Latest / APD Pod Squad / Episode 14; SPO Mackenzie Galyean, Chief Mike Lamb, SPO Debbie LeCroy & Officer Kora, and The History Minute with Hannah Silberman

Transcript

Episode 14; SPO Mackenzie Galyean, Chief Mike Lamb, SPO Debbie LeCroy & Officer Kora, and The History Minute with Hannah Silberman · APD Pod Squad

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_04: This is the APD Pod Squad.
• 0:04
  SPEAKER_04: March is Women's History Month, and coming up in this episode, the first of two in the month of March, where we celebrate the accomplishments of history-making women within the Asheville Police Department.
• 0:17
  SPEAKER_04: So today, we're going to kick things off with the first female defensive tactics instructor at the Asheville Police Department.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_04: Senior Police Officer Mackenzie Galliott will be joining us.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_04: The History Minute with Hannah Silberman will celebrate some female officers that played a large role during World War II.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_04: I'll be joined by Officer Debbie LaCroix of the Community Engagement Division and Officer Cora, the APD therapy dog.
• 0:43
  SPEAKER_04: And Chief Mike Lamb will join us to discuss the 2024 crime statistics.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_04: Thanks for joining me.
• 0:49
  SPEAKER_04: I'm Rick Rice, and this is the APD Pod Squad.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_04: Let's get to know Senior Police Officer Mackenzie Gallion.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_04: Officer Gallion, thanks for joining me.
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_03: It's great to be here.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_04: You know, unlike the television piece that you did recently, I pronounced your name correctly.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_04: I'm sure you saw that.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_04: I think they said Gallion It's a unique name.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_06: Yeah.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_04: It really is.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_04: And you're a unique person.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_04: And uh so as we celebrate the Asheville Police Department's 150th anniversary as a department, and March is women's history month, you'd be the perfect person to be sitting in that chair because you recently made history.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_04: Let's just jump into it right there with your defensive tactics instruction.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_04: You're the first female officer with the Asheville Police Department to have that title.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_04: So tell us about that, the process that you went through, how it came to be, and the fact that you're a jujitsu black belt or purple belt.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_03: On the way to black.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_03: On the way to black.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_04: I know you'll get there.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_04: So tell me about that a little bit.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_03: I couldn't imagine seven years ago when I first started here that I would be like wanting to be an instructor, uh, comfortable enough to be an instructor, because back in the day when I first started, I had like zero confidence.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_03: And so coming in as a female, especially a smaller female, for all you guys listening, I'm 5'1, 113, so tiny.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I had no confidence in my physical ability to be able to handle people uh when I needed to.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_03: So my beat partner John was like, hey, do some jujitsu, it'll help.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_03: And I did some jujitsu, fell in love, feel a lot more confident, and that turned into me wanting to teach other female cops, other, you know, any type of officer who's not feeling competent how to feel competent in themselves.
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_03: So this past year, I went to SCAT instructor school, loved every second of it, and now we're here and I'm about to instruct my first B L E T class at the start of this next week.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_04: So I know a few people that have taken up martial arts over the years, and a lot of the origin stories begin the same, just like yours.
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_04: It's like for confidence for that type of thing.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_04: So it's not like you know, you see the MMA on TV.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_04: It's like not so I can just go and kick some butt.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_04: A lot of is to develop that confidence that you have in yourself of your abilities, and in your case, specifically to help you do your job.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_03: Exactly.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_04: Because if you did not have confidence out there in the streets, I couldn't imagine you'd be very effective.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, yeah.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_03: No, I would be the opposite of effective.
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_04: You'd be afraid of your own shadow.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_03: Essentially, and I would maybe go for something on my belt that I didn't need to that would get me in trouble or someone else hurt.
• 3:18
  SPEAKER_04: So tell us about being an instructor.
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_04: Take us through that process.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_04: Like when you have a class, when you host a class and someone comes in and sees you, as you mentioned, kind of small.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_04: If they haven't seen you before, they're like, wait a second.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_04: Do they doubt a little bit?
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_03: Um I'm sure that they probably do.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_03: But once they see me teach and they see me instruct them and how down-to-earth and like just how generally like I just want to help people, I feel like that changes a lot of people's minds because I have the evidence to back it up.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_04: As we get to know people that sit in the chair that you're in right there in front of that microphone, we ask a couple of questions.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_04: And if you've heard the podcast before, you know the question.
• 3:57
  SPEAKER_04: So we'll start with where are you from?
• 3:59
  SPEAKER_04: Where were you born?
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_03: Born here in Asheville.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_04: See, you're one of those.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_03: I'm a native.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, you're one of the rare rare breed, right?
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_04: My wife is also an Asheville native, and people look at her like, You're from here?
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_04: Because so few people are.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_04: So where'd you graduate?
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_03: Pisgah High School.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_04: Pisgah High School.
• 4:15
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 4:15
  SPEAKER_03: Fantastic.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_03: Paywood County.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_04: Canton girl.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_04: All right.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_04: I like the golf out there at Springdale.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_04: It's nice.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_03: It's beautiful.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_04: The whole area is actually very nice.
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_04: So, okay, so local, that's awesome.
• 4:25
  SPEAKER_04: You didn't have to come from anywhere and get acclimated.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_04: You know the area already.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_04: Yes.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_04: The other question we'd like to ask is what's the one thing that some people that know you would be surprised to know about you?
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_04: Something that's unique.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_03: I play the ukulele.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_04: See, that's unique.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_04: The ukulele.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_04: So that's got to have a story behind it because there's so many instruments you could choose unless you somehow are raised in Hawaii or a personal friend of Don Ho or something along those lines.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_04: So how did you come to play the ukulele?
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_03: I saw a guy at a soccer match just playing a ukulele, acting like the coolest guy ever.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_03: And I was like, I was in high school and I was like, I want to learn to do that.
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_03: And so my parents were like, we're not gonna just get you on.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_03: Like, you have to prove that you really want it.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_03: I ran cross-country at the time.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_03: So, like, if you do really well at a cross-country meet, we'll get you the ukulele.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_03: And so I ran like a 1933 at one of the meets for 5k.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, it was pretty good.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_03: And so, and it was like months later, and they're like, Okay, you still want it.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_03: And I was like, Yes, I want the ukulele, please live in the ukulele.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_03: And so they did, and I've been playing it ever since.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_04: So, can you play other guitar-ish instruments or no?
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_03: My hands are so small, I feel like it'd be a lot of contorting.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_04: So the ukulele, you look huge compared to it, right?
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_03: It's like it's my guitar, you know what I'm saying?
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_04: So come Christmas time, everyone requests that one song, me licimaca.
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_04: Is it do you know that one?
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_03: I don't know that one.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_04: I did not know that one.
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_03: Never played it.
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_04: Okay, well, that now you have a mission for this for this next Christmas.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_04: You gotta bring it to the next party and bust that thing.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_04: So did you take lessons or just self-taught?
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_04: Oh, really?
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_04: Okay, so like you bought like a booklet and just kind of and just started.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_04: Wow.
• 6:01
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, it's not that hard.
• 6:02
  SPEAKER_03: Only four strings.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_04: Is that what it is?
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_04: I honestly I've never looked at a ukulele that close before.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_04: You just you kind of see it, it's almost like a toy instrument, but it's real.
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_06: Yeah.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, especially in like places like Hawaii, there's a certain heritage with it and all of those different things.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_04: So do you sometimes just bust it out at a party and you know, people are Sometimes it makes me nervous.
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_03: Messed up, and I can't sing well.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_04: So Well, you don't have to sing.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_04: True.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_04: You just get the going, and everybody else just kind of follows along.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_04: True.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_04: So seven years in the department, patrol officer currently.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_06: Yes.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_04: And also, obviously, as we mentioned, defensive tactics instructor.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_04: What else are your aspirations?
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_04: Do you have any kind of design on another department or another position within the department?
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_03: I really want to become a detective.
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I'm doing their internship right now, which I love because it g lets me take a look at what's going on up there when I do go up there.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_03: Um so hopefully that comes to fruition uh in a in a year, couple years, something like that.
• 7:01
  SPEAKER_04: Aaron Powell Is this where you envision spending your entire career?
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_04: Because obviously born in Asheville and you know part of the Asheville Police Department.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_04: I wouldn't think you'd want to move away and and see the world, but is that something you were you ever thought about?
