Now I'm Conflicted Over City of Deerfield Beach Mayor Peggy Noland's Lack of Conflict with the BSO Merger and the Tale of the Form 8B

I just left the office of Ada Graham-Johnson, Deerfield Beach City Clerk, and as I mentioned in a previous updated post, which can be read here, I had requested the Form 8B's from Mayor Peggy NOland from August 16, 2011 with regard to her abstaining from voting on City Commission Agenda Items 23 and 24 with regard to measures concerning the City's Fire Department to which her husband, Howard, and son, Thomas, belong.

You might remember the term "Form 8B" from the Sylvia Poitier case, which the State Attorney filed misdemeanor charges against then Commissioner Poitier for filing the Form 8b's but not indicating the true reason for the submission, which according to the charges filed by the State was because she was trying to hide the fact that her brother loaned the group money and these measures before the Commission would have inured to him a special private benefit.  Elected or appointed officials must file the Form 8b if  a measure that is being presented before their board or commission that would inure the official, a relative, or business relationship.  They must publicly declare the reason their voting would be considered a conflict of interest and then w/i 15 days file the form.

Sylvia was later found guilty in her jury trial, even though all the States witnesses and evidence pointed to the fact that her brother would not have gained a single dime or benefit from any of the measures that the charges were filed on.

But hey that is the legal system for you...

Anyway, if you read the post then you have recently become aware, as many of us in the public, that with the City's move to pawn off our Homerule Fire Department to the mass conglomerate BSO, it opened up a window of opportunity for those individuals in the City's retirement plan.  The City left a clause in the merger which allowed the firemen an option to remain in the City's plan or move over to BSO's plan with the State.  This creates another opportunity for a small and select few members of the City's retirement plan who were enrolled in the D.R.O.P., which is basically a high payout at a forced retirement plan usually within 5 years or 60 months, to continue enrollment with the D.R.O.P. and at the forced retirement date continue on under the new agency and retirement system with BSO.  Essentially, a double dipping effect for those select few members of the Fire Department who would benefit tremendously from the creation of this new option through the BSO merger.

Now, you might be asking what does this have to do with the Form 8B's that I previously mentioned for Mayor Peggy NOland.  

Well, Peggy did abstain from voting on the measures related to the Fire Department indicating that  both her husband and her son were employed by the City's Fire Department.  What she did not mention was the fact that this merger would create an opportunity for her husband to double-dip into the City's and then into the States retirement pool.  The public had no knowledge of the clause and was not even allowed to speak on the measures because the City under Mayor Peggy NOland's guiding hands  decided to do this as a management decision and leave the public out.  The public did not see the contract and was not privy to any of the discussions about it until August 16, 2011 when Peggy NOland herself pulled the two items about her precious Fire Department and made the Commission vote on the items hurriedly without real discussion or even input from the public.  In previous months Peggy NOland had influenced the situation by indicating to the people that this was needed, so it is safe to assume that she did the same thing with the Commissioners through City Manager, Burgess Hanson.  Which I don't believe is illegal???  Or is it???  Can the City Manager act as the go between to count votes and lobby with the City Commissioners, I don't know that is something for Michael Satz's Office at the SAO to determine.


Okay, so I received the requested copy of the Form 8B from the City Clerk's office.

Let me just interject here:  I emailed them a request yesterday and after speaking with Ada Graham Johnson, City Clerk, I became a little worried so I rushed down to the Clerk's office just to make the request in person and get it right away, which I shouldn't have had to do because by law it should have been included with the approved minutes from the August 16, 2011 meeting and been available for public inspection on the City's website. Go Figure, eh!!  Suffice it to say that Ada Graham Johnson was not to happy to see me because she harshly insisted that I come back for the request because they had been out for 4 days and had other things to do.  I advised her that since I was standing in the office they might as well fulfill my request, especially since it should have been on the website with the minutes, by law.  Quintella, seeing the conflict that was about to arise between myself and Ada because Ada didn't do her job and didn't seem to want to do her job now, advised me to take a seat and she would fulfill my request while I waited, which she did.  So thank you Quintella for being a great City Clerk the residents of the City really appreciate YOU!!!  

 After reviewing the forms provided me by the Clerk's Office as being the filed Form 8B's for Mayor Peggy NOland's "appearance of a conflict" declaration on and her "in abundance of caution" declaration from August 16, 2011 the document indicates that Mayor Peggy Noland filled out the form and signed and dated them with the reason being "husband and son employee".  That's all it indicates.  


