Crime & Safety News

Sheriff Scott Israel: Crime-Fighting Tools to Keep Broward County Safer

by Guest Contributer November 30, 2015

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BSO K9 Officers – photo courtesy Broward Sheriff’s Office.

A message from Sheriff Scott Israel:

Sheriff Scott Israel

The Broward Sheriff’s Office has several specialized countywide units that, when working together, provide exceptional service to all the cities in Broward County, not just those policed by BSO. Here are some of the services that we provide.

Professionals in BSO’s Crime Laboratory identify suspects through diligence, science and patience. Police forensics TV shows like CSI and NCIS show how DNA evidence is used to identify and catch a criminal in a one-hour episode, but in real life, obtaining and analyzing DNA evidence takes weeks or even months. I recently gave Exceptional Service Awards to our crime lab detectives and technicians for their meticulous work with DNA evidence, including cutting-edge work with the M-VAC DNA collection tool. This advanced technology is also helping us solve cold cases.

Another of our specialized units is K-9, which features dogs of various breeds – specially-bred and trained – for differing tasks. Some canines track criminals and search for missing persons, while others can sniff out narcotics, bombs and even find contraband smuggled into our jails. Today, BSO has 49 dogs assigned throughout the agency available around the clock for immediate response.

BSO SWAT Team

Since 1975, BSO’s Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team has responded to some of the county’s most dangerous law enforcement situations. The team handles various incidents including barricaded subjects and hostage-taking situations, violent felon search/arrest warrant operations, dignitary protection missions and other tactical operations.

Earlier this year, a suspicious suitcase was found on a Miramar roadside, a bank robber left a backpack in a Margate bank that he claimed contained a bomb and an improvised explosive device (IED) was discovered in a Hollywood residence. BSO’s Bomb Squad responded to each of these incidents to assist. These are just some of the hundreds of annual missions performed by our bomb squad throughout Broward County. Some of the unit’s tools include multiple remote-controlled robots that inspect and x-ray suspect items as well as six K-9s that are trained to detect explosive material. Our bomb squad is accredited by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, having met the highest national standards required to assist local, state and federal agencies and stands ready to protect our communities.

Sheriff Scott Israel

Certain Broward cities like Coral Springs maintain their own police departments, however, BSO does provide communications and dispatch services to the following cities: Central Broward, Cooper City, Dania Beach, Deerfield Beach, Ft Lauderdale-Hollywood Int’l Airport, Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, Lauderdale Lakes, North Lauderdale. Oakland Park, Parkland, Pembroke Park, West Park, Pompano Beach, Port Everglades, Tamarac, Weston and unincorporated West Broward.