Archives: July2021

St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office deputies graduate from P.O.S.T. police academy

St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office deputies graduate from P.O.S.T. police academy

Six St. Bernard Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies graduated July 23 from a 92-hour Corrections Division course in Peace Officers Standards and Training, or P.O.S.T.,St. Bernard Sheriff James Pohlmann said.

The corrections course, which helps better prepare deputies to work in a prison environment or Juvenile Detention Center, covers topics such as defensive tactics, booking procedures, report writing and the use of force lesson plans. Deputies also are trained in the use of pepper spray, which includes each officer being pepper-sprayed in order to learn firsthand about its effects.

The course, held at the St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office Training Center in Chalmette, was led by instructors Capt. Dennis Morgan, Lt. Kyle Brown, Cpl. Brandon Lewis, Lt. Jodie Couture and Dep. Darlene Ricks of the St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office Corrections Division.

St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office deputies who were graduates of the class are: Dep. Louis Carollo, Dep. Jacob Coble, Dep. Noelle Leon, Dep. Paul Alfonso and Dep. Chris Ricouard.

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St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office arrests New Orleans man for

St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office arrests New Orleans man for
illegally firing a weapon and hiding it in playpen

The St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office arrested a New Orleans man after he fired a weapon in a residential neighborhood and then hid it inside a child’s playpen, Sheriff James Pohlmann said.

Jonathan Gooden, 21, of the 12000 block of North I-10 Service Road in New Orleans, was booked with illegal discharge of a firearm.

On Friday, July 16, 2021, at approximately 8:15 p.m., Sheriff Pohlmann said, deputies responded to multiple calls about shots being fired near the 2900 block of East St. Bernard Highway in Meraux.

When deputies arrived on the scene, witnesses said they saw an unknown male subject fire off in the air between three and five shots and then begin walking westbound on St. Bernard Highway.

Shortly after, deputies located a male subject, later identified as Gooden, who fit the description of the suspect walking near the 2000 block of Munster Boulevard.

During the course of the investigation, detectives with the Criminal Investigations Bureau were able to identify Gooden as the suspect through eyewitness accounts and video surveillance.

Several spent, full metal jacket hollow point casings were found at the scene on East St. Bernard Highway, and detectives also recovered the gun, a Draco AK47 semi-automatic assault style rifle, hidden under toys in a child’s playpen inside the home of Gooden’s relative in the 2000 block of Munster Boulevard in Meraux.

Once in custody, Gooden admitted to detectives he fired the gun because he wanted to see what it sounded like.

Sheriff Pohlmann said no one was injured in the incident. The investigation is ongoing.

Citizens who want to share information with detectives about this incident or any other criminal activity pertaining to St. Bernard Parish or any of its residents, can do so by calling the Sheriff’s Office at (504) 271-2501. They also can call the Criminal Investigations Bureau’s tip hotline, (504) 271-TIPS or 8477. Callers can leave a detailed message, and either choose to provide their contact information, or remain anonymous.
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St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office Cops for Christmas fundraiser

St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office Cops for Christmas fundraiser

For more than a decade, members of the St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office have been spreading Christmas cheer by visiting several St. Bernard Parish families with Santa to deliver presents and some much-needed household items, St. Bernard Sheriff James Pohlmann said.

Each year, C.O.P.S (Caring Officers Provide Smiles) for Christmas LLC helps provide these families with things such as toys, food, clothing, and household and toiletry items. Bicycles also are usually donated by a local business.

A Family Fun Day fundraiser will be held to benefit this year’s initiative. The event is set for Saturday, July 17 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Islenos Museum Complex grounds, 1357 Bayou Road in St. Bernard.

There will be music, food, beer, crafts booths and fun activities for children.

Admission will cost $5 per person. Children ages 6 and under will be admitted free.

For more information, call (504) 278-7760.

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Three St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office deputies receive Kiwanis Club Life Saver Awards

Three St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office deputies receive Kiwanis Club Life Saver Awards

Three St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office deputies received the Kiwanis Club of St. Bernard-Arabi Life Saver Award at a banquet hosted by Kiwanis on Tuesday, July 13 at Rocky and Carlo’s Restaurant in Chalmette, Sheriff James Pohlmann said.

