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They're fighting crime

By DON ALLISON - Times Senior Editor

Why is Crime Stoppers willing to pay cash for crime-solving tips?

Montpelier Police Lt. Dan McGee said thatÕs a question he's sometimes asked. His answer is the cash convinces people to offer up information they wouldn't ordinarily share - especially if they had to give their own names.

"People aren't willing to give information," McGee told the Bryan Kiwanis Club Wednesday. "People don't want to get involved. People don't want to give their names."

That's especially true if they think they might be called to testify in court, he said.

"Sometimes we need that little extra incentive, to get involved," McGee explained. "That's where Crime Stoppers comes in."

Williams County Area Crime Stoppers offers two tip lines, at 419-485-9302 and 1-800-237-7867. Callers remain anonymous.

"We don't use caller ID, we don't use traces, we don't use traps, or anything like that," McGee said.

Rather, he said, a caller is issued an ID number that is used for all communications connected with the case.

"It's up to callers to call back and get follow-up on their tip," he said - including whether they are eligible for a reward.

If a tip leads to an arrest and conviction, McGee said, the caller may qualify for a reward of up to $1,000.

McGee serves as coordinator of Williams County Area Crime Stoppers, which was established in 2002. "We're still kind of new, because Crime Stoppers started back in the '70s," he said. Now Crime Stoppers is worldwide, involving more than 10,000 agencies.

"Crime Stoppers is such a good program," McGee said. "We get such a good response."

Locally, Crime Stoppers is operated by a 15-member board. "It is not a law enforcement program," McGee said, explaining he is the only member of law enforcement on the board, and his is a non-voting seat. Williams County Area Crime Stoppers works because of the people who volunteer their time to support the program, he said. "We have very good people,Ó he said. ÒThatÕs why weÕre successful.Ó

Crime Stoppers is not an emergency agency, McGee said, stressing anyone witnessing a crime in progress should call 911.

Rather, tips left by callers are investigated by police officers. Information received through Crime Stoppers is reported to every police agency in Williams County, and to the Multi-Area Narcotics Task Force. "It's not as simple as just answering the phone," McGee noted. Officers investigate the information shared in each call, and if the call pans out, arrests can be made.

McGee said he investigated a Crime Stoppers tip on a situation that involved marijuana, guns and cocaine.

"People like to think that it doesn't happen in their neighborhoods, but it does," he said. "Crime Stoppers is a way to fight that."

don@bryantimes.com

Bryan woman is delegate

By SARAH BINNING - Times Reporter

As you watch the continued news coverage on the Democratic National Convention, located in Denver, itÕs hard not to wonder what it would be like to attend the convention and to be a part of the political excitement.

For Bryan resident Chiara Duggan, who is an Ohio delegate, attending the DNC became reality. Between the politicians and the press, Denver currently is one chaotic city.

"(My husband) Paul and I are very impressed with Denver's orchestration of the Convention. There are volunteers from Denver assisting the convention goers on nearly every central city crosswalk," Duggan wrote in an e-mail correspondence with The Bryan Times.

ÒThere are daily demonstrations, the two most prominent groups are pro-life protesters and Iraq veterans against the war," she continued. "The protests entail closing city streets for hours, yet the residents of Denver have been remarkably hospitable, despite what must be a real disruption in their ability to get around and get to work."

Later, during a phone interview, Duggan said she has most enjoyed listening to Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer.

"It wasn't on the news coverage, but apparently he's a big deal," she said. "His speech was real combative and he's funny. I'd never heard him speak before the convention. ... He's wildly popular among all of the delegates, and not just Ohio."

Another well-received speech was that of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

"Her delegates in the Ohio delegation were very pleased with her approach," Duggan wrote.

Wednesday morning, the Ohio delegation cast their official votes.

Under Ohio law, delegates are "pledged" to vote for a candidate who was on the first ballot.

"I'm pledged to Barack Obama because Hillary Rodham Clinton has "released" her delegates. They are now not bound to honor that original pledge," Duggan explained. "Speaking to Clinton delegates here, my impression is that the majority of (her) delegates voted for the presumptive nominee, Senator Obama.Ó

Attending the DNC has been an unforgettable experience for Duggan. ÒI had no idea the predominance of the press,Ó she said during a phone interview. ÒThere are more of them than there are of us (delegates). We were told there are 17,000 of them."

Duggan compared cable networks at the convention to celebrities. "The print press interviews the delegates and follow us around, occasionally they'll ask a question, she said. The cable networks, however, do not seek people to interview. Rather, people and sources seem to flock to them."

"There could be a whole line of people waiting to interview with Anderson Cooper and a governor would walk by and no one would know who he was," she said.

"The press is very influential. I guess I never realized that before," Duggan continued. "... They really are like celebrities."

In her e-mail correspondence, she noted, "My personal observation regarding the national press, particlarly the cable channels is this: They are almost exclusively focused on the divisions between the Obama and Clinton delegates."

"There are, for example, two rather vocal unhappy Clinton delegates in the Ohio delegation, out of 300 plus total delegates. These two delegates are interviewed again and again. When we are seated on the floor, those two delegates will often have various news outlets lined up waiting for an interview. I donÕt think two of 300 is a representative group."

In reality, the hostility between the Obama and Clinton delegates is virtually nonexistent.

"I haven't seen any indication of this alleged enormous hostility in any of the daily interactions with the Ohio delegation," she said. "We're all actually getting along quite well."

sarah@bryantimes.com