“I’ve had a lot of jobs. But I’d have to say my most favorite job ever was secretary for the detective division at the Baytown Police Department.

“You remember those old detective shows on TV back in the ‘70s? It was like that, only I was living it.

“They would bring in somebody who had done something bad, like a murder suspect, and start asking questions. It was my job to take down the statements in shorthand, and then type it all up on the IBM machine for them to read and sign.

“It wasn’t unusual for it to be the middle of the night, since that’s when a lot of crimes happen. They would send a patrol car to my house and bring me in. I was in my early 30s and single, with a young daughter. Until she was old enough to stay by herself, I would take her to my mother’s house. After they brought me home, I’d have trouble falling back asleep, just thinking about it all.

“It was a great job. I loved it from day one. With the different cases, there was something going on all the time.

“I got to know three or four of the detectives very well. I got to know their families. Those guys were just wonderful to me and my daughter. I was divorced and raising her by myself. It’s like they took us in and kind of looked after us.

“I also got to know Judge R.L. Smith, who would give the Miranda warning to the prisoners. He ended up stealing me to come work as his chief clerk. I did that until I moved to Colorado, where I worked for a district attorney.

“I’ve been a realtor now for 25 years in Aurora, right outside of Denver. After working in the criminal justice system so long, and being exposed to the criminal element, I figured I needed a change.

“Those jobs definitely helped make me a stronger person. They showed I can deal with the worst of society. But I was ready to do something where I made people happy. Selling homes, especially to first-time buyers, they’re very happy.”

— Nellie Harris-Cassel

She was known as Nelda Page when she worked at Baytown Police Department.

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“I saw a guy coming out the back door carrying a television. I said, ‘How are you today, sir?’ He said, ‘Just fine. I’m taking my TV to get fixed.’ I wasn’t wearing a uniform, but I did have my badge. I walked the guy to the back door, and I saw it was kicked in. That’s when he broke and ran.

“I chased after him. I had my cowboy boots on, and it was kind of muddy. But I managed to catch up to him. I grabbed him by the shoulders. He jerked around and knocked me over. Then he jumped on top of me. He was trying to grab my weapon. One of the neighbors saw what was happening. He came running, and he hit the guy in the head with an iron pipe.

“The guy rolled off me and took off again. As he reached the van, a lady came out of the house and jumped in the front seat. It was his wife. I had already called for backup, and he was coming down the road. When the burglar pulled out, they hit right on. The guy I was chasing had a hurt leg, so he couldn’t get away. He was locked up for burglary and assaulting a police officer.

“Well, about 25 years later, after I left the department and was working security for Baytown schools, I got a call from the same dispatcher on duty the day of that burglary. She said, ‘You’ll never guess who came to see you today.’ She gave me his name, and I said, ‘You’re kidding me?’

“It was the same guy. He had just gotten out of jail, and he asked if I was around. She told him I had gone to Massachusetts, and that I was working for the highway patrol up there. It was quick thinking on her part. He was a big old boy. So for a long time after that, I kept looking over my shoulder.”

— Larry Stratmann

After serving in the Navy during the Vietnam War, Larry had a long career in police and security work. In 2010, he retired as assistant security chief for Goose Creek CISD.

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The post Fishing trip turns into burglary stop appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“A lot of stuff happened back in Arizona, so I came here to get a fresh start.

“My girlfriend and I were together for two years. Then things happened, we faded, and we broke up. But we continued staying together as best friends. It was pretty weird at first. Then we got into the routine of it.

“The hardest part was probably her moving on. She began dating someone else while we were living together. But I got used to it, and now we’re all good.

“A lot of other stuff happened, too. My grandma died. Some dogs killed my cats. So with all that I was like, you know, let’s just start fresh. My sister and her boyfriend were moving here. They invited me. So I packed my bags, and here I am.

“Right now I work at a grocery store. But eventually, I want to join the police department. I’ve always wanted to do that. I’ve always had a passion for taking criminals off the street. My dad did a lot of stuff to my mom when I was real young, like verbal and physical abuse. I know there are tons of guys out there like that, so I’d like to do something to help stop it.

“I tried out in Phoenix a couple years ago, but I couldn’t pass the physical test. They had you do push-ups, sit-ups, crunches, and run a lap in a certain amount of time. The hardest part was the push-ups. I was supposed to do 21, but I got to 20 and couldn’t do the last one. It was pretty frustrating.

