Latest / APD Pod Squad / Season 3, Episode 4; Chief of Police Jackie Stepp, Detective Ryan Begley, Forensics Services Technician Tess Allen, and Asheville Police Foundation Members David Plyer & Miranda Bowman

Transcript

Season 3, Episode 4; Chief of Police Jackie Stepp, Detective Ryan Begley, Forensics Services Technician Tess Allen, and Asheville Police Foundation Members David Plyer & Miranda Bowman · APD Pod Squad

• 0:00
  Speaker 2: This is the APD Pod squad.
• 0:03
  Speaker 2: I'm Rick Rice, and in this episode, Asheville's newest chief of police, Jackie, Stepp.
• 0:10
  Speaker 2: She'd been acting in that role as interim chief since Chief Mike Lamb retired in November of 2025.
• 0:15
  Speaker 2: But on September 24th, the city of Asheville named her permanent chief of police.
• 0:20
  Speaker 2: Before becoming chief, she was the first female deputy chief and served as a captain, lieutenant, and sergeant.
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: Also worth noting, she is the department's only female firearms instructor.
• 0:31
  Speaker 2: And with over 20 years of APD, we've got a lot to talk about.
• 0:34
  Speaker 2: Also joining me are Detective Ryan Begley and forensic services technician Tess Allen, who worked together on a breaking and entering at Duke Energy that quickly identified a suspect and resulted in felony charges.
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: We'll hear that story.
• 0:48
  Speaker 2: And from the Asheville Police Foundation, David Plyler and Miranda Bowman.
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: Founded in 2023, according to their mission statement, the Asheville Police Department Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to gathering community support and resources to enhance the effectiveness of the Asheville Police Department.
• 1:08
  Speaker 2: One of the ways they support APD is with fundraising events like the upcoming Boo-5K on October 18th.
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: David and Miranda will share more about that and the foundation.
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: It's all coming up on season three, episode four of the APD Pod Squad.
• 1:24
  Speaker 2: Joining me now, Chief of Police, Jackie, Stepp.
• 1:29
  Speaker 2: I can finally say that officially without the interim tag, welcome.
• 1:33
  Speaker: Thank you so much, Rick.
• 1:34
  Speaker 2: You know, I think it was the first day we met, my first day on the job, and I said, What would you like me to call you?
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: How would you like me to address you?
• 1:41
  Speaker 2: And I believe you said, Well, a lot of people just call me DC.
• 1:44
  Speaker 2: And I just kind of took it in and I didn't think anything of it at the time, really, except, well, what if at some point you're not the DC, then your name changes?
• 1:53
  Speaker: Yeah, that's right.
• 1:53
  Speaker: It's always safe just to say Jackie,, Rick.
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: Well, I I have a hard time doing that now, and now it's just chief.
• 1:58
  Speaker 2: chfUh ieand fcongratulations for that.
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: I know you have a hard time accepting the whole congratulations and the the kind of the position of honor that comes with that.
• 2:08
  Speaker 2: You just want to do your job.
• 2:10
  Speaker 2: But congratulations are in order.
• 2:12
  Speaker: Well, I appreciate it.
• 2:13
  Speaker: Um and you said it.
• 2:14
  Speaker: You know, I'm just here to work hard, try to make a positive impact every day and go to the house.
• 2:18
  Speaker: I don't care so much about the title.
• 2:20
  Speaker: I'm just deeply honored to continue to serve the men and women of the police department and the community.
• 2:25
  Speaker 2: I think the fact that you've done that, just that for 20 some years is why you're in the position that you're in right now, deflecting all the credit and just doing the job that needs to be done.
• 2:37
  Speaker 2: Is that how you see yourself as a as a leader?
• 2:40
  Speaker 2: It's like I'm gonna lead by example.
• 2:42
  Speaker 2: I'm gonna do this job, and that's who I am.
• 2:44
  Speaker: I've tried to do that from day one.
• 2:46
  Speaker: I've really tried to just stay focused and do a good job, you know, building relationships, community policing has is always kind of been in my heart from day one.
• 2:55
  Speaker: But I just try to, like you said, lead by example, do the right thing all the time and work hard.
• 3:00
  Speaker 2: There's some changes though.
• 3:01
  Speaker 2: You've got a new business card coming.
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: You got a new office that you're in, and that's a nice office with a great big window.
• 3:06
  Speaker: Yeah, but I have to tell you, it's a little bit lonely back there in that corner.
• 3:09
  Speaker: So anybody listening, feel free to stop by and visit anytime.
• 3:12
  Speaker 2: It is a different dynamic, isn't it?
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: I mean, you're just moving down the hall like 20 feet, but it's a bigger room and it's it's offset.
• 3:19
  Speaker 2: It's off to the side.
• 3:20
  Speaker 2: You were in the thick of it before.
• 3:22
  Speaker 2: Right.
• 3:22
  Speaker 2: We could hear you.
• 3:23
  Speaker 2: You just yell people's names and we would come running, and now you can, but we might not necessarily hear you.
• 3:28
  Speaker: I know.
• 3:29
  Speaker: I've got to yell louder.
• 3:30
  Speaker: I'm not I'm not sure I like it yet.
• 3:32
  Speaker 2: So we've talked a lot about like your career starting here and going through the APD and all of those things and how you always kind of wanted this.
• 3:42
  Speaker 2: Why did you want this?
• 3:44
  Speaker 2: Why did you want to be the chief of police?
• 3:46
  Speaker: Back when I was even much younger, I grew up playing basketball, being part of a team, being the team leader.
• 3:53
  Speaker: I've always just aspired to make a positive impact uh wherever I am, whatever role I am.
• 3:59
  Speaker: You know, being the chief, I said it a long time ago back early in my career, uh, that it was an aspiration.
• 4:05
  Speaker: I'm here a lot sooner than I anticipated being, uh if I'm being honest.
• 4:09
  Speaker: But I just want to, you know, continue to serve alongside the men and women, like I said, and make a positive impact in this community.
• 4:16
  Speaker 2: You know, the beauty of you being in the position earlier than you expected is the fact that you'll be in the position a little bit longer than has been the case as of late.
• 4:25
  Speaker: Oh, you're you're right.
• 4:26
  Speaker: You know, deciding to pursue uh this role was a very careful and thoughtful decision.
• 4:32
  Speaker: As you know, historic uh history has stacked the odds against me, like you said.
• 4:37
  Speaker: Uh the average chief, I think, if you count interims, is about one and a half, one point six years.
• 4:42
  Speaker: Not that I did the math.
• 4:44
  Speaker: Um but you know, deciding to accept this position was deeply personal and rooted in my commitment to this community and to this police department.
• 4:54
  Speaker: And I'm just just grateful for the opportunity.
• 4:57
  Speaker 2: There's been a lot written about the police chiefs here only being here a year and a half on average as of late, but there's there's there's actually some legitimate reasons for that.
• 5:04
  Speaker 2: A lot of it is just it takes that long, and you've put in so many years before you're eligible for the position, and then you only have so much time left.
• 5:13
  Speaker 2: Chief Lamb was a perfect example of that.