Sgt. Dixie Dusang and Deputies Donald Sixkiller and Brock Cadman, all off the Field Operations Bureau Patrol Division’s 2nd Platoon, were honored for their efforts to save a man who nearly drowned in the Mississippi River earlier this year.

It was a case of being in the right place at the right time.

On April 24, at approximately 6:30 p.m., Sheriff Pohlmann said, Dep. Sixkiller was dispatched to the 6600 block of North Peters Street in Arabi in reference to a disturbance near this location.

Upon arrival, Dep. Sixkiller was flagged down by an unknown female who was on top of the Mississippi River levee yelling frantically that someone had fallen into the river.

Dep. Sixkiller held off on investigating the original disturbance call and rushed to assist the female.

When he reached the levee wall, Dep. Sixkiller observed a man, later determined to be 63 years old, lying on the levee concrete at the water line with his feet and legs in the river and suffering from a head injury.

Dep. Sixkiller immediately notified headquarters of the incident and requested fire and ems. Shortly after, Sgt. Dusang and Dep. Cadman arrived on scene to assist.

An emergency safety rope retrieved from Sgt. Dusang’s unit was thrown to the injured man, and, together, she and Deputies Sixkiller and Cadman pulled the man out of the water and to the top of the levee to safety.

It was later learned the man and woman were walking their dogs along the levee near the water when the man slipped on some algae, fell and hit his head on the concrete and was knocked unconscious.

The man was transported to a nearby hospital where he was treated for his injuries and later released.

Although Dep. Sixkiller was in the area on another call, it was his nearly 30 years of law enforcement experience and quick thinking, coupled with the teamwork of Sgt. Dusang and Dep. Cadman that ultimately saved that man’s life.

Here’s a little background on each deputy’s career in law enforcement.

Sgt. Dixie Dusang, a six-year veteran of the Field Operations Bureau, is a supervisor in the Patrol Division’s 2nd Platoon.

Her first experience in law enforcement came in 2012 as a volunteer deputy with the Reserve Division. One year later, she was hired as a full-time, paid deputy and member of the department’s Corrections Division where she spent two years working at St. Bernard Parish Prison.

In 2015, she graduated from Peace Officers Standards and Training, or P.O.S.T. school which is the police academy, and was named Deputy of the Year by the Knights of Columbus Archbishop Rummel Council 5747 in 2017. In 2018, she was promoted to her current rank.

Other notable accomplishments of Sgt. Dusang’s include:
— earning a coveted spot in the department’s Motorcycle Division where she is the only female member;
— serving as an operator on the Special Operations Division’s SWAT team;
— completing the Advanced Roadside Impairment Driving Enforcement course, and a Basic Hostage Negotiations and Crisis Interventions Course.

Born and raised in Hall County, Georgia, Sgt. Dusang has called St. Bernard Parish home since 2009.

Dep. Dusang loves interacting with the public and doing what she can to serve the people of St. Bernard. She also said she enjoys working alongside such a great group of officers who she considers family.

Sgt. Dusang said she was so happy she and the other officers just happened to be in the right place at the right time and that the man was okay.

“I actually had the pleasure of speaking with him a couple of weeks later and I was glad to see he was doing great,” Sgt. Dusang said.

Dep. Donald Sixkiller, also a member of the Field Operations Bureau Patrol Division’s 2nd Platoon, has been involved in law enforcement for nearly 28 years.

His first experience also came as a volunteer deputy with the Sheriff’s Office Reserve Division. In 1997, Dep. Sixkiller was hired as a full-time, paid deputy after graduating from P.O.S.T. school police academy.

Dep. Sixkiller has spent the past 20 years in the patrol division. He also has worked at the Juvenile Detention Center and as a school resource officer.

Dep. Sixkiller, a St. Bernard native, said his driving passion as a police officer is “to help serve and protect the community. I like that I get to help people,” he said.

As a police officer, Dep. Sixkiller said, you can’t hesitate when someone is in need.

