Subscriber Comments for
SB Police Association Backs Beutel

Most recent Comments first | (reverse order)

COMMENT 331615	2012-10-15 02:55 PM
The officer's conduct is not just one isolated incident. There are multiple docoumented instances, both in and out of the work place, that call her credibility into question. In my mind, if there is ANY question about the credibility of one who has the authority to lock you or a loved one in jail, then we should not take a chance. The whole situation is bad and tarnishes the reputations of other, honest and hardworking officers.
COMMENT 331592	2012-10-15 02:21 PM
Oh The Edhat Board Nanny removed my comment....Well please read it because if they are going to rebuke people, why can't we rebuke them? Also, why are we required to deal with this POA anyway? Our cops form a union so they don't have to listen to their chief or us?
COMMENT 331528	2012-10-15 12:18 PM
So what if Lance had a personal beef with Kasi Beutel? None of us wake up in the morning thinking we are going to look into the character of some unknown random person for no reason at all. So the fact Lance had interest in learning more about Buetel doesn't concern me. If that is what it took to look under the Kasi rock, so be it.
COMMENT 331487P	2012-10-15 10:54 AM
I was in an accident where a car veered into my lane and caused the crash. Statements were taken by several officers on the scene. After the statements were taken an officer showed up late to the scene. There was a conversation about who would write the report. The late officer said he was having a slow night so he would write the report. The report took almost a month to become available and once it did the information was incorrect. The road conditions and statemnts we gave were completely different than what we said at the scene. This caused issues with the insurance companies and complicated everything to do with our accident. The department needs some serious change in its management and training of its officers.
COMMENT 331449	2012-10-15 10:02 AM
How does Lance and his supporters say the VIDEO proves Kasi lied on the heroin evidence when they have only shown us PICTURES? Show us the VIDEO and let us make our conclusions.
COMMENT 331252	2012-10-14 03:00 PM
I side with the police officers vs the drunks and druggies. All day long. Lance and the NP have no credibility amongst the level headed locals.
COMMENT 331157	2012-10-14 09:09 AM
That's right. The NP has bought shame to our city. Shoot the messenger. The people that have bought shame are Sanchez/Beutel and Tudor.
COMMENT 331153P	2012-10-14 08:51 AM
It is such a shame that our once proud newspaper (now rated in the top 10 worst in the country) has brought such shame to our city. Thank God for the Independent....
COMMENT 331153P	2012-10-14 08:47 AM
Thank you Officer Beutel for putting your life on the line night after night to protect us. The vast majority of Santa Barbara (those with common sense) understands this for what it is. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you for what you do.
COMMENT 331075	2012-10-13 08:53 PM
Get rid of Buetel and Sanchez.
COMMENT 331061	2012-10-13 07:26 PM
The Blue code of honor even for a dirty cop.
COMMENT 331048	2012-10-13 05:51 PM
Kasi Beutel and now the POA's statement are but symptoms of a PD that is rotten and out-of-control. There have been more than enough, too, to make many of us question them. But as pointed out above, for whatever the reasons, there have not been many good, hard investigations by the media, or as needs to happen, an IA unit. We are not safer when the dept is this bad. It's been going on like this for a long time now, and enough is enough. We need, no deserve, better law enforcement leadership and procedures.
COMMENT 331042	2012-10-13 05:29 PM
Reading comments like Beutel is a hero and that there's no corruption possible here is saddening and pretty pathetic. It's a testament to having your head in the clouds to think that this kind of thing can't and won't happen in our city. It's kind of frightening how gullible people can be and how apt they are to believe something despite all logic. Nothing is ever as it seems and people who think it has to be 100% one way or the other are missing the very real part of life; often things are not cut and dried. People make mistakes. Even those with badges can be guilty of misconduct and lies. It doesn't matter at all if the person they stopped was guilty of ANYTHING. An officer can still be corrupt regardless of the situation. Wake up, people.