• 5:15
  Speaker 2: He he did everything he could, but he only had about a year a year to go when he took the job.
• 5:20
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 5:20
  Speaker 2: So you've got more time left.
• 5:22
  Speaker: I do.
• 5:22
  Speaker: We tried to convince him to stay a little bit longer, but I couldn't do it.
• 5:25
  Speaker: I am excited.
• 5:26
  Speaker: You know, I will change history.
• 5:28
  Speaker: Uh I will be here, you know, for the long haul.
• 5:31
  Speaker: And I am grateful for that opportunity, but also just excited for what it means for the police department and how it sets us up for the future.
• 5:38
  Speaker 2: I'm hoping I don't have to break in a new chief.
• 5:40
  Speaker 2: Uh I I don't have much time left either.
• 5:41
  Speaker 2: I'm only like five, seven years, so you gotta stay until my end.
• 5:44
  Speaker: Okay, all right, you got it.
• 5:45
  Speaker 2: We'll have like a pinky swear agreement.
• 5:47
  Speaker: There you go.
• 5:47
  Speaker: I like it.
• 5:48
  Speaker 2: So I I know people have asked about the process of the interviews and everything about becoming the chief, going through the city of Asheville.
• 5:56
  Speaker 2: Uh city manager D.K.
• 5:57
  Speaker 2: Wesley managed this.
• 5:59
  Speaker 2: Now we can talk about it at least a little bit.
• 6:01
  Speaker 2: Sure.
• 6:02
  Speaker 2: How was the process?
• 6:03
  Speaker 2: Explain the process a little bit to people.
• 6:05
  Speaker: It was a pretty rigorous uh process, if I uh and I tell you, it was a little bit hard to juggle uh because of everything we had going on here uh at the PD at the same time.
• 6:16
  Speaker 2: It's been busy.
• 6:17
  Speaker: It it was it was busy, particularly during that couple months.
• 6:20
  Speaker: But yeah, it it's kind of kicked off, uh, if you will, with a three essay question type.
• 6:27
  Speaker: Uh then I guess if you pass that, you move on to a phone interview, and if you pass that, you you move on to some additional two separate practical exercises.
• 6:36
  Speaker: Then if you make it past that, you move on to additional interviews.
• 6:41
  Speaker: So it was it was a lot.
• 6:42
  Speaker 2: I mean, my process to get this job was a lot, so I can only imagine what yours was like.
• 6:48
  Speaker 2: I'm just happy for you that that's got to be a little bit of a stress point, right?
• 6:51
  Speaker 2: With everything else going on, doing the job that you're interviewing for, it's just that's just a lot.
• 6:58
  Speaker 2: It's just a lot to absorb.
• 7:00
  Speaker: It was.
• 7:00
  Speaker: You know, and initially at first I was like, oh, I've been doing it, you know, so long.
• 7:05
  Speaker: Maybe there's something they don't like that I'm doing and just, you know, haven't spoke up and said.
• 7:10
  Speaker: But I tell you, being a part of a national search and going through that process competing against men and women all over the country, you know, it did feel good to come out on top and be offered the position.
• 7:21
  Speaker: Uh so I don't regret going through it, but like you said, uh it it was a lot to carry there for a little bit.
• 7:27
  Speaker 2: What are your top priorities now that you are officially chief of police of the Asheville Police Department?
• 7:33
  Speaker: Well, I think uh workforce stability uh has got to continue to be our number one priority, recruitment, retention.
• 7:40
  Speaker: And with that, I always say comes compensation uh because that plays a direct role into that.
• 7:45
  Speaker: Employee wellness and organizational culture.
• 7:48
  Speaker: Uh we've been through a lot, as you know, this past year.
• 7:51
  Speaker: And then strengthening trust with the community.
• 7:54
  Speaker: Uh, but also, Rick, I just want to provide consistency and stability uh that has been missing for so long.
• 8:01
  Speaker: It's it's hard.
• 8:02
  Speaker: I've seen it firsthand when that goalpost keeps moving.
• 8:05
  Speaker: So I'm just excited to be in a position where I can provide that.
• 8:10
  Speaker 2: I think the stability portion is gonna naturally lend itself to probably increasing our ranks a little bit too, because people look at that when they're, hey, could I transfer to the Asheville Police Department?
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: Well, I'm gonna wait it out to see who's gonna be the chief.
• 8:20
  Speaker 2: Sure.
• 8:21
  Speaker 2: Right?
• 8:21
  Speaker 2: And now that's been decided.
• 8:23
  Speaker 2: Maybe possibly for a future recruit as well.
• 8:25
  Speaker 2: Somebody, should I join this department?
• 8:27
  Speaker 2: Should I do B L E T at that department?
• 8:29
  Speaker 2: I'm gonna wait until things settle down.
• 8:31
  Speaker 2: Well, now they have.
• 8:32
  Speaker 2: And so 232 is our fully staffed number.
• 8:35
  Speaker 2: That's right.
• 8:36
  Speaker 2: And we're getting closer and closer to that.
• 8:38
  Speaker 2: How long do you think it'll be before we can possibly achieve that number?
• 8:43
  Speaker: You know, realistically, I think we're three years out.
• 8:45
  Speaker: Um, and that is if we're able to get compensation up to a more competitive rate, uh, and then just continuing to work on, you know, strengthening the culture here, developing leadership within here.
• 8:58
  Speaker: Uh, but I think we're about three years probably from reaching that.
• 9:02
  Speaker 2: Aaron Powell But a lot closer than we were in the last year, the last two years, last three years, certainly going back to 2020.
• 9:08
  Speaker: Oh, yeah, we were saying five, six, maybe not even in my tenure, uh, is what some uh have said in the past.
• 9:13
  Speaker: And and I think I think we're gonna reach that.
• 9:15
  Speaker 2: Okay, so now we have if we're talking about the executive level, the command staff, we have a chief of police, we have a deputy chief, we usually have two.
• 9:24
  Speaker 2: So what is the plan to possibly fill that role?
• 9:26
  Speaker: Well, this week we're going through, you know, our sergeant lieutenant and captain promotional process as we do every year.
• 9:33
  Speaker: Uh, that is one thing the department wanted was to know, you know, when when they were gonna occur occur, how so that they could prepare.
• 9:39
  Speaker: So we do that annually.
• 9:41
  Speaker: Uh but the deputy chief process, you know, I'm working with HR to see what that looks like, and I cannot wait for some help.
• 9:47
  Speaker: Uh, you know, Sean and I have been uh holding it down for about a year now and we'll continue to do so a little bit longer.
• 9:54
  Speaker 2: Speaking of Sean, you guys go back a long way, all the way to field training.
• 9:58
  Speaker: Yeah, I've known uh Sean obviously for 21 years, and uh he was my first field training officer.
• 10:06
  Speaker: I'm certain he has much more stories that he remembers than I do.
• 10:10
  Speaker: Uh but Sean always took the opportunity to make sure, truly make sure I got the training I needed, whether I wanted to go to the call or not, or felt like I needed to go to the call, we went to the call.
