Residents can pin point criminal activity with regularly updated Piedmont Police Department on-line information.
Submit a secure “tip” to Police Department
View Piedmont’s interactive Crime Map.
Town Hall meeting on crime issues Tuesday, February 12, 2013 at 7:30 PM in the Veterans Memorial Building
Piedmont’s new Chief of Police, Rikki Goede and several officers will explain the steps the Police Department is taking to combat the increase of crime in our City. This meeting will be hosted by the City’s Public Safety Committee, the City Council, the City Administrator, and other City officials attending. There will be time allotted for residents to ask questions of Chief Goede.
Chief Goede’s served in the police departments of San Diego for 10 years and San Jose for 16 years, reaching the level of Assistant Chief. She has worked in virtually all areas of police activities, including patrol, field training, crime prevention, internal affairs, robbery, gang investigations, and a variety of command assignments.
At the February 4 City Council meeting, Piedmont’s new Police Chief, Rikki Goede, requested and received authorization for hiring up to four additional officers coordinated with “anticipated retirements and departures of existing police officers. ” Additional overtime will be a part of the Chief’s multi-pronged response to recent home invasions in Piedmont. New officers will begin their 4-6 month field training in March. The department is evaluating license plate readers and video surveillance services.
The Chief proposed the following:
Piedmont Town Hall meeting on crime issues Tuesday, February 12, 2013 at 7:30 p.m. in the Piedmont Veterans Memorial Building, next to City Hall. The public is invited to attend. There will be no broadcast available for the meeting.
The City will move forward on contracting with the Emergency Communications Network (ECN) – Code Red at a cost of approximately $6,320 per year to provide a multi-media emergency notification system that will supersede the City’s current E-Mail Alert Program. All residents will have the opportunity to join by providing their contact information directly to the Code Red database.
At the same time, the Piedmont Public Safety Committee will be clarifying its future role, duties and responsibilities and the City Council may expand its charge beyond providing a forum for residents to voice their public safety-related concerns and suggestions. (Read more: City Council Minutes January 22, 2013 – Report from the Chair of the Public Safety Committee; Correspondence was received from: Barry Barnes & Samantha Spielman; Charlotte & Michael Ero; Alan Kong; Piedmont Public Safety Committee Reports.)
The Piedmont Police Department has an active program for confidential tips to be submitted to the Police Department.
The University of California Police department offers advice on reducing your chance of becoming a crime victim –
Be sure to write down the manufacturer, model and serial number of your computer or tablet and file this information. It is useful to law enforcement in their efforts to recover property.
Commercial software products are available which can track a computer’s location through its connections to the Internet. Install and activate the software when the laptop is in your control, and it will be useful if a theft occurs. Some computer models purchased from Dell, Lenovo, HP, and other manufacturers may have Absolute Software’s Computrace, which embeds a tracking agent in the BIOS. The tamper-resistant agent remains active even if the hard drive is reformatted or replaced. > Click to read more…
The following report was prepared by the Police Chief for the Council meeting of February 4, in City Hall.
City of Piedmont COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT : February 4, 2013
FROM: Rikki Goede, Chief of Police
SUBJECT: Update to Council and Community on Police Department Response toCrime and Consideration of Authorization to Hire Ahead of Known and Probable Vacancies
RECOMMENDATION
Authorize the Chief of Police to immediately begin the process to hire ahead of known and probable vacancies within the Department to minimize gaps in patrol services.
DISCUSSION
On January 21, 2013, two armed home invasion robberies occurred within thirty minutes of each other. The first robbery occurred on Estates Drive and, while officers were investigating that crime, a second occurred on Arroyo Drive. The same suspects are believed to be involved in both robberies. These two incidents, combined with an increase in residential and auto burglaries have,understandably, increased the fear of crime within the community of Piedmont and has the residents demanding to know what steps are being taken by the police department to address the crime issues. This report will serve to update the Council and community on the actions taken by the police department in response to these crimes.
BACKGROUND
Upon assuming the Police Chief role on January 22, 2013, I immediately began an assessment of the Department’s staffing. The Department is authorized 28 full time employees, including 20 sworn personnel. Due to a combination of retirements, disability status, and frozen positions, the Department is currently at 22 full time employees. Without question this has hindered the Department’s ability to effectively respond to and investigate criminal activity. It also impacts the Department’s ability to maintain a minimum on duty staffing of one sergeant and two officers that is critical to the safety of our officers.