“If I had to, I would do it again,” he said about saving the man from drowning in the river. “It’s just what we do.”

Dep. Brock Cadman, also a member of the Field Operations Bureau Patrol Division’s 2nd Platoon, has worked for the St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office for four years.

A 2018 graduate of P.O.S.T. school police academy, Dep. Cadman also has served in the Corrections Division at the parish jail.

Dep. Cadman, also a lifelong resident of St. Bernard, said he chose to become a police officer because he “wants to do whatever he can to help his hometown.”

Dep. Cadman said when he saw the man was in danger, the only thought that went through his head was “Looks like it’s time for me to get wet.”

Kiwanis Life Saver Committee Chairman Sam Catalanotto said the Kiwanis Club started presenting these awards more than a decade ago as a way to recognize first-responders in the parish for the work they do to protect the public. The award is presented quarterly to parish first responders chosen by the Sheriff’s Office and Fire Department, he said.

“They are the first people through the door, and usually the last ones out, in an emergency, putting their lives on the line everyday,” Catalanotto said.

Anyone interested in joining the St. Bernard/Arabi Kiwanis Club community service organization is welcome to attend one of its luncheons each Tuesday at noon in the Rocky and Carlo’s Sicilian Room, 613 W. St. Bernard Highway in Chalmette.

For more information about Kiwanis, call Robby Showalter at (504) 616-7312.

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St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office arrests woman for practicing dentistry without a license

St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office arrests woman for practicing dentistry without a license

The St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office has arrested a woman for unlawfully practicing orthodontics in St. Bernard Parish, Sheriff James Pohlmann said.

Aireon Davis, 28, whose last known address was in the 1200 block of Mehle Avenue in Arabi, was booked Wednesday, July 7 with two counts of practicing dentistry without a license.

On June 22, Sheriff Pohlmann said, detectives with the Criminal Investigations Bureau received a complaint from the parent of a 15-year-old female who said Davis put braces on their child’s teeth without their consent and charged her a fee.

During the course of the investigation, detectives learned Davis was advertising the illegal orthodontic business on Instagram under the account “bracee_yourself,” and running it out of her apartment.

Based on this information, detectives obtained a search warrant for Davis’ apartment, where detectives retrieved various dentistry tools and supplies from the residence.

Louisiana law prohibits anyone from practicing dentistry without first being authorized and issued a license by the Louisiana State Board of Dentistry. According to the board, Davis does not have a license to practice dentistry in Louisiana.

The investigation is ongoing.

Anyone who has been a victim of Davis unlawfully practicing dentistry on them is asked to contact the St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office at (504) 271-2501 or the Criminal Investigations Bureau at (504) 271-TIPS or 8477.

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St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office participates in mock evacuation exercise

St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office participates in mock evacuation exercise

For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, members of the St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office participated in a mock evacuation exercise conducted by the St. Bernard Parish Homeland Security on June 30 at the Frederick J. Sigur Civic Center in Chalmette.

“The mock evacuation is held to give emergency personnel a chance to run through various scenarios and practice what to do in different situations so we can be better prepared to ensure the safety of our residents in the event of a disaster,” said Lt. Eric Eilers, director of the Community Relations Division of the Sheriff’s Office.

Members of the Sheriff’s Office Community Emergency Response Team, or C.E.R.T., volunteered their time during the event by registering members of the community and staging them in the correct locations as if they were actually being evacuated during a natural or man-made disaster.

Also on hand were St. Bernard Parish Government workers, the State of Louisiana Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, Louisiana National Guard, Acadian Ambulance, residents of St. Bernard Manor, and St. Bernard Parish Hospital employees.

St. Bernard Parish residents with special needs or those who have no resources to evacuate themselves are eligible for assistance in evacuating should a mandatory evacuation be called in the parish, either due to a hurricane or another type of emergency which might arise. Residents can register with the Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness by calling (504) 278-4268. Information also is available at sbpg.net. Click on Departments, then Homeland Security, then Special Needs Registration.

For more information about the Sheriff’s Office C.E.R.T. program, call Lt. Eilers at (504) 278-7628.

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