This Weekend’s On Patrol: Live Highlights, Commentary, and Social Media Activity

An On Patrol: Live recap, including NYC studio host Dan Abrams’ puns, analysis, and banter with co-anchor Curtis Wilson (a Richland County, S.C., deputy sheriff), along with the often-snarky or playful social media reaction, follows.

Cpt. Tom Rizzo ( Howell Township, N.J, P.D.), the all-but-permanent replacement for Sean Larkin, is again in the studio as this weekend’s guest analyst.

This was one of the more mundane OPL episodes. As previously announced, Saturday night’s episode is four hours rather than three.

Agency updates: This weekend, Brookford, N.C., PD returns the show; the Robeson County, N.C., Sheriff’s Office is off. The Humboldt County, Calif., Sheriff’s Office will join OPL in the near future.

For background information about On Patrol: Live (i.e., Live PD 2.0), that airs on the Reelz channel (which is available on the Peacock and FreeCast streaming services), click here.

On Patrol: Live Summary for June 28, 2024 (#OPL Episode 02-87)

Please review this important DISCLAIMER.
  • Toledo, Ohio — Ofrs. Lindsey Erhart and Brooke Janowiecki, along with other units, respond to report of a fight in a residential neighborhood and investigate at the scene with the complainant and others there.
  • Fontana, Calif. — Cpl. Buddy Porch conducts a traffic stop and interacts with two men, in part, about alleged gang issues. Porch: “I know a lot about gangs; it’s sort of my forte.” The duo are released with no charges. Cpl. Porch: “These two young men, they had nothing illegal on them at this time, but still at the same time, one’s got fines for a 211, which is a robbery and assault. The other one just got arrested for driving around our city with assault with a deadly weapon. Just because we didn’t catch them this time doesn’t mean they’re not gonna have it again next time. They’re the ones who brought up the gang stuff. Luckily, I know a little bit about the gang stuff, but I guarantee you they know a little bit more than what they’re saying.”
  • Daytona Beach, Fla. — Det. Noah Galbreath conducts a traffic stop for a mismatched tag. Two occupants. Det. Galbreath: “So the sergeant stopped this Jeep. Allegedly, they were on their way down here in a truck with the same license plate. Truck broke down in South Carolina. They allegedly purchased this Jeep in South Carolina. Took the tag from the truck and put it on the Jeep. So the tag is not attached or assigned to this vehicle, which you can’t just take a tag and start swapping it to vehicles. So, it can’t be driven like this with an unassigned tag or an attached tag.” A whippet is allegedly spotted. The detective seems suspicious about meth in the vehicle, but the occupants deny that. “By chance, anything illegal in the car? No? Any cocaine, crack, fentanyl, meth, heroin, meth….any meth, methamphetamine, meth? No meth? All right.” OPL caption: “Drug paraphernalia found.”
  • Berkeley County, S.C. — Sgt. Steve Zubkoff and numerous other offices converge on a house where a subject allegedly barricaded himself after fleeing from a traffic stop on a motorcycle. A female tells cops that the subject had held her against her will. Deputies set up a perimeter and enter the home and search, but are unable to find the subject. K9 Odin deployed. Guest studio analyst Captain Tom Rizzo: “I say all the time –the resilience of somebody trying to avoid being arrested.” During an OPL commercial, however, he is located hiding somewhere on the premises (possibly in the duct work) and is detained.

Listen to Cpt. Rizzo discuss the importance of teamwork and communication here:

Sgt. Zubcoff recap: He “is a repeat offender. It helps that we were really familiar with this house and the suspect. We were able to locate him in a vent that he’s actually hidden in before. It was obviously tampered with, so we did the best we could to set up a safe and secure perimeter. And then we addressed that vent with a pepper ball agent, which was effective. And then they’re able to quickly detain [him]. So, really good ending. We’re gonna turn him over to Somerville Police Department, and they’re gonna handle the investigation.” Cpl. Devonte Carr adds that “as we were getting ready to introduce the pepper ball to the residence, units inside the residence got in contact with the subject in the ductwork that we presumed that he was in. He came came back out. I brought K9 Odin back in. We called him out and got him into custody…the units inside didn’t actually introduce… the pepper balls, and that’s why he came out…he didn’t want the smoke, so he came back out. He’s in custody.”

