CHRISTMAS TOY DRIVE UNDERWAY
The sheriff’s office is hoping to bring smiles to underprivileged children in Arapahoe County. Will you join us?
Every child deserves to experience the joy of Christmas. That’s why the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office is partnering with the Salvation Army to hold a Christmas Toy Drive. We’re hoping to collect enough toys to ensure that kids in our own community who are homeless, poor, victims of abuse/neglect or foster kids receive gifts for the holidays.
“We want every child in Arapahoe County to have a memorable holiday,” says Sheriff Tyler Brown. “Unfortunately, some might not because their parents are homeless, have lost their jobs or simply don’t have enough money to buy gifts. We’re asking our generous citizens to open their hearts and even if you drop off just one toy in our lobby, with your generosity, we can collect enough to bring a smile to hundreds of children this holiday season.”
We'll be collecting new, unwrapped toys and gift cards until December 18 at 2:00p.m. You can drop off the items in the collection box in our lobby. Our deputies will hand the toys out to families at our headquarters on December 18. The children will be invited by the Salvation Army based on their family’s needs.
The Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office Headquarters is located at 13101 E. Broncos Parkway in Centennial. Our lobby hours are 7:00 AM – 5:30 PM Monday through Friday.
TRIBAL MEMBERS FROM SOUTH DAKOTA TRAIN WITH MOUNTED UNIT
When Lt. Rich Anselmi was approached by the Tipi Raisers asking if he would help a group of Native American teenagers, he jumped at the chance.
"One of our goals is to reach lower income youth to create a positive image of law enforcement," says Lt. Rich Anselmi, head of the Mounted Patrol Unit.
The Tipi Raisers are indigenous people who live on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in Oglala, South Dakota. The Lakota people are known as the "horse people" because their history and traditions are closely related to horses. The youth all have riding experience, love horses, and they were willing to make the six hour drive to Denver.
"We felt if they wanted to come work with us, our door was open," says Anselmi.
Ogalala-Lakota County, which makes up the Pine Ridge Reservation, is also the poorest county in the United States. There are very few opportunities for youth on the reservation and very few positive law enforcement role models there.
Five kids were chosen, ages 14 and up, they got their parent's permission and brought their own horses from the reservation to train with them.
The two day training was a huge and positive success. The Lakota youth were trained the same way the mounted unit trains its volunteers. Riding skills on the reservation are different than those needed in law enforcement, but the Lakota students had amazing attitudes. They learned some very different skills and saw a new side to law enforcement officers than they had ever seen.
"Probably the best part of all this was it gave them ideas and goals of how forming a mounted unit on the reservation could bring light and hope to Pine Ridge just as it has in Arapahoe County," says Anselmi.
Click the button below to learn more about the Tipi Raisers of South Dakota.
DEPUTIES PRAISED FOR KEEPING CALM WITH "FIRST AMENDMENT AUDITORS"
Lately, the sheriff's office has received many letters of praise, like the one above in response to how our deputies are responding to "First Amendment Auditors" -- individuals who film on public property and police stations to test the rights to film in public places. These filmed interactions with police that make headlines or spread on social media is not new, but it has forced some police departments to review how to respond to them. The video which the letter is referring to, is shown below.
These "audits" are posted to YouTube and have become a form of activism: individuals stake out a public facility and record the location and interactions with staff and police. Once they start filming, they hope for dramatic reactions and thrive on provoking those reactions to produce compelling videos.
These so-called "auditors" tend to film in government buildings, from police stations to post offices, city halls and libraries. They will typically go to a place that's considered public property, such as a sidewalk or parking lot and visibly and openly film buildings and people attempting to exercise their First Amendment right.
Another video the sheriff's office received much praise for is the one below with Deputy Joshua Bandstra, filmed at the DMV in Centennial.
Of course there have also been instances where our deputies do not respond in a friendly manner and we have faced criticism for those videos too. However, we are constantly working with our deputies on how to respond. You can find more videos from First Amendment Auditors on YouTube.
If you ever have a commendation or a complaint about one of our deputies, please don't hesitate to reach out to our Internal Affairs Unit at 720-874-4014 or internalaffairs@arapahoegov.com.
REX IS DOG GONE FAMOUS!
Rex, the sheriff's office school therapy dog, isn't even a year old and he's already had several media appearances. If you haven't seen the latest one, watch it HERE.
Now, Rex is even getting fan mail! Say what?!
Yes, Rex, is getting flooded with mail from his fans -- er, rather students -- at Ford Elementary School, one of the eight schools Rex visits on a daily basis to help comfort kids. Deputy Gray checked Rex’s "mailbox" the other day and it was overflowing. The kids are writing letters and drawing pictures daily and leaving them for the dog.
The school even holds a contest on who gets to eat lunch with Rex!
Finally, Rex is also featured on collector item poker chips. They're only $5 each and all the money goes to Back The Blue K-9 Force, a non-profit which funds new equipment for our all our police dogs. To purchase one, just email Deputy John Gray at jgray@arapahoegov.com.
If you like to follow dogs on Instagram (yes, it's a thing), make sure to add Rex to your profile!