DALLAS COUNTY SHERIFF‟S DEPARTMENT

DECEMBER 2012 HIGHLIGHTS

Volume 12 Number 11 2013 IS HERE!

Behind The

BADGE

Inside this issue:

Sgt. Riggins’ Legacy

Meet Sgt. Ratcliff-Saldana

Bryant Joseph Christmas in the Community Event

The Bridge to Communi-ties

Prison Fellowship Angel Tree Program

Sheriff Valdez’s Visit Abroad

Congrats Lt. Bonner

Retirements

Courtroom Bailiff Training

Employee of the Month

KwanzaaFest 2012 Beat Obesity 5K Walk/Run

FROM THE SHERIFF

Pictured above: Members of the Sheriff’s Executive Staff Office paid tribute

to Sgt. Riggins with this memorial at the Frank Crowley Courts Building.

Sergeant Kenneth D. Riggins died in an off-duty car accident December 3, 2012

near Quinlan, Texas. He was doing what he did best, lending a hand.

Sgt. Riggins began working for the Dallas Sheriff’s Department in 1992 as a de-

tention service officer. Through hard work and sacrifice, he became a deputy in

1997. He joined the sheriff’s executive staff in November of 2009, where he

oversaw the department’s strategic planning section.

He is survived by his wife, Terry Riggins; his children, Star Riggins, Patricia Lu-

na, Kenneth Riggins, II; parents, Donna Miller, Douglas Riggins (Retired Senior

Sgt. Dallas Co. Sheriff Dept.); siblings, Doug Riggins, Elaine & Lenny Smith

(brother-in-law & best friend), Roseanna Hottel; Aunt, Sharon & Will Parker;

many nieces and nephews.

With the advent of 2013, I would like to thank everyone for doing their part in en-

suring a safe holiday season for all of Dallas County. The DWI enforcement op-

eration was a great success, once again. For the second consecutive year, we

had no fatality accidents to report, as well as any injuries to our deputies during

the holiday enforcement period.

There were several twists and turns last year, including the loss of dear friends

and few colleagues moving on to new endeavors. But there also were several

gains for Dallas County Sheriff’s Department personnel. We value your dedica-

tion and look forward to another productive year. Happy new year!

—Sheriff Lupe Valdez

Remembering Sgt. Kenneth Riggins

Next Executive Staff

Evening Shift:

Jan. 30 and 31, 2013

Feb. 27 and 28, 2013

Dallas.Sheriff.Dept

@dallas_sheriff

Volume 12 Number 11 Page 2

Pictured above: Color Guard members and officers line up outside the Sunnyvale Baptist Church to

pay respect to Sgt. Kenneth Riggins. May he rest in peace.

Legacy of Sgt. Kenneth Riggins

Joining the Sheriff‟s Executive Office

Introducing

Sgt. Dawn Ratcliff-Saldana

Sgt. Dawn Ratcliff-Saldana will be taking over du-

ties in the Strategic Planning Section following the

loss of Sgt. Kenneth Riggins.

She began her duties as part of the sheriff’s execu-

tive office Dec. 31, 2012. She most recently

worked in the Traffic Division, as a Third Watch

Supervisor.

The sergeant started her career with the Dallas

Sheriff’s Department in 1993 as a detention service

officer. In 2000, she became a deputy and in 2011

she became a sergeant.

Volume 12 Number 11 Page 3

Pictured top left: Entertainment by J.D. Monson along with Detective R. Reyna’s DJ skills. Top right: Traffic Division deputies roll out the VIP treatment for Santa’s arrival at the event. Bottom left: A little dancing with the youth on the basketball court. Bottom right: North Texas Auto Theft Task Force en-gage with families about auto safety. The Dallas Sheriff’s Department participated in the 5th Annual Bryant Joseph Christmas in the Community event, under the direction of Captain Mark Howard. The event which honors the memory of former DISD mid-dle school principal Bryant Joseph provides holiday gifts to hundreds of families across Dallas. The Dec. 15, 2012 event at P.C. Cobb Stadium is an opportunity for the Dallas Sheriff’s Department to serve a segment of the community, which often times goes forgotten during the holiday season. The Bryant Joseph Christmas in the Community event started five years ago as a small gathering to provide holiday assistance for a few families. Since then, the event has grown to include over a hundred families. Jo-seph Bryant served as principal at Fred F. Florence Middle School where he helped turn the school from un-acceptable academic status to exemplary academic status in three years. The Louisiana native’s life was cut short after suffering a heart attack in 2007. Special thanks to Dr. Murchison for the generous $500 contribution.