COMMENT 331041	2012-10-13 05:10 PM
Lance disclosed up front his own conflict of interests so the reader was well aware to be on the look out for bias in the opinion pieces he then later produced. So any media "ethics" questions were set forth from the very start for anyone who cared to continue with his story. And most people did not. It has been a convoluted rant and beneath the dignity of the NewsPress to give it such prominent coverage. However, investigative journalism is a critical need in this country and we are getting a first hand look how it can and maybe should not work. Keep it up NewsPress. We learned Travis Armstrong was right far more often than he was wrong, but only when it was too late. You have uncovered a few rocks in this story too and slimy things continue to crawl out.
COMMENT 331040	2012-10-13 05:01 PM
All that's been proven to me is that Peter Lance still has an axe to grind with Kasi Beutel, and the SBN-P provides Lance with a forum to continue his attack. It's unprofessional journalism to have such a serious and obvious bias against your subject, but I guess those old standards of journalistic professionalism don't apply in today's world. Or the local newspaper. Making accusations against someone in a newspaper doesn't qualify as bringing an official complaint, and I see no evidence that anyone has actually brought a complaint against the officer to be investigated.
COMMENT 331039	2012-10-13 05:00 PM
Ya right don't like the facts blame the messenger . If the N.P. said the sky was blue many would claim that it was a shade of green. Lance has his facts together and many just refuse to listen just because they do not like Wendy. I thought that the people of Santa Barbara were better than that.
COMMENT 331036P	2012-10-13 04:29 PM
Scott Seepleton, Peter Lance, Wendy McCawCaw...all extremely unprofessional. That's not to say that the SBPD has been ultra-professional in many of these circumstances. Unbiased, clear, well-written reporting would be a gift to the community, but is unlikely to happen until McCaw either sells the paper or dies.
COMMENT 331035	2012-10-13 04:26 PM
I personally think Officer Beutel is a liar and should be off the force. She gives HONEST police officers a bad name!
COMMENT 331036P	2012-10-13 04:24 PM
Scott Seepleton, Peter Lance, Wendy McCawCaw...all extremely unprofessional. That's not to say that the SBPD has been ultra-professional in many of these circumstances. Unbiased, clear, well-written reporting would be a gift to the community, but is unlikely to happen until McCaw either sells the paper or dies.
COMMENT 331006P	2012-10-13 01:52 PM
992 - You should have challenged it. I received a citation by a female SBPD who was very unpleasant. I filed the form to challenge it in the Muni. Court on Figueroa. It was dismissed on the basis of my written statement without my having to go to court. ...It's like giving handouts to transients: if you give money they will ask for more; if you let authority get away with lying, they will continue to do so.
COMMENT 330992	2012-10-13 01:19 PM
A CHP was wrong and then lied. I had my seat belt on while driving then unlocked it as he pulled me over in my own driveway. I put the car in park, hit the seat belt release button and had a knocking on the window. Can't remember his name but I think it started with a B. I did pay the fine as showing up to court proved to be a bigger hassle but am very confidant when I say that he lied. I won't gain anything or lose anything by saying this. It's true though. I have lost faith in the police department and hope that I never actually need them.
COMMENT 331039	2012-10-13 01:17 PM
Oh and by the way, there is criminal fraud which is a public fraud and civil fraud which is a private fraud. For the simple SBPD fans let me break it down for ya. If I tell my wife that I have taken the trash out and I have not that is a type of fraud, not criminal. When Betuel makes up information on official reports and signs them, that is criminal fraud. The same goes for forging signatures on official forms. There is much proof of forgery; the testimony of multiple people that their signatures were forged as well as the opinion of a nationally recognized handwriting expert.
COMMENT 330982	2012-10-13 01:07 PM
Just a couple factual corrections about Nixle: When you subscribe to an agency (like the SBPD), you can subscribe via text message and/or email. You can specify which type of messages to receive via text message, i.e. "Alerts Only", "Alerts, Advisories" or "Alerts, Advisories, Community". However, when you subscribe via email, you are subscribing to ALL three types of messages. Thus, you will either receive no emails, or all emails. The message released yesterday (Friday October 12th, 2012 :: 05:27 p.m. PDT) was a "Community" message. If you receive any email messages, you will receive ALL of them, including (non emergency) community messages. I find this to be a silly and arbitrary limitation of Nixle, and a bit confusing considering the layout of their "Settings" page. Finally, Nixle is a private corporation, not a government agency.