• 10:20
  Speaker: And Sean just always tried to put me in those uncomfortable situations.
• 10:24
  Speaker: But, you know, through that, we developed a professional friendship.
• 10:27
  Speaker: And Sean's always been somebody who I know will just tell me like it is and tell it straight.
• 10:33
  Speaker: And that's something, even still today, I very much appreciate about our relationship.
• 10:39
  Speaker 2: Were there other field training officers that you had that stand out, things you learned specifically?
• 10:44
  Speaker 2: I know you're a firearms instructor, so somebody had to lead you there as well, I would guess, right?
• 10:50
  Speaker: I've been fortunate uh again to have both uh female and male mentors throughout my career.
• 10:56
  Speaker: And uh back then, uh Lieutenant Ray Ferguson was the only female firearms instructor, uh, and that always inspired me.
• 11:04
  Speaker: And then, you know, it wasn't long after she retired that I, you know, took that role on.
• 11:09
  Speaker: But yeah, uh there's been so many more, you know, that have retired and still uh remain such an instrumental part of who I am today.
• 11:18
  Speaker: Dawn Daddle uh was another one, man.
• 11:21
  Speaker: She taught me to be so proficient in collisions.
• 11:24
  Speaker: So I say that to just remind all the FTOs out there today how important it is, and you never know the impact that you're gonna have on that employee in the moment, but I am here to tell you, man, they last a lifetime and you're really helping build and mold the officer into who they're going to become later in their career.
• 11:42
  Speaker 2: And new mentors are always needed because you know, nobody lasts forever.
• 11:46
  Speaker 2: Careers are finite.
• 11:47
  Speaker 2: Deputy Chief Sean Artemis is not that far away from his retirement as well.
• 11:52
  Speaker 2: So you'll have to do it again next year, probably.
• 11:54
  Speaker: I tell you, there's a lot to think about from an organizational, particularly leadership standpoint, and that's why, you know, one thing I'm adamant about is developing our leadership.
• 12:05
  Speaker: Uh I think we could do a better job of it, but we particularly have to be very intentional right now because you know, you've got a couple of captains also uh that are on their way out next year and a deputy chief.
• 12:18
  Speaker: Uh, and that's a lot of turnover at the executive level.
• 12:21
  Speaker 2: I think I counted five or six people retiring in the next year, either captains, lieutenants, or otherwise.
• 12:27
  Speaker 2: And that's losing a lot of leadership.
• 12:29
  Speaker 2: That's losing a lot of experience.
• 12:31
  Speaker: Aaron Powell Yeah, that institutional knowledge is is really not replaceable.
• 12:34
  Speaker: Trevor Burrus, Jr.
• 12:35
  Speaker 2: Chief of Police Jackie, Stepp is with me uh on the job officially now without the interim tag here about what, two, three weeks.
• 12:41
  Speaker 2: Does it feel any different at all?
• 12:44
  Speaker: Um No, other than people saying congratulations.
• 12:47
  Speaker: Um I'm I'm just very fortunate that I've been able to do it so long that it just, you know, I'm just gonna continue to try to do a good job and and make a positive impact.
• 12:56
  Speaker 2: Do you think those nine or ten months that you basically were doing the job kind of helped with the transition of just kind of just continuing on?
• 13:02
  Speaker: Absolutely.
• 13:03
  Speaker: You know, I never took the interim position and said, well, I'm just gonna stay put and and hold it steady for a minute.
• 13:10
  Speaker: You know, we had an employee survey that was done under the previous chief, and I took that survey, Rick, and I built my tenure, the interim tenure, around the feedback from that survey.
• 13:20
  Speaker: So I tried to implement a lot of things.
• 13:23
  Speaker: And as an interim, that normally I would have waited until I was a permanent chief.
• 13:27
  Speaker: Uh, but not knowing what the outcome would be, I wanted just to continue to move forward really as if I were the chief of police without that interim title.
• 13:36
  Speaker: So I've tried to be very intentional about doing that.
• 13:38
  Speaker: And now we just have to continue to strengthen as we move forward.
• 13:42
  Speaker 2: Yeah, several things pretty valuable that you've gleaned from great information earlier on your your bi-weekly brief.
• 13:47
  Speaker 2: Uh your uh tip to chief, right?
• 13:49
  Speaker 2: That's right.
• 13:50
  Speaker 2: You're getting information from the rank and file, and you started those like January, February, I believe it was.
• 13:57
  Speaker: Yeah, just a couple months.
• 13:58
  Speaker: Uh and again, that was just direct feedback, you know, that I that had been brought up, like you said, about a disconnect between line level and the chief, and that's where the tip to chief came from.
• 14:08
  Speaker: And gosh, that's been such a valuable program.
• 14:10
  Speaker: Uh we just evaluated our augment schedule based on some feedback this week and and are gonna make some changes, but also just strengthening communication.
• 14:18
  Speaker: And I hope that that bi-weekly brief has done just that and we'll continue to try to build on that.
• 14:23
  Speaker 2: Well, you know, information is power.
• 14:24
  Speaker 2: I I like to know everything, right?
• 14:27
  Speaker 2: Just to kind of, even if it doesn't apply to me, I like to know.
• 14:30
  Speaker 2: I I would never say don't tell me something.
• 14:33
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 14:33
  Speaker 2: But let me decide whether or not I need that or not.
• 14:35
  Speaker 2: But tell me.
• 14:36
  Speaker 2: So I think those biweekly briefs are great.
• 14:38
  Speaker 2: I enjoy those.
• 14:39
  Speaker: Oh, good.
• 14:39
  Speaker: Thank you so much.
• 14:40
  Speaker 2: Yeah, well, that was one of many great ideas.
• 14:42
  Speaker 2: So do you have any more in your back pocket now that uh you're like, okay, I've gotten these out of the way.
• 14:46
  Speaker 2: Now I'm officially chief.
• 14:47
  Speaker 2: Do you have any other ideas that you're thinking about contemplating?
• 14:51
  Speaker: Getting ready to launch an e-bike program that I'm really excited about.
• 14:54
  Speaker: I try to incentivize officers to get out.
• 14:56
  Speaker: You know, I come from the bike unit uh many, many years ago, and sometimes, you know, when you ride a bike, a regular bike, and in all of your gear, it's hot, it's sweaty.
• 15:06
  Speaker: You can't provide that visibility as you could particularly on an e-bike.
• 15:10
  Speaker: So I'm excited to roll that out in the next couple of months.
• 15:13
  Speaker: And then really working up, uh working to freshen up the civilian traffic crash program again.
• 15:19
  Speaker: I have submitted that twice uh in both uh the previous budget cycles and freshening that up so that I can submit that again uh and then uh working on compensation, of course.
• 15:30
  Speaker 2: Like a lot of things, so much comes down to money, you know, not just the compensation, but as you mentioned, the civilian crash program that comes down to money, but spent spending money, hiring people to do that.
• 15:41
  Speaker 2: But the benefits for that one in particular, freeing up officers to do other things, I'm not sure people quite realize how impactful that would be.
• 15:49
  Speaker 2: I I can see it myself.
