DETAILS: 

Oxnard police are investigating a hit-and-run collision resulting in the injury of two Pacifica High School students this morning.

At 0730 hours, Oxnard police and fire received a call of a pedestrian hit-and-run collision near Ramona School at 804 Cooper Road.

Preliminary information from the scene indicates the two teenage students were walking in the marked crosswalk at Bonita Ave. and Cooper Rd. when they were hit by the suspect vehicle. The driver fled the scene northbound on Bonita St.

Both pedestrians were transported to St. John’s Regional Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries; one by private vehicle and one by ambulance.

The driver is wanted for felony hit-and-run. Any witnesses to the crash are encourage to report their observations anonymously to Crime Stoppers at (805) 385-TALK.

An investigation is continuing. (Names of the injured pedestrians are not being released because notification of next of kin has yet to be confirmed.)

Police Records Technician Michael Lorenzana was recognized by the Oxnard City Council as the City’s Employee of the Quarter at their September 23, 2008 meeting. The award is for the third quarter of 2008. Consideration for this award requires a nomination and then a careful review is conducted by the City’s Employee Recognition Committee.

Michael is currently assigned to the Records Bureau as a Records Technician II. He is a trainer and works primarily with a State database system that is accessed by patrol officers and investigators. Michael also helps out in the IT department and is responsible for the connectivity of the mobile data computers in the patrol cars.

Michael was nominated by his current supervisor, Margaret Tobin. In her nomination, she recognized Michael because he truly represents what the City of Oxnard stands for, the City that cares. The work he does for others to help them do their job, is what is most important to him. Michael is always willing to stop what he is doing to help others. Many employees within the department seek out Michael as a resource because of his willingness to help.

Michael has always been an employee who is compassionate and understanding of the customer needs and he works diligently to ensure that their needs have been met. He is approachable and polite in all of his interactions. Michael takes pride in the quality of service he provides, which reflects positively on the department.

Michael very modestly accepted the award and said that he takes pride in the work that he does. He said he is proud to work for this City and tries to be a positive representative of the department.

Earlier in the year, Michael received the Civilian of the Year award for 2008 at the Oxnard Police Department’s annual awards luncheon.

Congratulations, Michael!

When comparing the first six months of this year’s reported crime in Oxnard to 2007 figures for the same time frame, the number of reportable crimes in Oxnard declined 2.2%.

The reported crime figures reflect Part One Crimes, which are offense types that law enforcement agencies report to the United States Department of Justice. These offenses include the violent crimes of homicide, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. Property crimes that fall into Part One offenses include burglary, automobile theft, larceny (theft), and arson.

During the first six months of the 2007 calendar year, there were 2,517 reported Part I crimes, compared to 2,462 this year. The chart below summarizes Oxnard’s the comparisons by category:

The largest reduction within violent crimes was in reported rapes, which are down by 70%. Another noteworthy reduction concerns a 19.6% reduction in robberies. Though mid-year homicide figures show a 20% reduction in homicides, recent events will have a significant impact on this, since six murders occurred after July 1st.

Overall crimes against property are showing a 1.4% rise for the fist half of this year, with 2,087 crimes reported; compared to 2,059 in 2007. However, this is due only to a 3.4% rise in larcenies – all other property crime categories are showing decreases.

DETAILS: 

“Busted,” MTV’s newest reality show which examines the impact of illegal activity on young adults, features officers in action from around the country including the Oxnard Police Department. A new episode airs tonight at 6:00 p.m. on cable network MTV, featuring Oxnard P.D. Officer Matt Crenshaw.

Production crews rode with Oxnard officers for several weeks over the spring and summer months; they plan on returning for more ride-alongs this month as additional episodes of Busted go into production.

Busted is not Oxnard PD’s first foray into reality TV. Many episodes of trueTV’s (formerly CourtTV) “Speeders,” continue to air regularly on the cable network.

The Oxnard Police Department has been chosen the co-winner of the 2008 James Q. Wilson Award for Excellence in Community Policing, awarded by the Regional Community Policing Institute – California.

This award is presented by the Regional Community Policing Institute – California (RCPI-CA), in association with the Office of the Attorney General, California Department of Justice. The purpose of this award is to recognize California law enforcement agencies that have successfully institutionalized the Community Policing philosophy. One agency each year is chosen as the recipient of the award and two others receive recognition as finalists. This year, the Oxnard Police Department and the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department – Carson Station tied for first place out of 27 entries.

The selections were made by a panel of experts who have no affiliation with any of the nominated agencies and were coordinated by the Director of the RCPI-CA. The recipient of the award will be featured in the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) quarterly newsletter, Problem Solving Quarterly. Each nomination was judged on the following criteria:

• Problem Solving – The level of agency commitment to solving public safety and disorder issues.
• Partnership with the Community – The level of agency collaboration with the community while addressing public safety and disorder issues.
• Partnership with Public and Private Organizations/Agencies – The level of agency collaboration with other public and private organizations/ agencies while addressing public safety and disorder issues.
• Institutionalization – The extent that the Community Policing philosophy has been integrated throughout the agency (e.g. percentage of personnel involved, training, relationship to promotional processes, etc.).
• Results – What have been the positive outcomes that can be linked to the chosen Community Policing Strategy and how were they determined?

This award comes as the result of many years of hard work by the men and women of the Oxnard Police Department who have successfully woven Community Policing into the fabric of the Department. It serves as an acknowledgment of the sworn and civilian employees who work every day at finding new and better ways to partner with all segments of the community in order to provide a safer City. The Department’s ‘Neighborhood Policing Strategy’, which was implemented three years ago, has been the latest modification to 30 years of Community Policing under four Police Chiefs. This latest approach seeks to customize police service to the neighborhood level.

The award will be presented during the California Crime Prevention Officer’s Association’s 34th annual training conference in Sacramento on September 17, 2008.

Oxnard Police Departments Neighborhood Policing Strategy and Community Policing Model