Young adults sometimes succumb to evil temptations

Before submission of this article, an enormous tragedy has befallen our community. Two individuals killed three innocent people on Sunday. There are so many thoughts and feeling to express. I earnestly and humbly pray for those who were killed and their families.

Wow! With every passing school year I think, where’s the pause button? Our kids are growing up too fast. Let’s take a minute to slow down, look around and count our blessings.

I had the incredible good fortune to attend the Boulder City High School 2014 graduation ceremony. The class of 2014’s achievements builds the foundation for true scholastic aptitude. Our kids are the best!

In their search for success I emphasize, use caution. Our little town, and even the bigger world, are filled with evil temptations. That’s why I have a job.

You see over the years I’ve seen the smiling faces become handcuffed-laced frowns. Whether it’s the fading of moral courage or the displacement of sound conscious decision-making in young adults, they are the largest segment of the population being arrested. Almost every study I researched showed a 1 in 3 chance of being arrested by the age of 23.

The most interesting statistic I found by Justice Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics illustrates some poignant points. By and large, arrest in the violent crimes area has seen a decent reduction. However, arrests for drug possession and use have seen an 80 percent increase in 2010, as compared to 1990.

The statistics from 2010 to 2013, the latest year, show a similar correlation with increased arrest for drug possession. It’s not about the supply, it’s about the demand. It’s about educating our children and ourselves about the dangerous volatility of drug use.

Education of all legal and illegal mind-altering substances should receive primary attention. The inherent enlightenment of drug education would surely trump the stupidity of drug abuse. We should push for drug education in formative years, not the conclusion of confinement in adulthood.

“Control, 269, we’ll be 10-8”

June 1. Anonymous caller reports a female came into the bowling alley, appears intoxicated and vamoosed driving a particular vehicle. Officers locate the vehicle described by the caller and have probable cause to stop it. After meeting the female driver, the officer conducts a field sobriety test. You can’t pass field sobriety if your three sheets to the wind. Officer will have one A-Adam (That’s the code for an arrest).

June 2. Caller reports a domestic argument near Fir Street. The female is intoxicated and dispatch can hear the female yelling “Police can take me to jail.” Officers arrive to investigate the male’s fresh bite mark to his arm. The drunken girlfriend is taken into custody. I guess this was one of the 15 percent of the times a female is arrested for domestic battery.

June 3. Officer makes contact with a subject near 7-Eleven on Nevada Way. The subject is extremely belligerent and confrontational. The ingested accelerant provided the basis for his arrest, since he was three times above the legal limit. Fact: You can’t be drunk in public. It didn’t stop there. On his way to Henderson Detention Center, the subject goes ballistic in the back seat. A team of six correction officers will be his welcoming committee. Video is rolling.

June 4. We get dispatched to a moped and its driver being down. Officers arrive on Adams Blvd near Avenue K. They discover the driver of the moped is not responding. Boulder City Fire Department arrives and takes him to the hospital. The moped driver succumbs to his injuries. A traffic fatality team is called out to investigate. Witnesses report a car was involved, but it’s nowhere to be found. The traffic fatality team is diligently conducting its investigation and pursuing all leads.

June 5. 911 gets a call regarding a domestic dispute near Avenue K. The ex knocked, but she didn’t open the door. His tenacity led him to crawl through a window or was it just his degree of inebriation? The older teenage son calls 911 and advises things are heating up. We arrive and observe both parties were injured by fault of the other. So, since the primary aggressor can’t be determined, they both get arrested for domestic battery. By the way, what substance do you think played a part in this melee?

June 6. An officer is on a traffic stop near the homes next to the former Boulder Boats. The officer hears the screams of a person yelling “fire.” The officer drives over and sees a flame-engulfed male run from a residence. The officer’s preliminary investigation determined the subject was apparently dispensing gas into his truck from a gas can while smoking a cigarette — a possibly lethal combination. The Fire Department arrives and takes the subject to the hospital.

June 7. A Sara Lee baked goods delivery driver calls regarding a subject’s trailer being loaded with Sara Lee crates at Albertsons. Officer arrives and checks the subject out. Say it isn’t so! The subject had four warrants, two for obtaining money under false pretenses and two for burglary. Funny thing is, this subject just got out of prison. Guess it’s time for some more rehabilitation.

Before we go, I have two things. Please remember and tell all your “over the hill” friends (No, not old, I mean the ones living over the hill.) that the dry lake bed will be closed for the Fourth of July.

Secondly, for the next several weeks, agencies from our multijurisdictional law enforcement community will be conducting training exercises at the Boulder City High School. So, if you see a whole mess of police cars and fire trucks at the high school, we are just training.

It was a busy week. Thanks for coming out. One more congrats to BCHS graduates. Keep it real BC!

Officer Jeffrey Grasso is a 10-year veteran of the Boulder City Police Department. He previously served as a police officer in south Florida for four years.