Two officers killed, one marshal wounded in St. Petersburg - Page 2
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  1. #11
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    Shooter is Dead, Officers Identified

    Update from Tampabay.com

    ST. PETERSBURG — Two St. Petersburg police officers were shot to death and a U.S. marshal was injured early Monday in gunfire that broke out as police tried to serve a domestic battery warrant at a St. Petersburg home.

    "Our community has suffered a loss today," St. Petersburg police Chief Chuck Harmon said during a somber press conference with Mayor Bill Foster outside Bayfront Medical Center.

    Suncoast Benevolent Association President Mark Marland confirmed the fallen officers as Tom Baitinger and Jeffrey Yaslowitz.

    By Monday afternoon, police were able to enter the home where the shooting happened. They confirmed the shooter, Hydra Lacy Jr., was also dead.

    The St. Petersburg officers became the first killed during service since 1980. Harmon said the wives of both were notified and "in shock." One of the officers had children.

    A group of five St. Petersburg police officers stood around a cruiser outside Yaslowitz's home in northwest Hillsborough County. Some in uniform, some not, all looked grief stricken. Sgt. David Barr, who supervised Yaslowitz's unit and was in his police vehicle further down the road, said the officers needed time before speaking about their colleague, but called him "the best."

    The officers were shot Monday morning after approaching a home where Lacy was being served a U.S. Marshal's warrant through a fugitive task force.

    A marshal who responded to the scene also was shot and is expected to survive.

    The shooting took place at 3734 28th Ave. S, in the Perry Bayview neighborhood. Authorities were serving the warrant for Lacy, a known sex offender, according to records.

    Officers arrived at the home to interview Lacy's girlfriend at 7 a.m. When it became clear the suspect was in the attic and armed, more officers arrived and gunfire ensued.

    An officer and marshal were hit first when they tried to arrest Lacy, Puetz said. Later, police attempted a rescue in which they pulled the marshal out and that's when one of the rescuers was fatally shot.

    That officer was eventually taken from inside the house and transported to the hospital. He was accompanied by a surgeon.

    "It doesn't look good," Harmon said shortly after the last officer was taken away.

    At least six Florida police officers have been killed by gunmen since June — two in Tampa, two in Miami last week, and now two in St. Petersburg.

    As Harmon told a group of reporters that the two officers shot dead were married, Foster looked down to the ground. He grimaced and closed his eyes tight as tears streamed down his cheek. He grabbed a tissue from his pocket, took off his glasses and wiped his face.

    After the news conference, he told a reporter: "I'm not doing very well. Not very well at all."

    At about noon, Foster went into another building at the hospital, saying he would talk more at the 4 p.m. news conference at the police station.

    "I'm going to find a place to pray, he said.

    Rumors began circulating through the community shortly after the first officers were taken to the hospital.

    Early Monday, Pinellas Sheriff's Chief Deputy Robert Gualtieri made a dramatic statement at a previously scheduled meeting of the County Commission, saying, "The one St. Pete officer is dead, and the other one is pinned down in the house and was shot several times."

    But at 10:10 a.m., police officials only said two were in critical condition and one was stable.

    Police spokesman Mike Puetz said Lacy was facing aggravated battery and two other felony charges and was being served a U.S. Marshal's warrant by a police officer. An officer was interviewing the Lacy's girlfriend, who told the officer Lacy was in the attic. When Lacy was approached, he began firing at the officer, Puetz said.

    A police SWAT team is at the scene, along with several police vehicles and ambulances wrapping around six blocks. Some Pinellas sheriff's deputies also are at the scene, as well as vehicles from other agencies, including a Tampa police armored vehicle.

    Police cleared streets leading to Bayfront Medical Center in preparation for the ambulances to transport victims, according to dispatchers. They also asked that all helicopters stay away from the area, as Lacy made reference to them.

    By 11 a.m. Monday, authorities lost contact with Lacy.

    "We don't know if he's wounded or just lying in wait," Puetz said.

    Around 1:30 p.m., authorities began demolition of some of the walls of Lacy's home.

    At 2:15, a tactical team that entered the home confirmed a body found inside was Lacy.