Bryant Joseph Christmas in the Community

Volume 12 Number 11 Page 4

“Bridge to the Communities” Committee at Work

―Bridge to Communities” committee members invite you

to join in on the fun with these five dinner ticket winners!

Event will take place in a private room and a DJ will pro-

vide entertainment for the evening.

All proceeds go to the Bridge to the Communities. Don’t miss out on the fun. March 2013’s department wide formal celebration is right around the corner. Contact committee members to purchase a ticket.

iPad mini

winner!

Above: Lt. J. McGinnis winner! Above: Raffle drawing time!

Above: Sgt. Woods is one of five

Pappadeux dinner raffle winners!

Ms. Crista Walker won the $250

Visa Gift Card.

4 other winners of a Pappadeux

dinner in January:

TJ (Tracy Johnson)-

Transportation

Mary Benson-West Tower

CONGRATULATIONS!

Save-the-date: 1/17/13 in Dun-

canville.

Dora Elizondo-Detentions

Admin.

Theresa Smith –DMU

Volume 12 Number 11 Page 5

Prison Fellowship Angel Tree

Thanks to the efforts of the Inmate Program Division, in partnership with the non-profit Prison Fellowship, children of incarcerated individuals were able to receive a little holiday cheer, despite their current family cir-cumstances. For the second year, the Prison Fellowship Angel Tree program adopted children of incarcer-ated individuals within the Dallas County jail. Applications were collected during the summer and over 700 applications were submitted. The national program is unique because it works exclusively year-round with children who have an incarcerated parent. The holiday program helps as a reminder to the children that their mom and/or dad still love them. Prison Fellowship coordinators take the applications and distribute to local churches for adoption of the children. Volunteers then purchase all the gift wishes and allow the incarcerated parent to include a personalized message with each gift for each child.

Dallas County jail is the only county-level participant in the program, as the 7th largest jail in the nation. The program usually only works with state prisons. This year, Prison Fellowship’s Angel Tree program is celebrat-ing its 30th anniversary. The program was started in Alabama by Mary Kay Beard—who went from the FBI’s Most Wanted List, to founder of a program that has reached the hearts of more than 9 million children across the United States.

Chapa’s holiday story was featured nationally on the Telemundo network on Christmas Day. The program helps execute Sheriff Lupe Valdez’s philosophy of treating inmates in a humane manner, as well as support-ing positive community outreach programs.

Pictured top left: Casandra Chapa accepts Telemundo’s interview request to thank Prison Fellowship coordinators. Top right: Prison Fellowship minister and volunteer Albino Estrada, along with Sheriff Lupe Valdez, and local Telemundo anchor Nancy Leal, with Dave Baer, Prison Fellowship’s Texas Field Director. Bottom left: Chapa’s son and nieces got early Christmas goodies with personalized messages. Bottom right: The children enjoyed some of their new gifts. Bottom right: (Photos courte-

sy of Prison Fellowship’s Dave Baer, Texas Field Director)

Volume 12 Number 11 Page 6

Sheriff Valdez Abroad

Pictured above left: Sheriff Lupe Valdez is introduced in one of several Mexican townships during a recent exchange trip. Pictured above right: Hundreds of local residents in attendance listen in.

Sheriff Lupe Valdez recently met with several Mexican town-ship mayors in the central Mexican state of San Luis Potosí. The visit in the photos above took place in the municipality of Ciudad Fernández. Sheriff Valdez talked about several quality of life issues, among several topics, the economy.

Lt. Patrick Bonner was recently recognized with a certifi-cate of merit by the Dallas Police Department for his exem-plary conduct and excellence in law enforcement perfor-mance.

Congratulations to Lt. Patrick Bonner

Volume 12 Number 11 Page 7

„Tis Retirement Season

Pictured above: Deputy Brian Cook and Sheriff Valdez, along with his wife and son, son celebrate 31 years of service to the Dallas County Sheriff’s Department on Dec. 18, 2012. Deputy Cook most recently served as bailiff. He pledged to spend more time on the golf course upon retire-ment. Best wishes on his future endeavors!

Pictured above: After 32 years of service Investigator Kenneth Dean is taking some time off. The Personnel staff along with many family mem-bers were in attendance for his retirement celebration Dec. 19, 2012. Investigator Dean volunteered countless hours creating identification cards for various department community programs. He was also the man who spear-headed the preservation of Deputy Nikolas Tresp’s Badge #47 which was offi-cially honored in September. Investigator Dean intends to return to the depart-ment on a part-time basis. The history buff has a vision to one day help estab-lish a Dallas Sheriff’s Department Museum.