COMMENT 330980	2012-10-13 01:06 PM
Lance's case was dismissed because the judge determined the officers who stopped Lance did not have probable cause ( they pulled him over for not accelerating away from a green light fast enough). Beutel, in her arrest report for Lance, stated he was stopped for an unsafe turning movement. Beutel lied in her report which was signed under penalty of perjury. She was over a mile away from the scene of the traffic stop when it occurred and neither one of the officers who stopped Lance ever stated he made an unsafe turning movement. Beutel's lie in a police report signed by her under penalty of perjury was the big issue in that case. Lance was well on his way to getting Beutel busted for perjury when Judge Hill saved her butt by dismissing the case.
COMMENT 331039	2012-10-13 12:15 PM
@330930 Only someone with a weak case goes ad hom. I am not an idiot, only a taxpayer that is not comfortable with a Police department that condones fraud. Beutel claimed on the DMV report that Lance had been stopped for making “unsafe turning movements" which was clearly a lie because she was not there when the stop was initiated. That is why Lance's case was thrown out of court. That was hardly a " technicality" So I guess that it is OK with the SBPD to make up police reports. I know htat Harris is A.G. and she should and will be looking at the crooked SBPD.
COMMENT 330959	2012-10-13 12:09 PM
Police all over this country are murdering people every day and getting away with it. Common excuses are He had a gun ( turns out to be a pencil), reached for his waistband ( after we ordered him to show ID and he reached for the wallet), etc. ad nauseum. Now the POA wants to defend a crooked cop. Surprise! Cops will get respect when they deserve it, not when they demand it like spoiled crybabies. Meanwhile how about cleaning up the department and getting rid of liars, punks and self-appointed judge/jury cops. Then the rest of the heroes will get a lot more respect and cooperation. It would also help if the DA could stop the rubber stamp routine and investigate these crims wearing the uniform.
COMMENT 330958	2012-10-13 12:08 PM
Supporters of SBPD, how can you possibly argue with video evidence??
COMMENT 330951	2012-10-13 11:52 AM
930 has the facts correct. The judge threw out the case against Lance because a cop other than Beutel supposedly lacked cause to stop his car. Lance blew .08 or higher, and was thus DUI. So he got a free pass. It was a pretext dimissal: Lance's claim against Beutel was clearly the judge's hidden reason for dismissing the case because of the headache it created. The court didn't mind letting a DUI offender go unpunished rather than let the Lance case become the improper forum for an investigation of Beutel that extended well beyond the facts of the Lance arrest. To date there has been no reliable proof (from sources independent of Lance and his attorney's own biased investigation) that Beutel forged any blood test waivers.
COMMENT 330930	2012-10-13 10:51 AM
@922 You are living proof of the idiocy that abounds here on this comment board. First of all, Lance's case was dismissed on a technicality based on the traffic stop which didn't even involve Beutel. She never admitted to lying on the DMV report....did you just make that up? And what exactly is "criminal fraud" ...as opposed to non-criminal fraud? Finally, Ms. Harris is the Attorney General here in California. Perhaps you need to educate yourself just a bit before you comment on what you obviously don't know much about. Better luck next time.
COMMENT 330928P	2012-10-13 10:39 AM
i believe innocent until proven guilty. As i read this article, i am intrigued by the facts. The police have a difficult job as it is, but a police person who specializes in DUI. What?? I am pleased to see, what goes on, behind the scene, the lab person in boston, not doing the analysis, and thousands of cases found in question now. The fact that the officer has pre signed tickets, what? I car less about names, i simply want the truth, and finally the police union ot fire union supporting a candidate, only in santa barbara. This is no different than the board of appeals, not voting for chick-filet. Everyone should do their job, and the police should stay out of political recommendations.
COMMENT 330923	2012-10-13 09:34 AM
I think it is interesting that they moved her to a different beat, downtown taking care of sitations for skateboarders, and guess what, she issued the most! She must be damn good at her job or..........