• 15:50
  Speaker 2: Just I can envision it.
• 15:52
  Speaker: Oh, absolutely.
• 15:53
  Speaker: You know, our traffic collisions are down about 12 percent this year compared to last year.
• 15:58
  Speaker: And imagine if we could take that number, you know, and double, triple it if we had a unit uh freeing up officers to provide additional roadway safety outside of parking lot collisions.
• 16:08
  Speaker 2: Well, and officers that are figuring these uh collisions out, they could be doing something else.
• 16:13
  Speaker 2: Right.
• 16:13
  Speaker 2: Some kind of public safety initiative.
• 16:16
  Speaker 2: They could be just going into neighborhoods and being more present too, as opposed to filling out paperwork.
• 16:21
  Speaker: Yeah, absolutely.
• 16:22
  Speaker 2: Before we go, I know we've talked about this before that this is the only police department you wanted to work at and the only one you planned to work at, and it looks like that's gonna work out for you.
• 16:33
  Speaker 2: Why is it the only police department you want to be a part of?
• 16:38
  Speaker: Well, I think, you know, Rick, I have so much, just a tremendous amount of pride in the men and women of this department and in the professionalism, the standards, and the foundation that they bring to work every day.
• 16:49
  Speaker: I think it's important for everybody to know Asheville is more than just where I work.
• 16:53
  Speaker: It's where I live, it's where I raise my family, where I volunteer, where I spend my time outside of work.
• 16:59
  Speaker: I sit on boards in this community, and I'm personally invested in this community and its future.
• 17:04
  Speaker: Serving as an interim over the past year has only strengthened that connection.
• 17:08
  Speaker: I've never seen a more engaged community in public safety uh than I have over this past year.
• 17:14
  Speaker: That energizes me uh because I believe we're better when we work together, when our police department, city leadership, community organizations, businesses, neighborhoods, and residents all have a role in making Asheville better.
• 17:27
  Speaker: That's a big part of why I accepted the permanent position.
• 17:30
  Speaker: I'm not looking for to have a positive impact for a short period of time.
• 17:34
  Speaker: I want to help build something that lasts for the men and women of the police department and for this community, and really for generations to come.
• 17:41
  Speaker: This isn't a stepping stone for me.
• 17:43
  Speaker: This is my home.
• 17:43
  Speaker: Like you said, I've spent 21 year years here, and I am excited about the opportunity and really deeply honored to keep serving the people of Asheville and the men and women of this police department for many years to come.
• 17:56
  Speaker 2: And I am honored to call you my police chief.
• 17:58
  Speaker 2: Thank you.
• 17:58
  Speaker: Thank you so much, Rick.
• 18:01
  Speaker 2: Joining me now, Detective Ryan Begley and forensic services technician Tess Allen.
• 18:05
  Speaker 2: Guys, thanks for joining me.
• 18:07
  Speaker 1: Thank you for inviting me.
• 18:08
  Speaker 2: Thank you.
• 18:08
  Speaker 2: You guys teamed up on a cool case that happened recently that I wanted to highlight uh involving Duke Energy and a breaking and entering, and latent fingerprints that I would think a lot of people assume play a big part in like many, many, many cases, but that's not really the truth, is it?
• 18:25
  Speaker 2: Uh Ryan, we'll start with you.
• 18:26
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 18:26
  Speaker 2: Because you get the evidence that comes courtesy of our forensics, of course, technicians, and then you go catch somebody, essentially, is what happened with this.
• 18:34
  Speaker 2: But how often do fingerprints play a part?
• 18:38
  Speaker 7: Well, actually, this is the first like actual case that I've gotten that the turnover has been this quickly.
• 18:44
  Speaker 7: And also, like I've had older ones, but not many, probably five in my tenure of being in Asheville Police Department.
• 18:53
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 18:53
  Speaker 2: So I mean, everything that I know about fingerprinting comes from watching a lot of episodes of CSI, so I think I've got it nailed down.
• 18:59
  Speaker 2: So Tess is a pretty much uh you got this powder, uh, you got this little like uh paintbrush deal, and then you got this like clear tape, and that's pretty much all you need, right?
• 19:08
  Speaker 1: Yeah, you're actually not too far off.
• 19:11
  Speaker 2: But there's some science behind it.
• 19:13
  Speaker 2: Like, what do you do with all this stuff, right?
• 19:16
  Speaker 1: Of course.
• 19:16
  Speaker 2: Okay, so you get the call, then what happens?
• 19:19
  Speaker 2: You head out to Duke Energy.
• 19:20
  Speaker 1: Aaron Powell So I respond to Duke Energy.
• 19:23
  Speaker 1: I meet with Detective Bagley, and he told me that he saw through video the suspect in question leave the business and put his hand on the glass part of the door when he was leaving.
• 19:36
  Speaker 1: Trevor Burrus, Jr.
• 19:37
  Speaker 2: So you knew where to go.
• 19:38
  Speaker 1: Exactly.
• 19:38
  Speaker 1: So he gave me a direction and a place to look for my prints, which is wonderful.
• 19:43
  Speaker 6: Yeah.
• 19:44
  Speaker 1: Um, so I go to the door, I use a flashlight and just my eyes, and just with the lighting look on the door to see where any prints might be.
• 19:54
  Speaker 7: As I recall, she said, ooh, that's a good print.
• 19:56
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I get I get so jazzed about getting these prints, it's so funny.
• 20:00
  Speaker 1: So yeah, I got pretty jazzed.
• 20:02
  Speaker 1: I saw some good ones.
• 20:03
  Speaker 1: Um and like you said, not too far off.
• 20:06
  Speaker 1: I took my little, it's not a cobalt tool set, but it it is just like a little toolkit.
• 20:12
  Speaker 1: And I took my fingerprint brush, black powder, a card, and some clear tape, just like you said.
• 20:18
  Speaker 1: Oh my god.
• 20:19
  Speaker 1: You could do it yourself.
• 20:21
  Speaker 2: You could take my jump.
• 20:21
  Speaker 2: No, no, I couldn't.
• 20:22
  Speaker 2: I really could not.
• 20:23
  Speaker 2: But I I part of me is like, okay, well, that's kind of accurate, but they're doing that at least on TV.
• 20:29
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 20:29
  Speaker 1: So I took those and I was able to brush where I thought the fingerprints would be, saw what I thought was a quality fingerprint, and lifted it, took it back to APHIS, which is the automated fingerprint identification system.
• 20:45
  Speaker 1: It's basically a large database with millions of fingerprint cards in it.
• 20:50
  Speaker 1: So that was compared in APIS, which gave a match to a possible suspect, and verified by another forensic technician, and we were able to identify a suspect.
• 21:03
  Speaker 2: That's like super cool.
• 21:04
  Speaker 2: How long did that take to talk about?
• 21:06
  Speaker 2: A day.
• 21:06
  Speaker 2: It was super quick.
• 21:07
  Speaker 2: It's like a record or something, right?
• 21:09
  Speaker 7: Yeah, like it was really it was really interesting because you're watching the video footage, right?
