Independence Day 2009

The 4th of July is Independence Day! Have a great holiday and celebrate safely. Remember that all fireworks are illegal to possess or use in the City of Arcadia. HERE is a list of fireworks shows in LA County.

As always, remember to not drink and drive. Report drunk drivers, call 9-1-1.

Fireworks Shows in LA County

HERE is a list of fireworks shows offered in LA County. There are shows throughout the County scheduled from July 2nd through the 4th. Check the link for the complete list. Celebrate safely and attend a professional show.


Remember that all fireworks are illegal to use or possess in the City of Arcadia.

"Tipsy Tow" - Free Tow Offered

Jan's Towing offers a free service known as "Tipsy Tow" throughout the year. Jan's is committed to helping to keep drunk drivers off the road and takes an active role by offering this program to those who have indulged a little too much. With the holiday weekend upon us, take advantage of this offer should the need arise. Jan's can be reached at (626) 334-1383.

Other programs are being offered in surrounding areas this weekend, sponsored by AAA. So, if you are not in Arcadia or another area serviced by Jan's Towing, give AAA a call at (800) 400-4AAA. See this KTLA5 story which offers some safety tips from AAA.

Remember to report drunk drivers, call 9-1-1 and help keep our roads safe!

Alleged ADW at Bar

Officers responded to the "1020 Lounge" at Baldwin and Arcadia Avenue at about 2:30 AM on report of an ADW victim. The victim, a 34 year old Pasadena man, had been at the bar and was asked to leave earlier in the evening by security. While standing outside the bar, he was allegedly struck in the head with a metal object by an unknown bouncer from the location. The victim was treated at a local hospital for his injuries. No other parties were found at the location at time of report.

POLICEPAY DAILY UPDATE: Just How Obscene Are Those California Pensions? Part 3

POLICEPAY DAILY UPDATE: Just How Obscene Are Those California Pensions? Part 3

Tuesday Tip - Auto Theft Awareness Month

According to the Insurance Information Institute, July is Auto Theft Awareness Month. July was designated as the month to bring an awareness campaign for auto theft prevention and how to handle auto theft if you become a victim. Carinsurance.com has a great list of ten ways to help prevent auto theft;

1. Install an alarm or anti-theft device. Sometimes that small blinking light or the sound of an alarm will deter the theft of your car.
2. Lock your car doors!
3. Roll the windows up. Even a crack makes it easier to force a window down or allow other access to your car.
4. Do not leave items of value in your car, especially in plain sight. See our entry on Auto Burglary Prevention.
5. Do not leave your keys in the ignition. That makes for an easy target.
6. Tint your rear windows. This makes it difficult to see into the vehicle and may obscure items of interest to a thief.
7. Use other theft deterrent items such as a steering wheel lock or "club."
8. Never leave your vehicle unattended and running. If you need to warm it, stay in the car. If you forgot an item, take the keys with you. And, never leave your young child in an unattended vehicle!
9. Do not leave spare keys in the vehicle. Thieves will look in the glove box, under the floor mat and in the ash tray.
10. Park in well lighted, public places. Don't make yourself a target.

These are just a few reminders of how to help avoid having your car stolen. Auto theft can be a crime of opportunity. Just like avoiding other types of crime, do what you can to make it as difficult, time consuming and frustrating for the bad guy. If you don't give them the opportunity, they will most likely move on to another victim.

A step that you can take today is to record your vehicle license plates. Write them down and keep them in your wallet or perhaps in a note in your PDA or cell phone. It is sometimes difficult for an officer to locate a vehicle identification with just owner information. In the event of a stolen vehicle, you should call the police immediately. If you have the vehicle license readily available, the "GTA" information can be entered quickly by the police. Getting that stolen vehicle into the system will help in the efforts to locate it. This is especially true for vehicles equipped with systems like "Lojack."

Tomorrow is July 1st. Help promote Auto Theft Awareness Month!

"Police" Related Word Beginnings

I just read a brief article on PoliceLink that was titled Interesting Origins of Police Words. The article gives you just a few terms that relate to Law Enforcement, like graffiti and cop, so I thought I would toss a couple more out there. First, I must agree with comments on the article; the origin of the word cop was supposedly coined in old New York. Officers on foot beat would wear overcoats with copper buttons and the nickname cop reportedly came from that reference.

We can't ignore the slang term, Five-O, when on this topic. You have to remember the TV show "Hawaii Five-O." The late sixties show ran for a long time and the term Five-O referred to the police unit. Today it simply refers to the police or a police officer.

Older, but not forgotten is The Man. The Man has always referred to a person in authority or control and was tossed over as slang for police officer as well.

It is not so much that we are looking at the origin of words, which goes beyond a simple history, but it is interesting to look at how the terms came about. There are plenty out there. If you have any, throw them in the comments and see if we all agree on the meaning.