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The Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety and Chief Jeff Hadley have completed an investigation and review of the officer involved shooting of Chad Harris, which occurred on March 29, 2011 at 1825 Greenlawn Avenue. 

On March 29^th, at approximately 3:48 p.m., Kalamazoo Public Safety Officers responded to 1825 Greenlawn after Public Safety dispatch received a 911 call from a man who was subsequently determined to be Chad Harris.  During the call, among other statements, Harris told a dispatcher, “I got a hostage here… I’m going to slit her throat.”  Harris went on to state, “And you know what? The first PSO that shows up on our scene is dead too.”

Since 2003, Kalamazoo Public Safety has responded to calls for service at 1825 Greenlawn approximately 82 times.  Many of the calls involved family disturbances or threats of suicide.

Responding to the March 29^th call, PSO’s Steve Heyduck, David Moran, Derek Weldon, Daniel Frazier and Brian Cake arrived and attempted to make contact with persons in the residence. The officers knocked at the front and side door of the residence several times without receiving a response.  Eventually, Kathleen Wolf, Chad Harris’ mother and owner of the residence, answered the front door. Officers noted that Wolf was visibly shaking and appeared frightened.  Wolf told officers that a knife had been held to her throat.  Officers asked Wolf if anyone else was still inside the home and she nodded her head in an affirmative response.  The officers ushered Wolf safely from the residence.

Officers Heyduck and Moran believed that another family member was inside the home with Mr. Harris. The officers believed that person was in danger based on their prior knowledge of the residence and residents, as well as their contact with Kathleen Wolf.

The officers entered the residence and discovered Chad Harris seated on a couch with a knife in his hand. He appeared more distressed than they had seen him in the past. When the officers attempted to approach, Harris made threatening statements to the effect that if they came any closer he would cut their throats or stab them.  Officers told Harris to drop the knife several times and he refused their lawful commands.

Officers Heyduck and Cake attempted to subdue Mr. Harris by deploying Tasers. The Taser had no apparent effect on Mr. Harris and he raised his knife and advanced toward Officer Cake.

In response to the life threatening assault on Officer Cake, Officers Moran and Heyduck fired department issued firearms in order to stop the advancing Chad Harris.  Officer Moran fired a shotgun and Officer Heyduck a handgun.

An investigation of this incident was completed by the Criminal Investigations Division (CID) and a separate investigation was completed by the Office of Professional Standards (OPS).  In addition to the investigations completed by the CID and OPS, Chief Jeff Hadley requested that the Kalamazoo County Prosecutor’s Office review this incident and render an opinion as to the justification of force used.

On May 2, 2011 Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Fink, in a letter to Chief Jeff Hadley, issued his findings.  Prosecutor Fink wrote, “After reviewing the evidence, I find at the time of the incident, the involved Public Safety Officers were acting in the lawful performance of their duties. I further find that the shooting of Chad Harris was justified, as there was an honest and reasonable belief of imminent danger or great bodily harm.”

In concurrence with the findings of Prosecutor Fink, Chief Hadley determined that the force used Officers Heyduck and Moran on March 29, 2011, was appropriate. Chief Jeff Hadley found that Officers Heyduck and Moran acted lawfully and in compliance with Kalamazoo Public Safety policy. Chief Jeff Hadley concluded that Officers Heyduck and Moran were completely justified in their use of force.

Kalamazoo Public Safety will have no other comment regarding this incident. An audio recording of the 911 call that Chad Harris made to Public Safety on March 29, 2011 will be posted on our web-site at http://prod.kalamazoopublicsafety.com/stay-informed/kdps-blog/greenlawn.html

By authority of: Chief Jeff Hadley

On June 20, 2011 at approximately 1 p.m. a subject entered the Jimmy Johns in the 1100 block of W. Michigan with a brown stocking cap over his face.  He approached the cashier and tossed a bag over the counter.  The subject then said “come on.”  The clerk noticed that he had his hand under his sweatshirt.  The hand was forming what appeared to be a weapon, possibly a gun.

Instead of filling the bag with money, the clerk attempted to alert co-workers and retreated towards a phone to call the police.  He changed his mind and returned to the front.  The subject was still standing at the counter.  The clerk again made his way back towards the phone.  This time the subject left the store.

The suspect is described as a white male, 5’ 8” to 5’ 10’ tall, medium build, wearing a red sweatshirt, brown stocking cap, dark gray sweatpants and white tennis shoes.  He was last seen leaving the store on foot in an unknown direction.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Kalamazoo Public Safety at 337-8994 or Silent Observer at 343-2100 or www.kalamazoosilentobserver.com.