• 21:13
  Speaker 7: You see this guy come up and he opens up the door and he has his sleeve covering his hand because so he's aware of the fingerprints, you know?
• 21:22
  Speaker 7: He's in his mind, he's thinking, oh, okay, I'm I'm fooling the place.
• 21:25
  Speaker 2: Does he know about these things called gloves?
• 21:26
  Speaker 2: He couldn't.
• 21:26
  Speaker 2: So he knew enough to like try and like protect himself his hands from being used, but not enough to get something appropriate to do that.
• 21:36
  Speaker 7: Exactly.
• 21:37
  Speaker 7: And so when he opens up the door to s to slow the descent of the door so it doesn't make any noise, he reaches back with his left hand and you know guides the door closed.
• 21:47
  Speaker 7: And when he does that, he doesn't use the wherewithal to cover his fingerprints for that one.
• 21:52
  Speaker 2: So what was he trying to steal?
• 21:54
  Speaker 2: It was a breaking and entering case.
• 21:56
  Speaker 7: So yeah, he broke in, he took um he went to like the electrical room and was there for quite a few ti uh moments and sort around some stuff.
• 22:05
  Speaker 7: He actually took a um it looks like an iPad but it's not and it's actually discontinued so he should have done his research.
• 22:12
  Speaker 7: Um and then he took a drill which um is most likely fast money to pawn.
• 22:16
  Speaker 7: Okay.
• 22:17
  Speaker 2: So the first thing I would think of if you're going to like Duke Energy or something, he's trying to steal like copper or something that he could turn around for like that.
• 22:23
  Speaker 2: But that's an operation.
• 22:24
  Speaker 2: That's a big deal.
• 22:26
  Speaker 7: This is their fleet.
• 22:27
  Speaker 7: So it's like what he could have done, which wouldn't be a bad idea guys if you're listening to this, um, is he could have stole the whole vehicle, you know?
• 22:34
  Speaker 7: Yeah.
• 22:34
  Speaker 7: Because the keys were right there.
• 22:36
  Speaker 7: And he could have just drove off.
• 22:37
  Speaker 7: Um now we could have definitely tracked him because they have trackers and all that stuff in their vehicles.
• 22:41
  Speaker 7: Thank God that didn't happen.
• 22:43
  Speaker 7: And he just got a drill which a drill was pretty pricey drill.
• 22:47
  Speaker 7: It was like a five hundred and seventy five dollar drill.
• 22:49
  Speaker 2: Was he surprised then when somebody shows up at his house or where he lives like because he probably thought he got away with it.
• 22:53
  Speaker 7: So he's he's actually um just roaming around right now.
• 22:57
  Speaker 7: Uh-huh and I went and took out warrants on him, sent out a bolo that which would you know it's a mass email of course that lets everybody know that he has warrants now and then we're gonna pick him up and hopefully interview him and see if he has break an entering it's more of a um crime of opportunity should we make him famous right now?
• 23:13
  Speaker 2: I've got his name Robert Eichmann?
• 23:15
  Speaker 2: Yes Robert Eichmann Robert Eichmann okay if in case there's more than one Robert Eichmann be careful folks if you're yeah he has a history of this so this is he has a re he's built a reputation on criminal history.
• 23:26
  Speaker 7: He's not somebody that is just a super nice guy going around having a hard time he has um established his uh path that he wants to live his life at the moment so he's got a little rap sheet he's done some time done all those things.
• 23:38
  Speaker 2: So Tess they say that no two fingerprints are alike.
• 23:41
  Speaker 2: Aaron Ross Powell That's correct have you seen two that are very close?
• 23:43
  Speaker 2: Yes yes I mean the difference has got to be I mean you've got billions of people on the planet and all these finger they I mean it's got to be so slight of a difference.
• 23:54
  Speaker 1: Trevor Burrus It is and that's part of the reason why earlier when I mentioned after I got the fingerprint and ran it through AFIS that I got it verified through another technician because some of the matches in APIs are so close.
• 24:10
  Speaker 1: And we're looking at when we're looking at APHIS to make a match, we're looking at minutia points or characteristics of a fingerprint.
• 24:19
  Speaker 1: Two of the big ones I see and it may not mean anything to anybody are bifurcations which look like kind of a sideways peace sign and a ridge ending which on a fingerprint looks like a line ending.
• 24:32
  Speaker 1: So we look at things like those and their locations on the fingerprint which makes it unique to every person.
• 24:39
  Speaker 1: So I may have 10 bifurcations on my left thumb and Detective Bagley may only have five.
• 24:46
  Speaker 1: So that makes both of our fingerprints unique.
• 24:49
  Speaker 1: So even with that some of the matches in APIs look very similar to each other so where I may think oh it's a match maybe there's a bifurcation or a ridge ending that don't line up exactly so that's why we always get it verified with the second technician to have a fresh set of eyes or at least a second set of eyes to check and make sure that everything that I'm seeing is correct.
• 25:20
  Speaker 2: Have we ever had a misidentification of somebody that's like this is the guy and then it just isn't?
• 25:25
  Speaker 1: I don't know about a missidentification, but I know we've had one where it was very similar and I think we needed to go look at it a few times or maybe run it again or check our matches and see if that's really the person.
• 25:40
  Speaker 2: Aaron Ross Powell Can people kind of change their fingerprints?
• 25:43
  Speaker 2: Can they burn them off?
• 25:44
  Speaker 2: Can they use acid can they use Yeah so that you Oh yeah you can try for sure.
• 25:48
  Speaker 2: Trevor Burrus What are you pointing that over there, Ryan you did you did that happen to you?
• 25:51
  Speaker 7: Yeah when I was younger um I was lifting a air conditioner into a window and it sliced my thumb in two and so now I have every time I put in my fingerprints I have a scar intention in my thumbprint.
• 26:02
  Speaker 1: Well and sometimes people will try to purposely alter their fingerprints or like you just mentioned sometimes it's not even purposeful.
• 26:11
  Speaker 1: Or we may be like cutting chicken or making dinner in the kitchen and slice our hand or like slice our fingers.
• 26:18
  Speaker 1: Or I've seen trying to identify decedents some of them are just hardworking people that use their hands a lot for their main job.
• 26:28
  Speaker 1: And they're yeah their hands are just worn down.
• 26:31
  Speaker 1: And their ridges are just really, really hard to see.
• 26:36
  Speaker 2: So are you as excited about fingerprints as you are about your new home because the forensics department is getting a new home I'm very excited about both it's bigger I know that it is yes is there are getting any more bells and whistles coming oh that that I don't know.
• 26:53
  Speaker 1: I think they've shown us the floor plans but I'd really just have to see it in person to know all the new bells and whistles.
• 27:00
  Speaker 1: Aaron Ross Powell get a bigger cubicle I think we're transferring our cubicles that we already have but it's just a different layout so it it may be nicer it'll be nice to have a little more room.
• 27:11
  Speaker 2: Yeah definitely right so that that's part of the big all the changes the construction at the municipal building that we're at uh I would call it the basement but I guess technically it's the first floor.
