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Dean Scoville

Associate Editor

Former associate editor of Police Magazine and a retired patrol supervisor and investigator with the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, Sgt. Dean Scoville has received multiple awards for government service. He was the author of Shots Fired, Police Magazine's monthly column examining officer-involved shootings as experienced by the officers themselves.

Articlesby Dean ScovilleFebruary 8, 2012

Shots Fired: Skokie, Illinois 08/25/2008

Officer Tim Gramins let loose with a barrage of rounds hoping that what he might lose in accuracy would be compensated for by its suppressive nature. The only thing separating Gramins and his assailant was a windshield that was fast disintegrating from ingoing and outgoing rounds.

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Inside the Badge by Dean ScovilleFebruary 2, 2012

Taking Down One of Our Own

Why did the Santa Maria (Calif.) PD attempt to arrest one of its officers on a public street? Was there some other precipitating factor at work? Because absent such explanations, I fail to see the need for the PD to take the officer down then and there at a DUI checkpoint.

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Articlesby Dean ScovilleJanuary 23, 2012

Shots Fired: Chippewa Falls, Wis. 05/06/2000

Dep. William Kelly encountered a 37-year-old on a domestic disturbance call who was hellbent on making his feelings known with a .22 rifle. Dep. Kelly yelled, "Drop it." No sooner had the words come out of Kelly's mouth than a bullet exited the rifle's barrel.

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Inside the Badge by Dean ScovilleSeptember 15, 2011

Criminal Cops: Foxes in the Chicken Coop?

There are few things more terrifying than the thought of a captain of a patrol station playing both sides of the fence. The question isn't whether or not your captain had your best interests in mind but how far would he or she go to protect his or her criminal contacts?

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Articlesby Dean ScovilleJuly 25, 2011

Line-of-Duty Deaths: The War on Cops

A cursory glance at the numbers seemingly underscores such concerns. Thirty-one officers were feloniously shot and killed from January through mid-May 2011—a 34 percent increase over the same period a year before.

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Inside the Badge by Dean ScovilleJuly 15, 2011

A Cop's Dilemma: Speak No Evil

No agency wants its personnel speaking ill of the city that funds its department. But to say that all areas of a city are equally safe is patently absurd. That being the case, if an officer knows that a citizen runs the risk of becoming victimized in some capacity, should he articulate the fact?

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Articlesby Dean ScovilleMarch 23, 2011

Shots Fired: Pinellas County, Florida 10/28/2009

Kentin Dion Brooks' life had spun out of control long before his car did. Pinellas County Sheriff's Sgt. Raymond Fleming's only misgiving about the tactics of the incident was the relative proximity of Brooks' vehicle to the deputies' cars at the terminus of the pursuit. But even this is understandable given the speeds and the officers' needs to react to its sudden conclusion.

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Inside the Badge by Dean ScovilleJanuary 6, 2011

Remember the Forgotten Fallen

Let's not forget our other brethren who work may have been less conspicuously gallant, but who have likewise paid the ultimate price years before their time.

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Police officer at night standing beside patrol car, viewed from behind
Articlesby Dean ScovilleOctober 19, 2010

The Hazards of Traffic Stops

Pulling over a motorist can result in a simple citation or a raging gun battle. You have to be prepared for either one.

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Inside the Badge by Dean ScovilleOctober 14, 2010

Dirty Cops: The Slobs You Will Meet on Patrol

I've even heard tale of a cop who saved a partially devoured piece of chicken he found under the front seat and mailed it through the departmental mail to the offender.

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