Now as Mayor, I think it is safe to assume that she would and should have known that through this merger the firefighters would be allowed to continue on the Deerfield plan or move onto the States retirement system under BSO, especially since by the dais's on admission that the City is getting out of the pension business.  That being the main reason we were looking into BSO anyway becasue of the sky-rocketing cost of the lavish pensions that the Deerfield Beach Fire Department was afforded, ironically, by the Mayor herself while a Commissioner and she didn't declare a conflict back then either.  Funny???


Seeing that the NOland Administration was trying to the sell the public on this merger with the information that the pensions were costing the City to much and would be ever increasing, unless we went through with the merger.  So, the question becomes why did the administration not advise the public that this double-dipping affect would be created for the small percentage of City of Deerfield Beach Fire Department employees who were enrolled in the City's D.R.O.P. retirement plan.  It is very likely that they knew that if and when this information got out people would be concerned at the ramifications and the implications against NOland herself would not be so legally favorable, but because she wanted to ensure that the merger went through they concealed it from us.  We already know from the whole FEMA debacle, which can be read here, that City doesn't mind playing free and loose with the facts and withholding the facts is not beyond them when it suits their purposes.


I know some of you out there have already joined me in filing complaints about this with the SAO's office and Broward Office of Inspector General and applaud you for taking the necessary steps to get our City back and out of the grip of corruption.  I encourage more people to take this stand with us and research this issue with me and file the appropriate complaints for each and every possibly illegal action taken by our City.  It's time we show them that they work for us and if they will not act ethically in our best interest we will report them, serve them up to the laws of the land and if the individuals elected to enforce the law won't act, then we do our best to vote them out, too.  


We the People are tired of being neglected, mistreated, used, and abused by those in elected and appointed offices.  Our tax dollars are not for use as your personal piggy banks and our interests (such as public safety) should not be used to increase your gains.

City of Deerfield Beach Mayor, Peggy Noland, How Much of a Conflict Constitutes a Conflict? (UPDATED 12/27/11)

I still have not gotten an answer from City of Deerfield Beach Mayor Peggy Noland as to if her husband will be retiring in August 2012 under the guidelines of the City of Deerfield  Beach D.R.O.P. retirement plan or will he exercise his newly acquired rights, SOLELY THANKS TO THE MERGER WITH B.S.O, that allows him the benefit of opting to continue with BSO and join into Florida's Retirement System, while also collecting his retirement benefits from the D.R.O.P. Which you can read about here.  In fact, in the aforementioned post the public, for the first time, is being advised of the fact that Firefighters were given the option to continue the D.R.O.P. program or go into the FRS creating an environment that would allow some current members of the City of Deerfield Beach D.R.O.P. to effectively cash in their CODB retirement collecting some hefty checks while continuing on with BSO and entering the FRS for a second helping of retirement cash, which the majority of the residents and affected classes of Deerfield Beach are not entitled to and will not be able to enjoy, but only a special private section, including the Mayor's husband, Howard Noland.


So many benefits have come to the fire department in the last 20 years and all made possible by the Deerfield Beach Firefighter Head Priestess, Peggy Noland.


Well, since she didn't respond I reviewed the City Commission Meeting from August 16, 2011.

Hey, that was barely pass Howard Noland's City of Deerfield Beach D.R.O.P. enrollment anniversary date of 8-9-07.  I wonder if they waited til the passing of this resolution to celebrate that anniversary...Ka-ching! Ka-ching! Ka-ching!

What  I found was shocking, well not really given the Noland's history of lapses in judgement, which seems to always mysteriously result in a Noland enrichment or unjust enrichment depending on who you talk to in this town.


How much of a conflict constitutes an actual conflict???


Peggy Noland herself requested a rush to vote on these two specific items, pulling them from their place on the agenda to the very first vote, of which no real discussion took place only contrived and rehearsed dialogue from the Commissioners.  


In this particular case under General Items 23 and 24, watch as Peggy continuously rubs her hands, as if she is anxious or nervous about something.  She abstains from voting, 

Mayor Noland abstained from voting on Item 23. 

Andrew Maurodis, City Attorney, clarified  if Mayor Noland abstained because she is related to two (2) members of the bargaining unit.  As an abundance of caution she will not vote on this; and advised her to file the appropriate forms within 15 days.  

Mayor Noland replied correct.

Mayor Noland abstained from voting on Item 24. 