    Neighbors said they first heard shots coming from the home at 4 a.m. and later saw police lights at 7:15 a.m. Crowds of onlookers gathered in streets for several hours during the standoff.

    Records show the house belongs to Christine Lacy, 45, and Hydra Lacy Jr. Records show he is 38 or 39.

    State records list Hydra Lacy Jr. as a sex offender as of March 2004. He is listed as absconded as of June 30, 2010, meaning he is no longer residing at the address listed for him.

    "We've been looking for him for awhile," said Pete Cajigal, Assistant Chief to the U.S. Marshal's office for the Middle District of Florida.

    In 1992, he was sentenced in Pinellas County to 15 years for sexual battery with a weapon or force and five years for false imprisonment and aggravated child abuse of a victim younger than 13, according to state criminal records. He was released from state prison on March 4, 2001.

    He first served time in prison from 1989 to 1991 on a five-year sentence for charges of battery on a law enforcement officer.

    Hydra Lacy Jr. is the brother of Jeff Lacy, former International Boxing Federation super middleweight champion. He is the oldest of nine children.

    Carol Jewell, Christine Lacy's sister, says the tragedy could have been avoided if officers had picked up Lacy in November, after he failed to show up in court on domestic violence charges.

    Jewell said her sister told police that Lacy was at the 28th Avenue house, but they would not pick him up because they did not have a warrant.

    Christine Lacy also told police that Lacy had been ordered to stay away from her, but they said they did not have the paperwork, Jewell said.

    "After they left her, I took her to my house,'' Jewell said. "If they had arrested him in November when we called police, he never would have been a fuguitive.''

    Court records show that a judge in the domestic violence case had ordered Lacy to stay away from his wife. Lacy failed to appear for a Nov. 1 trial and that the court sent an electronic warrant to the sheriff's office the next day.

    St. Petersburg police spokesman Bill Proffitt declined comment.
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  2. #12
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    Re: Two officers killed, one marshal wounded in St. Petersburg

    Suspect's dead... first good news today!

  3. #13
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    Re: Two officers killed, one marshal wounded in St. Petersburg

    That's how Dontae Morris should have been found...DEAD!

  4. #14
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    Re: Two officers killed, one marshal wounded in St. Petersburg

    R.I.P. brothers.

    We got it from here.

  5. #15
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    Re: Two officers killed, one marshal wounded in St. Petersburg

    My Blessings on the fallen officers and their families. As a mother of one of the officers who came in from Tampa, it is with heartfelt thanks to the officers who put their lives on the line every day. As a mother I am always aware of the danger my son places himself every day. And as a mother I am very proud he is doing what he loves. He made a choice to do what he does, and I wholly respect that. God Bless you all who serve.

  6. #16
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    Funeral Services Announced

    From Tampabay.com

    ST. PETERSBURG — A joint viewing and funeral are planned for the two St. Petersburg police officers fatally shot Monday.

    The viewing for Sgt. Thomas J. Baitinger and Officer Jeffrey A. Yaslowitz is Thursday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at First Baptist Church, 1900 Gandy Blvd., said police spokesman Mike Puetz.

    The funeral will be Friday at 11 a.m. at the same church.

    "This town wants to support our Police Department and this is the place," said church administrator Austin Ganly.

    Baitinger, 48, and Yaslowitz, 39, were shot to death while assisting a law enforcement task force seeking fugitive Hydra Lacy Jr.

    Greg Crane, the church's pastor for worship, said First Baptist is proud and honored to help. "We are honored to be able to host this and be able to provide a place for the community to come together in a time of need," he said.

    Church officials are preparing for up to 10,000 people to attend Friday's funeral service, though no one knows how many will attend. The church holds 2,850 people. Tents with video feeds will be set up outside to accommodate overflow crowds. Off-site parking also is planned, though specifics were not released.

    Bay News 9 will cover the ceremony live.

    About 5,000 people assembled for the joint funeral for slain Tampa police officers Jeffrey Kocab and David Curtis in July at Idlewild Baptist Church in Lutz, who were killed during a traffic stop.

  7. #17
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    Funeral Procession Route

    ST. PETERSBURG — Police announced Friday's funeral procession route for Sgt. Thomas Baitinger and Officer Jeffery Yaslowitz, who were fatally shot Monday.