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_03: I have no intention of moving and I love this police department.
• 7:17
  SPEAKER_03: You know, I've I'm glad that I stayed through all the hard times.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_03: And it's just a great place to work.
• 7:21
  SPEAKER_03: Like I genuinely love working here.
• 7:23
  SPEAKER_03: I love the people I work with, I love our chief, you know, I love everybody.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_03: I think we're all coming together and doing a great job to help make this department survive right now.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_04: So you would have joined it, was it 17 or 18?
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_04: Was your 18.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_03: Well, 17, but I can't was sworn in.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_04: So just kind of getting your feet wet and then 2020 arrives, and then the whole thing gets turned upside down.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_04: Because you had just mentioned you're glad you've been here through the hard times.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_04: Those were the hard times.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_04: So what what was that like that at that particular time?
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_04: All of a sudden you're you know, you're kind of in your dream job, you know, you've been on ground for a couple of years, and then that, and all of a sudden the community doesn't support you anymore.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_04: All of a sudden you went from being, let's just say, a a good person to a bad person and you've done nothing wrong.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 8:06
  SPEAKER_04: Well, how does that affect, like you say, your your confidence and all of those things?
• 8:10
  SPEAKER_03: I think it affected my confidence that much.
• 8:13
  SPEAKER_03: It it definitely changed the way that we police now just because, you know, the backlash was so immense, you know, and we lost so many people.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_03: And so you're when you're playing defense, you know, it's kind of hard to get into that proactive offense mindset.
• 8:27
  SPEAKER_03: And it just kind of changed the way it was for a couple years, you know, with COVID and everything.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_03: But I think we're coming back around.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_03: I think we're coming back around.
• 8:35
  SPEAKER_04: It seems to be the general consensus.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_04: Others have said a similar thing than you just said right there.
• 8:40
  SPEAKER_04: It's just that listen, those that stuck around that are here now, it's kind of the cream of the crop.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_04: The people that were willing to fight for the department, and now the ranks are growing.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_04: So what will it mean to you as an officer, a patrol officer, to have more available, to have more patrol officers as part of this department?
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, like I'm very passionate about explaining and showing to people who like I'm an FTO as well.
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_03: So I'm training Grace right now and she's excellent.
• 9:05
  SPEAKER_03: But just showing them like why this is such a great department to work for and why it's like like you should want to stay here.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_03: Like, here's all the reasons that you should want to stay.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_03: So hopefully we can all all of us band together and get that point across to the people coming in, and I hope that we can make them want to stay here.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_04: FTO for the non-law enforcement folks, uh field training officer.
• 9:24
  SPEAKER_04: So you're you're in a leadership position of sorts already.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_04: Uh when did you make the decision to become a field training officer in FTO?
• 9:32
  SPEAKER_03: Two years ago.
• 9:32
  SPEAKER_03: Just hasn't been too long.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_04: Just something you wanted to do and help others and and you know, teach them what you've learned.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, yeah.
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_04: And be a mentor.
• 9:40
  SPEAKER_03: Exactly.
• 9:40
  SPEAKER_03: Especially to females, just because I feel like it's so important to feel seen and heard.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, in March with Women's History Month, we have History Making SPO, Senior Police Officer Mackenzie Gallian joining us now.
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_04: And here's something that people wouldn't know.
• 9:54
  SPEAKER_04: And I just noticed yesterday at our breakfast, uh, you got a nice shot, basketball.
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_04: We're we're up there.
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_04: So we're having breakfast at a kind of a group breakfast, and we happen to be at a local church's gym, and it's a nice gym.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_04: And there you are at half court.
• 10:07
  SPEAKER_04: I'm I'm walking out there just to kind of chuck a couple.
• 10:10
  SPEAKER_04: You launch one from half court, slam down, right boom, right in the hole there.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_04: So you must have played.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_03: I did, yeah.
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_03: I played in high school.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_04: Okay, so for for Pisgah?
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_03: I did, yeah.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_03: All right.
• 10:19
  SPEAKER_03: Point guard.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, I would guess that.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_04: I wouldn't think you were lining up at center and jumping at ball.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_04: So you ran, you played basketball, anything else?
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_03: Softball.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_03: Little everything.
• 10:31
  SPEAKER_04: So all that.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_04: So you you sound like somebody that just likes to stay active.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, between the jujitsu and everything else.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_03: I really do.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_03: I think it's very important for your mental and physical health.
• 10:41
  SPEAKER_04: Well, thank you so much for sitting down with us today.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_04: We appreciate you taking time.
• 10:44
  SPEAKER_04: I know you're in uniform, you're on the job right now, you got to go back out there.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_03: No, thank you.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_03: Thank you.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_04: Mackenzie Gallion, senior police officer, and the first female defensive tactics instructor at the Asheville Police Department.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_04: With the first two months of 2025 in the books, it's a perfect time to look back on last year, 2024, and the crime statistics and what they tell us.
• 11:06
  SPEAKER_04: Asheville Police Chief Mike Lamb is here to do just that.
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_04: Sounds good, right?
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_04: You've got a pile of numbers there in front of you now that we're a few months into 2025.
• 11:14
  SPEAKER_04: But recently we've had a few news outlets give their take on what the numbers mean.
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_04: Now, here's your chance to share your thoughts.
• 11:21
  SPEAKER_01: I definitely see all the numbers like everybody else sees.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, but it did it's important to put context to those.
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_01: So I appreciate the opportunity to be able to do that.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_01: When I was on the radio the other day, I said, Do you want the good news or the bad news first?
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_01: And uh he said the good news.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_01: So I I said, Well, the the good news is is that we are down four percent in violent crime compared to last year.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_01: And um looking at property crime, we are down thirteen percent compared to the previous year also.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um now those come with some caveats.
• 11:49
  SPEAKER_01: So like we try to look at every year.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_01: So we look at what the trend looks like for the last five years, and then we even go back further to look to see what it was like before the pandemic, because the when the pandemic hit us, it changed the numbers due to the the quarantines, uh, the riots, the schools being out.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_01: You know, there are so many different things that that we have to factor into why crime stats changed in 2020.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_01: So, first let's look at property crime.
• 12:16
  SPEAKER_01: Property crime has gradually decreased over the last five years.
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_01: Every year there's been a little bit more of a decrease.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I wish that was from proactive policing efforts and I wish it was from better community awareness.
• 12:29
  SPEAKER_01: But um, I think the main reason that property crime has decreased is because of the change in reporting.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_01: For the public to remember, whenever we started losing people in 2020, 2021, and 2022, we had um lost a large chunk of our of our agency and we were consistently down 40 percent.
• 12:48
  SPEAKER_01: So we've been running, you know, we're supposed to have 238 officers, and we've been running with like 170, 175.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_01: The number fluctuates up and down a little bit, but it is, I think the most we've had has been like 47%.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah and then and then it's you know down to I want to say 38%.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_01: When we're talking about what our functional operating officers are, because those are the ones that impact how well we are able to respond to calls for service.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_01: Whenever we lost all those officers, we had to enact a protocol change.
• 13:20
  SPEAKER_01: So what the protocol is as far as responding to calls for service now is if somebody experienced a property crime or a theft, a car break-in, a crime like that, then if the crime is a cold crime, meaning it's not in progress and there's no evidence left behind, then officers are not going to respond to that call for service.
• 13:43
  SPEAKER_01: So then the responsibility to make the report is on the victim in the crime.
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um same thing with uh shoplifting and and certain thefts.
• 13:51
  SPEAKER_01: If the offender is not on scene, there's no evidence for the officer to collect, then it's up to the business or the person, uh just their responsibility to make a report.
• 14:02
  SPEAKER_04: Instead of the officer going there, writing it all down and filling out that report himself and just you know occupying that time.
• 14:07
  SPEAKER_04: Exactly.
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_04: Yes.
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_04: Okay.
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_04: So let's clarify for people what some of these terms mean.
• 14:12
  SPEAKER_04: Yes.
• 14:12
  SPEAKER_04: A lot of people that are listening are familiar with law enforcement and whatnot, but explain exactly what property crime means.
• 14:19
  SPEAKER_04: What type of things would qualify for that?