With regard to the aforementioned, the Department has taken the following immediate actions:
Overtime has been authorized to backfill positions and ensure the minimum
staffing is met at all times.
The number of paid reserves (primarily retired officers) has been increased from two to five allowing for more patrol resources.
I have reached out to two local Bay Area departments who have provided investigative resources to assist our detective in the investigation of the home
invasion robberies. Additionally, we are working with Oakland investigators who
are following up on home invasions in their city with similar suspect descriptions
to the two committed in Piedmont.
Overtime has been authorized for two officers to continue the investigative efforts on the other open criminal investigations.
The determination of the benefit to offering a reward will be discussed with the investigators as well as the timing of such.
Currently, the Department has two new officers in the final hiring process who are anticipated to begin field training next month. It is important to understand that field training for the aforementioned new hires will take a minimum of four
months and up to six months to complete. These officers have already completed
a police academy or that time would be extended by another four to six months.
The Department is seeking Council authorization to actively begin hiring ahead for anticipated vacancies in an effort to minimize potential patrol gaps. Given that the Department is anticipating the possibility of five retirements in the coming year, it is important to prepare and minimize any gaps in patrol services these retirements will cause.
The Department has already met with a vendor that provides license plate
reader/video surveillance services and is waiting for a final cost estimate from the
vendor to report to Council.
Finally, I want to reiterate that Piedmont remains a very safe community, however, it is not immune to the same issues facing every city in the state. For this reason, community collaboration and vigilance are essential to maintaining our safety. Neighborhood Watch programs have never been more necessary, and I will be working very closely with the Public Safety Committee and the community at large to increase participation in this valuable tool. Without question, 11,000 pairs of eyes watching out for the community are better than 20.
City Invites Residents to Meet New Police Chief and Discuss Crime Issues –
On Tuesday, February 12, 2013 at 7:30 PM, the City of Piedmont will hold a Town Hall meeting at the Veterans Memorial Building to introduce residents to Piedmont’s new Chief of Police, Rikki Goede. This meeting will be hosted by the City’s Public Safety Committee and will be attended by members of the City Council, the City Administrator, and other City officials.
Understanding that residents have been upset by recent crimes in Piedmont, there will be a presentation about the increase of crime in Piedmont with a significant focus on the steps that the Police Department is taking to combat these trends. There will also be a good amount of time set aside for residents to participate in a question and answer period with Chief Goede.
Chief Goede started her career as a police officer, then Sergeant with the City of San Diego, where she worked for 10 years. For the past 16 years, Goede has worked in the City of San Jose, beginning as an officer and working her way up to the position of Assistant Chief. In her long career in law enforcement, Goede has worked in virtually all areas of police activities, including patrol, field training, crime prevention, internal affairs, robbery, gang investigations, and a variety of command assignments.
The formal agenda for the meeting is being developed in consultation with the Public Safety Committee and will be released as the Town Hall meeting draws near.
Two more home invasions in Piedmont -Sturdy front door and locks advised
On Monday, January 21, 2013 at 6:12 a.m., Piedmont Police received a report that unknown person(s) rang the doorbell of a home in the 100 block of Estates Drive at about 6 a.m. There was no description of the person(s).
At 6:20 a.m., Piedmont Police received a report that three tall black male adults, in their early to mid-20’s, wearing dark clothing and bandanas over their faces had kicked in the front door of another home in the 100 block of Estates Drive. One suspect with a short barreled rifle or shotgun confronted one resident in the home. Another suspect with a semi-auto handgun confronted the other resident. Both residents were told to “lay down” while the suspects ransacked the home. Suspects looked for and asked about money, which was not available. Suspects took change, a computer monitor and a small jewelry box.
Oakland Police officers in the Estates Drive area were contacted. They advised Piedmont officers that they were searching for subjects fitting the description of the robbery suspects because of a suspicious persons call in Oakland near the Piedmont border.