    Police expect the procession to be several miles long because of the number of law enforcement vehicles involved. Officers will be stationed at key intersections to allow the procession to pass smoothly.

    The procession will begin after the 11 a.m. ceremony at First Baptist Church, 1900 Gandy Blvd., and end at Sylvan Abbey Memorial Park Cemetery, 2860 Sunset Point Road in Clearwater. The funeral ceremony is expected to last about three hours.

    The processional route will be as follows:

    • Departs church and heads east on 94th Avenue N.

    • Turns north on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street N.

    • Turns west on Roosevelt Boulevard.

    • Continues west and merge with Ulmerton Road.

    • Turns west on Ulmerton Road/Roosevelt Boulevard.

    • Turns north on Roosevelt Boulevard.

    • Turns north on County Road 611/Bayside Bridge.

    • Continues North on North McMullen Booth Road.

    • Turns west on Sunset Point Road.

    • Ends at 2860 Sunset Point Road (Sylvan Abbey Memorial Park Cemetery).

    Police estimate they will arrive at the cemetery at 3 p.m.

    A brief graveside service will take place with both caskets present. Yaslowitz's body will be interred at the cemetery. The ceremony is not open to the public.

    After the service, Baitinger's body will be escorted to a local funeral home to await private family arrangements.
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  8. #18
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    Re: Two officers killed, one marshal wounded in St. Petersburg

    From Tampabay.com

    ST. PETERSBURG — Two flag-draped coffins lay side-by-side inside the sanctuary of First Baptist Church. Two devastated families looked on. Two hearses waited outside, with two riderless horses, waiting to bear the bodies of two fallen officers.

    A river of police cruisers lined Gandy Boulevard early Friday morning, their lights silently flashing, as more than 10,000 gathered, their sorrow compounded by the deaths of both St. Petersburg Police Department Sgt. Thomas J. "Bait" Baitinger, 48, and K-9 Officer Jeffrey A. "Yaz" Yaslowitz, 39.

    All kinds came to pay their respects. Bikers and retirees. The governor and mayor. Callow teens and tough jail guards. Family and friends. Brothers and sisters in uniform. All gathered to remember the men who lost their lives in Monday's violent confrontation with a fugitive convict.

    "As a pastor I am in denial at this point," First Baptist Church Pastor Philip Lilly said as he began his invocation. "As a former uniformed police officer, I am angry."

    • • •

    Inside the church, there were tributes to the two slain officers — to their faith in God, their friendliness and humor, their generosity, their strong sense of duty.

    "Today we celebrate Tom and Jeffrey," said the Rev. Christopher Schmidt of Parrish United Methodist Church. "We celebrate that of them which lives on in the hearts of each of us."

    Detective Mark Marland talked of his friend, Sgt. Baitinger: "Tom was the type of sergeant that everyone wanted to work for. Tom was the type of leader that led from the front ... I've been able to find comfort in the fact that Tom is in a better place and is at peace.''

    Two days before the officers were lost, Lt. David Gatlin said that he and Yaslowitz talked about dying — the risk officers face every time they go to work.

    "You know what?" Yaslowitz said, according to Gatlin. "I'm ready. I know that I'm ready if it happened today."

    Casey Harvey, Yaslowitz's 18-year-old nephew, spoke of his uncle's strong faith and character: "I hope others will be influenced by the life of this man and the goodness inside of him ... They say there are no perfect men, but my uncle was pretty darn close.''

    Mayor Bill Foster said the city would never forget the families or their sacrifice: "To the entire family, we love you. And know that this community will continue to lift you up with prayer and will support and stand by you long after the setting of the sun this day because we know that you will have moments of darkness."

    Police Chief Chuck Harmon also spoke of his fallen officers — and his fury with their killer.

    "Hydra Lacy Jr. took a piece of me — two pieces, actually, about two hours apart, on Monday," said Harmon, his cheeks flushed.

    "This violent felon, this criminal, this rapist, this wife-batterer, and this murderer ... as far as I'm concerned, got off too easy."