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_04: I know it's rudimentary, yes, and it's something that you know people in the cop world know exactly what that means, but some people that are just regular civilians don't understand exactly what property crime is.
• 14:34
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so property crime has a range of crimes that it's uh is referring to, and that is crimes that only damage or take property.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_01: And so we're talking about like uh uh graffiti crimes, uh damage to property where someone's broken a window or something like that.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_01: Thefts.
• 14:51
  SPEAKER_01: The range of thefts from where you have because we have like larceny from person, larceny for motor vehicle, a car break-in, and then we have shoplifting, or we have uh larceny other, which is so where somebody's like say they steal a plant from somebody's yard or steal a package from a front porch.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_01: So th that qualifies as as property crime is uh that's just uh an example of of some of the main property crimes that we have.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_04: So to clarify, shoplifting at a business is a property crime.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_04: So I think some people probably misunderstand the word property when it applies here.
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_04: Like if I would just think property, I would think my property, my house.
• 15:31
  SPEAKER_04: So it's not necessarily all residential crimes.
• 15:34
  SPEAKER_04: This is all things somebody's property.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_04: Somebody owns this thing that's been damaged or stolen.
• 15:39
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 15:40
  SPEAKER_01: So it's both residential and commercial.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_04: Okay.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_04: So it covers all of that.
• 15:43
  SPEAKER_01: There's reasons why the numbers were down, as you just mentioned.
• 15:47
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and so you know, we we wanted to do an analysis to see what you know, we we assumed that numbers were down because of underreporting.
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_01: And so what we did was we pulled theft reports from some of our big box stores.
• 15:59
  SPEAKER_01: So we looked at, I believe it was four different stores that routinely have shoplifting cases every year.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_01: And uh when we did the analysis on on these stores in 2022, all of the stores showed a drastic decline in shoplifting or theft cases.
• 16:16
  SPEAKER_01: One store in particular showed that they had zero theft cases over a year's time frame.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_01: At a store that we completely and confidently knew that they were experiencing shoplifting.
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_01: It's just because of staffing losses for us, but also for corporations and for different businesses, you know, they have to focus their their personnel on what's most important.
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_01: And so I guess some of these corporations felt like, you know, doing property reports and um following up on shoplifting was was not the most important thing to do.
• 16:47
  SPEAKER_04: So they did not completely eradicate shoplifting from that particular store, which would affect the numbers overall.
• 16:53
  SPEAKER_04: Exactly.
• 16:53
  SPEAKER_04: So things were still happening, they're just not reporting it.
• 16:56
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, yes.
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_01: And we know, you know, with the general public also, with you know, with residents, with people that live in a neighborhood, you know, a lot of times they're they're busy for work, like uh, you know, I've I've heard cases of somebody coming out to their car, finding that their car was broken into, like the door was open, changes taken out of the car.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_01: But they say, you know, I've got to be at work, nothing major is taken.
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_01: I'm not gonna do a report for this.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_01: When um prior to 2020, what we would see are like rashes of carbonese, where somebody would start at one side of a neighborhood, break into multiple cars, and then the officer would come out and take multiple reports, and the officer was doing the bulk of the work.
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_01: That also took a lot of time.
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_06: Yeah.
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_01: So then we really had to refocus on, you know, how are officers spending the spending their time because if they're tied up on a like a rash of car BEs, that's you know, a couple of hours that they're out of service.
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_01: And so what we really had to focus on was what is our most important responsibility, and that's when somebody calls 911 and says there's a crime in progress that we have officers that are able to go to that call and make it in a reasonable time.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_04: Police Chief Mike Lamb joins me.
• 18:00
  SPEAKER_04: We're talking about the 2024 crime statistics.
• 18:03
  SPEAKER_04: So we talked about property crime.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_04: What else jumps out to you as part of that report?
• 18:07
  SPEAKER_04: What other numbers indicate something to you and what were those?
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so we had uh violent crime went down slightly, the uh four percent.
• 18:14
  SPEAKER_01: If you look at the graph, it's kind of holding steady.
• 18:17
  SPEAKER_01: So if you look at 2020, the numbers in 2020, 2021, 2023, and 24 are all pretty much the same.
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_01: So you have you know slight deviation.
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_01: However, when we look at 2022, we have a drastic increase.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_01: That was a record year for us for violent crime.
• 18:36
  SPEAKER_01: In 2023, when we said crime went down drastically, well, it's because we had a historic year for violent crime in 2022.
• 18:42
  SPEAKER_04: The previous year, yeah.
• 18:43
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and most of those are driven by aggravated assaults.
• 18:46
  SPEAKER_01: So we had, you know, a lot of different factors in the community with things that were going on in 2022.
• 18:51
  SPEAKER_01: We had, you know, large encampments that had been set up in and around downtown.
• 18:55
  SPEAKER_01: Um, we had some uh violent crime conflicts that were happening between certain neighborhoods, and so a lot of that drove up uh violent crime that year.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_01: You know, and one thing and looking at 2022 also there were people that had COVID relief or uh vouchers for rent, and that's the year that that went away as well.
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_01: So that's when we saw people that were housed that were now unhoused because they were not getting that COVID rental assistance anymore.
• 19:24
  SPEAKER_01: And so there's, you know, there's a couple different factors that that come into play.
• 19:27
  SPEAKER_01: And then another drastic thing about last year is the number of homicides that we had.
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_01: So we had um while violent crime was down four percent overall, we had a record number of homicides, which is thirteen.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_01: And that's the the most homicides in a year that we've ever had at the Asheville Police Department.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_01: Trevor Burrus, Jr.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_04: But only one more than the previous record.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_04: So is that the kind of thing where it's like it's a record?
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_04: Yes.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_04: But it's about what you had the previous year?
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_01: Well, yeah, and the pr and so the previous year, and looking at 2023, we had nine homicides.
• 19:56
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 19:57
  SPEAKER_01: But then again, 2022, that year that we had the spike in aggravated assaults, we had 12 homicides there.
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_01: So yes, you're right.
• 20:04
  SPEAKER_01: It's one more than what we had in 2022.
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_04: Now, motor vehicle deaths is another area where you had uh a record number, but also close to a previous one.
• 20:13
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, yes.
• 20:14
  SPEAKER_01: So I guess the sad thing is that we are breaking new records every year for the last two years with uh motor vehicle deaths.
• 20:21
  SPEAKER_01: So when we talk about motor vehicle deaths, those are any motor vehicle collision that's uh could be vehicle versus vehicle, vehicle versus pedestrian, vehicle versus bicycle, those types of collisions.
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_01: And so for 2024, we had 22 motor vehicle collision deaths.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_01: And uh the year before in 2023, we had 21 deaths.
• 20:43
  SPEAKER_01: And so in the past, we've had a traffic safety unit.
• 20:46
  SPEAKER_01: The traffic safety unit was a specialized group of officers that were able to investigate these motor vehicle collisions, the serious ones that resulted in death, but they also conducted a lot of traffic enforcement.
• 20:58
  SPEAKER_01: So they routinely ran radar on certain stretches of roads that were deemed to be dangerous or a high crash zone.
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_01: And then in addition to the traffic safety unit, patrol officers during their discretionary time or when they weren't tied up on calls, they would run radar in these high crash areas.
• 21:16
  SPEAKER_01: With the resignations that we experienced in our low staffing, we had to one disband the traffic safety unit because we just we didn't have the personnel to serve on it.
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_01: The second thing was officers have they have less discretionary time.
• 21:30
  SPEAKER_01: So these officers are basically on most days going from call to call to call because there's fewer of them, but Asheville continues to grow on a regular basis.
• 21:40
  SPEAKER_01: And so that's one thing that I I really would like us as we restaff to get back, and that's um officers running radar during their downtime when they're able to have some, and also to have a traffic safety unit back to be able to change some of those driving behaviors.
• 21:56
  SPEAKER_01: Because, you know, I I think we all remember if we lived in a certain area or Or grew up at a certain time where you knew there was a stretch of road that you just did not speed on because there were, you know, there was a cop there.
• 22:08
  SPEAKER_01: There was a trooper there.
• 22:09
  SPEAKER_01: Friends would remind you, hey, we're you know we're going around the corner, slow down.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_01: Remember, there's a troop trooper that situation.