Andrew Maurodis, City Attorney, clarified that Mayor Noland abstained from voting on Item 24 based on the fact that her husband and son work for the Fire Department; there
is an appearance of a conflict.  He reminded her to file the appropriate forms within 15 days. 

not because of the possibility of her husband, Howard Noland, receivng a special private gain because he now, as a result of the merger, is now eligible to double dip into the retirement system from the City of Deerfield Beach D.R.O.P. which he will be eligible to CASH IN on or around 8/9/2012 and now, thanks to his wife's cunning and political skills to push through her personal agendas with help of Ganz, Popelski, Miller, and now Preston, the FRS once he retires from BSO.  Costing the City of Deerfield Beach taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars as a result of this merger, which she (Peggy) and her compatriots pushed through under the guise of including it in the 2011/2012 Budget.


Well sounds like an actual conflict to me...only the Mayor, City Attorney, and Ganz, Popelsky, Miller, and Preston did not give us all the information, even though they stated over and over again that they went over the information.  


So you are probably asking yourself how could they have missed this, huge CONFLICT!!  I'm shrugging my shoulders and scratching my head too on that one...Maybe they were to busy being rushed by the City Manager and City Mayor as to the urgency of this vote as it pertains to the impending 2011/2012 Budget deadline and did not actually "Do their homework" as they should have.


Anyway, I might add that, unlike the wildly unpopular 10% Utility Tax speculative and assumed numbers, the numbers for the BSO merger were not included in the City of Deerfield Beach 2011/2012 proposed Budget, as the Commission lead us to believe it would be when they inexplicably rushed to push this merger through without public input as it was included in the "General Items" and not the "Public Hearing" section, which would have allowed the public to speak on it and possibly brought this matter up about the retirement situation and benefit to the Mayor and her husband, but the public was effectively maneuvered out of the discussion by a crafty City Manager, Burgess Hanson, and City Staff working for the Mayor and her cohorts on the Commission.  


I wonder why??? (Watch and listen to the carefully chosen words by her fellow Commissioners to establish the need because of the Budget.


Even after it the resolution passed to complete the merger there has been no updates on the actual savings and final numbers of the merger presented to the public...hmmmmmmm!!!!

HEY TIM DONNELLY, if you have some time over there at the SAO do you think you might want to look into this, especially since it will involve the special financial private gain of the Nolands, when Howard Noland cashes in on that retirement benefit next year and then continues on with BSO under the FRS.  

Oh, Deerfield will the corruption never cease?  And this time it will actually involved actual money, instead of the possibility of creating better conditions to one day get paid, like in the Sylvia Poitier case.  This time the good people at the SAO and the public actually have dates of the anticipated money transfer and violation that we will be looking for.


Now that doesn't sound like an appearance of a conflict to me, it sounds like an actual conflict and she should have stated this information for the public, which since we did not have access to the BSO merger contract at the time to even know it was a possibility.  It seems like this information was intentionally left out and the public was intentionally mislead by the Mayor Peggy Noland and the City of Deerfield Beach Commissioners to hide this fact of the possibility to double-dip and the definite financial benefit to the Mayor Peggy Noland because of the merger option, especially since her political career in Deerfield may be coming to an end during the next election cycle and she may be just padding her pockets since she will be out of job and will not have access to the "gifts" that she loves from developers, lobbyist, and special interest groups (like the CODB Fire Department) that she repealed the City's ethics code to get.




I wonder if Tim Donnelly at the SAO is reading this and going to file charges.  I suggest everyone take a close look also and then file a complaint against Mayor Peggy Noland, because it is time that she and her cronies stop lying to us and costing us millions in tax dollars, just so she and her CLAN can reap the financial benefits of her being an elected official.


To learn how to file a complaint with the Broward Office of Inspector General, click here.

You can file a complaint with the Broward State Attorney's Office by emailing them at sao17@sao17.state.fl.us or contacting them via telephone at 954 831-8029.  

  


**So I sent in an email to request the Form 8b's that Mayor Peggy Noland was supposed to submit within 15 days of that vote, because they are not included on the website with the approved minutes as prescribed by law that the form be filed and included with the minutes for the meeting.  I notified Ada Graham-Johnson via telephone that these materials are not there for public inspection and she indicated that she would get me the documents.

City of Deerfield Beach Mayor Peggy Noland's Possible Deal With the Devil and an Ethics Code Violation

So in thinking back on the events of the year, one event stuck out in my mind and that was when Deerfield Beach Mayor Peggy Noland, chose to appoint Chaz Stevens to the DBHA Commission.  Now, after the appointment choice was publicly denounced (thank God) and Noland had no choice, but to rescind her "deal with the devil", she chose to go after Caryl Berner in an obviously politically motivated attack.


