CRIMESTOPPERS / DRUGBUSTERS OF SOUTHWEST OKLAHOMA

CRIMESTOPPERS/DRUGBUSTERS OF SOUTHWEST OKLAHOMA

HISTORY of CRIME STOPPERS/DRUG BUSTERS of S.W. OKLAHOMA, INC.

In 1979, a citizen of the Lawton community came to the police station and brought with him a newspaper from Lubbock, Texas. Inside that paper was an article where the Lubbock Police Department was “Spotlighting the Crime of the Week”. Assistant Chief of Police, Jack Partin, started researching what Crime Stoppers was and if it would be worthwhile for the Lawton community. After his research, Mr. Partin contacted the founder of the Crime Stoppers program out of Albuquerque, New Mexico and obtained further information. After speaking with the Chief of Police and Mr. Wayne Gilley, longtime mayor of Lawton, the support needed to make the program successful was found. Mr. Bill Bentley of the Lawton Constitution presented the first check to start paying rewards. Due to this donation, Crime Line of Lawton was formed.

In 1981, Crime Line of Lawton changed its’ name to Crime Stoppers of Lawton and was incorporated in May of 1981 with the Secretary of the State of Oklahoma. In 1991, Drug Busters of S.W. Oklahoma was formed and incorporated also.

NEW ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE

On January 1, 1998, Drug Busters of Southwest Oklahoma ceased to exist and pooled its resources and board members with Lawton Crime Stoppers, Inc. to form a new organization titled Crimestoppers/Drugbusters of Southwest Oklahoma, Inc. The reason for the change was to expand some services while eliminating duplication for other services. The payment schedules remained the same.

COORDINATOR AND INVESTIGATOR

Deputy Chief Michael Johnson serves as the Program Coordinator. In that capacity, he delivers monthly reports to members of the Board of Directors and approves payments for rewards in most cases. This approval is contingent upon following strict guidelines as imposed by the Boards of Directors.

Det. Brent Yarbrough and Det. Brian Ball are the workers for the organization and they serve as the Investigators. They call-forward the line to a mobile phone that they carry with them when they are not in the office. After taking the information, they pass it on to the appropriate investigator or supervisor for further disposition.

At various times of the year, they can be seen delivering t-shirts for the Moonlight Walk Against Drugs. Both being highly motivated individuals; they are vital assets to the program. Either investigator can be reached in their office at 581- 3210 or on the Crimestoppers/Drugbusters phone line (355-4636).

Mr. Howard Diamond, who is a Sentinal with the Lawton Police Department, also assists with the Crimestoppers/Drugbusters programs. Mr. Diamond volunteers his time several days per week to assist with paperwork, answering the telephone, and other duties.

Fight criminal activity in our community with the facts. Share your concerns with Crime Stoppers! Call Det. Brent Yarbrough at 581-3210 to schedule a Crime Stoppers presentation for your club, organization or any interested group of citizens. Please try to call at least one month in advance to ensure that your presentation can be scheduled.

Also, Crime Stoppers provides, to groups and organizations sponsoring children-related events, a child ID program. This program is at no cost to your child and is sponsored primarily through donations from Crime Stoppers supporters.

HOW "CRIMESTOPPERS / DRUGBUSTERS" WORKS

When a citizen sees suspicious activity or knows that a crime is being committed, they can call Crimestoppers/Drugbusters at 355-4636. To be eligible for a reward, it must come in as a Crimestoppers/Drugbusters tip and the information must result in an arrest and charges being filed in a felony case. CALLERS DO NOT HAVE TO GIVE THEIR NAME! They won't even be asked their name.

Once the information has been taken, the Investigator will assign a code number to the caller. The information will be investigated if it is sufficient to pursue. If an arrest is made, the caller must then call Crimestoppers/Drugbusters again and ask about the possibility of a reward. The caller must give their code number and may be asked questions to verify that it is the same person who called originally. When satisfied that it is the caller that provided the information that broke the case, the investigator will provide instructions about how to collect the reward.

The caller will be instructed to go to a particular banking institution to a particular drive through window. Upon arrival at the window, the caller will merely identify himself or herself by their code number. When the teller hears the number, the teller will then send cash money through the drive through window. The caller never has to reveal their identity nor sign any receipts. The amount of the reward varies and is set up on a schedule. The reward may be split if more than one person gave key information that helped solve the case.