    • • •

    Outside, as the funeral began a few minutes after 11 a.m., video from inside the church flashed on giant screens. The crowd of thousands fell silent, straining to hear. The only other sound was the whipping of helicopter blades and the whimpering of hundreds of police dogs.

    Yaslowitz's and Baitinger's police vehicles were parked hood to hood, wreathes on each.

    Dorothy Silva, 67, and her husband Ed, 69, rode their bikes a mile down Fourth Street from their Lamplight Village home to be there. Tears rolling under her sunglasses, Mrs. Silva said, "I just had to be here. People call for police whenever they're in trouble. Now they need us."

    Katie McKendree, 17, asked her mom to let her miss school at Seminole High so she could attend. Long ago, Yaslowitz's K-9 squad helped her train her German Shepherd, she said. She thought about his three children: Caleb, 12; Haylie, 8; and Calen, 5.

    "I just wanted to be here," she said. "Out of respect, I guess. It's so awful for those kids to lose their dad ... There's just no point."

    • • •

    It was 1:03 p.m. when everyone slowly marched outside to say their final good-byes.

    As First Baptist Pastor Alberto Bent sang There Will Be a Day, all the officers outside the church rose from their seats and began lining up by ranks, department by department. Blocks of officers in gray, white, khaki, blue, green, according to the uniform colors of their department. Some came from as far away as the Dane County Sheriff's Department in Wisconsin, where Baitinger worked before moving to Florida.

    Martin County sheriff's Deputy Brian Youngblood clutched his friend's widow, Paige Baitinger, as her family walked up the aisle. Her husband's squad followed behind.

    Lorraine Yaslowitz, 40, held the hand of her youngest, Calen, 5, as she led her family out. Both of her husband's units — K-9 and SWAT — walked behind.

    Outside hundreds of St. Petersburg police officers lined up, their green caps pointing toward the hearses. Thousand of officers from across Tampa Bay and the state lined with them in support.

    At 1:42 p.m., hundreds of right hands climbed into salute position. The St. Petersburg police K-9 force led the pallbearers and caskets. Then came the 21-gun salutes — three volleys for each officer. Six police helicopters flew overhead. One veered off in the traditional "missing man formation" to honor the fallen.

    The bagpiper played Amazing Grace. The bugler played Taps. The St. Petersburg honor guard slowly folded each American flag corner-to-corner, white-gloved hands perfecting each fold.

    Harmon and the mayor knelt before each widow to present their husbands' flags.

    Then came the traditional final call: the call-signs of Baitinger (S-23) and Yaslowitz (K-2) rang out from a police radio speaker. No response. Both officers were declared "10-7" — out of service.

    Their call-signs will never be used again.

    "Their acts of bravery and heroism shall never be forgotten," the female dispatcher declared. "May God rest their souls."

    Ace, the canine partner that Yaslowitz left behind, howled and barked.

    • • •

    Hillsborough Sheriff's Deputy Carrie Cooper, 30, spent five years as a patrol officer in St. Petersburg. Baitinger trained her, teased her, taught her the right way to do the job.

    Now, outside the church, she battled conflicting feelings that must haunt every officer.

    "The first thing that happens, when you learn an officer is shot, is you get all incensed and want to get every bad guy you can and stick them somewhere they'll never get out," she said, wiping away tears. "Then another thing happens. You start thinking you don't ever want your own family to go through this."

    Autumn Galluccio, 8, sat on a curb, wearing her best blue dress and silver shoes. Her mother had pulled her long hair into a ballerina bun with a sequined tiara.

    As she wiped tears from her freckled cheeks, Autumn said she begged her mom to let her come because "those officers are from St. Pete and so are we ... I don't know them but they're my friends. It makes me so sad."

    Her mother, Carolyn Galluccio, 42, remembered when Detective Herbert R. Sullivan died in 1981, the last time an officer was shot and killed in her city.

    "I was 11," she said. "I remember feeling so violated and scared. Those police were supposed to protect us, but that was the first time I realized they weren't safe either. It just brings it all back here today.

    "All these officers — I hope I never have to see this again."
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    courthouse is this: You cannot post "Thou Shalt Not Steal," "Thou Shalt
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    lawyers, judges and politicians...It creates a hostile work environment.

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