The Mayor chose to speak against Ms. Berner for an off-hand comment that some individuals insist she made following a DBHA Commission meeting that Noland attended.  Ms. Berner stated, "We should get rid of that one (referencing the ouster of Mayor Peggy Noland)".  Ms. Berner made her comment in response to Chaz Steven's accusation that the DBHA deals in nepotism, which the Mayor bought into without any evidence of wrongdoing and on the sole word of one Chaz Stevens.  If Ms. Berner did indeed make that particular comment regarding Noland and nepotism, then her comment is spot on relating to a public body dealing in nepotism giving the fact that Peggy's husband, son, and daughter all work for the City of Deerfield Beach, where she has been a mainstay as an elected official for most of the last 20 years, which for the most part has not been without controversy, scandal, and the occasional "lapse" of ethical judgement when it came down to voting for lavish raises for the Fire Department (of whom members of her own household was and are employees), but no official charges have ever been brought against her.


Now, Peggy, in reference to being called one of the most vulgar words you can call a woman was able to shrug that public ridicule of her femininity off and even decided to appoint her verbal assailant (Chaz Stevens) to a public board (DBHA Commission, not once but twice), then in defense of her choice stated that she takes things with a grain of salt, these particular action seems contradictory and peculiar, since she most recently publicly condemned Ms. Berner and even looked for an excuse to have her removed from that very same board that she once appointed to and wanted to appoint again the man who had called her, well I am just going to say it, Chaz Stevens publicly called her a "cunt" along with many other vulgarities. 


Does it indicate that she cares more for her political career than her own female pride, her name, and her personal reputation???


No one knows except Peggy Noland, but from her adamant condemnation from the dais of Ms. Berner's outburst, it would not be a stretch for one to assume so.


Anyway, let's just say that one did assume that Mayor Peggy Noland cherished her position of power and would do anything to keep it, which is possibly not far from the truth.  Would it be fair to say that if someone was threatening that political career with tales of corruption, scandal, intrigue, nepotism, and other sordid details and past attempts to squash him failed.  What would the next step be???


Would it be a truce?


Would it be a bribe?


Or maybe even a combination of the two.  


I would suppose the conversation may have been something like this back in early 2010: 

Peggy Noland: I will give you access, information and the carte blanche to go after those you want and see to it that you get on a public board over at the DBHA, it's time for a change over there anyway.  All you have to do is stop investigating me and my family.  Stop mentioning ,my husband, Howard's defrauding Workers Compensation, my conflict of interest involvement with JB's on the Beach, my son, Thomas's slap on the wrist for committing campaign violations, and all other sordid possibly corrupt details about us, the fire department, and City Management. 

Chaz Stevens:  So, you're gonna get me on that board?

Peggy Noland: I'm the Mayor! 

Chaz Stevens:  There will probably be publicity and news reports, plus I'll get on TV..you gotta deal!!! 

Peggy Noland:  It's Good to be the Mayor.

Early 2010 is when Chaz Stevens turned his efforts away from his usual target and the reason for his blog and his activism, Peggy Noland, and focused mainly on the DBHA and Sylvia Poitier.  By April 2010 he was DBHA Commissioner Chaz Stevens and by July he was ex-DBHA Commissioner Chaz Stevens.  

Editted.

Now, I wonder if Mayor Peggy Noland truly made a "deal with the devil", if she did indeed convince Chaz Stevens to stop his heroic efforts to rid Deerfield Beach of her for good by highlighting the morally bankrupt and corrupt actions of the Noland Clan in exchange for a seat on the DBHA Commission, a public board.


If that is true wouldn't that be a violation of City of Deerfield Beach Ethics Code Article IX, Sec. 2-502 (i)

No regulated officer shall promise an appointment or the use of his/her influence to obtain an appointment to any position as a reward for any political support, activity, assistance or contribution.

It probably wouldn't be to hard to make a case for it, albeit a circumstantial one, but a case nonetheless. 


Hey, if she did make such a deal, it only cost her 75,000+ souls...


My sources indicate that Noland has been going around town at City events and expressing her disdain for me and advising the good ol' folks in earshot that I am attacking the dais on a personal level.  I don't know how much of that is true, but if it is maybe she will be offering me a position on a public board, too.


Mayor Noland, it would take nothing less than the creation of a new permanent public board whose sole responsibility is to monitor City functions for illegalities, corruption, malfeasance, and any mismanagement and report any and all violations to the SAO, Broward OIG, the Ethics Commission or other entity with jurisdiction.