If the caller wants to double their money, they can voluntarily reveal their identity and agree to testify in court about the case.

ORGANIZATION OF CRIMESTOPPERS / DRUGBUSTERS

Crimestoppers/Drugbusters has an all-volunteer Board of Directors. These directors come from all walks of life. They are mostly professional people in the community that have seen the value of promoting safer community environments by becoming involved in the Crimestoppers/Drugbusters program. Board members receive no pay for their efforts. All of the fund raising results are used for operational expenses (stationary, envelopes, stamps, telephone, etc.), training expenses (the president-elect is sent to the Crime Stoppers International Conference annually), and the payment of rewards (most of the money goes here).

One of the main functions of the Board of Directors is to ensure that sufficient money is available for the payment of rewards. They take this duty very seriously and are actively involved in the various fund raisers conducted throughout the year. They also meet at 8:30 a.m. on the second Thursday of every month in a meeting room at the Police Station to discuss business and receive reports from the police officers assigned to the program. They ensure that the proper amount of rewards have been paid to the appropriate callers.

The Crimestoppers/Drugbusters of Southwest Oklahoma program operates under the bylaws of Crime Stoppers International. This organization grew from the first Crime Stoppers program that was established in Albuquerque, New Mexico in 1979. The Lawton board is a member of both Crime Stoppers International and Oklahoma Crime Stoppers. An advantage of being a member of these organizations is the cooperative nature that exists. For instance, if a car is stolen in Wichita Falls, Texas, and the suspects are arrested as a result of a Crime Stoppers tip in Lawton, the Lawton board would pay the reward. The Lawton board would then forward all related documentation to Wichita Falls and would be reimbursed whatever amount they have spent on the reward. If the same scenario is used but the locations are reversed, the process works in reverse and Lawton would reimburse Wichita Falls. If the tip leads to the arrest and charges being filed where a crime is committed where no Crime Stoppers program exists, the Crime Stoppers program receiving the tip is responsible for paying the reward.

One of the questions that often are asked concerns the selection of the crime of the week. The Crimestoppers/Drugbusters program confines its activities to Southwest Oklahoma. While rewards may be paid for crimes that happen outside its jurisdiction (as illustrated above), crimes of the week are selected only from crimes that happen within the geographical area covered. Although the program is operated by the Lawton Police Department, crimes that occur outside of Lawton are either referred to the Comanche County Sheriff's Department or other appropriate Law Enforcement jurisdictions. Before a crime of the week is aired, some effort is made to contact the victim and the assigned detective to ensure that the airing will not hamper the investigation. Major unsolved crimes get first priority but consideration is given for mixing the types of crimes to be featured.

Another question centers on the amount of the rewards. Certainly, some crimes are more heinous than others. In keeping with direction from Crime Stoppers International's guidelines, the Lawton Crime Stoppers program offers a maximum reward of $1,000 (this can be doubled if the caller agrees to testify in court). Because of restrictions that could jeopardize its non-profit tax status, Crime Stoppers cannot accept dedicated money to solve a specific case. For instance, Crimestoppers/Drugbusters could not accept a donation of $10,000 contingent upon it being used to pay for the solving a particular homicide. Occasionally, a business or family will offer a separate reward that may be advertised at the same time that the Crimestoppers/Drugbusters reward is advertised but Crimestoppers/Drugbusters does not guarantee payment of any rewards other than the one Crimestoppers/Drugbusters is offering.

In early 1990, the Lawton Crime Stoppers Board of Directors recognized a need to directly deal with the growing drug problem in Southwest Oklahoma. Realizing that much of the drug problems in neighboring communities spilled over into Lawton, a decision was reached to set up an independent board with a wider base of operation than the corporate city limits of Lawton. Originally, plans were to recruit community leaders from neighboring towns to sit on the Board of Directors with some leaders from Lawton. Efforts to recruit from outside of Lawton were unsuccessful but the commitment to address the growing drug problem remained.

