Newport Beach Employees Who Go Above And Beyond

NEWPORT BEACH, CA - Every day, in the small hours of the night, the Newport Beach Police Department officers put on their uniform and go out to serve and protect their community. When lives need saving, the stakes are high, and officers rise to meet them. So began the video at a recent award banquet honoring officers who have saved lives, developed programs that will save countless more and brought attention to cold cases that gave voice to victims of the past to solve their murders in the present.

The Newport Beach Police Department awarded their own for going above and beyond the call in 2018. Members of the Police Department received recognition in the listed categories:

• Officer John Miller, 2018 Officer of the Year
• Sergeant Court Depweg, 2018 Sworn Supervisor of the Year
• Animal Control Supervisor Valerie Schomburg, 2018 Civilian Supervisor of the Year
• Administrative Assistant to the Chief Jennifer Manzella, 2018 Civilian of the Year
• Volunteer Harvey Wolsky, 2018 Volunteer of the Year

Additional awards were received as follows:

Lifesaving Award presented to Officers Mark Hamilton and Dustin Houston
On August 31, 2018, the Newport Beach Police Department received a call about “unknown trouble” with a woman at Corona Del Mar Main Beach. Officer Dustin Houston responded to the call and found the woman slumped over on the beach at the sea wall, unconscious and not breathing. Witnesses reported that she was experiencing a heroin overdose.Officer Houston began chest compressions and administered a dose of Naloxone. When Officer Hamilton arrived, he gave the woman a second dose of Naloxone and attached an Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) to her. The AED analyzed the heart rhythm and advised against a shock, so the Officers continued CPR. As the Newport Beach Fire Department personnel was arriving at the scene, Officer Houston was able to detect a pulse on the female. By the time she arrived at the Hoag Hospital Emergency Room, the woman was conscious and able to respond to NBFD personnel.

She survived a heroin overdose due to diligent and effective CPR and Naloxone application by Officers Houston and Hamilton. Both Officers are commended for their heroic efforts in saving this woman’s life.

Lifesaving Award presented to Officers Nathan Farris and Michelle Hampton
On February 4, 2018, the Newport Beach Police Department received a request for medical aid. A male jogger had collapsed on the side of the road in the area of Pacific Coast Highway and Pelican Point Drive. Officers Nathan Farris and Michelle Hampton responded to the call. There, they discovered that the jogger was having a heart attack and that a passerby had already begun giving him chest compressions. That passerby was James Smith, a retired member of the Los Angeles City Fire Department member. Officer Hampton began giving rescue breaths and Officer Farris used an AED on the jogger. Together, James, Officer Farris and Officer Hampton provided effective CPR until Newport Beach Fire Department personnel arrived to provide advanced care and transport the patient to the Hoag Hospital Emergency Room. By the time he arrived at the hospital, the patient had regained a pulse. James Smith is presented with a Chief’s
Citation for using his vast experience and for interceding, without hesitation, to provide effective CPR at a critical moment. The jogger survived because of the quick lifesaving efforts of James Smith, Officer Farris and Officer Hampton.

Lifesaving Award presented to Sergeant Steve Oberon, Officers Rachel Cox, Curtis Hazel, and Anna Thielman

On April 22, 2018, the Newport Beach Police Department received a request for medical aid. A guest at a home in the 200 block of Larkspur Avenue was found on the front porch, not breathing. Officers Rachel Cox, Curtis Hazell, Anna Thielman and Sergeant Oberon responded and found that the man had blue lips, was not breathing, and had no pulse.

The Officers immediately took action. Officer Hazell assumed the role of team leader for CPR, Officer Cox performed chest compressions, Officer Thielman operated the AED, and Sergeant Oberon provided rescue breathing. Together, they provided effective CPR until Newport Beach Fire Department personnel arrived. The man was transported to the Hoag Hospital Emergency Room. By the time he arrived at the hospital, the patient had a heartbeat and showed a return of spontaneous circulation. The man survived this event because of the quick lifesaving efforts of this team of Officers.