 By authority of: Lt Jay Kowalkowski

On Sunday, June 19, 2011, at approximately 11:10 p.m. Kalamazoo Public Safety Officers responded to Portage St. and Dewey Ave. on a reported traffic crash. Officers discovered that a vehicle being driven north on Portage had struck a utility pole near Dewey.  No other vehicles were involved in the crash.  Officers discovered that two children, a three-year-old girl and her four-year-old brother, were seriously injured in the crash.  Neither of the children had been secured in child safety seats and both sustained broken legs.  The children were transported to Bronson Hospital where they are undergoing treatment.  The boy is in stable condition, the girl in serious condition.

The children’s mother, a 24-year-old Comstock resident, was driving the car at the time of the crash.  Investigating officers learned that the woman and her 25-year-old male companion were arguing prior to the crash and the woman was driving erratically.  The woman and her companion suffered minor injuries in the crash.

Investigating officers determined that the woman was under the influence of alcohol.  She was arrested for operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing serious injury and operating a vehicle while intoxicated resulting in child endangerment.  She will be lodged in the Kalamazoo County jail pending review of this investigation by the prosecutor’s office.

Anyone who may have witnessed this incident, or who may have information pertaining to it, is asked to call Kalamazoo Public Safety at 337-8994 or Silent Observer at 343-2100 or www.kalamazoosilentobserver.com.

 By authority of:  Lt. Mike McCaw

On June 8, 2011 at approximately 2:30 p.m. Kalamazoo Public Safety dispatch received a call from a citizen reporting a house fire in the 500 block of Axtell.  The first units on scene reported fire on the front porch of the house.  The fire spread quickly up the walls and into the attic.  The sole occupant had vacated the house before Public Safety arrived. 

Four fire apparatus and nearly 30 public safety personnel worked the fire scene for nearly 6 hours.  The fire was finally extinguished and crews released.  The length of time and extreme heat created challenges to Public Safety personnel on scene. 

No one was injured during the fire.  Fire Marshal Williams is attempting to determine cause and origin of the fire.

By authority of:  Lt Jay Kowalkowski

The Douglass Community Association (DCA) has teamed up with the Black Police Officers’ Association of Kalamazoo County (BPOA) to host our 6^th annual charity softball game titled “Kalamazoo’s Finest Softball Game.”  The event will be held on Friday, June17, 2011 at Mayor’s River Front Park, Homer Stryker Field, starting at 6:30pm.

The game will feature Kalamazoo area Finest Public Safety Officers against a group of Kalamazoo’s Finest Athletes. The athletes’ team will include Chris Crawford (Atlanta Hawks), Steve Hawkins, Bill Cubit & Robin Hook (WMU), and four former and current NFL players, Duane Young, T.J. Duckett, Littlejohn Flowers, and 2011 Super Bowl Champion Greg Jennings.

This event will include a mascot game, silent auction and double as a resource fair with display booths from area youth-serving agencies that will distribute information about summer activities.

This event will also include a special tribute to fallen Kalamazoo Public Safety Officer Eric Zapata, who played in all of the previous “Kalamazoo Finest” games.   Tickets are just $5, however; all police, fire, and emergency services personnel in uniform will be admitted free of charge.  We also invite all off duty emergency personnel and their families to participate in the on field memorial by pre-ordering a t-shirt at 343-6187.  A portion of t-shirt sales will be donated to the Cuff & Ladder Funds for the Zapata family. 

Proceeds from this event benefit DCA’s youth programs. Since 1919 DCA has worked to address and resolve community issues while enhancing the quality of life for Kalamazoo residents.

 By authority of: Captain Victor Ledbetter

On June 7, 2011 at approximately 10 p.m. Kalamazoo Public Safety dispatch received a call from a citizen reporting that an unknown subject attempted to break into her home and then shot at her.  The 53 year old Kalamazoo resident had left her kitchen window open.  She happened to return to the kitchen to retrieve something and saw a subject at her back door and at the open window.  The subject had slid the screen to the side. 

She yelled at the subject.  He in turn shot at her as she was turning away.  The bullet grazed her and he ran off.  The resident sustained a minor injury from being grazed.  A K-9 officer attempted a track from the scene.  The dog tracked for a distance before it ended.  The suspect was not located. 

 The only description of the suspect provided was that of a tall, thin, African American male.

 Anyone with information is asked to contact Kalamazoo Public Safety at 337-8994 or Silent Observer at 343-2100 or www.kalamazoosilentobserver.com.

By authority of:  Lt Jay Kowalkowski

Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety continues to focus resources on identifying and extracting violent felons from our neighborhoods.  As a result, on June 6, 2011, Kemberlyn Dwyane Trotman of Kalamazoo was sentenced to 110 months in Federal Prison, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release. Chief United States District Judge Paul L. Maloney imposed this sentence on Trotman.   

Kemberlyn Trotman was charged in an indictment for being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm and for Possession with Intent to Deliver Cocaine Base (Crack Cocaine).  The charges stemmed from a September 24, 2010 incident, when Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety Officer Jeffrey Crouse stopped a vehicle driven by Trotman for a civil infraction traffic offense. During the traffic stop Trotman and PSO Crouse were involved in a struggle during which time a loaded handgun fell from Trotman’s waistband area. Officers recovered the handgun as well as a baggie that contained 66 individual packages of crack cocaine.   Subsequently, the case was adopted for federal prosecution by the Kalamazoo Public Safety Task Force Officer assigned to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office, Western District of Michigan.