Several Lawton leaders agreed to sit on the first board of directors with the new organization named Drug Busters of Southwest Oklahoma. Funded by a conditional grant from Lawton Crime Stoppers, sufficient money to pay early rewards was deposited in a new account. The organization applied for and received non-profit status from the IRS. They established a geographical limit that included everything in Oklahoma that was west of I-44 and south of I-40. A schedule of payments was determined and the Board incorporated and became operational on April 23, 1990. This board has since melded with the Crime Stoppers board to become the Crimestoppers/Drugbusters board.

The way you report a drug-related crime is similar to that of any other felony crime. Callers are still not asked for their names or identity. However, many people realize that working narcotics investigations is very time-consuming and difficult. "Suspecting" narcotics activity, "knowing" of narcotics activity, and "proving" narcotics activity are three very separate concepts. Many calls are received where citizens suspect their neighbors of being involved in illegal narcotics activities. Most of the time this is based on the amount of people that visit the suspected residence including length of stay, time of day, and frequency. Some of the time, citizens will actually know that there is illegal activity because they have been approached to purchase narcotics or have witnessed the sale of narcotics. Often, there is still hesitancy to reveal any information that would compromise their identity for fear of retaliation. There are others who are not concerned about revealing their identity and are willing to provide information and work directly with investigators to prove their information and receive a larger reward. With these factors in mind, a sliding scale was adopted to accommodate various scenarios.

PURPOSE OF CRIMESTOPPERS/DRUGBUSTERS

The purpose of Crimestoppers/Drugbusters is to offer witnesses to a crime a way to provide information to help solve crimes without revealing their identity. Citizens are a key link to solving crime. They have more eyes and ears than all police officers combined. They see and hear things that often could be used to solve crimes but are afraid to say anything for fear of retaliation or other reasons.

Crimestoppers/Drugbusters is a program where the information can be conveyed to the proper authorities and no one knows who provided the information.

To encourage citizens to call in the information, rewards are offered based on a set scale. Many citizens call and refuse the reward. They do not want money for turning in a criminal but do want a safe way to reveal critical information without anybody knowing who they are. While Caller ID devices are available, Crimestoppers/Drugbusters does not use them. The integrity and credibility of the program is too important to jeopardize the faith of the citizens that their identity will be protected.

CRIMESTOPPERS/DRUGBUSTERS SLATE OF OFFICERS FOR 2007-2008

President................................Tom Hudson (Stripes Corp.)
1st Vice President................... Vacant
Treasurer...............................Cindy Gatliff (Banc First)

Board Members:

Kim Dodds (Gap Broadcasting Radio)
Sam Helton (Center Point Energy)
Butch Hooper (Southwestern Medical Center)
Jerry Hrnciar (Cameron University)
Bill McCarley (Pepsi-Cola)

Joe Dabney (Pepsi-Cola)
Jack Partin (Retired Law Enforcement Command, Fort Sill)
Lee Sanger (Sanger Insurance Agency)
Joe Chesko (Remax Realtors))

Johnny Kinder (Coldwell Bankers, Crossroads Realtors)
Mike Taylor (KSWO)

Jim Eason (S.W. Sales)

Bob Turner (Accountant)

Amber Komahcheet (Comanche Nation Substance Abuse)

Don Smith (Attorney)

Rocky Breeze (Discount Foods)

Danny Chauvin (Center Point Energy)

Barbara Ellis (Board of Education)

Brad Burgess (Attorney)

Karla Korhonen (Ft. Sill Federal Credit Union)

Leroy Giles (City of Lawton, Youth Services)

Alan Glanzer (Ft. Sill, Oklahoma DOD)

Lin Newton (Ft. Sill, Oklahoma DOD)

Stephanie Drewry (Lawton Cablevision)

Matthew Thompson (Boy Scouts of America)

A special thanks to these individuals and their employers for helping make Crimestoppers/Drugbusters a success. If you know any of them, please express your appreciation the next time you see them.