• 27:20
  Speaker 1: Aaron Ross Powell I always joke that we're stuck in the basement so you're not too far off.
• 27:24
  Speaker 2: It feels like it I mean it's it's the way this building is constructed.
• 27:26
  Speaker 2: It's on a like on an angle it's a split level building.
• 27:29
  Speaker 2: So it just you're the detectives are on the second floor but if you walk out your door in a couple of feet you're then you're like on the second and a half floor and then if you go a couple then you're on like the first and a half floor and you're in the third floor with just a couple of steps.
• 27:43
  Speaker 2: This whole building is just Yeah it's like sloped.
• 27:45
  Speaker 2: It is just very confusing you know over time.
• 27:48
  Speaker 2: As far as technology right pretty old school with fingerprints what have been the newest stuff the newest technology that has really helped you with your job?
• 27:57
  Speaker 1: Aaron Ross Powell's a good question.
• 27:59
  Speaker 2: I mean you you see all these gadgets in the movies and on TV I can't possibly believe those things exist.
• 28:04
  Speaker 2: I mean the way that they do that they like wand something with like their phone and all of a sudden it brings up this whole deal yeah I mean I think I've seen maybe on some of the shows like they use the holographs and all of the fancy stuff and it's not not quite accurate.
• 28:20
  Speaker 1: Fingerprint-wise sometimes don't fix what's not broken.
• 28:24
  Speaker 1: Like still to this day a lot of times we just use like what I was telling you just a fingerprint brush black powder and clear tape in a card and it works great.
• 28:34
  Speaker 1: There are ways to enhance fingerprints like alternate light um using fluorescent dyes to help enhance maybe a fingerprint on a firearm or um another surface.
• 28:47
  Speaker 1: So there are ways to like chemically enhance or fluoresce a fingerprint um and then there's devices like Crime Light Auto that also help enhance a fingerprint in the field.
• 29:00
  Speaker 2: And then you got good old fashioned detective work.
• 29:02
  Speaker 2: Oh yeah so you've been on the podcast before you were an officer at the time I was a patrol officer and that was uh season one and since then obviously you've become a detective so how's that going for you?
• 29:14
  Speaker 7: Aaron Ross Powell Oh pretty good I get to work with lovely people like Tess over here and get to kind of work in the background now instead of on patrol which is different but a lot more paperwork than I thought I was going to be and you're one of the younger ones in the criminal investigations division.
• 29:33
  Speaker 2: At least I look younger you uh no you are I mean you've you got some folks over there that are about ready to retire.
• 29:39
  Speaker 2: Oh yeah uh I mean one we just Phil Allen just did of course no relation due test right I've just no relation but he's a wonderful man.
• 29:47
  Speaker 2: He's a good dude just didn't know.
• 29:49
  Speaker 2: Oh yeah Uncle Phil I don't know I didn't have had no idea he's not Uncle Philation for the for the record.
• 29:55
  Speaker 2: Do you have any aspirations within criminal investigations division?
• 29:58
  Speaker 2: I mean major case or computer crimes or anything like that.
• 30:00
  Speaker 7: You're just going to keep going general really wherever they need me.
• 30:03
  Speaker 7: I'm I'm pretty flexible and I would like to um just learn all I can really because there's so much experience up there and just uh so much knowledge I just love learning from them.
• 30:13
  Speaker 2: And teamwork makes the dream work.
• 30:14
  Speaker 2: So guys keep working together and doing your thing over there right yeah forensic services technician Tess Allen Detective Ryan Begley all right Wonder Twin Powers activate good job on that one.
• 30:24
  Speaker 2: Thank you.
• 30:24
  Speaker 1: Thank you.
• 30:26
  Speaker 2: Joining me now from the Asheville Police Foundation are David Plyler and Miranda Bowman.
• 30:31
  Speaker 2: Guys thanks for coming we got some super cool events coming up we're going to talk about one of them the boo dash but let's start at the beginning because there's still people out there and it's only been around since 2023 that don't really know what the Asheville Police Foundation is, its affiliation to the APD, how it relates, what you do, what you can do, what you can't do.
• 30:53
  Speaker 2: Now David, you were there from the beginning so let's sure let's start there why was the Asheville Police Foundation formed?
• 31:01
  Speaker 4: So the foundation was a I think a brainchild of former chief Zach wanted to create a mechanism for equipment officers had needs where they had a a good example is like a house fire if an officer's house burns down they're gonna need some immediate assistance and the foundation's there to provide that.
• 31:20
  Speaker 4: If you've got equipment that may not be you know budgeted or training or there's just not the budget for it but it's it's a need for an agency then the foundation can help with that.
• 31:30
  Speaker 4: So I think that is the the reason it was put together and founded.
• 31:35
  Speaker 4: We really got started in earnest in 24 uh with Helene.
• 31:40
  Speaker 4: We'd had some meetings prior to that but had not really got rolling.
• 31:43
  Speaker 4: So we were I would say thrown into the fire pretty quick when all that happened to our area here.
• 31:49
  Speaker 2: We had some officers that desperately needed your help and you guys came through after Helene.
• 31:53
  Speaker 4: I think we had thirteen officers or employees of law enforcement agencies and not just uh Asheville police but uh surrounding Buncombe County I know we had some in Madison County some in Yancey County that lost everything or nearly everything.
• 32:09
  Speaker 4: There were several that the only thing they had really was, you know, they were at work when when this all happened and then their house is gone and they've got their uniform that they're wearing and that's about it.
• 32:20
  Speaker 4: And so the foundation and obviously we did not have like everybody else here during that time we didn't have communications.
• 32:26
  Speaker 4: Once we got some cell service back up and you know the the days following that we had a string of essentially meetings, remote meetings.
• 32:35
  Speaker 4: We couldn't meet in person but we needed to get funds to people.
• 32:39
  Speaker 4: I mean they they needed basic toiletries uh clothing you know if if all they had is their uniform that's tough.
• 32:46
  Speaker 4: So we were trying to get some cash in their hands pretty quickly so they could not have you know have one less worry where they can focus on the other stuff that's going on because everything as you know everything was crazier then.
• 32:57
  Speaker 4: Um so I think that helped alleviate that and again that kind of spread out because it's not just Asheville we do carry the name the Asheville Police Foundation but we're a separate entity from the city of Asheville from the Asheville Police Department.
• 33:11
  Speaker 4: Uh we are a nonprofit uh qualified nonprofit we are governed by a volunteer board of directors so we carry that name but we're we're not here just for Asheville it's kind of the surrounding law enforcement agencies and officers as well speaking of volunteer board of directors Miranda you're one of those yes when did you join I was asked to join early 25 after Helene Tanger I'm the GM at Tanger and we assisted the foundation with um some donations and after that I just I fell in love with what they do and had you know friends that worked for the police department.
• 33:50
  Speaker 8: So for me it was like it was more of a you know a personal like I want to be a part of that.
• 33:56
  Speaker 8: I want to help and Captain Moore he asked me if I would consider joining the board and here we are.
• 34:03
  Speaker 2: You're here today representing the police foundation but Tanger outlets as you mentioned they they have done a lot for the APD in particular we've got our West Asheville Resource Center out there.