This is another example of the successful prosecution of an armed convicted felon via the federal initiative known as Project Safe Neighborhood, which targets gun violence through adjudication in the federal system where violators receive longer sentences than in the state system and without the possibility of parole. Trotman, who has prior convictions for specified violent felony offenses, was a prime candidate for this initiative and received an enhanced sentence due to his criminal history classifying him as a career criminal.  

 Anyone with information regarding illegal drug or firearms activity is urged to contact KVET at 269-337-8880, or report an anonymous tip to Silent Observer at 269-343-2100 or www.kalamazoosilentobserver.com

By authority of:   Captain Jon Uribe

On Tuesday, June 7th, 2011 at approximately 00:40 a.m., Kalamazoo Public Safety Officers responded to a report of a house fire in the 1300 block of N. Park.  Responding officers located an occupant of the burning house lying in the street with severe burns to his hands and arms. The occupant was cooking methamphetamine in the basement when it exploded catching the house on fire, burning him in the process. The fire was contained to the basement and was extinguished within fifteen minutes.

The injured occupant, a thirty year-old Kalamazoo resident was admitted to Bronson Hospital in stable condition. Kalamazoo Public Safety Officers and the Fire Marshal’s office are investigating the Meth Lab.

During fire suppression activities, several bystanders at the fire scene became involved in a physical altercation. Kalamazoo Public Safety Officers broke up the disturbance, arresting a thirty-three year-old female and a thirteen year-old male, both Kalamazoo residents. 

Anyone with information on this incident is asked to call Kalamazoo Public Safety at 337-8994 or Silent Observer at 342-2100.

 By authority of:  Lt. Kevin Lenkart

The costs associated with the clean-up of a single Methamphetamine drug laboratory can run into the thousands of dollars.  For years, that expense was underwritten through a nationwide COPS Grant the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) managed.

On February 22, 2011, termination of funding for these critical services redirected clean-up cost liabilities to governmental budgets nationwide; and with an estimated financial liability of $1-5 thousand dollars per meth lab; a cost-effective remediation strategy would be needed. Locally, the potential financial liability was estimated to be about one to five hundred thousand dollars annually.

In response to this dilemma, Public Safety studied a variety of remediation strategies then consulted with out-state jurisdictions operating their own remediation programs and determined the DEA Container Program would be a cost-effective alternative. Officials consulted with representatives from the Department of Natural Resources (DNRE) and the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) then partnered with the City of Kalamazoo’s Public Services Department and developed Michigan’s first OSHA compliant methamphetamine remediation program and container operation modeling it after the Kentucky State Police Program. 

As crews from the Public Services Department and the Kalamazoo Valley Enforcement Team (KVET) developed the container site, invitations were disseminated to State, County and municipal law enforcement agencies throughout southwestern Michigan offering interested agencies an opportunity to train their DEA Clandestine Drug Lab Investigators in Meth Lab Remediation (MRP) and Container Operations.

On May 9^th, a select group of DEA certified Clandestine Drug Lab Investigators representing the Kalamazoo County Sheriff Office, Van Buren County Sheriff Office, Portage Police Department, Kalamazoo Public Safety and KVET began training in clandestine drug lab remediation.  This group of officers will complete their training on June 8, 2011.

Additional training sessions for other DEA certified Clandestine Drug Lab Investigators will be scheduled this fall.

Once fully operational, the City’s multi-jurisdictional Container Program will be the first such program in Michigan to offer local governments throughout southwestern Michigan a cost-effective alternative to clandestine drug lab remediation contracting.

 By authority of:  Captain Jon Uribe

                            Kalamazoo Valley Enforcement Team

On Thursday afternoon, June 2, 2011, a Kalamazoo Public Safety Officer received information from Kalamazoo Public Schools personnel that an unknown person attempted to pick up a 10-year-old 5^th grader from a school bus stop at S. Rose/Balch St on Weds June 1, 2011, at approximately 3:25 p.m.
The suspect, a Caucasian male approx 34-36 years who had on a white baseball cap, was possibly driving an older, black Chevy Monte Carlo that was dusty and had silver stock rims.  The suspect offered candy and a ride to the child several times, the offers were refused.
A guardian of the child thought that he might have seen the same suspect in the area yesterday afternoon also, but no further information was obtained.
Officers will be checking the areas of school bus stops before and after school for suspicious activity around students.  We encourage parents, guardians, and citizens to call Public Safety if any suspicious activity is observed.
If anyone has information about this incident, please call the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety at 269-337-8994, or Silent Observer at 269-343-2100, or you may submit information at www.kalamazoosilentobserver.com 

 By authority of:  Lt. Stacey Randolph