PAYMENT SCHEDULE FOR NON-DRUG-RELATED FELONY CRIMES
Homicide	$1,000.00
Rape	1,000.00
Assault with a Dangerous Weapon	600.00
Arson	600.00
Robbery	600.00
Burglary	400.00
Auto Theft	400.00
Grand Larceny	400.00
Fugitive	200.00
Other	200.00

PAYMENT SCHEDULE FOR DRUG-RELATED CRIMES

The Drug Busters' Payment schedule is based on a sliding scale determined by points as established below:

Payment Schedule
	RECOVERED NARCOTICS VALUE
0 points	$999 and below
1 point	$1,000 to $4,999
2 points	$5,000 to $24,999
3 points	$25,000 to $49,999
4 points	$50,000 and above
	NUMBER OF ARRESTED SUSPECTS
1 point	1 arrest
2 points	2 arrests
3 points	3 or 4 arrests
4 points	5 arrests or more
	LEVEL OF CALLER'S INVOLVEMENT
0 points	Anonymous Telephone Call Only
1 point	Caller agrees to meet with Narcotics Investigator and answer additional questions (Note: The caller would no longer be anonymous but would be treated as a confidential informant.)
2 points	Caller actively participates in a buy/bust and/or making undercover purchases under the direct supervision of a Narcotics Investigator
3 points	Caller actively participates in making undercover purchases and becomes an affiant on a search warrant
	DANGER TO CALLER
1 point	Suspect(s) are reportedly armed and have weapons in their possession at the time of their arrest(s); or the caller's identity has been compromised and the suspects are threatening retaliation
	AMOUNT OF REWARD BASED ON TOTAL POINTS
1 point	$ 50
2 points	100
3 points	200
4 points	300
5 points	400
6 points	500
7 points	600
8 points	700
9 points	800
10 points	900
11 points	1,000

Crimestoppers/Drugbusters pays for information leading to the arrest and felony charges being filed against a suspect.

2007 CRIMESTOPPER/DRUGBUSTER STATISTICS

Total number of Tips received: 504

Total arrests made: 54

2007 Statistics for Non-Drug-Related Crimes

0 Homicide cleared

7 Armed Robbery Cleared

0 Burglaries cleared

0 Auto Theft cleared

28 Narcotics offenses cleared

0 Forgery offenses cleared

19 Fugitives arrested

52 Total cases solved

$137,185 worth of drugs recovered

$22,150 worth of property recovered

$9,300 total paid in rewards

2007 Statistics for Drug Related Crimes

Arrests: 28

Narcotics Recovered:

$1,905.00 worth of marijuana

$126,795.00 worth of cocaine

$6,750.00 worth of methamphetamine

$1,600.00 worth of ecstasy

$135.00 worth of other

$137,185 total value of drugs seized

Total Narcotics related tips: 203

Rewards Paid:

$4,100.00

Total Tips Since Inception:

8,763

Statistics since Inception

23 homicides cleared

6 rapes cleared

65 armed robberies cleared

12 aggravated assaults cleared

400 burglaries cleared

140 grand larcenies cleared

76 auto thefts cleared

9 arson cases cleared

918 narcotics cases cleared

219 forgery/frauds cleared

422 fugitives arrested

2,522 total cases solved

2,455 arrests made

$262,080,884 worth of property and/or narcotics recovered

$396,225 in rewards paid

348 cases solved with no rewards paid

CRIMESTOPPER/DRUGBUSTER FUND RAISERS

Crimestoppers/Drugbusters of Southwest Oklahoma has several major fundraisers each year. The first fundraiser is the Annual Membership Drive conducted January through April. Anyone who did not have an opportunity to join then can join at any time. Individual memberships are $25.00 and business memberships begin at $100.00. Several contributors give $500.00 or more. For each $50.00 donation, members will receive a Crimestopper/Drugbuster's supporter decal to place on the windshield of their car or the door to their business. Anyone who would like to be a supporting member can contact Mary Odum at the Lawton Police Office by calling 581-3240. If you would like to mail a donation to Crime Stoppers, please send your check or money order (please do not send cash) to Crime Stoppers, P.O. Box 923, Lawton, OK, 73502. Please note in the mailing if it is a donation or a membership.

The second major fundraiser is the "Moonlight Walk Against Drugs". This event produces greater citizen participation than any similar event in Southwest Oklahoma. There have been more than 10,000 walkers in each of the last 2 years. You do not have to purchase anything to participate! However, this is the event that raises the majority of reward monies for information that gets drug dealers off of our streets.