Lifesaving Award presented to Officer David Spenser
On September 19, 2018, the Newport Beach Police Department received a request for medical aid in the area of Irvine Boulevard and 16th Street. Officer David Spenser responded to the call and found a man who appeared to be having a heart attack. The man was unresponsive, not breathing, and was starting to turn purple. Officer Spenser quickly started CPR and continued until Newport Beach Fire Department personnel arrived and took over lifesaving efforts. In preparation for a shock to restart the man’s heart, the Fire Department staff asked Officer Spenser to assist once more
with CPR. After receiving this treatment, the man regained consciousness. Officer Spencer is commended for his immediate actions that resulted in saving the life of a fellow human being.

Lifesaving Award presented to Officers Kelley Maslin, Daniel Mesri and Michael Striek

On February 25, 2018, a woman called 911 and said that she was going to jump off the roof of a parking structure in the Fashion Island Area. When Officers arrived, they found the woman standing on top of a ledge, screaming and threatening to jump. Officer Daniel Mesri (a Crisis Negotiation Team member) became the woman’s primary contact.

He was supported by Crisis Negotiation Team members Officers Kelley Maslin and Michael Striek. As the negotiations went on, the distraught woman revealed that she was having marital and financial issues and that she had just lost her job. Officer Mesri, supported by Officers Maslin and Striek, was able to de-escalate the situation. Eventually, the woman climbed down from the ledge onto the hood of her car, and then onto the floor of the parking structure. As she moved away from the ledge, a team of Officers rushed in to ensure the woman’s safety. The Officers showed admirable
composure, negotiating skills, and ability to communicate with a person in emotional crisis. Due to their intervention,this woman did not injure herself. Instead, she was provided with a mental health evaluation and access to resources that she so desperately needed. These Officers are commended for their extraordinary efforts in saving this woman’s life.

Lifesaving Award presented to Officers Kelley Maslin, Daniel Mesri and Michael Striek
On March 3, 2018 at 6:55 a.m., the Newport Beach Police Department received a report that there was “a body and blood” in a bathroom stall at the Corona Del Mar Beach public restroom. Officers Nathan Farris, Michelle Hampton, Kelley Maslin, Daniel Mesri, Anthony Olivas and Michael Striek all responded to the scene. There, the Officers found an unresponsive man, bleeding from multiple stab and slash wounds to his neck and wrists. Before losing consciousness, the man had locked himself in the bathroom stall, preventing immediate access to him. The wounds, which were severe, were self-inflicted and the knife was on the ground nearby. The man was still breathing. Officer Olivas climbed over the stall partition and unlocked the door, allowing the other Officers to access the injured man. They immediately began emergency medical treatment, applying a tourniquet to his arm and applying bandages and direct pressure to his
neck to stop the profuse bleeding. Newport Beach Fire Department personnel arrived and continued advanced life-saving efforts. They transported the man to Mission Hospital, where he underwent several blood transfusions and surgery and
survived. Officers Nathan Farris, Michelle Hampton, Kelley Maslin, Daniel Mesri, Anthony Olivas and Michael Striek showed extraordinary teamwork in handling a traumatic and challenging situation with poise and professionalism while
administering lifesaving first aid.

Lifesaving Award presented to Officer Jeremy Duenas and Reserve Officer Dennis Hoo
On October 7, 2018, a car veered off Coast Highway and hit a light pole. Reserve Officer Dennis Hoo was the first on scene, followed by Officer Jeremy Duenas. The driver, who was intoxicated, was able to get out of the car. He went around to the passenger side to check on his friend, who was in the front seat. It was then that Officer Duenas noticed
that the engine compartment of the car was smoking, and looked like it was about to catch fire. Reserve Officer Hoo quickly helped the driver move a safe distance away and Officer Duenas encouraged the passenger to follow. The passenger, though, could not get out due to injuries to his legs. As the vehicle caught fire, Officer Duenas pulled the
passenger from car and Reserve Officer Hoo returned to assist him in moving the injured man to safety. There would have been significant injury or loss of life, had it not been for Reserve Officer Hoo and Officer Duenas’s swift actions in
response to this car fire.