“Not sure which would be worse in a confined area. Would you rather get the K9 or would you rather get the pepper balls?”

OPL host Abrams: “It seems that they may have just threatened the pepper balls and K9 Odin. Not sure which would be worse in a confined area. Would you rather get the K9 or would you rather get the pepper balls?” Cpt. Rizzo: “One’s worse; one’s worser. But…it’s always better to have them come out…It’s not about a power struggle. It’s just about control, because we understand the role; we know that we don’t want to use force. So you have them come out — we have our roles established, and we’d rather do it that way. Going in inevitably leads to bad things.” Abrams: “And I’d say the officers, they were convinced that he was in there. We were talking about, ‘wait, how do they know he didn’t walk out the back or whatever, right?” Co-host Dep. Deputy Wilson: “Little underground tunnels.” Abrams: “They knew, they were convinced, they’re like, ‘he’s still in this house.'” And they got him.”

  • Richland County, S.C. — Master Dep.. Braylyn Salmond responds to a report of a burglary at an apartment complex. Dep. Salmond: “The homeowner…is not here at the moment. She said she got the door unlocked, and she heard on her camera movements inside. Now the door is locked. So we’re trying to get in contact with her to see if we can get a key or we can find a way to get into the apartment.”
  • Everett, Wash. (pre-recorded segment) — Sgt. David Sinex deploys a StarChase GPS device to track down a vehicle with a brake light out that was fleeing from a traffic stop. Two occupants. After stopping, the driver says, “I was scared; cops scare me.”

Sgt. Sinex recap: “The point of StarChase is we don’t have to follow him, we don’t have to push a pursuit. We don’t have to do anything crazy. We can just kind of track him here…his license is suspended in a very low level, suspended third. So it’s really weird that he ran. It doesn’t honestly make any sense why he ran, but he’s being charged with eluding because he fled from our traffic stop kind of in a reckless manner. He ran the red light, put a lot of people in danger there, rather than just pulling over and having a conversation with me about what was going on with his car. So he’ll be going for eluding and suspended third tonight.”

Abrams: “But what’s really interesting is it seems that the officer knew right away this guy’s about to flee [and deployed the StarChase]. It was…just as he picks up speed.” Cpt. Rizzo: “…But look what you just saw in Berkeley, right? Now you see this. If anybody could argue about the hunch and that sixth sense…” Abrams: “Yeah, yeah. And Curtis, you were talking about the description being really important here. It wasn’t just about finding the car.” Dep. Wilson: “So when the officer knows that he’s getting ready to pull a vehicle over, he’s looking inside to see who this person is. It’s one thing to be able to locate the vehicle, but you have to tie this individual to it. So, being able to have a description of him worked out well.” Abrams: “Yeah, really well.”

  • Daytona Beach, Fla. — Det. Galbreath assists VCAT officers in searching for a driver who fled from a traffic stop in an alleged or possible stolen Jeep and then foot bailed. Galbreath successfully deploys stop sticks which deflates two tires. Sgt. Marcus Booth finds the empty vehicle with the engine still running and determines that the car is “fairly clean.” Officers located the suspect who winds up on a roof; the suspect eventually comes down and is taken into custody. Using a sports analogy, Abrams points out that Galbreath should get an assist on the arrest. Galbreath also searches the roof for any discarded contraband. Apparently in reference to the subject’s insistence on calling his wife before he came down, Abrams quips that “So they got him. And he wasn’t just up there trying to get better cell service…”

Det. Galbreath interim summary: “We have a very good perimeter set up from where the stolen vehicle bailed out. What had happened was some other detectives on VCAT located the stolen vehicle mobile in the area in the city. Conducted an attempted traffic stop; the vehicle fled at a high rate of speed. We maintained surveillance on the vehicle. Luckily, we were set up strategically in a great position. The vehicle came right to me, and I was able to deploy a tire-deflation device, which successfully hit two of the tires. Maintained a visual until the sole occupant and driver bailed out of the vehicle. And now we’re on our perimeter spot, just waiting as the K-9 attempts to track.” Cpt. Rizzo: “Besides setting up the box…what we’ll do in a case like that is we’ll use the car, with dogs, and we’ll try to pick up a recent article, an article of clothing, so that there’s a fresh odor and a fresh scent for tracking purposes. We’ll use air, but again…they don’t want to contaminate that car too much looking for certain identification pieces obviously, to process it… fingerprints and everything like that.”