At 6:53 a.m., while officers were still investigating the home invasion robbery on Estates Drive, Piedmont Police received a report from a resident in the unit block of Arroyo Avenue — on the opposite side of Piedmont from Estates Drive– that three to five black male adults in their early to mid-20’s had kicked in the front door of the residence. Most suspects were described as thin, one as heavy set. One adult resident was confronted by a suspect who was armed with a hand gun. This resident screamed and was punched by the suspect, and forced to the floor. One additional suspect was armed with a short barreled rifle or shotgun. Another suspect locked the other resident in the basement when he tried to come upstairs to assist. The suspects ransacked the home, attempting to take computer and video equipment. They attempted to remove a safe. The other victim escaped the basement and went to a neighbor to call the police. A black female adult suspect waiting in a silver or gray, newer-style full-size SUV, similar to a Suburban with left front damage, apparently called the suspects in the home by cell phone. The suspects fled the home. When the first victim tried to follow, a suspect fired a shot toward the residence. This shot passed through the glass of a front window of the residence before exiting through a rear window to the outside.
Previous home invasions occurred in Piedmont on the evening of January 7 in the 100 block of Indian Road and the evening of December 12 in the 100 block of Scenic Avenue. These types of crimes are also on the rise in nearby communities. Piedmont Police are working cooperatively with robbery investigators throughout Alameda County. Residents are encouraged to check the quality of their door and window locks, ensure they have ample motion sensor lighting on their homes, consider an alarm system, and to report suspicious activities to the police immediately. If all of this fails to discourage criminals and you are the victim of an armed crime, do not risk the safety of yourself or your family members. When the criminals have left the area, immediately phone 9-1-1 to request assistance.
If you have any information that may help investigators identify these suspects or if you would like to sponsor a neighborhood watch meeting to help keep residents informed and involved, please call Detective George Phifer at (510) 420-3013.
At about 8 p.m. on Wednesday, December 12, the son of a Piedmont family went out of their house to look for his dark glasses in the family car parked in front of the house on Scenic Avenue. Although he noticed three African-American men nearby, he “didn’t think much of it.” They were armed and soon forced him at gunpoint to lead them back into the house. One of the men located his father reading in an upstairs bedroom and surprised him with a gun to his head. They moved very quietly through the house and found the mother in the laundry room. The family members were forced to lie face down in the kitchen with the father’s legs tied up. While one of the trio stood guard over the family in the kitchen, the others searched the house for valuables. They took money, iPhones, laptops, jewelry, and a few other valuables. Once they were gone, the family called the police at about 8:30pm.
Not knowing what had happened, an alert Piedmonter a block away, was suspicious when the three men carrying the loot ran past and jumped in a parked car. Following them briefly, the neighbor obtained the license number of the car. Oakland police soon found the car abandoned on Shattuck Avenue recovering some of the stolen jewelry.
REMINDER: Be aware of activities and strangers in your surroundings at all times.
Urges Steps to End Senseless Violence –
On Friday, 12/14, a few hours after learning about the senseless shooting rampage at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., I was prompted to take a long walk in our small town. The walk provided much-needed silence and space to reflect on the horrific tragedy that has touched so many.
On my way home, I walked past our lovely elementary school, Frank C. Havens and through an open window in the school’s auditorium I could hear the clear and truly enchanting voices of children practicing a song for their upcoming Winter Concert. I paused and listened, as the singing voices made me smile and feel hope.
Immense hope, in fact, that even in the face of random acts of unthinkable violence perpetrated against the most vulnerable in our communities: our children, that to be human is to love deeply and passionately — and we have the power to bind together and collectively upend the interests of the few who gain so much in making weapons that eviscerate the innocent http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2012/12/14/parents-advocacy-groups-outside-white-house-today-is-the-day-for-action-on-gun-control
Denise Bostrom, Piedmont resident
Editors’ Note: The opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of the Piedmont Civic Association.
Investments, Beneficiary Amounts, and Police Officer Industrial Disability-
The City of Piedmont Police and Fire Pension Board will meet Wednesday, October 17, 2012, 4:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers. The Piedmont Police and Fire Pension Plan and the California Public Employee Retirement System (CalPERS) are both maintained for qualifying employees and retirees. The two plans operate concurrently, yet independently. Employees hired prior to the City’s joining PERS continue to be covered by the Piedmont Police and Fire Pension Fund, while new employees are covered by PERS.
The return on investments and Piedmont Fund balance has drawn interest as a potential source of unallocated money when there are no remaining beneficiaries.
The agenda for the October 17 meeting includes:
Staff reports were not available at the time of PCA publishing. All meetings are open to the public.
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