Crimestoppers GNO partners with the FBI and Sheriff Pohlmann to host a second area-wide pool tournament in Chalmette to bring law enforcement officers together
 Sheriffs at the event were Lonnie Greco of Plaquemines, |
 St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office team members from left |
 St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office team members from left |
 St. Bernard team members from left Dep. Lamont |
 Shown at the law enforcement pool tournament in Chalmette are, from left, Plaquemines Parish Sheriff Lonnie Greco, FBI New Orleans office Special Agent in Charge Michael Anderson, Crimestoppers CEO and President Darlene Cusanza, Phillip Durham, Special Agent in Charge of the New Orleans ATF office; Sheriff James Pohlmann and Chief Deputy Sheriff Richard Baumy. |
 The winning team at the pool tournament was Kenner Police Chief Michael Glaser, third from left, and Deputy Chief Robert Meyer, next to him. both holding the trophies. With them are, from left, Anderson, Cusanza and Sheriff Pohlmann. |
 St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office team members from left |
 St. Bernard team members from left Det. Ryan Melerine |
Mike Anderson of the FBI lines up a shot in the tournament.
That was how well officers from various agencies mingled
the night of May 15 as more than 60 federal agents, sheriffs, police chiefs and other cops gathered in 31 teams at Lacy’s Cue in Chalmette for a second annual area-wide law enforcement pool tournament to build relationships.
Police from some 20 agencies participated with numerous other officers attending the event besides those playing.
“It went well and was a wonderful event,’’ said Darlene Cusanza, President and CEO of the nonprofit group Crimestoppers of Greater New Orleans. “It was supposed to be a networking opportunity to help build relationships between agencies and it did that.’’
Michael Anderson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI office in New Orleans since 2012, was one of the driving forces in 2014 in suggesting the first area-wide law enforcement pool tournament as a means for cops to get together socially.
Anderson, who played in the tournament and said he has played since 12 when he began with his father and brother, said the evening was exactly what he had in mind as a way for officers to meet and talk.
“This was done in the interest of getting law enforcement together and it has succeeded in doing that,’’ Anderson said, and promotes people from agencies being able to work together.
A team from the Kenner Police Department won the pool tournament while a team from the Plaquemines Parish Sheriff’s Office was second,
Sheriff James Pohlmann, whose St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office had 10 employees participate in five teams for the tournament, said he enjoyed meeting officers from federal, state and local agencies and having time to talk with fellow sheriffs and police chiefs. “I had a good time,’’ the sheriff said.
Sheriff Pohlmann has said it’s important that law enforcement can work together on matters that cross jurisdictional lines. When law enforcement officers from various agencies meet in a casual atmosphere it fosters better cooperation, he said.
The sheriff added, “It is always easier to deal with people you have met and spoken with before.’’
Plus, he said, the pool tournament is a good way to feature Crimestoppers “because that group has been so important in helping law enforcement through its program of offering cash rewards for tips on criminal suspects, which has led to so many arrests over the years.’’
Other area law enforcement leaders participating besides Sheriff Pohlmann and Anderson included Sheriffs Marlin Gusman of Orleans Parish and Lonnie Greco of Plaquemines Parish, Kenner Police Chief Michael Glaser, Slidell Police Chief Randy Smith and Phillip Durham, Special Agent in Charge of the New Orleans office for the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Agencies participating included Sheriff’s Offices from St. Bernard, Jefferson, Plaquemines, Orleans, St. Tammany and St. John parishes, police departments from New Orleans, Slidell and Kenner, Louisiana State Police the FBI, the Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Bureau of ATF, Homeland Security, U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Secret Service.
Players on the St. Bernard sheriff’s pool teams included Maj. Pete Tufaro, Det. Maj. Robert McNab, Det. Capt. Mark Jackson, Det. Lt. Richard Mendel, Det. Sgt. Donald Johnson, Det. Al Clavin, Det. Ryan Melerine, Det. Matt Arcement, Dep. Jeremy Roig and Dep. Lamont Dersone.
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