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Son gives street cop new outlook
© St. Petersburg Times, The time and date are indelibly stamped in his mind: March 23, 1995, 10:27 p.m. That's when Tampa police Officer Kevin Howell took four rounds from an SKS assault rifle, fired by a robbery suspect. One round hit his right hip, and three "destroyed my left leg," Howell recalls. It took him two years of frustrating rehabilitation to make it back to full duty. Since then Howell has walked a beat in Ybor, served with his old squad and been part of the Firehouse unit. Now, however, he faces what could be the toughest part of his career: dealing with the media, attorneys and the like as a "public records officer" for TPD. Although he misses the street -- "That's who I am, a street cop" -- Howell now has a lovely view of the University of Tampa from his 10th floor office at the downtown police headquarters on Madison Street. But the best part of the job, he said, is being home every night with his 1-year-old son. "He's the light of my life," he said. RESIGNATION WON'T STOP INVESTIGATION: Jeff Fife, the supervisor for the aviation unit at the Tampa Police Department, has decided to retire Friday after 21 years, the last few months of it marred by controversy. Fife, if you recall, was the supervisor on duty July 6, the day Officer Lois Marrero was shot to death by a fleeing bank robber. The call for TPD's air service came in moments after the bank robbery, and pilot J.T. Martin responded to it alone. A trained observer normally would have been beside Martin in the passenger seat of the helicopter, but instead the observer on duty that day went to a birthday party at Malio's restaurant with Fife, the chief pilot and the community service officer who took the call. They were celebrating Fife's birthday, officers said. Police officials have launched an internal affairs investigation, which spokesman Joe Durkin said would continue even though Fife is leaving. Chief Bennie Holder has since mandated that all TPD flights carry a trained observer. NO DEPUTY, NO REPORTER: The last time we checked, the Tampa Tribune had published a short item announcing it was "vigorously investigating" the identity of Hillsborough sheriff's "Deputy Ben Garcia," who was quoted in a story earlier this month that questioned the work ethic of Hillsborough judges. In the story, "Garcia" was said to be frustrated that he couldn't find a judge in the courthouse on a Friday afternoon to sign a warrant. After the story ran, however, the Sheriff's Office told the newspaper nobody by that name works for the Sheriff's Office. The subsequent search for the mysterious "Deputy Ben Garcia" became the talk of the courthouse. Sheriff's officials asked the newspaper for a description of the person quoted, but never received one, sheriff's spokesman Lt. Rod Reder said. Until Reder gets one, "I can't look for him," he said. No one at the Tribune would return phone calls Wednesday for comment. A person who answered the newsroom phone said the reporter who wrote the story no longer works at the paper. SHEDDING A WINTER COAT: What caused Hillsborough sheriff's K-9 Sgt. Mark Olive to pick Cliff out of 40 other potential squad dogs last year was his energy and willingness to please. "He had a real strong work drive," Olive said of the then 18-month-old dog who partnered with Deputy Charlotte Raschke. Cliff also bore another distinction, Olive said: Long hair. Really long hair. The coat on the black and tan German shepherd hung down in a silky cascade, and his ears were so furry that the hair in them joined above his head, sort of like a fuzzy halo. For a while, Cliff was the only long-haired sheriff's K-9 deputy. While the coat no doubt came in handy in his native Czech Republic, he evidently found it cumbersome in Tampa. So he got rid of it. "He just (shed) his coat," Olive said. "You wouldn't know he was a long-haired shepherd now." Gone is his cascading crown of beauty, and the little circle of fur connecting his ears. One thing Cliff still has, however, is his drive. Early Monday morning, he caught a stolen car suspect who made the mistake of deciding to run. After Raschke gave a warning, she sent Cliff, who chased the suspect down within seconds, bringing him to the ground by latching onto his left arm. "He was subdued at that point," Olive said. HONOR FOR SHIMBERG: Local attorney Robert Shimberg received some much deserved credit recently for his work in a community program that helps educate the public about firearm safety. Shimberg, who works for the Hill Ward and Henderson law firm and was an assistant state attorney in Hillsborough from 1994-98, was awarded the 2001 Florida Crime Prevention Association Leadership Award on Oct. 17. Shimberg is a founder of Cease Fire Tampa, a program to safely dispose of unwanted firearms and teach about safe gun storage. -- Got a tip? Call Amy Herdy at 226-3386 or herdy@sptimes.com or David Karp at 226-3376 or karp@sptimes.com.
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Times columns today Howard Troxler |