• 34:15
  Speaker 2: That's right which is great which is fantastic.
• 34:17
  Speaker 2: We have events out there as well and Tanker has been a big supporter of the APD so uh those two things really do kind of jive hand in hand don't they?
• 34:26
  Speaker 8: They do they do and and for us it's like Tanger obviously is pro-police and you know we want to do everything we can to support our community.
• 34:35
  Speaker 8: That's one of our uh values and what better way to do that than through the police department but me personally it's nice because like I have so many different interests like I'm best I'm invested with the foundation with the police department with Tanger.
• 34:51
  Speaker 8: I want them all to succeed and grow and be connected and it's it's been a really great partnership.
• 34:56
  Speaker 2: I'm one of those old school guys obviously by my hairline you can tell I'm old keyword being old but I don't live too far from Tanger.
• 35:03
  Speaker 2: Yeah I like still visiting stores and shopping in stores I know everyone likes going online now but I'm grateful for Tanger being there because a few of my favorite stores are there.
• 35:13
  Speaker 2: Yeah Under Armour, Nike, J crew I'm like thank you.
• 35:18
  Speaker 2: Yeah because there wasn't really anything in our side of town.
• 35:21
  Speaker 8: No I mean there was the old Biltmore Square mall but that thing was slowly dying and so thank you actually Yeah no there's definitely instant gratification being able to physically go and buy what you want touch it and buy it and you know and it's nice too because you know it's a clean environment it's family friendly and now we have the police resource center there so people feel safe.
• 35:44
  Speaker 8: So it's yeah it's definitely I mean I'm a little partial but I think it's a great place to talk about the police foundation and and some of the things that people maybe some misconceptions.
• 35:56
  Speaker 2: David you probably speak to this a little a little bit you already have a little but exactly what it is what it isn't and what it does and what it can't do.
• 36:07
  Speaker 2: Sure.
• 36:08
  Speaker 2: Kind of if you can lay some of that out because I know there's been some some big improvements in our technology and things that we have because of the police foundation that maybe some people thought came otherwise.
• 36:18
  Speaker 4: Yeah so governments can't necessarily just receive donations there's some rules and and guidelines that have to go through that the foundation is a nonprofit so we can receive uh donations or equipment and stuff and then we can donate that to the entity.
• 36:35
  Speaker 4: So we've especially during Helene uh right after that we the the outpouring of support for the police department uh and other law enforcement agencies through the foundation was pretty incredible and it and it didn't stop.
• 36:49
  Speaker 4: We just we had a ton of donations coming in we had some stuff that was you know earmarked for certain things.
• 36:55
  Speaker 4: People said hey we've got this equipment we want to to donate it and so we uh we helped facilitate that.
• 37:02
  Speaker 8: Yeah Tanger was one of them with the fly cart drone.
• 37:04
  Speaker 8: You know we we said hey how can we help?
• 37:07
  Speaker 8: And they said this is what we need and so we purchased it and gave it to the foundation and then the foundation was able to give it to you which was invaluable at that time.
• 37:18
  Speaker 2: And how many police departments have one of those?
• 37:20
  Speaker 2: I d I don't know an exact number but not many.
• 37:23
  Speaker 4: Yeah yeah so some of those things we have because of the foundation many other police departments don't sure and so we've we've got on our website we've got a uh request form and people can send in a request if there's a funding need for the agency for an officer or an employee of the agency they can go in there and send it in and really what we tell people is the more information you can put in that the bigger picture that we'll have.
• 37:49
  Speaker 4: And the board of course we're we have to be fiscally responsible you know manage the funds that are coming in.
• 37:55
  Speaker 4: So not every request that we get is going to be approved.
• 37:59
  Speaker 4: You know we've got our mission for the foundation and not everything is going to align with that but we try to help as much as as much as we can and we have funded uh I would say more requests than not.
• 38:12
  Speaker 4: I use the example of a house fire.
• 38:14
  Speaker 4: We uh we I know we had one not too long ago that had a house fire some pretty substantial damage and so the foundation was able to assist with that.
• 38:22
  Speaker 4: Things from the flood there were there were you know I've found that law enforcement oftentimes are too proud to ask for help.
• 38:30
  Speaker 4: And I understand that but at the same time that's what we're here for.
• 38:34
  Speaker 4: So we had some folks that had some pretty substantial damage to homes or you know personal belongings that they didn't necessarily ask for help.
• 38:43
  Speaker 4: So we had people submit requests on their behalf.
• 38:46
  Speaker 4: I think when those were funded they were certainly grateful for it and appreciate they've got friends looking out for them.
• 38:52
  Speaker 4: But we try and balance everything to make sure that it's matching what what our purpose is.
• 38:57
  Speaker 2: It's tough for first responders to ask for help or even just accept help that is offered because you we're the helpers.
• 39:03
  Speaker 2: And so that's the natural inclination is to help others and when it comes to you know needing it yourself you're just kind of a little bit more standoffish.
• 39:10
  Speaker 2: Sure.
• 39:10
  Speaker 2: So it's great that you guys just kind of step in like that.
• 39:12
  Speaker 2: More than just donations you do a lot of fun events and that's one of the ways you raise money.
• 39:17
  Speaker 2: I bet some people went to the recent uh barbecue event at Highland Brewing not even realizing that it was the Ashville Police Fund.
• 39:25
  Speaker 4: Yeah that's one of the uh we've got a few we started uh earlier this year we started a Cops and Clays uh Sporting Clays tournament out at uh the Builtmore Sporting Clays Club uh that was a great uh event for the first time we're we've already got it booked for uh next May I believe I'll have to look at the date but uh we expect a bigger turnout for that and we'd you know love to have some we had a couple officers come out and shoot in that and kind of like golf with a shotgun.
• 39:51
  Speaker 2: So I was out there a few years more than a few years ago I forget what it was maybe it's seven or eight years ago.
• 39:55
  Speaker 2: It wasn't for this particular one but I didn't even realize that was there at Biltmore Estate actually begins basically at Brevard Road.
• 40:03
  Speaker 2: So people don't go and realize and it was much bigger back in the day obviously Vanderbilt had himself a whole lot of land but it's right there and what a facility that is.
• 40:12
  Speaker 8: That did you shoot Miranda you're I didn't my kids play travel ball and I was totally tied up at the ball field that day but um I did help David with organizing it but um I did not get to next year I told him it's on my calendar I won't miss it.
• 40:28
  Speaker 4: I I can see you being a Jedi right I I will try.
• 40:30
  Speaker 4: And we I know uh Charlotte uh Mecklenburg Police Department they've got a sporting clays competition team and they go all over and they were uh gonna try and make this one that didn't work out but uh we're hopeful to have them next year and maybe maybe uh some folks at Asheville want to have some competition there.
• 40:47
  Speaker 2: They'd be some ringers I would guess right to start practicing now.
• 40:50
  Speaker 2: Yeah I know you are good at it as well.
• 40:52
  Speaker 2: You're you got a side thing going on with your duck hunting and all of that other stuff.