Award of Merit presented to Officers Bill Hume and David Spenser
In August 2018, thousands of law enforcement professionals from throughout the world gathered in Nashville, Tennessee for the annual Drug, Alcohol, and Impaired Driving Conference sponsored by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (or IACP). The purpose of this of this conference is to share ideas and strategies in an effort to reduce
the numbers of people injured and killed by alcohol- and drug-impaired drivers. Officers Hume and Spenser are both Drug Recognition Experts (DREs) and instructors in the subject. Together, they created a presentation called “The Use of a DRE in Vehicular Homicide Investigations” and submitted it for the IACP’s highly competitive curriculum selection process. One hundred and fifty (150) presentations were submitted by law enforcement professionals from all over the world. After a vetting process, select presentations were forwarded to a review panel, made up of state coordinators,
“DRE of the Year” award winners, and representatives from the International Association of Chiefs of Police and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. After a thorough review of the submissions, this panel that ultimately elected the Officers’ presentation for inclusion in the conference curriculum.

It is a great honor for the Department to be showcased at this level, and a testament to the caliber of work produced by Officers Hume and Spenser. The Officers presented two ninety-minute sessions of their class at the conference, educating hundreds of national and international law enforcement professionals. They focused on an actual collision that occurred in Newport Beach, wherein an impaired driver struck and killed a bicyclist.

Using this case study, the Officers showed how a DRE can be instrumental in the successful prosecution and conviction of these drivers. Officer Hume and Officer Spenser are both dedicated and professional members of NBPD’s Drug Recognition program and have made hundreds of arrests for impaired driving during their careers.

Award of Merit presented to Sergeant Peter Carpentieri, and Officers Nathan Farris, Anthony Olivas, Andrew Shen and Zachary Varela
On April 15, 2018 at about 11:00 a.m., the Newport Beach Police Department received a call that a vehicle was on fire in the area of Old Ford Road and Newport Hills Drive East. Witnesses reported that a Land Rover was engulfed in flames and rolling down the center median at a slow speed, possibly with children inside it. Newport Beach Park Patrol Officer John Cataldo happened to be on patrol in the area. John saw a Good Samaritan pull a woman from driver’s seat of the Land Rover, and quickly maneuvered his own patrol vehicle in front of the car to bring it to a stop. He then tried to open the Land Rover’s doors but found that they were all locked. (Park Patrol Officer John Cataldo was awarded a Chief’s Citation for these heroic actions last year.)

As the Officers and Sergeant arrived on scene, there was a small explosion inside the Land Rover, which created a larger fire. The heat and smoke from the fire made it extremely difficult to see into the car and to see if there were children inside. Officers Farris, Shen and Varela and Sergeant Carpentieri used fire extinguishers to try to minimize the flames. Officer Olivas approached the burning Land Rover and
used his baton to break the driver’s side window. In the process, he injured his hand with a significant cut, which later required stitches. As the Officers continued their efforts to suppress the fire and determine if anyone was still inside the
Land Rover, Newport Beach Fire Department personnel arrived and were able to fully extinguish the blaze. To everyone’s immense relief, it was determined that there were no children inside the car. These men responded quickly as a team and committed selfless acts of bravery.

Award of Merit presented to Sergeant Joshua Comte, Darrin Joe, and Randall Parker, and Officers Monica Aguilar, Joseph De Julio, Shawn Dugan, Jonathan Jarema, Alexander Maslin, Beau Rains, Brian Schlottach, Mark Short, and Matthew Wood

From June through December 2018, Newport Beach Property Crimes Detectives identified a trend of Residential Burglaries on the east side of the city. Detectives were able to identify similarities in these crimes, which were focused around Balboa Island and the surrounding residential neighborhoods. Property Crimes Detectives Jonathan Jarema Brian Schlottach and Mark Short and Sergeant Joshua Comte began aggressively investigating the string of crimes. In late November, with the assistance of Detective Mathew Wood, Aquinas “Quinn” Kasbar was identified as a possible suspect. Mr. Kasbar was put under surveillance, with the assistance of Crime Suppression Unit Detectives Joseph De Julio, Alexander Maslin and Beau Rains and their Sergeant, Randall Parker. Their suspicions were confirmed.