Is Someone Double-Dipping in the BSO/Deerfield Beach Fire Department Retirement Cookie Jar, Costing Deerfield Beach Citizens Thousands in Tax Dollars???

I received the below letter from a concerned citizen and retired Deerfield Beach Firefighter, Bill Connor. 

 Now that the Deerfield Beach Fire/Rescue merger with BSO is complete, I feel that there may have been some issues that were overlooked. For the record, I have nothing but good things to say about BSO Fire/Rescue and have heard only praise for Chief DeJesus. After speaking with some of the men and woman involved in the merger it appears everyone is happy. There are more opportunities for promotions and substantial pay raises due to educational incentives, and unlimited overtime.

   The first issue was why there was such a rush to make this merger happen. Had this merger gone to a referendum; or at least had the public been allowed to speak on the merger, some items may have been brought up that would make the Commission wonder if this was really a good deal or at least change some pension items that could eventually bankrupt the City of Deerfield Beach. The big savings came from the fact that the City wouldn't have to purchase a C.A.D. ( Computer-assisted dispatch system). Every year for the last twenty or so years, the Fire Department requested this and was denied. Why is it now touted as saving millions for the City? Ex Fire Chief Lother and previous City Manager Deetjen for years had considered send the Dispatch portion of the Fire Department to save the City money. The savings the Commissioners and City Manager are touting as the reason it was a win for the City to send away the whole Fire Department, could have been fully realized without sending the Fire Department along with it. Makes you wonder what kind of logic is being used. 

   If you attended the Aug. 16, 2011 Commission meeting, there was some interesting dialog regarding the BSO merger. Commissioner Preston stated he would like the public to be heard on this issue. Commissioner Ganz then stated he voted that this should go to a referendum. Both were overruled and the vote had to happen immediately. Every Commissioner stated that they had some concerns. However, City Manager Burgess Hanson, met with them individually and basically assured them that the  City of Deerfield Beach couldn't afford the Firefighters pensions anymore and this merger was the only option. It is my belief that the Commissioners didn't go over the BSO merger contract with a fine tooth comb but relied on the recommendation of the City Manager to vote yes on this contract. That would be understandable due to the complexity and size of the contract but then again, that should have also been a reason to slow it down and get public input.

   Now this is the part that makes everyone who's read the contract, which I have, scratch their heads. Ever member of the City of Deerfield Beach Fire/Rescue Department was given an option of going into the Florida Retirement System (FRS) pension, or remaining in the City of Deerfield Beach Fire/Rescue pension. Somewhat confusing why this was ever an option if the main reason for the merger was " The City can't afford the pensions anymore". The major difference is that in the FRS pension plan; overtime, unused Vacation Time, and Compensatory Time, is NOT calculated into your pension. In the City of Deerfield Beach pension plan, overtime, unused Vacation Time, and Compensatory Time IS calculated into your pension, commonly known as Pension Spiking. It should not be surprise thay EVERY member who's still calculating their pension, chose to remain in the Deerfield Beach Pension Plan. With salary increases up to 30% higher and ALL this going into their Deerfield Pension, where is the savings Burgess Hanson sold the Commission on? The $100,000 a year pension, with these pay increases, will be the norm and not the exception. This oversight by City Manager, Burgess Hanson is going to eventually cost the taxpayers millions of dollars.

   The quote was that" The City of Deerfield Beach wanted out of the pension business". With Mr. Hanson's recommendation to the Commission to approve the contract, the City will be out of the pension business, it just may take between 60-70 years ( when the last Deerfield Beach Firefighter retires from BSO) and millions of taxpayers’ dollars are spent to pay them until they pass on.

   There are two ways to correct this unforgivable error and not make the Deerfield Beach taxpayers forever pay for Mr. Hanson's incompetence:

    1) Have all the Deerfield Beach Fire/Rescue-BSO employees go into the FRS retirement plan where Overtime, Vacation Time, and Compensatory Time is not calculated into the pensions.

Deerfield Beach Mayor, Peggy Noland.
Wife of Deerfield Beach Firefighter/BSO, Howard Noland
Mother of Deerfield Beach Firefighter/BSO, Thomas Noland

    2) If the Deerfield Beach Fire/Rescue-BSO employees do chose to remain in the City's pension plan, eliminate Overtime, Vacation Time, and Compensatory Time in the pension calculations.