Volume 12 Number 11 Page 8

Courtroom Situational Shooting Bailiff Training

The Dallas Sheriff’s Department is doing its part to actively continue to prepare for situational training in the courtrooms. Bailiffs went through a 16-hour training course on things such as situational shooting to ensure safety in the county courtrooms. In 2013, Dallas County officials have plans to expand their train-ing to include active shooter simulations.

Detention Service Officer Lashonda Lacy Dallas County’s Employee of the Month November 2012 Lashonda Lacy works as the nurse officer for Dr. Carolyn Flangin in North Tow-er. DSO Lacy is one of the most dependable, reliable, and able-bodied officers that the North Tower 2nd has. She always has a smile on her face, a positive attitude, and is always ready and willing to help out any time she can. Lacy has functioned as sergeant and DSO. She fills in when needed to cover the supervisors’ office. She takes time to teach younger officers the correct ways to operate. She always goes above and beyond when it comes to her work duties and ethics. Lacy repeatedly ranks outstanding in her performance evaluations and does not mis-use her time. She is professional in appearance and demeanor, and if Dallas County had more like her there would not be complaint. Lacy began her career with the Dallas Sheriff’s Department on November 10, 1998.

Congratulations! Deputy S. Franklin and Chief Jesse Flores placed first in each of their age categories. The Annual Beat Obesity 5K Walk/Run and 1 Mile Kid’s Run took place Sat. Dec. 8, 2012. The occasion helps increase awareness about the health related problems associated with obe-sity.

KwanzaaFest 2012

Employee of the Month

Volume 12 Number 11

Announcements

BIRTHS

Dec. 9, 2012: Congratulations to Deputy Steve Angrum, Bailiff Sec-

tion, and his wife Shontell on the birth of Niriah LeAundrea Angrum.

She weighed 7 lbs., 11 oz. and is 19 inches long.

GET WELL WISHES

Dec. 9, 2012: Mary Elijah, DMU-Release-Third Watch Supervisor,

was admitted to the hospital.

SPECIAL PRAYER REQUEST

Dec. 18, 2012: Donna Nokes-Rieckens, mother of Lt. Thomas Jacob-

son, North Tower-2nd Watch, has been hospitalized in a coma for

over a year. Recently, she developed pneumonia and is battling con-

gestive heart failure. She is in a hospital in Fargo, North Dakota.

DEATHS

Nov. 30, 2012: Ocelia Lewis, retired clerk once who worked in docu-

ment imaging for the Data Management Unit, passed away.

Dec. 10, 2012: Mary Stephens, grandmother of Jasmyne Stephens,

DMU-Release-2nd Watch, passed away.

Dec. 16, 2012: Ioma Dean, mother of Investigator Kenneth Dean,

Personnel Section, passed away after a short illness.

Dec. 18, 2012: Fannie Mae Whitmill, mother of DSO Jackie Whitmill,

West Tower-Mental Health Team, passed away.

Dec. 21, 2012: Pearlie Mae Williams, grandmother of Linda Williams,

Bond Section-Clerk 8-2nd Watch passed away.

Retired DSO Bennie ―Catfish‖ Pearson passed away. He worked for

the department from June 1993 to Jan. 2006.

Lois Turner, step-mother of Bonds/Warrant Section-Clerk 5 Rose

Tolbert passed away. Lois’s daughter, who is the step-sister of Rose

Tolbert suffered a stroke on Christmas Eve, received a pacemaker

and is recovering.

Dec. 27, 2012: Retired Deputy Williams ―Dub‖ Grandstaff passed

away. Grandstaff worked for the department from 1962 to 1981.

Our thoughts and prayers are with each family member during

this difficult time.

Shoppers‟ Corner

Dallas County Sheriff’s Department

133 N. Riverfront Blvd. LB-31

Dallas, Texas 75207-4313

Page 9

Sheriff’s one inch badge lapel pins $3.50 each or get 3

for $10

Contact: Marian Ogletree (214) 653-3462

For submission of a newsletter item:

Sheriffmedia@dallascounty.org

For the latest updates:

www.dallas-sheriff.com

Vault 1st Watch would like wish all the Dallas Sher-

iff's Department a happy and safe holiday season!

Season‟s Greetings