• 22:15
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 22:17
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 22:17
  SPEAKER_01: And I think what you most cops would call like the honey hole, where you would be able to pull off and just catch speeders all day long.
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_01: But that really does affect driving behavior.
• 22:25
  SPEAKER_01: It does.
• 22:26
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, because people would, oh, I better slow down.
• 22:28
  SPEAKER_01: You know, there's usually a cop up here and I don't want to get a ticket.
• 22:31
  SPEAKER_01: And we've just we've not had a chance to do that just because we have less staffing.
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_01: You know, so it was logical to n to understand that, you know, that when you have less cops doing less enforcement, you're going to have an increase, whether it be violent crime or or whether it be traffic fatality collisions.
• 22:48
  SPEAKER_01: So I that's one of my goals is as we restaff to do more speed enforcement so that we can make the road safer.
• 22:54
  SPEAKER_04: And as we look back at the 2024 crime statistics, it's important to note that no two years are alike, and certainly no year has ever been like 2024.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_04: When we look at the final quarter, how affected that was by Hurricane Helene.
• 23:08
  SPEAKER_04: Yes.
• 23:08
  SPEAKER_04: Uh, we did see some different types of crime uh that occurred then.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_04: We had some looting, we had some of those things that occurred, but in a lot of ways it it did kind of drop right there in some other ways.
• 23:17
  SPEAKER_04: So it's kind of like, how do you factor that in when you see something like that, that catastrophic that changes the game in so many ways?
• 23:24
  SPEAKER_04: Yes.
• 23:25
  SPEAKER_04: Is it difficult to analyze statistics when you have a year like that where uh this large chunk of the year was affected by it?
• 23:31
  SPEAKER_01: It is, so it's difficult to analyze it, but I think it's that's why it's so important to have officers, administrators that are from the area that understand crime trends, to have that institutional knowledge to understand what was going on at that time that affected this spike in crime or crime in a certain area.
• 23:49
  SPEAKER_01: Because I think if we don't do a good job of explaining it, then people come up with their own narratives, like saying, for example, well, uh violent crime went up um during the last quarter of the year downtown, so downtown must be an unsafe place to be.
• 24:03
  SPEAKER_01: But um when we look at the stats and understanding that we had a lot of evacuations that took place, we had a lot of people that received hotel vouchers from FEMA, and to look back at the cost for service, um, we understand that that's what drove up crime during the last quarter, violent crime during the last quarter downtown was because you we had a lot of people that were previously in different living situations, whether that be they were um at a shelter or a hotel or couch surfing somewhere or unhoused, um, they were now being put within the the FEMA hotels.
• 24:37
  SPEAKER_01: And so unfortunately, downtown what we saw was we saw a few robberies, we saw a few aggravated assaults that happened within the three ho hotels that were downtown that were accepting the FEMA vouchers.
• 24:48
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, d the streets of downtown and downtown itself is not and was not unsafe.
• 24:54
  SPEAKER_01: But some events that happen within these hotels are what caused that spike in the downtown violent crime for the last quarter.
• 25:00
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, Helene was obviously obviously historic when it comes to weather, but uh other weather, just something I've noticed anecdotally.
• 25:07
  SPEAKER_04: Uh for example, this year so far, January was pretty cold.
• 25:10
  SPEAKER_04: I noticed during that two-week stretch that there wasn't much going on in the world.
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_04: It's almost like the criminals stay indoors, or if it rains a lot or snows a lot or certain things like that, there's the crime goes down.
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 25:22
  SPEAKER_04: And then you have when spring arrives and the weather gets warm, people come out.
• 25:26
  SPEAKER_04: I remember last year, was it, I believe it was May or June, we had a number of homicides.
• 25:32
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 25:32
  SPEAKER_01: Well, and you got to think about what happens usually in June every year and runs up until August that causes some crime to go up.
• 25:41
  SPEAKER_01: School's out.
• 25:42
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 25:43
  SPEAKER_04: So you know, so that's I I remember it last year.
• 25:45
  SPEAKER_04: It was just like, oh my gosh, it was it was like that.
• 25:47
  SPEAKER_04: It was just one after another after another.
• 25:50
  SPEAKER_04: It's almost like the pent up something from the winter being indoors.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_04: You don't know why that triggers crime, but it does.
• 25:55
  SPEAKER_04: Yes.
• 25:56
  SPEAKER_04: So even you know, something like Helene, obviously, large scale effects, but something uh on a smaller scale, an individual week or two that's cold, can also uh impact crime, which is just so many variables for you guys to factor in.
• 26:10
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and you know, when we look at of course schools being out and some of the, you know, schools offer structure to you know, some kids that don't have structure during the summer months.
• 26:18
  SPEAKER_01: And so that really helps keep crime down, crime down overall within within the neighborhoods uh during during the school year.
• 26:26
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but then also the you know, warmer weather, the days are longer, people are out more.
• 26:31
  SPEAKER_01: That's where we see an increase in in crime as well.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_01: When you have people that are out more, people can tend to get into conflicts and get into arguments, which could lead to a fight and then lean lead to gun uh gun violence.
• 26:43
  SPEAKER_01: And then, you know, another thing that we look at also is the offender.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_01: So there there's two strategies that we look at as far as reducing crime, um, especially violent crime down.
• 26:53
  SPEAKER_01: And the two things are one is the offender, the other one is the geographic area.
• 26:57
  SPEAKER_01: So we have a wonderful group of crime analysts that look at this, look at the statistics and look at kind of year to year what happens.
• 27:05
  SPEAKER_01: And we can predict and determine where violent crime is going to occur when when looking at those previous patterns.
• 27:11
  SPEAKER_01: So, what we try to do is put officers in those areas being very visible to try to keep crime from occurring.
• 27:18
  SPEAKER_01: So we we prevent crime in that way.
• 27:20
  SPEAKER_01: Um now it's important for that officer to be out there, be uh, you know, if they they see some kind of suspicious activity or see someone they know that has warrants for their arrest, to be out there interacting with the public, be a visible presence, but also enforcing the law.
• 27:35
  SPEAKER_01: And then the next thing we look at is the the individual.
• 27:37
  SPEAKER_01: So we have uh oftentimes repeat offenders that can cause a spike in crime.
• 27:43
  SPEAKER_01: So whenever we have, like we know this one person is in a conflict, a person or a group that's in a conflict with a person or a group um about usually it's drugs or it could be just neighborhood conflicts.
• 27:55
  SPEAKER_01: Sometimes we have robberies that take place and then there's retaliation for that robbery or that home invasion, again, usually involve involving drugs, then um, if we can find some reason to have one of these parties in jail, then that's potentially saving their life and somebody else's life.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_01: And so it's it's true that if if someone, especially someone who commits repeat violent crimes, is locked up, then they don't have the opportunity to be harming the community when they're in jail.
• 28:22
  SPEAKER_01: In crimes, especially where we don't have a victim that's willing to cooperate, because oftentimes when we have gun battles or firearm conflicts, neither of the party will want to cooperate with the investigation because they have the mindset, well, I'll just take care of it on my own.
• 28:36
  SPEAKER_01: And so when I see that person out again, there'll be a gunfight.
• 28:39
  SPEAKER_01: And then, you know, bullets don't have eyes.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_01: Once those bullets leave the chambers, you never know where it's gonna go and you never know who it's gonna hit.
• 28:46
  SPEAKER_01: And so our philosophy is to try to use other methods like uh gun violations, drug violations, in order to put a charge on somebody so that they are not out hurting other people or hurting the community.
• 28:59
  SPEAKER_04: Would this be the proactive policing we hear about?
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_04: Is it is an example of that?
• 29:03
  SPEAKER_01: That is.
• 29:03
  SPEAKER_01: It's an example of uh proactive policing, but it's also um looking at networks.
• 29:09
  SPEAKER_01: So our crime analysts also look at associations.
• 29:12
  SPEAKER_01: So they look at, say there's there's like a handful of folks that are in a conflict with another handful of folks, and they look at crimes that are involving them, but also associates as far as where they may be at.
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_01: And that's important for us to know that so that when we go to serve warrants, we know if they're not at their home, then here's some other possibilities on places they may be.
• 29:35
  SPEAKER_01: But oftentimes, too, an associate may be targeting somebody else so that the you know, the main target doesn't get charged with something.