The event is held at the walking trail at Elmer Thomas Park located at 6^th and Ferris. The course is roughly 2 miles long. The event is truly a community affair with soldiers in uniform, civilian citizens, and school children unifying in an effort to make a statement against illegal drugs in our area. Entire units from Fort Sill, complete staffs from civilian businesses, and school leaders join together to walk. Most area radio stations, television stations, and the newspaper are present to record the event. Prizes are randomly awarded to participants. Refreshments are available for purchase/donation. Volunteers including Boy Scout troops, the Police Explorer Post, and others patrol the course to ensure no need is left unattended. Participants leave inspired that there are so many others, who like them, want drugs out of our area. Besides being good clean exercise, it is also just a lot of FUN!

The annual event is held in October beginning at 7:00 p.m. for young children and their parents. The ribbon cutting ceremony to mark the beginning of the walk for adults is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Police units from many surrounding communities line the departure point along with crossed cannons provided by Fort Sill. Each year a new T-shirt design is selected. This year's composition features a design created by T&S Printing in Lawton.

Business leaders, corporate executives, and concerned citizens sponsor the event by purchasing advertisement space on the back of the T-shirt for $500.00. At least 20 sponsors are needed to make this event a success. If your business or those with whom you do business are not listed, why not see if they won't support this worthy cause?

The T-shirts are then sold for a modest amount to cover the production costs. Revenue from the t-shirt sales and any excess monies from the sponsors are what pays for the rewards when callers provide information leading to the arrest of and the filing of felony charges against drug offenders. This year the cost for a T-shirt is $10.00 and can be bought at Stripes (formally Circle K) business office located at 11^th and “D” Avenue in Lawton.

WE NEED YOUR HELP to make this event another success. If you or your business can be a sponsor, call Brent Yarbrough or Brian Ball, at (580) 581-3210. If you cannot be a sponsor, please make plans to purchase a T-shirt. If you cannot afford a T-shirt, plan on walking with us in October.

Crimestoppers/Drugbusters also conducts Semi-annual Bicycle Auctions. The bicycles to be sold have been recovered by the police department and the owners cannot be identified and/or located. By city ordinance and an agreement between the City of Lawton and the Crimestoppers/Drugbusters program, the proceeds from these auctions, minus any required fees, go to the Crimestoppers/Drugbusters program and the money must be used to pay for rewards.

These auctions normally occur in May of each year and take place in the parking lot of Wal-Mart on N. Sheridan Road at 10:00 a.m. For more information, check the section on coming events.

Occasionally, Crimestoppers/Drugbusters may participate in fundraisers other than those listed. All funds raised go directly to pay for the rewards to callers reporting information that leads to an arrest and felony charges being filed against those committing criminal acts in our society.

Project Crime Stoppers

Corvette

The Lawton Police Departments Narcotics Division, as the result of arresting a local drug dealer, confiscated a 1984 Chevrolet Corvette. This vehicle was used for undercover narcotic operations for approximately 7 years. The Corvette was customized into a Crime Stoppers vehicle with the assistance of local businesses. The vehicle is used for special functions such as the Cops & Kids picnic, parades and other special functions. It is also used for actual police functions such as the serving of search warrants for narcotics.

Many local businesses have pitched-in to help Crime Stoppers customize this Corvette, all through donations. For example, Goodyear Tire & Rubber started with a set of Goodyear Eagle tires, the Goodyear Service Stores on S.W. 11 and on N.W. Cache Rd. both donated 2 Eagle rims to match. Guys Paint & Body Shop applied a custom showroom quality paint job that definitely turns some heads. New seats and carpet courtesy of Cleland’s Upholstery, an all new exhaust system and a total reworked suspension by Midas Mufflers makes this Vette ride as good as it looks and the suspension parts were provided by Auto Zone.

And of course, retired Lt. Bruce Lefebvre, of the Lawton Police Department, was instrumental in coordinating this project and donated a great deal of time and effort.

Here is what the Corvette looked like when it was donated to Crime Stoppers and pictures of the vehicle as it is going through it's restoration process!

Additional Sponsors: MTS Performance, The HI FI Shop