COMMENT 331039	2012-10-13 09:32 AM
Beutel admitted that she lied on the DMV report. That is why Lance's case was thrown out of court. If she were a LAPD officer she would now be looking for a job and a good defense lawyer. I hope all of you SBPD supporters are comfortable with a department that allows criminal fraud and perjury from their officers. Hello California Secretary of State Harris. We need some one to investigate and clean house at the SBPD. Other wise Santa Barbara will continue to be protected by a dishonest organization.
COMMENT 330919	2012-10-13 08:15 AM
"Lance was in the wrong. Give it up". Okay, Mark Corbett, whatever you say.
COMMENT 331592	2012-10-13 08:13 AM
Well, just check out todays headline in the SBNP. Ok so you hate the News Press. Isn't the POS, Oops! I mean POA acting the same way by spreading their propaganda on in appropriate channels? There seems to be more and more of these incedents popping up on the radar.
COMMENT 331252	2012-10-13 08:03 AM
Lance's retaliation against beutel and sbpd is working. Never mind he was actually over the DUI limit, by finding a megaphone in the news press, I can see he has swayed many of the slower minds in here. He has red herrings by the bucketload with no shortage of gull(libles) to feed.
SBJULES	2012-10-13 07:36 AM
Lance was in the wrong and is Obsessed. give it up.
COMMENT 330919	2012-10-13 07:27 AM
For the SBPOA to suggest that KB has brought anything but shame to a once proud police department is another sign of profound dysfunction in a department where the chief tried to escape on a midnight bus to San Berdoo and had a public fight in the press and in court about what kind of pants its motor officers should wear. The list of such embarrassments is long and growing. The Mayor and City Administrator are seriously shirking their duty to restore the public's faith in the SBPD and the City itself. It is now beyond obvious and beyond ridiculous. Shame in the SBPOA and anyone who thinks or says that Lance's personality defects are the real issue here.
COMMENT 330891P	2012-10-12 11:19 PM
I have a problem with Peter Lance and have not seen any smoking gun in his articles in terms of Officer Beutel. That being said parts of this message and the fact this was sent out via a official city channel the nixle system with this message is disturbing. The fact they didn't say charges were dropped against Lance, the obsessive and compulsive and the fact the POA was able to use this system may have just opened the city to a liability for smearing him via a city run delivery system. I support our officers and the POA, but this should never have been sent out via a official city channel. Someone at the police department needs to be disciplined for allowing this to happen and it needs to be corrected quickly. The only problem everyone should be concerned about right now is the potential liability the city now has because of this.
MESARATS	2012-10-12 09:13 PM
Exceeding the bounds of unbiased reporting vs. investigative reporting. There is truth to both. Consider the corruption of many California cites that has been going on for years and only recently exposed by journalists. Access to the SBNP articles is available at the link below. It is interesting reading. http://peterlance.com/wordpress
COMMENT 331006P	2012-10-12 08:28 PM
This message is totally inappropriate for the Emergency Message system that calls itself: "Nixle Trusted By The People You Trust ...Download for iPhone, iPod Touch & iPad Get trusted alerts from your local police" The POA who sent this out should be penalized and, at the least, the officers responsible receive seriously negative reports in their personnel files for misusing the NIXLE alert system I have not read the most recent series of Lance articles but most certainly am going to do so now. Those here calling him a "drunk" should do so publicly, give him a chance to respond; that accusation sounds libelous. In the recent charged DUI, he was not found guilty of DUI. I don't know any of these people personally but am outraged that this is what the SB Police do with our safety warning system, bringing disrespect, disrepute onto what I had thought was a basically good department. Shame on the POA!
COMMENT 330879	2012-10-12 08:23 PM
Have we all forgotten that the chief of police Cam was found to have lied himself in court on the Wayne Scoles incident?? This whole department needs a shake down. Lets start with the top. She was just following his lead. This stinks!