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_01: Or, you know, like a in a gang, they'll use a junior gang member to try to retaliate for a crime or an offense or something like that.
• 29:51
  SPEAKER_04: So if people are wondering why we stare at these numbers and analyze these things so deeply, it's because of everything you've mentioned.
• 29:58
  SPEAKER_04: It's a way to almost predict where something is going to happen, thus preventing it.
• 30:02
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 30:02
  SPEAKER_01: I guess one of the things that I've seen over the years where we've really seen an impact in especially violent crime, but also property crime in a community is when a certain neighborhood is finally fed up with what's going on in their neighborhood, whether that be shootings, whether that be just aggravated assaults, or even speeding, where that community or that neighborhood gets together and they decide to partner with the police department to stop whatever the crime pattern is.
• 30:31
  SPEAKER_01: And so it really helps us to figure out like what are the problems that are occurring and how can we help solve those problems for a longer-lasting solution.
• 30:39
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then the neighborhood gets involved because it's officers are only there, you know, we we come and go whenever there's calls for service or whatever they're we're doing crime prevention activity, but the community in the neighborhood is there 24-7.
• 30:51
  SPEAKER_01: So it's important that they are the eyes and ears for us whenever we're trying to put together evidence or some kind of documentation so that we can take a violent offender off the streets.
• 31:01
  SPEAKER_01: So that community partnership is really what is key and what I've seen has worked best in making a community safer.
• 31:07
  SPEAKER_04: Chief Lamb, thanks for sharing the numbers and sharing your thoughts with us today.
• 31:11
  SPEAKER_04: And if you have a question for the Chief, don't forget you can ask the Chief by just calling 828-250-8800.
• 31:17
  SPEAKER_04: That's 828-250-8800.
• 31:20
  SPEAKER_04: Leave a voicemail or email APD Podcastfeedback at AshevilleNC.gov.
• 31:26
  SPEAKER_04: Chief Lamb, thank you again.
• 31:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, thanks, Rick.
• 31:28
  SPEAKER_01: I appreciate it.
• 31:30
  SPEAKER_04: Time for another History Minute with Hannah Silberman.
• 31:33
  SPEAKER_04: And with March being women's history month, this particular history minute with a nod to History Making Women in the APD.
• 31:42
  SPEAKER_04: Hannah, thanks for joining us.
• 31:43
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, glad to be here.
• 31:44
  SPEAKER_04: So tell us about some women that made history in the Asheville Police Department.
• 31:49
  SPEAKER_00: So I'd like to talk to you about the women's traffic squad, which wasn't exactly in March, but it is the first group of female employees that we had, and certainly the first group that worked in the field.
• 32:01
  SPEAKER_04: Okay, so what year are we talking about?
• 32:03
  SPEAKER_04: What time frame?
• 32:04
  SPEAKER_00: So this would have been World War II.
• 32:05
  SPEAKER_00: So the women's traffic squad was started at the beginning of 1943.
• 32:10
  SPEAKER_04: Aaron Powell So the women's movement made great advances because of the World War, a lot of the men being sent away to fight.
• 32:16
  SPEAKER_04: There were jobs that still needed to be done here in the home front.
• 32:19
  SPEAKER_04: And so a lot of women got these jobs, Rosie the Riveter, and all those different things.
• 32:23
  SPEAKER_04: And so the police department, no different.
• 32:25
  SPEAKER_04: How did that come to be?
• 32:26
  SPEAKER_00: Aaron Powell That's exactly what you said.
• 32:27
  SPEAKER_00: So the police department during World War II lost a significant number of police officers to the armed forces.
• 32:32
  SPEAKER_00: And Chief Dermud, who was our chief at the time, had to abolish a number of services when the staffing went down.
• 32:39
  SPEAKER_00: So that included things like our traffic squad.
• 32:41
  SPEAKER_00: Those were the officers that did traffic tickets, but also who helped with school crossings and different sorts of enforcement.
• 32:49
  SPEAKER_00: No more escorts, no more parades, no more special services from those traffic officers, kind of like today where we ha we have abolished our traffic unit.
• 32:58
  SPEAKER_00: But one of the ways that he decided to make up for it was with a group of women officers.
• 33:03
  SPEAKER_00: They were empowered to issue citations, so they were technically officers who monitored school crossings.
• 33:08
  SPEAKER_04: I think I know the answer to this, but how well were they received by the community and their fellow employees?
• 33:16
  SPEAKER_00: Aaron Ross Powell Actually pretty well.
• 33:17
  SPEAKER_00: I think the the community enjoyed it.
• 33:20
  SPEAKER_00: They did a very good job.
• 33:21
  SPEAKER_00: There are some articles that have a lot of shaded sexism.
• 33:25
  SPEAKER_00: It says things, and I this is quote, um, everybody admits that they are making highly efficient officers.
• 33:30
  SPEAKER_00: It says, he knows very well that she means business.
• 33:34
  SPEAKER_00: And it said things, you know, like they they were given a badge for their hat and they wore these red, pretty red cloaks, but it said they weren't given weapons because, quote, uh they had to leave the rough stuff up to the boys.
• 33:46
  SPEAKER_04: A little bit of failed sexism.
• 33:47
  SPEAKER_04: Or not so failed, actually.
• 33:49
  SPEAKER_04: No, they had the power of arrest, so did they have to go through any kind of basic law enforcement training or just kind of uh they got a little guidebook and on your way?
• 33:57
  SPEAKER_00: Aaron Powell Yeah, nothing like that.
• 33:58
  SPEAKER_00: I I think they got it said they got a few weeks of training with an officer at the school the crossing.
• 34:03
  SPEAKER_00: You know, they could flag down a car and give them a citation, but that that was it.
• 34:06
  SPEAKER_04: Aaron Powell So about how many were there?
• 34:07
  SPEAKER_04: Do you do you know?
• 34:08
  SPEAKER_00: Aaron Ross Powell Actually, when Dermot announced this initially, uh Asheville Times actually said he was, quote, besieged by women telephoning him for the jobs, except he had already accepted candidates for the positions.
• 34:19
  SPEAKER_00: So there were nine women who were selected, and then but two of those were reserves who were just there to fill in if one of the other ones were sick.
• 34:26
  SPEAKER_00: So they worked an hour every morning when the schools went into session, and then three hours each afternoon to help with the kids who were leaving school.
• 34:34
  SPEAKER_04: So what happened after the war when the men returned?
• 34:38
  SPEAKER_04: You know, because we're leaving the rough stuff to them, as we recall.
• 34:40
  SPEAKER_04: So did the women still have those jobs?
• 34:42
  SPEAKER_04: Were those jobs phased out, or uh did they just kind of morph into something else?
• 34:46
  SPEAKER_00: Aaron Ross Powell They slowly phased them out.
• 34:48
  SPEAKER_00: They did stay for a while, but they eventually transitioned that back to sworn police officers.
• 34:53
  SPEAKER_04: Aaron Powell So then how long was it again until we had real, and I hate to use that word, real female police officers?
• 35:00
  SPEAKER_00: That wouldn't be until the late 19 mid to late 1970s.
• 35:03
  SPEAKER_04: Okay.
• 35:04
  SPEAKER_04: Well maybe we'll talk about that next time.
• 35:05
  SPEAKER_04: All right.
• 35:06
  SPEAKER_04: Hannah Silberman with the History Minute.
• 35:08
  SPEAKER_04: Thanks for joining us.
• 35:09
  SPEAKER_03: Thank you.
• 35:11
  SPEAKER_04: Joining me now, Officer Debbie LaCroix, and well, partner in crime would probably be a bad term to use.
• 35:17
  SPEAKER_04: So we'll say trusty sidekick, Officer Cora.
• 35:20
  SPEAKER_04: Thanks for joining me.
• 35:21
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you for having us.
• 35:23
  SPEAKER_04: You don't go almost anywhere without Officer Cora, do you?
• 35:26
  SPEAKER_02: She goes almost everywhere, to include restaurants, grocery stores, things like that.
• 35:33
  SPEAKER_04: To clarify, most people know, some people do not.
• 35:36
  SPEAKER_04: Officer Cora is not a human officer.
• 35:38
  SPEAKER_04: She is a canine.
• 35:39
  SPEAKER_04: She is our therapy dog.
• 35:41
  SPEAKER_04: Let's see if we can get her to chime in here.