“I know I was a little out of shape, so I’m doing something about it. I go to the gym and come here to get my workout in. I eat right and drink lots of water. And I have a New Year’s resolution to not drink soda. I’m determined to get into the police academy. Whatever it takes.”

— Trevon Robinson

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“I’ve only visited my dad’s gravesite twice since he died 15 years ago. In my mind, he isn’t there anyway. So it’s just not something I think to do. Recently, driving from my mom’s to my sister’s house, I was rerouted because of traffic and ended up driving right past the gravesite. So I did a U-turn and went back. I figured I should go, particularly since it happened to be my dad’s birthday. 

“So there I was, filled with emotion, standing in the hot Houston sun, looking up at my dad’s name placard on the mausoleum wall, when I see a police officer’s car pull up and park right behind mine. The officer gets out and starts walking through the graveyard directly toward me. I’m thinking, ‘Please, Lord. I cannot handle any nonsense right here, right now.’ Of course, I tensed up. But I had the clarity of mind to keep my hands visible and still. The officer stands next to me and looks up at a name placard just as I’m doing. No one else is around, just me and this cop standing next to each other looking up at names on a mausoleum wall. 

“About 30 seconds of silence goes by, and I start to hear him gently cry. Until then I hadn’t shed a tear. But of course, at the sound of his tears, mine start to fall. Then, before I knew it, we were both uncontrollably sobbing and shedding lots of tears. And maybe not just for our individual loved ones, but also for all those who’ve senselessly died. Maybe there were even tears shed for our country in general. I don’t know. I haven’t cried like that in a long time.

“After we calmed down and collected ourselves, at the exact same time we turned and looked each other. He extended his hand. I shook it. No words exchanged. No words needed. Then we both walked back to our respective cars and left.

“I was still processing the whole thing as I got ready to board a plane back to New York. And it felt like a heaviness that I sometimes carry around was lifted a bit, at least, for that moment. Thanks, Dad, and happy birthday.”

— Alan H. Green

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The post Labrador Retriever will be young girl’s buddy appeared first on The Baytown Project.

Starting with a simple social media connection, two communities in pain joined forces to help hundreds of families impacted by Hurricane Harvey.

“About seven years ago, I became Facebook friends with a lady named Angie in Indiana through one of the FarmVille games, believe it or not. We kept in touch and always joked around about politics and different things,” Jerry Cates said.

“She’s very much involved with the Southport, Indiana, Police Department, and does a lot of volunteer work. That’s how I learned that they were looking to help out somewhere down here after the hurricane.”

As Baytown and surrounding communities were dealing with the aftermath of Harvey, Southport — a town of about 2,500 just outside Indianapolis — was still coming to grips with a recent tragedy.

Lt. Aaron Allan of the city’s police department was killed on July 27 while trying to help at the scene of a car accident.

“He went to a car that was inverted in a crash. After he climbed in to help, the guy pulled a gun and shot him 12 times. It took Aaron’s life,” said Tom Vaughn, Southport police chief.

“Our community came out and overwhelmed us with food, gifts and memorials. Anything we needed, the people from our town were there. So when the hurricane happened down here, we were trying to find some way to give back to a community that was devastated like we were. We reached out to the same people who were really good to us, and they said, ‘Oh, we’d love to do that.’ They filled our whole garage with stuff.”

Cates, who works at Bay Area Rehabilitation Center in Baytown, got the OK to make BARC the distribution point for a truckload of supplies that arrived on Sept. 8.

“We didn’t really think about it. We worked all day, and then we just jumped in our vehicles and drove straight through,” said Vaughn, who was joined by his wife, Jane, and several officers in making the 1,046-mile trip that took more than 15 hours.

Opportunity Center clients, BARC staff and volunteers were busy throughout the day. First, they handed out cleaning supplies donated by ExxonMobil. Then, after the Southport team arrived early afternoon and they helped unload the truck, they distributed water and a range of household items to more than 200 carloads of families.

All of the supplies were stacked in a building that is normally used for job training for adults with disabilities in the Opportunity Center program. Among other things, they construct industrial-strength pallets that are sold to ExxonMobil.

While Cates made the initial connection that got the ball rolling, “this was really a collaborative effort between Southport Police Department and Baytown PD for our community. They communicated a lot in the background. We were just glad to assist in making it possible,” he said.