Det. Galbreath recap: “…the driver, which was the sole occupant, bailed from the vehicle on foot, just to our west. Ran through a field, over a fence, into a backyard of a residence, and hid on this roof. Hid there for at least 30 minutes to an hour. We located him on the roof. Eventually, after negotiations, he came down peacefully and was taken into custody. I checked the roof for evidence. His shoes were located, a lighter, and a flask. Besides that, nothing else of evidentiary value. No drugs, no guns, nothing like that, so he’s taken into custody; he’ll be booked on a bunch of felonies..”

  • Brookford, N.C. — Chief Will Armstrong and Lt. Jamie Arbelaez conduct a traffic stop. Two occupants. The driver has no license: “I’m trying to get prepared for when I do get a license.” The chief is skeptical of the story that the driver is telling.

Chief Armstrong to the driver: “That didn’t make any sense — you know what I mean? You’re out here riding around; you don’t have a license, your tag is expired, but you’re telling me you’re trying to get it prepared for when you do get a license…to take that kind of a ride, man, and risk yourself on a ticket…” Abrams: “It’s sort of doing a self driving test to make sure he’ll be prepared when he does get his license. He wants to make sure he’s ready.” Cpt. Rizzo: “Can’t ever be too prepared.” Tickets issued; the female passenger who has a license will take over the driving.

“The more you talk, the dumber this story is getting…It’s just a big circle of not really making too much sense.”

Chief Armstrong to the driver: “I’m gonna issue two tickets, okay? One for driving while your license is revoked, okay? And then the additional is gonna be for driving with an expired registration plate, knowing that this should have been expired, okay? It’s been expired for several years. Here’s the deal: Any time you test drive a vehicle, you need to make sure that it’s legal to drive, okay? And the other thing is, you don’t need to test drive a vehicle on any kind of roadway if you don’t have a license, okay? And I’m sure that’s not something I have to tell you, but here’s the other thing. If you’re telling me that you’re test driving a vehicle; she’s telling me you’re supposed to be giving her a ride. So, who’s lying?…You’re telling me that you’re here to test drive a vehicle…she’s telling me that…you’re giving her a ride from one place to another, and she asked you for a ride. What is the truth?…The more you talk, the dumber this is getting. I’m just telling you. I’m not trying to be mean to you, but listen. The more you talk, the dumber this story is getting…”

Chief Armstrong recap: “So, apparently, ‘we’re’ test driving a car. Pretty much, this girl, he just admitted to us on the scene, that he’s trying to impress this girl. He came and picked her up. His buddy’s letting him test drive a car that he’s trying to buy. It started off with him just test driving the car until now, ‘I’m test driving the car, and I’m trying to give her a ride home.’ So, he’s getting two things done at once, so I give him credit for knocking out two birds with one stone. But his story’s just not adding up because of the way that he’s telling it. And the car doesn’t belong to the person he’s saying, but it belongs to somebody else that let the other person have it. It’s just a big circle of not really making too much sense. The most thing is that we issued the violations that we saw, and he’s not gonna drive without the license here tonight. And if that vehicle does come back stolen, we can now place him with it if something is not right like we suspect.”