• 35:43
  SPEAKER_04: Hey, Cora.
• 35:47
  SPEAKER_04: At a girl.
• 35:48
  SPEAKER_04: So Officer Cora is our Asheville Police Department therapy dog.
• 35:52
  SPEAKER_04: She gives high fives.
• 35:53
  SPEAKER_04: She gives love.
• 35:54
  SPEAKER_04: That's pretty much what she does, and she's great at her job, right?
• 35:57
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, absolutely.
• 35:59
  SPEAKER_04: So Cora gets all the attention for obvious reasons.
• 36:02
  SPEAKER_04: She's got a job to do and she does it well.
• 36:04
  SPEAKER_04: Is it like sometimes they just see through you and just see the dog?
• 36:07
  SPEAKER_04: And it's just like you're this invisible person right next to her.
• 36:10
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, it seems like it sometimes because when she runs into a room, everyone's like, Cora.
• 36:16
  SPEAKER_02: Exactly.
• 36:17
  SPEAKER_02: Exactly.
• 36:18
  SPEAKER_04: And no one ever says, Debbie.
• 36:20
  SPEAKER_02: No, no, never.
• 36:21
  SPEAKER_02: But I'll be like walking down the street with her, and they'll yell people will yell out, hey, Cora's handler.
• 36:28
  SPEAKER_02: You know, they may not remember my name, but they will remember her name.
• 36:32
  SPEAKER_04: Well, let's get to know you a little bit.
• 36:34
  SPEAKER_04: A lot of people know about Cora.
• 36:35
  SPEAKER_04: So where were you born?
• 36:36
  SPEAKER_04: Are you an Asheville native or did you come from elsewhere like just about everybody else here?
• 36:40
  SPEAKER_02: No, I am an Asheville native.
• 36:42
  SPEAKER_04: So what was your high school?
• 36:44
  SPEAKER_02: Graduated from Asheville High.
• 36:46
  SPEAKER_04: Wow, just like my wife.
• 36:48
  SPEAKER_04: What was your graduation year?
• 36:50
  SPEAKER_02: That's telling my age.
• 36:52
  SPEAKER_02: So yes.
• 36:53
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 36:54
  SPEAKER_04: Oh, so you're not sharing.
• 36:55
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 36:55
  SPEAKER_02: You don't tell you the year that you graduated.
• 36:58
  SPEAKER_02: You don't tell the hairdresser how old you are.
• 37:03
  SPEAKER_04: I'm sorry.
• 37:04
  SPEAKER_04: So uh my wife was also an Asheville high grad.
• 37:07
  SPEAKER_04: I lived across the street uh from Asheville High School.
• 37:10
  SPEAKER_04: My first apartment when I got here was those white condominiums right across the street, the Beverly Condos from the cross.
• 37:15
  SPEAKER_04: So I I saw Asheville High like every day.
• 37:17
  SPEAKER_04: Of course.
• 37:18
  SPEAKER_04: And then of course I married a gal that went there.
• 37:20
  SPEAKER_04: So that all works out.
• 37:21
  SPEAKER_04: Okay, how about this?
• 37:22
  SPEAKER_04: Uh this is something we ask everyone that sits down for the first time.
• 37:25
  SPEAKER_04: What's one thing that most people don't know about you?
• 37:30
  SPEAKER_04: A lot of people associate you with Officer Cora and uh being a police officer and all these things, but what's one thing that they don't know?
• 37:38
  SPEAKER_04: Something unique.
• 37:39
  SPEAKER_02: I used to compete in three-gun competitions, just traditional three gun.
• 37:44
  SPEAKER_04: I'll need a bit of an explanation on that.
• 37:46
  SPEAKER_02: When you say traditional three gun, well, that's kind of a modern the modern day guns that we we carry, and uh but I would have to say I got into cowboy shooting, SAS, cowboy shooting, and did that for for years.
• 38:02
  SPEAKER_04: Like the quick draw type stuff, like you see in the old Wild West movies?
• 38:05
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, yes.
• 38:06
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 38:07
  SPEAKER_02: The single action revolver, double barrel, lever action, double barrel shotgun, and lever action rifle.
• 38:16
  SPEAKER_04: See?
• 38:16
  SPEAKER_04: Now that's something you've got on Cora, because uh adorable paws, but no opposable thumbs, so no possible way for her to hold a firearm.
• 38:24
  SPEAKER_04: Let's talk about her a little bit now, because you know, she's in the room, and if we don't talk about her, her feelings might get hurt.
• 38:29
  SPEAKER_02: Exactly.
• 38:31
  SPEAKER_04: For is it oh going up in three years now?
• 38:33
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, I actually got her when she was eight weeks old.
• 38:37
  SPEAKER_02: And Aaron Perguson from Highland Canine came up to help me pick out.
• 38:42
  SPEAKER_02: I did the research for therapy dogs and law enforcement.
• 38:46
  SPEAKER_02: Didn't know if my proposal was going to be accepted or not.
• 38:50
  SPEAKER_02: So Aaron went down to help me pick out Cora because I didn't know how to pick out, I didn't know the temperament um needed to be so important.
• 39:01
  SPEAKER_02: So uh she went down with me and helped me pick out Cora.
• 39:05
  SPEAKER_02: I actually picked out another one and Aaron actually took three of them, three of the puppies, and she said I didn't have to pick out the one.
• 39:15
  SPEAKER_02: Let's just see how things went.
• 39:18
  SPEAKER_02: So in the process, it came to be that Cora was probably gonna be the better choice for a therapy dog for our purpose in law enforcement.
• 39:27
  SPEAKER_04: And did she already have her name by then or did you get that?
• 39:29
  SPEAKER_02: Erin did give me the opportunity to pick out a name for her.
• 39:33
  SPEAKER_02: And I went down on the weekends to visit, but I honestly I couldn't think of a name.
• 39:38
  SPEAKER_02: Uh so Aaron actually named her, and she said, if you want to change it, you can within a short amount of time.
• 39:44
  SPEAKER_02: But Cora just stuck, and I can't imagine her name being anything else.
• 39:49
  SPEAKER_04: Some people know her story a little more because it's gotten out even more than it was because of uh the events of Helene and uh afterwards, who've had a little bit of media coverage, and some people have covered uh everything that she did, as well as all the canines at uh Highlands.
• 40:02
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 40:02
  SPEAKER_04: Uh so it was great to see them in town, and that's so give them a quick plug in case anyone else is wanting a not just a therapy dog, but dogs that do any number of things.
• 40:12
  SPEAKER_02: Oh yes.
• 40:12
  SPEAKER_02: They are known uh Highland Canine out of Harmony, North Carolina.
• 40:16
  SPEAKER_02: They have 70 acres.
• 40:18
  SPEAKER_02: They train service dogs for autism, hearing impaired, vision impaired, PTSD.
• 40:25
  SPEAKER_02: They also, Aaron's husband Jason, he runs the other side of the training with the apprehension dogs, the they do train bloodhounds, uh, drug detection, bomb detection, things like that.
• 40:41
  SPEAKER_02: They have a wonderful program down there.
• 40:43
  SPEAKER_02: Or if you are just a pet owner and you want just beginning training just to start out, they can also do that.
• 40:53
  SPEAKER_02: Or if you if your dog has an issue and needs uh a little more training than what you can give them, they have, I think, three weeks and six weeks programs.
• 41:05
  SPEAKER_04: So I remember there was a day, it was a few weeks after Helene, I'm sure you remember this, when they brought all of their puppies into town.
• 41:11
  SPEAKER_04: And we had a little uh right there across the street from the police station, a little park right there, Roger McGuire Green.
• 41:17
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 41:18
  SPEAKER_04: And so there must have been, oh my gosh, was there 18 or 20 puppies that day?
• 41:22
  SPEAKER_02: Eighteen.
• 41:22
  SPEAKER_04: And and you saw what it means for people when you just see all these puppies together at once, just you forget about everything else.
• 41:30
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 41:31
  SPEAKER_04: They don't gotta do anything.
• 41:32
  SPEAKER_04: They're just there, and everyone's like, ah, puppies.
• 41:35
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, we saturated the city and county when they came up.