Special items that made the long trip were three big bags of stuffed bears that were donated in Allan’s memory. He had earned the nickname Teddy Bear for going out of his way to help local families.

Vaughn recalled how Allan, 38, had met a family whose car wouldn’t start. The husband had been diagnosed with a brain tumor, the wife wasn’t working while she cared for him, and they had a 3-year-old daughter.

Allan went to an auto parts store and bought them a new car battery using his own money. Then he asked the chief whether the department could further help the family.

The police department threw the little girl a party at Chuck E. Cheese’s, with pizza and tokens, and police cruisers filled with toys.

“You’re just a big teddy bear,” Vaughn’s wife said to Allan. And the nickname stuck.

Allan’s wife asked that the teddy bears be handed out to children in need. “So we thought, there’s no better opportunity to give away a bunch of them than right here,” Vaughn said.

After grabbing something to eat and resting for a couple hours, the Southport crew jumped back in their vehicles to make the return trip home.

“We need to get back for a fundraiser,” Vaughn said. “It’s for Aaron’s wife and kids.”

The post Police assistance honors fallen lieutenant appeared first on The Baytown Project.

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The post Decision to act ‘was the end of my career’ appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“When I got out of the Marines, I was a federal cop in Hawaii and California. We worked on military installations as federal civilians. We did the policing on the bases so that the MPs could go deploy.

“But I ended up being a tattletale. I’m a rat. I ratted out other cops. But when people are corrupt, I don’t care who it is, if you’re a cop or a civilian. If you break the law, I’m going to tell on you. That’s my job, to report violations. Even if you’re the chief, then so be it.

“It happened in California. The chief and deputy chief were strong-arming military families while their husbands and wives were serving overseas. That’s not right. I just couldn’t keep quiet about that. I got there in October and I reported it in December.

“They did everything they could to force me out. They threatened me with this, threatened me with that. They tried to terminate me. I said, ‘Go ahead, terminate me. I’ll see you in court.’ I got my job back and they didn’t. The chief and deputy chief both got relieved.

“But it was the other officers who ended up forcing me out. There were a lot of places out there where someone could disappear, and that sort of thing. So I had to leave.

“Unfortunately, after that, nobody has wanted to touch me. When you’re a cop and you’re a tattletale, nobody wants any part of you. But I knew what would happen. I knew the minute I opened my mouth, that was the end of my career.”

— Robert Ortiz

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The post Jobs scarce after ‘ratting out’ corrupt cops appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“I love painting rocks. It’s basically all I think about all day long. I’ve been doing it almost a year now. I’ve probably done a few hundred.

“I started with small rocks, and now I’m doing projects on bigger rocks. I recently painted the Houston Texans logo on a 22-pound rock for someone’s birthday.

“I came up with this special badge that I painted for our four local K-9 police officers. A history teacher wanted a rock for her classroom, so I painted one showing the Texas flag, San Jacinto Monument and some other stuff on it.

“When I first started doing these I painted a rock that said, ‘The world without art is just eh,’ and I hid it. A woman’s daughter found it. She says her daughter always wanted to be an art teacher when she grows up. So I think my rock can help inspire her. It’s pretty exciting to be able to connect with people like that. I like making their day.”

The post Rock painting helps make personal connections appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“When I was sworn in, the chief of police at the time said, ‘This badge is going to get you a lot of women. But it only takes one woman to get the badge.’ And sure enough … I was amazed to find out how women are attracted to men in uniform. I wasn’t prepared for that. I got caught in a trap.

“This woman had come on to me strongly, and I was weak. Then my wife found out about it. I quit the police department because I thought it might help save our marriage. We lasted a few more years before getting divorced. One day my wife confessed to me that she didn’t think she could ever trust me again. That dug deep. If you don’t have trust, you really can’t have a marriage.

“It also put a strain on my relationship with my two boys for a long time, especially my oldest. We were estranged for four years after it happened. He blamed me for breaking up the family.

“He served in the Army and did three tours in Iraq. One time he was sitting on some kind of military vehicle when a bomb exploded right next to it. That’s when he realized that he could die over there with us still being split. So he finally sent me a letter, kind of a reconciliation. When he came back home we got together, and everything’s cool now.

“But I’ve been heartbroken ever since for losing my wife. I screwed it up. It’s the biggest regret of my life. I’m still single. She was the best woman in the world for me. I haven’t found anyone since who’s even come close.”

— Bill Turner

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