• 40:57
  Speaker 2: So I imagine you're pretty good at the clays as well.
• 40:59
  Speaker 3: I I'd do all right.
• 41:00
  Speaker 3: Trevor Burrus You're being bashful at this point I think I think there's there's people that shoot better.
• 41:05
  Speaker 2: Well there's always somebody that shoots better.
• 41:07
  Speaker 2: Speaking of events we've got one coming up who wants to talk about it?
• 41:11
  Speaker 8: I'll talk about it.
• 41:12
  Speaker 8: All right Miranda this will be our first annual Boo Dash 5K we are hosting it at Tanger so it will be around our property through the center.
• 41:22
  Speaker 8: It's really exciting it is a costume it's nice because we want we want it to be fun.
• 41:27
  Speaker 8: We want people to enjoy themselves again we're about community and and I think it would be really cool to have people come out in their costumes group costumes run in the 5K and it's for a good cause yeah like to know your costume.
• 41:40
  Speaker 8: I didn't say I was dressing up okay I will dress up no I will dress up you don't have to twist my arm.
• 41:45
  Speaker 8: No we have so we have our like all this like fun Halloween stuff happening at the center at Tanger.
• 41:54
  Speaker 8: So I was like oh you know what if we're gonna have it here because we have our boo bash every year and it's the weekend prior or the weekend after so I was like all right we're gonna name this boo dash and then we've got boobash too.
• 42:06
  Speaker 8: So trying to tie it in, especially with the resource being center being there, then you know we can really make it a fun event.
• 42:13
  Speaker 2: Trevor Burrus Yeah I mean there's a lot of 5Ks but I think people enjoy the stuff where there's still something else like the costume which is it's October 18th which is coming up there's still time to sign up for it.
• 42:23
  Speaker 2: So there's a 5K run and walk if you got kids then you aren't going to go that far and they're not they're gonna get distracted.
• 42:29
  Speaker 2: Yeah we'll have a little fun run quickly they'll get distracted but you know they love dressing up that's right.
• 42:34
  Speaker 8: So and now is there candy for the kids at this because it will we will have a surprise for or something for the energy get some sugar in their system.
• 42:44
  Speaker 8: They might make it through yeah we might need that for the adults I don't know what you're talking about but there we might be needing it for all the runners.
• 42:50
  Speaker 2: Aaron Ross Powell let's say it's got what a quarter mile kid friendly loop in the center?
• 42:54
  Speaker 2: Okay.
• 42:54
  Speaker 2: Yeah a finisher coin t-shirt the coin is cool we're collecting the challenge coins now.
• 42:59
  Speaker 8: Trevor Burrus It is it we wanted to tie that in because it is something that police department does something the foundation does but it is a two-sided finisher coin and then we have medals for the for the winners at the end and then everyone gets a t-shirt for signing up and participating.
• 43:16
  Speaker 8: So people want to sign up if they want to run where do they go there's three different options they can go to our actual website Asheville Police Foundation it has a list of anytime we have events that's where you can go and find it.
• 43:29
  Speaker 8: If you want to make donations and you don't want to participate in the event you can go to that website Ashevillepolicefoundation.org I think is what it is right.
• 43:37
  Speaker 8: And then you can go to Tanger that we have our event listings there, the website.
• 43:42
  Speaker 8: And then you can also go to Kick It Events which is who is helping us manage the event.
• 43:47
  Speaker 2: Aaron Ross Powell Okay so as we're planning for next year and coming up what do we have we got some big events we got new events we just going to keep with the ones that have been successful just keep doing those?
• 43:57
  Speaker 4: So we we've had some successful events and we're looking at Some other alternatives, I think, uh for the people that don't shoot well, we're maybe looking at a golf tournament alternative.
• 44:07
  Speaker 4: I'm not a golfer, but I I am.
• 44:09
  Speaker 2: But I also but yeah, that also applies as far as for people that don't shoot well.
• 44:12
  Speaker 2: That's my golf game as well.
• 44:15
  Speaker 2: So you gotta do the barbecue again, right?
• 44:17
  Speaker 2: How many years has that been?
• 44:18
  Speaker 4: Uh so we had our barbecue competition.
• 44:20
  Speaker 4: This was the sixth year uh that we've done that.
• 44:24
  Speaker 4: Uh just got done with that.
• 44:25
  Speaker 4: It's been in September every year.
• 44:26
  Speaker 4: The uh the sporting clays tournament in May, uh Boo Dash obviously in October, and then uh I would say look out for some other stuff coming.
• 44:36
  Speaker 4: If you're not following the Foundation Facebook page, uh that's out there, it's the Ashville Police Foundation.
• 44:41
  Speaker 4: Uh just go on there.
• 44:42
  Speaker 4: We we try and post everything up there and uh new events and you know if anybody's got questions about the foundation, we're happy to answer them.
• 44:50
  Speaker 4: You can email us, you can send us a message on the Facebook page.
• 44:53
  Speaker 4: We're here for officers, we're here for the agencies, and you know, not just in uh you know the sad times uh when when you need help.
• 45:01
  Speaker 4: I mean obviously that's that's one of our primary focuses.
• 45:04
  Speaker 4: But if there's um advanced training, I know uh when I was working in law enforcement, a lot of times there was good quality training that you just didn't have the the budget for.
• 45:14
  Speaker 4: Um so those kind of things we're looking at.
• 45:16
  Speaker 4: If there's specialized equipment that you know will fit the mission of the agency and may not be in the budget, then uh it it's worth talking to us about because again, we're here to further the mission for law enforcement and and to help uh our officers and agencies.
• 45:33
  Speaker 2: And it's Asheville Police Foundation.org.
• 45:35
  Speaker 2: That's right.
• 45:36
  Speaker 2: That is the website.
• 45:37
  Speaker 2: So if you want to know anything about the event, the boo dash coming up on the eighteenth, or just the foundation in general, that is where you go.
• 45:44
  Speaker 2: That's it.
• 45:45
  Speaker 2: David Plyler and Miranda Bowman, thank you very much for joining us today.
• 45:48
  Speaker 2: Thanks for having us.
• 45:49
  Speaker 8: Thanks so much.
• 45:51
  Speaker 2: That does it for another episode of the APD Pod Squad.
• 45:55
  Speaker 2: Thank you to my guests, Chief of Police Jackie, Snepp, Detective Ryan Begley, and forensic services technician Tess Allen, and from the Asheville Police Foundation, David Plyler and Miranda Bowman.
• 46:06
  Speaker 2: As always, thank you for listening.
• 46:08
  Speaker 2: Got a comment, question, or topic suggestion, just call 828-250-8800 and leave a voicemail.
• 46:14
  Speaker 2: That's 828-250-8800.
• 46:17
  Speaker 2: You can also email APD Podcastfeedback at AshevilleNC.gov.
• 46:23
  Speaker 2: Listen and subscribe now wherever you get your podcasts and don't miss a single episode.
• 46:28
  Speaker 2: Tell a friend, family member, or even your Uber driver.
• 46:31
  Speaker 2: I'm Rick Rice, and this is the APD Pod Squad.