• 41:39
  SPEAKER_02: I kept getting requests for Cora and I'm sure Hope, we our other therapy dog in the agency, we uh we were getting requests for them, and it was uh too much for them to keep up with.
• 41:53
  SPEAKER_02: So we called in our friendly canines, and Aaron brought 18 up several times, and we were able to saturate the city and county with a little puppy love.
• 42:04
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, and in in a day and in weeks following the storm that everyone needed a distraction and just some, like you say, puppy love.
• 42:10
  SPEAKER_04: Boy, they provided it that day.
• 42:12
  SPEAKER_04: Everyone's mood instantly changes when there's just all these adorable puppies just lying there, and I know they're having lunch that one particular day, and it was a nice afternoon, and uh people were coming out from buildings all around, and it just you forget about everything just for a few minutes uh because of those puppies.
• 42:27
  SPEAKER_04: That's one of the things that Cora does and that you do with Cora is just kind of help people forget sometimes and provide a little bit of support and encouragement, not just for the community, but for our own officers.
• 42:38
  SPEAKER_04: Right.
• 42:39
  SPEAKER_04: That is her primary job is to help our officers.
• 42:42
  SPEAKER_02: She does create a, if you will, a beautiful distraction amongst the chaos that we see in our day-to-day lives as police officers and for people that aren't having their best day, that depending on if it's through an investigation and and if they have been injured in some kind of way, Hope and Cora provide, you know, help with uh victims of crimes.
• 43:06
  SPEAKER_02: They're both allowed in the courtroom.
• 43:08
  SPEAKER_02: We do a little bit more of community engagement with Cora.
• 43:12
  SPEAKER_02: Uh Cora goes out to schools and she does reading programs.
• 43:17
  SPEAKER_02: She we do utilize her for kids and adults that have been involved in a traumatic event or officers that have been involved in a critical incident.
• 43:28
  SPEAKER_02: She's utilized, I'm on the critical incident stress management team.
• 43:33
  SPEAKER_02: So we take her to debriefings, and she's allowed to just wander around the room and provide support for people that have been involved in a critical incident.
• 43:44
  SPEAKER_04: Officer David LaCroix joins us right now, as well as Officer Cora, who is a three year old golden.
• 43:50
  SPEAKER_04: She's four.
• 43:51
  SPEAKER_04: Oh, four.
• 43:52
  SPEAKER_02: She just turned four.
• 43:53
  SPEAKER_04: And an award winning therapy dog.
• 43:55
  SPEAKER_04: So let's give her her props right now, her flowers, as they say.
• 43:58
  SPEAKER_04: Congratulations to Officer Cora.
• 44:00
  SPEAKER_04: Chorus.
• 44:00
  SPEAKER_04: So recently she won a national award, which I'm sure she was thrilled about because she got some treats that day, I think.
• 44:08
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, she got she did get a uh treat basket.
• 44:12
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, she got some cool stuff.
• 44:13
  SPEAKER_04: So tell us about that national award that she won and how that happened.
• 44:16
  SPEAKER_02: She was nominated for this national award, which is put on by First Responders Pause Award Foundation and the FHE Health.
• 44:28
  SPEAKER_02: And they come together and they do this search for the most decorated first responder pup across the United States.
• 44:40
  SPEAKER_02: So we did our interview, we filled out some paperwork, spoke to a couple of people, and they do their research.
• 44:48
  SPEAKER_02: So had no idea that this, I mean, we know, I of course, we feel that Cora is very special and deserving of this award, but she competed with many, many pups across the United States.
• 45:04
  SPEAKER_02: So they look at a number of things.
• 45:06
  SPEAKER_02: They look at their social media pages, they look at how many times they've been on the news and what in what content.
• 45:13
  SPEAKER_02: And so I got notified that Cora was one of the top 10 uh pups that were selected.
• 45:20
  SPEAKER_02: And this is not just in law enforcement, this is first responders.
• 45:24
  SPEAKER_02: So it's fire department, EMS, you know, any of the disciplines.
• 45:29
  SPEAKER_02: We got notified that she was in the top 10, and I was so excited.
• 45:34
  SPEAKER_04: Yes, yeah, and you're like, all right, she's a finalist.
• 45:37
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, and then and then I get a call from the first responder Paws Foundation, and I I thought they were gonna interview me, and I was actually with a three-year-old that needed support that day.
• 45:51
  SPEAKER_02: And I said, Oh, I'm so sorry.
• 45:53
  SPEAKER_02: May I give you a call back?
• 45:55
  SPEAKER_02: So, not knowing that they were calling me to let me know that Cora was the winner of this award, I just put them on pause and told them that I would call them back.
• 46:07
  SPEAKER_02: But, you know, even if I had known that, I would still uh do that.
• 46:12
  SPEAKER_02: This three-year-old needed Cora's services.
• 46:15
  SPEAKER_02: So they like that when I called them back.
• 46:18
  SPEAKER_02: And uh, you know, he did talk to me for a a little while, the um, the person, and I thought it was just a regular interview.
• 46:25
  SPEAKER_02: But after about 20 minutes, he said, Well, congratulations, Cora is the winner of this year's First Responders Paw Award, Paws Award.
• 46:36
  SPEAKER_04: And you're like, congratulations.
• 46:37
  SPEAKER_04: What do you what do you mean, congratulations?
• 46:39
  SPEAKER_02: I was speechless.
• 46:40
  SPEAKER_02: And then, you know, to be honest, I got tears in my eyes, and I was just like overwhelmed with joy because I I really take this Cora's position uh seriously, and I try to utilize her in a way that is uh she bridges the gap between law enforcement and the community in in many ways.
• 47:02
  SPEAKER_02: So I was just I was very thankful and grateful that they recognized how special she really is.
• 47:10
  SPEAKER_04: Well, and she can't do it without you, obviously.
• 47:13
  SPEAKER_04: So you play a large part in her success.
• 47:15
  SPEAKER_04: Yes, I think.
• 47:17
  SPEAKER_04: I'm the handler, but yes, I I would say a proud doggy mama more than a handler.
• 47:22
  SPEAKER_02: Well, I'm that too, of course.
• 47:23
  SPEAKER_02: I'm that too.
• 47:25
  SPEAKER_04: So Officer Debbie LaCroix is with us, and she is part of the community engagement division with Officer Cora.
• 47:30
  SPEAKER_04: And you'd mentioned earlier uh that she does so much when it comes to the community engagement division, and when you go somewhere, it lights up a room if it's kids especially, or maybe some older people, or whoever just needs a little bit of puppy love.
• 47:42
  SPEAKER_04: So, what do we got coming up in community engagement where you or Cora or both or where you're gonna be seen and with the community?
• 47:49
  SPEAKER_02: Coming up on March 15th, we start our Citizens Police Academy.
• 47:54
  SPEAKER_02: We're very excited about that.
• 47:56
  SPEAKER_02: It is full for our spring session, but keep an eye out on social media and for the fall session coming up.
• 48:03
  SPEAKER_02: That's a wonderful program to be involved with.
• 48:06
  SPEAKER_02: It really is a good 10 weeks of really knowing what the Ashville Police Department does in all of our units and disciplines.
• 48:17
  SPEAKER_04: So it's fun too.
• 48:18
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, for people you you think about something like a uh, you know, it's a weekly commitment, it's you know, it's a police against this thing, it's not that stoic.
• 48:27
  SPEAKER_04: It's actually a lot of fun.
• 48:28
  SPEAKER_04: Not only are you learning, you're getting to meet people uh Fiji each time, too.
• 48:33
  SPEAKER_04: And that's that's free.
• 48:34
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, I'm responsible for the great meal provided every Thursday night during our program.
• 48:41
  SPEAKER_02: So we we've got wonderful meals planned out.
• 48:45
  SPEAKER_04: We're doing it twice a year, so just be on the lookout, like uh like Officer LaCroix said, uh, we are fill up for the ones about to start, but look for the next one.
• 48:53
  SPEAKER_04: So we're doing it twice a year now, and it's exciting that it's completely uh full for this particular class.
• 48:59
  SPEAKER_04: That's great.
• 49:00
  SPEAKER_02: We also have our uh junior police academy coming up June 16th through the 20th.
• 49:06
  SPEAKER_02: We're very excited about this as well.
• 49:08
  SPEAKER_02: This is for kids ages uh 14 to 18 that have an interest in law enforcement.
