforcement armorer. The course if for LE personnel only. Cost: $375. The closing date for applications is February 29th. For additional details, contact Mike Zirwas, park ranger, at 570-588-2436 or contact him via email. [Mike Zirwas, DEWA]
April
April 19 — April 23: Wildland Fire Origin and Cause Determination (NWCG FI-210), Colorado Springs, CO. The FI-210 course is designed to provide the coursework portion of the task book requirements for red card certification as a Type III fire investigator (wildland fire cause and origin). The course is open to both commissioned law enforcement and non-commissioned fire and resource management employees who are interested in developing and/or refreshing skills in fire investigation. Fore more information, contact either John Carpenter at 912-267-2607 (John.Carpenter@associates.dhs.gov) or SA Alan Foster at 530-359-2108. [Alan Foster]
May
May 10 — May 14: Wildland Fire Origin and Cause Determination (NWCG FI-210), Prescott, AZ. The FI-210 course is designed to provide the coursework portion of the task book requirements for red card certification as a Type III fire investigator (wildland fire cause and origin). The course is open to both commissioned law enforcement and non-commissioned fire and resource management employees who are interested in developing and/or refreshing skills in fire investigation. Fore more information, contact either John Carpenter at 912-267-2607 (John.Carpenter@associates.dhs.gov) or SA Alan Foster at 530-359-2108. [Alan Foster]
May 24 — May 28: Wildland Fire Origin and Cause Determination (NWCG FI-210), Redmond, OR. The FI-210 course is designed to provide the coursework portion of the task book requirements for red card certification as a Type III fire investigator (wildland fire cause and origin). The course is open to both commissioned law enforcement and non-commissioned fire and resource management employees who are interested in developing and/or refreshing skills in fire investigation. Fore more information, contact either John Carpenter at 912-267-2607 (John.Carpenter@associates.dhs.gov) or SA Alan Foster at 530-359-2108. [Alan Foster]
June
June 7 — June 11: Wildland Fire Origin and Cause Determination (NWCG FI-210), Missoula, MT. The FI-210 course is designed to provide the coursework portion of the task book requirements for red card certification as a Type III fire investigator (wildland fire cause and origin). The course is open to both commissioned law enforcement and non-commissioned fire and resource management employees who are interested in developing and/or refreshing skills in fire investigation. Fore more information, contact either John Carpenter at 912-267-2607 (John.Carpenter@associates.dhs.gov) or SA Alan Foster at 530-359-2108. [Alan Foster]
June 14 — June 18: Wildland Fire Origin and Cause Determination (NWCG FI-210), Boise, ID. The FI-210 course is designed to provide the coursework portion of the task book requirements for red card certification as a Type III fire investigator (wildland fire cause and origin). The course is open to both commissioned law enforcement and non-commissioned fire and resource management employees who are interested in developing and/or refreshing skills in fire investigation. Fore more information, contact either John Carpenter at 912-267-2607 (John.Carpenter@associates.dhs.gov) or SA Alan Foster at 530-359-2108. [Alan Foster]
PARKS AND PEOPLE
El Malpais National Monument (NM)
Reassignment Opportunity for GS-7/9 Ranger
The park has a reassignment opportunity for a currently employed career or career-conditional NPS employee who is in the GS-025 series at the GS-7 or GS-9 grade level. The opening is for a permanent, full-time, primary 6c covered protection ranger. She/he must possess or be able to obtain a Level I, full law enforcement commission. The tour of duty includes work on weekends, federal holidays, early morning and late night hours. He/she performs varied protection operations focusing on frontcountry and wilderness resource and visitor protection at both El Malpais NM and El Morro NM. No less than 55% of the ranger's time is spent in the field or preparing/coordinating field projects. The duty station is at El Malpais NM headquarters in Grants. Contact Herschel Schulz, chief ranger, at 505-285-4641 extension 25 for more details about the position. The deadline for applying is January 9, 2004. Contact the park personnel office at 505-285-4641 extension 16 for application procedures. [Sari Stein]
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.