  • Triple Play #1 — Fort Smith, Ark., motorcycle pursuit.
  • Toledo, Ohio — While out on another, unrelated call, Ofrs. Chris Mulinix and Mike Gee make a well-being check on the man who was punched in the mouth last Saturday night. Ofr. Mulinix: “We figured we’d just check on him to see how he’s doing…sounds like he’s doing good for now….” Cpt. Rizzo: “It’s kind of neat when you establish that, like, familiarity with people on your beat, your sector, your neighborhoods, whatever. That’s exactly what they were doing. It’s pretty cool.” Dep. Wilson: “It also good that he’s trying to get himself together…hopefully things will go the right way for him.”
  • Hazen, Ark. — Chief Bradley Taylor, Sgt. Clayton Dillion, and two other officers conduct a traffic stop; female driver with a dog. K9 Bosco alerted; car search. Drugs allegedly found. Abrams: “So they did find drugs there; they’re trying to find out exactly what they’re dealing with. Abrams also makes a Wizard of Oz reference in the context of the dog: “This isn’t Kansas, Toto; this is Arkansas.” Later in the episode, Abrams asserts that “she was cited for drug possession and released.”
  • Toledo, Ohio — Ofrs. Erhart and Janowiecki respond to a report of possible or alleged squatters in vacant trailers. The elderly gentleman who lives at the residence also tells cops that his wallet was stolen by someone not on scene. Cops will write a report so that detectives can follow up. As they are leaving, the officers separately remind the woman there that she is “banned from buying bleach….you know this…you kept throwing it on people…no more bleach.”

Ofr. Erhart summary: “Turns out that she also got burglarized as well. The dates of everything happening is kind of unclear. She is banned from owning bleach because she is known to throw bleach on people when she does not like them or when she’s mad at them. So that’s why she’s not allowed to have bleach. But we’re going to do the reports, we’re going to forward it to the detectives, and the detectives will be reaching out to them to follow up with everything.” Abrams:
“Well, her whites may not be completely white, but I think that it’s probably best” Rizzo: “I’ve never heard of an order of protection against bleach. That’s a first.”

“She is banned from owning bleach because she is known to throw bleach on people…”

  • Richland County, S.C. — Cpl. Tim Riley and other units respond to a report of a possible mailbox vandalization. The animated woman on scene who doesn’t want to be on camera claims that someone pilfered her mailbox key, and she apparently was using some self help to open it: “I had no other option: I had to get my mail.”
  • Brookford, N.C. — Chief Armstrong conducts a traffic stop on a truck operated by, it turns out, someone he went to school with. The chief tells the motorist that if all he has is a little bit of weed, “this will be a smooth operation,” because “everyone in America” is using weed. The motorist also allegedly says that he has brass knuckles on a keychain. Abrams mentions that weed is one thing, but brass knuckles might be a different story. Armstrong offers to provide the driver with information about addiction services/resources. The driver is apparently arrested on an alleged meth charge.

Listen to Chief Armstrong’s summary:

  • Toledo, Ohio — Ofrs. Erhart and Janowiecki respond to a report of someone allegedly brandishing a weapon, but the call is cancelled. Another unit had arrived on scene to handle the call and determined that it was probably just a misunderstanding.
  • Triple Play #2 — Pleasant Prairie, Wisc., stolen car pursuit.
  • Hazen, Ark. — Traffic stop. Two occupants. Chief Taylor claims that he smells alcohol. Beer cans found in vehicle during a car search. The driver refuses taking a portable breath test possibly based on advice his uncle had previously given him. In the course of the interaction, Chief Taylor tries to give the young man some fatherly advice and also says that “Your uncle is gonna send you to jail tonight.” It turns out, however, that that didn’t occur. Abrams update: “That couple who were pulled over by the chief and others there. The driver ended up agreeing to do a breathalyzer, and both he and she were released with no charges. They just had to pour out the beer.”
  • Everett, Wash. — Sgt. Steve Ross conducts a traffic stop and smells weed in the car.
  • Indian River County, Fla. — Det. Christian Castano conducts a traffic stop in a church parking lot. The female driver seems to at first consent to a car search but then withdraws consent and requests a sergeant to do it. She is subsequently released with no charges.
  • Richland County, S.C. — As the episode concludes, Dep. Salmond and other units purse a fleeing vehicle. Abrams admits that “this is why we need the fourth hour…right at the end of the show, they’re in the middle of a pursuit. We will have that fourth hour tomorrow night…” At the sign off, one occupant appears to foot bail and is taken into custody. A passenger appears to be detained peacefully.
CLICK HERE for the OPL-02-88, June 29, 2024, recap (forthcoming).
CLICK HERE for information about the pending OPL lawsuit.