• 49:15
  SPEAKER_02: This is uh one-week immersive program that I cannot tell you how fun it is.
• 49:21
  SPEAKER_02: It's totally free of charge.
• 49:23
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, we're accepting applications now, and the deadline for our junior police academy is May 15th.
• 49:30
  SPEAKER_02: These kids that go through this one week, it really provides them an insight of what we do.
• 49:37
  SPEAKER_02: It's not just a classroom setting where we sit in a classroom and tell these kids what we do.
• 49:43
  SPEAKER_02: We actually give them a very cool experience.
• 49:47
  SPEAKER_02: They go out on the driving track with us.
• 49:49
  SPEAKER_02: We present them with uh scenarios that they have to make decisions and critical thinking.
• 49:56
  SPEAKER_02: We expose them to our canines.
• 50:00
  SPEAKER_02: Cora, of course, is there all week.
• 50:02
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we take them out to a ropes course, just a whole week of nonstop action-packed fun.
• 50:10
  SPEAKER_02: I would encourage you to sign up.
• 50:12
  SPEAKER_02: We do have a few spots left.
• 50:14
  SPEAKER_06: Okay.
• 50:15
  SPEAKER_02: So I would encourage you to get those applications in by May 15th.
• 50:20
  SPEAKER_02: We do have a Big Brother, Big Sisters Bowl for Kids' sake on March, uh, March 15th.
• 50:27
  SPEAKER_02: This is at Sky Lane's bowling alley on Patton Avenue.
• 50:31
  SPEAKER_02: And the theme is Yabba Daba Doo.
• 50:34
  SPEAKER_02: So you can dress up in your favorite prehistoric attire and come on out.
• 50:40
  SPEAKER_02: Cora's gonna be dressed in her favorite prehistoric attire.
• 50:44
  SPEAKER_04: Is there a dog in her?
• 50:45
  SPEAKER_04: I'm trying to think it.
• 50:46
  SPEAKER_04: Was there a dog in the Flintstones?
• 50:48
  SPEAKER_04: Flintstones.
• 50:49
  SPEAKER_04: Was there?
• 50:49
  SPEAKER_04: I'm trying to, I don't know if there was it.
• 50:50
  SPEAKER_04: Was there a dog?
• 50:52
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know.
• 50:52
  SPEAKER_02: We haven't picked out that outfit yet, but I'm looking, I'm looking at that.
• 50:57
  SPEAKER_02: Or maybe she might have a dinosaur outfit.
• 50:59
  SPEAKER_02: I'm not sure.
• 51:00
  SPEAKER_04: We're gonna she could definitely go prehistoric.
• 51:02
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 51:03
  SPEAKER_04: I think she could pull that off.
• 51:04
  SPEAKER_02: We're still looking to raise more money to help.
• 51:07
  SPEAKER_02: So if you're interested, go to BBBSwnc.org, their website, and you can still sign up and get a team and come on out.
• 51:19
  SPEAKER_02: We're gonna be out there.
• 51:20
  SPEAKER_02: The community engagement unit.
• 51:21
  SPEAKER_02: Sure.
• 51:22
  SPEAKER_02: We're gonna be bowling for these kids.
• 51:23
  SPEAKER_04: So who you got in the group you think is gonna be the ace bowler?
• 51:26
  SPEAKER_02: I was on a bowling team uh years ago, so I have not brushed up on my bowling.
• 51:32
  SPEAKER_02: But hopefully I'm gonna go out there and shine.
• 51:35
  SPEAKER_02: You know, may have to have the bumper guards put up with her.
• 51:39
  SPEAKER_04: Well but you know she could probably, you know, hike it backwards, kind of like with her front paws, like kind of like she's digging in the dirt, yeah, that type thing.
• 51:45
  SPEAKER_04: She might just nose it up the I could see that happen.
• 51:49
  SPEAKER_04: Absolutely.
• 51:50
  SPEAKER_02: Then last but certainly not least, we've got the Olympic, uh Special Olympics torch run coming up, and you're gonna be MCing the Yeah, they actually have two uh events this year instead of just one.
• 52:02
  SPEAKER_04: Uh one is gonna be at uh TC Robertson and the other is at AC Reynolds.
• 52:06
  SPEAKER_04: Yes.
• 52:06
  SPEAKER_04: And I'll I'll be MCing the uh one at May 8th at AC Reynolds.
• 52:10
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, and we are having to split them up because it is so well attended and we want to provide as much individual attention for these athletes as we can.
• 52:20
  SPEAKER_02: And the Special Olympics, you know, its mission is to provide year-round sports training for athletes to compete in for children and adults with intellectual disabilities.
• 52:30
  SPEAKER_02: So giving them the opportunities to develop physical fitness and demonstrating courage and experience joy and showing just their gifts and friendships with their fellow athletes, coaches, and family.
• 52:45
  SPEAKER_02: And if you want to participate, we're having some events coming up for Special Olympics.
• 52:52
  SPEAKER_02: Just look for that on our website.
• 52:55
  SPEAKER_02: If you want to participate or become involved, you just want to go to Asheville Community Engagement at AshevilleNC.gov and shoot me um officer LaCroix or Officer Cora, we'll we'll both answer to that.
• 53:11
  SPEAKER_02: Um so just shoot us an email and let us know that you would like to either support Special Olympics or become involved in some way.
• 53:21
  SPEAKER_04: I know I'm looking forward to being able to MC that one event.
• 53:24
  SPEAKER_04: I've always been enjoyed the Special Olympics experience and just seeing the joy on their faces that day.
• 53:29
  SPEAKER_04: Now that there's gonna be two events, that's just great.
• 53:31
  SPEAKER_04: And the torch run is something that I look forward to.
• 53:34
  SPEAKER_04: And uh since we'll have two events, we'll have two of those.
• 53:37
  SPEAKER_04: Uh how about for the first one?
• 53:38
  SPEAKER_04: Where does that start?
• 53:39
  SPEAKER_04: The one on May 1st.
• 53:40
  SPEAKER_02: We're gonna have the torch run starting at Chick-fil-A on Hendersonville Road.
• 53:43
  SPEAKER_04: Okay.
• 53:44
  SPEAKER_02: And then running to the track at TC Robertson, where we'll have the field events for the athletes.
• 53:52
  SPEAKER_02: And then the one at AC Reynolds on the May 8th.
• 53:56
  SPEAKER_02: We're gonna start that torch run from Smoky and the Pig on 74.
• 54:00
  SPEAKER_04: Oh, good barbecue there.
• 54:02
  SPEAKER_02: So, yeah, let's get our uh running shoes on and get ready for that.
• 54:06
  SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna be pushing Cora in her paw troll cart.
• 54:09
  SPEAKER_02: All right.
• 54:10
  SPEAKER_02: So I'm gonna be running.
• 54:10
  SPEAKER_02: Cora's gonna be sitting in her paw troll cart enjoying the ride.
• 54:15
  SPEAKER_04: Well, I will uh run with you on the first, but I should probably uh be already at the facility uh at the AC Reynolds location, uh, so I'm not sweaty and nasty when I got to MC that events.
• 54:26
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, we'll give you that.
• 54:27
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 54:28
  SPEAKER_04: I'll run with you in the first one, but in the second one, I'll be waiting for your arrival.
• 54:31
  SPEAKER_04: How about that?
• 54:32
  SPEAKER_02: That's amazing.
• 54:32
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, perfect.
• 54:33
  SPEAKER_04: All right, Officer Cora and Officer LaCroix, thanks for joining us today in the pod squad.
• 54:38
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
• 54:42
  SPEAKER_04: That's it for another episode of the APD Pod Squad.
• 54:45
  SPEAKER_04: I'd like to thank my guests, Senior Police Officer Mackenzie Gallion, Chief Mike Lamb, Hannah Silberman for another history minute, and Officer Debbie LaCroix and Officer Cora.
• 54:57
  SPEAKER_04: Don't forget if you've got a question for Chief Mike Lamb, you can ask the Chief by calling 828-250-8800 and leaving a voicemail.
• 55:06
  SPEAKER_04: That is 828-250-8800, or you can email APD Podcast Feedback at AshevilleNC.gov.
• 55:16
  SPEAKER_04: I'm Rick Rice, and this is the APD Pod Squad.