Lakeville Police Talk About Positive Impact on People's Lives

Many times as a police officer, you don’t really get a full sense of the positive impact that you may have on person’s life in the short time that you have contact with them on a routine call. Every day officers on patrol are called to deal with some crisis or life threatening emergency and after it is resolved, move on to the next call.

One night when I was working the overnight shift as a patrol officer, I stopped at a gas station to get a cup of coffee. After pouring my coffee, I walked up to the counter to pay and the clerk (whom I did not recognize) held out his hand and said, “Officer Vonhof, I just want to say thank you for helping me out—you changed my life!” I was a little perplexed, and tired, since it was about three in the morning, so I confessed to the clerk who was about 20 years old, that I had no idea what he was talking about.

The clerk explained to me that I had dealt with him on a minor juvenile issue some 10 years earlier and that what I had said to him at that time had influenced him to change his ways. He proudly said that he was in college and working and that he attributed his change in direction in his life to that interaction years before. I thanked him, but even after speaking with the young man, I didn’t remember the call.

You may find that hard to believe, but patrol officers will often come into contact with thousands of people in the course of a year. The major cases are relatively easy to remember, but often times officers will meet someone for only a few minutes and then have to move on to the next call. That is why it is so remarkable, when someone takes the time to thank officers for their work.

This past week, Sergeant Andy Bohlen was on patrol when he was flagged down by a passing motorist. Sergeant Bohlen pulled over and walked up to the car, thinking that the person needed some type of assistance.

The person explained to Sergeant Bohlen that they did not need assistance, but that Officers Kevin O’Neill, Mike Katzovitz and Community Service Officer Nicole Martin had responded on a call to assist them with a mental health issue some months before. The person went on to explain that the officers’ compassionate demeanor and professionalism went above and beyond in helping this person through their crisis. The person was extremely thankful for the three officers’ help.

Weekly LPD Snapshot

Sampling of LPD activity for the week of February 10 to February 17, 2012

Traffic crashes 9, Alarms 18, Animal Calls 34, Medical Emergency Calls 30, Thefts 13, Traffic Stops 376

Strange But True

Officer Mike Lamm took a very unusual “theft of services” call this week at a local dentist’s office. A woman came into the office and had some dental work completed. After the procedure, when it was time to pay for the service, she said that she needed to go out to her car for a minute. She left and did not return. After waiting some time for the individual to return, the office staff attempted to contact her and discovered that she had given them a false name, telephone numbers and address. The office staff then called the Police Department to report theft of services. Officer Lamm did note that if we did locate the suspect, there was a set of dental x-rays of her teeth available to help identify her.

Officers Quick Action Puts Out Kitchen Fire

Officer Jason Jensen and Sergeant Jim Puncochar responded to a residential fire last weekend involving a small kitchen fire that was filling the house with smoke. Upon arriving, the officers made sure that the homeowner and children had evacuated the residence and the officers were able to quickly put out the fire with an extinguisher. Lakeville Fire units arrived on the scene and ventilated the residence as there was heavy smoke damage throughout the house. The fire had apparently started near the stove and damaged both the kitchen cabinets and some appliances. Fortunately, no one was injured.

Dumb Criminal of the Week

Officers Adam Stier and Josh Berkebile responded to a residence after receiving a call from a cab company regarding a fare who refused to pay. When they arrived on the scene, they spoke with the cabbie, who told them that he had brought the person to the residence and then he attempted to pay with a credit card that was invalid and then jumped out of the cab and ran up to the front of the house.

The officers walked up to the front door after talking with the cab driver and found that the subject was so intoxicated that he had passed out, standing up, at the front door of the residence. The officers recognized the subject from previous contacts as a person who had been trespassed from the area. The officers woke the subject up and arrested him for multiple charges, including trespassing. The subject was then transported to the Dakota County Jail. Ironically, Sergeant Knutson reported that his team responded to three other calls that night for issues between taxi drivers and their fares.