    As to why the merger had to happen so fast and with no public voice is another issue entirely. A speculation is that a current D.R.O.P. participant may have helped expedite the merger. In the D.R.O.P. ,you are allowed 60 months of continued employment, and then you must retire. With the BSO merger, the 60 month rule is throw out and you can 'Double Dip" forever. Wonder who was in the D.R.O.P. and nearing forced retirement? The answer may have something to do with how the merger took place and the urgency in which it took place.

Please Note:  It has been reported that Howard Noland, Husband of Mayor Peggy Noland and Deerfield Beach Firefighter, entered the D.R.O.P. on 8-09-07, which if the 60 month time limit from above is true would mean that he would have had to retire on 8-09-12. This has yet to be confirmed, but if true makes you wonder...


City of Deerfield Beach Mayor and avid supporter/lobbyist of the BSO merger, Peggy Noland, can you confirm if your husband is now eligible for two retirements, one under the City of Deerfield Beach plan and now one under the Florida plan with BSO.


I would suggest you read this post about how Howard Noland got a slap on the wrist when it was found that he was defrauding the City of Deerfield Beach about his credentials.

Tomorrow 12/14/11 an Ice Cream Social with Santa @ Westside Park

Tomorrow Ice Cream Social with Santa at Westside Park hosted by the City of Deerfield Beach.  Bring the family and tell the friends.  Cost is $2.00 for adults and $1.00 for children.  Come out to this community event.






Title:Ice Cream Social with Santa
Date:December 14, 2011
Start Time:6:30 PM
End Time:8:30 PM
Description:Get in the holiday spirit with games, family activities, a visit with Mr. and Mrs. Claus and the elves, and an ice cream snack.
Address:Westside Park Recreation Center
445 SW 2nd Street
Deerfield Beach, FL 33441
Location:Westside Park Recreation Center, 445 SW 2nd Street
Hours:Wednesday, December 14, 6:30-8:30 PMContact:954.480.4481
Email: web.parks@deerfield-beach.com
Cost:$2/adult and $1/child

BSO's "Operation Keep Our Community Safe" - Dec. 13

From the City of Deerfield Beach Website:

Operation Keep Our Community Safe - Dec. 13

On Tuesday, December 13, BSO deputies, firefighters, community service aides and volunteers will be out in force in all BSO jurisdictions distributing important information about residential burglaries. In total, the areas patrolled by BSO have experienced a 20% increase in residential burglaries. When they find their target, burglars will break doors or windows to enter the home and steal valuable property. These burglaries happen mostly when homeowners are at work, between 9 a.m. and noon. By the time the homeowner realizes they have been burglarized, the criminals are long gone. We remind residents to call 911 if they see something suspicious in their neighborhood. Please pass this information along to your friends, family and neighbors.


Warning:

Don't know who's knocking? Call BSO!

Gone are the days when thieves went crawling and sneaking up through bushes, checking to see if someone’s home to commit a burglary. Residential burglaries are up! Today, criminals are bold, and they seek out their victims in broad daylight. They knock on doors, and if they get a response, they move on. If no one answers, they’ve found their next target.

The Broward Sheriff’s Office campaign “Keep Our Community Safe” aims to educate Broward County residents about how this crime has evolved and get everyone’s cooperation to catch these thieves. BSO personnel will be canvassing neighborhoods in all areas patrolled by BSO to talk to residents about how they can participate in this crime prevention initiative. Door hangers will be left on every door to make everyone aware of how these criminals operate and what they should do should they come in contact with a suspicious person.

“When we have residents’ cooperation, criminals don’t stand a chance,” Sheriff Al Lamberti said. “I can’t tell you how many times that phone call from an alert neighbor has helped us get a criminal off the street. This is what ‘Keep Our Community Safe’ is all about.”

In total, the areas patrolled by BSO have experienced a 20 percent increase in residential burglaries. If someone knocks on your door offering a service, asking for an unknown person or any other unsolicited offer or suspicious excuse, dial 911 immediately. BSO deputies will gladly come to your neighborhood to make sure those individuals are not criminals in disguise.

Burglars will often wear a uniform or drive a car with a company’s signage to try to dissuade your suspicions. When they find their target, they will break doors or windows to enter the home and steal valuable property. These burglaries happen mostly when homeowners are at work, between 9 a.m. and noon. By the time the homeowner realizes they have been burglarized, the criminals are nowhere to be found.

We urge residents to stay informed of the latest crimes and crime trends in their neighborhoods by signing up for BSO’s CyberVisor program. To do so, visit www.sheriff.org/CV.