Kasbar was caught committing a Residential Burglary in the Bayshores area. When Officers tried to stop Kasbar, he abandoned his car and fled on foot, but was ultimately arrested with the assistance of a police helicopter and the Orange County Sheriff’s Harbor Department. As the investigation continued, Detectives Monica Aguilar and Shawn Dugan and Sergeant Darrin Joe provided additional assistance to write and serve multiple search warrants on homes and storage units tied to Mr. Kasbar. As a result, investigators identified several more burglary victims and recovered hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of stolen property. This case is still ongoing, and these statistics will most likely increase, but so far, Quinn Kasbar has been charged with 31 crimes (29 of which are Residential Burglaries) with a total loss in excess of $800,000. Due to the diligent investigation and teamwork of these Detectives and Sergeants, one of the most prolific burglars to target Newport Beach has been apprehended. The complexity of this investigation required the utmost skill of these investigators, along with meticulous documentation, crime trend tracking and analysis, community outreach, and collaboration.

Award of Merit presented to Sergeant Court Depweg and Administrative Assistant to the Chief Jennifer Manzella
Detective Sergeant William Depweg is the head of the Crimes Against Persons Unit, a Unit that is responsible for both current homicide investigations and cold case homicide investigations. In the summer of 2018, Sergeant Depweg approached then Press Information Officer Jennifer Manzella with the task of generating public attention and support for two cases.

The first was the cold case homicide of Linda Ann O’Keefe, an 11-year-old girl who was abducted while walking home from summer school on July 6, 1973. Her body was discovered in the Back Bay the next morning. After 45 years, there was a new piece of evidence in Linda’s case: a Parabon Snapshot image of the suspected killer, which
was developed from DNA left behind at the crime scene. Sergeant Depweg’s goal was to bring this case – and the new image of the suspect – to the public’s attention on a national level.

PIO Manzella, without hesitation and with enthusiasm, developed a Twitter campaign and a video to be launched on the 45th anniversary of Linda’s murder.

Linda’s Story, a series of tweets in Linda’s “voice” that narrated of the last day of her life, garnered worldwide attention and was an unprecedented success as a public outreach campaign. Linda’s Story was translated into multiple foreign languages and was covered by national and international media outlets, including the Megyn Kelly TODAY Show where Sergeant Depweg and PIO Manzella were flown to New York to appear with Linda’s sister, Cindy Borgeson, for a live interview. The project generated over 200 tips, added thousands of new NBPD Twitter followers, and produced more

Twitter impressions than all of the Department’s 2017 Twitter activity combined. This campaign has been used by the FBI National Communications Unit as an example of how law enforcement can effectively use social media to help solve crimes. That is not where Linda’s Story ends.

Six weeks ago, on February 19, 2019, Sergeant Depweg and other NBPD Detectives arrested 72-year-old James Alan Neal in Colorado for the 1973 murder of Linda O’Keefe.

Through a combination of traditional and innovative investigative techniques, and supported by the extraordinary public awareness of this case, Linda’s killer will finally be brought to justice.

The second case that Sergeant Depweg and PIO Manzella collaborated on was the murder of Q.C. Chadwick.

In this case, investigators knew the identity of the killer, but not his whereabouts. On October 11, 2012, Peter Chadwick was arrested for killing his wife, Q.C., in their Newport Beach home the previous day. He was subsequently released on bail and fled prosecution in 2015. He has been a fugitive ever since. Sergeant Depweg suspected that Peter Chadwick had fled the country with the financial resources to elude capture. He also suspected that, if a worldwide audience was made aware of Chadwick’s fugitive status, his location could be determined though tips and leads from the public. PIO Manzella again took on the task with enthusiasm and immense dedication, developing another unique production: the Countdown to Capture podcast. PIO Manzella wrote, recorded, and published six podcast episodes, created a website dedicated to the case, and coordinated a press conference to announce the project. The Countdown to Capture podcast was an unprecedented success, which was covered in the national and international press.

The podcast reached #24 on the US iTunes charts and generated hundreds of leads that are helping investigators narrow down the whereabouts of Peter Chadwick. Both Sergeant Depweg and PIO Manzella showed incredible vision, dedication to duty, creativity and downright tenacity in bringing justice for homicide victims in Newport Beach.