COMMENT 330980	2012-10-12 08:19 PM
Why are so many people attacking Lance but failing to comment on the actions of Beutel? I read Sunday's News-Press article and Lance makes a compelling argument that Buetel lied in a police report that resulted in a DUI suspect being charged with a felony that could have landed the suspect in prison for 4 years. The video stills from the county jail booking room proves Beutel lied in her report where she stated she witnessed a bag of heroin fall from the suspect's pocket. Lance did not make that video, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department did. The News-Press did not make the video stills, all it did was publish them. It's the video that proves beyond any doubt that Beutel lied. Lance and the News-Press are just providing the video to the public.
INQUIRING MIND	2012-10-12 08:10 PM
The comments here indicate that the community is divided on this issue. I for one would like to see another of our independent news organizations take on the job of trying to sort out fact from fiction re Kasi Beutel and her actions in this and other cases. I know for a fact that there are a ton of reputable people on our police force and this issue is dragging them into a pool of mud. I'm signed up to receive messages from the Emergency Message transmittal system and just received a message which is verbatim of the message above in Ed Hat. I'm a little skeptical that this is an appropriate subject for the Emergency Message system. I'm also very skeptical of Peter Lance's /News Press' lack of bias.
COMMENT 330874P	2012-10-12 08:07 PM
Hahahaha what about the officer who is currently awaiting trial for masturbating on the beach? Wonder if they will go hard on him? Or go soft?
COMMENT 330870	2012-10-12 08:02 PM
Wonder how the POA feels about the embezzlement case that occured within the PD. Did the NP report that? I believe so....hmmm, SBPD is very suspect.
COMMENT 330867	2012-10-12 07:55 PM
In my opinion, Peter Lance is acting unprofessionally and his screed is a poor example of real journalism. Although he's obviously intelligent, It's pretty clear the guy has an ego the size of Texas plus some kind of psychological deficiency that makes him socially unfit - sort of like an obsessive with Asperger's. Think of a cross between a pit bull and a chihuahua.
COMMENT 330874P	2012-10-12 07:22 PM
Lesson from this story is..........if you get a DUI, dont settle, fight it to the end even if it means going to trial! PD credibility stinks bad, and why not flood the DAs office with all the recent DUI arrest theyre claiming. Why not even use the news press?
COMMENT 330862	2012-10-12 07:07 PM
Anybody really pays attention to the News Press any more? By airing more of Lance's histrionics it is proving the well worn adage that sensationalism sells and the more outrageous the better. By stirring up the pot the rag that was once a respectable news source is committing itself to tabloid journalism. Two headed space aliens abducting the mayor is next.
COMMENT 330861	2012-10-12 07:05 PM
The people who are taking SBPD side need to review the FACTS. It wasnt just ONE incident There were quite a few that were suspected of changing the arrest report
COMMENT 330860	2012-10-12 07:00 PM
330848 Maybe she did things wrong .Really? What if it was your kid that was accused of bringing heroin into the jail and it's the Police Departments words against your kids. Do you know the jail time would be for doing something like that? Remember the case was dismissed. How is all this stuff being swept underneath the carpet.
COMMENT 330874P	2012-10-12 06:53 PM
I keep reading she saved lives, but what about those she ruined with her lies and conduct? A DUI can cause someone a whole lot as well.
COMMENT 330856P	2012-10-12 06:50 PM
848: Feel free to read any police release regarding an arrest. There is never a presumption of innocence. Yes, the NP stories weren't very pleasant. And the arrest reports are just as biased and insensitive. This POA press release was rather kneejerk; it really makes it look like its the cops against the rest off us. Definately not getting a warm and fuzzy feeling. Sometimes it's best to let sleeping dogs lay.
COMMENT 330879	2012-10-12 06:42 PM
If Beutel lied about the heroin and got caught she needs to be fired right away!!!!!!!!!! Maybe even charged with a crime. She would ruin someone she does not even know life forever just to get a conviction,to further her "dedicated" career. That's disgusting.. That's evil!!!! Sorry if this is true we are dealing with someone way worst than a drunk driver. What else has she been lying about????? Let's not let this topic go away quickly. We deserve answers right now about the heroin story!!! Does anyone know what day that story was in the news press? I would really like to read it.
COMMENT 330853	2012-10-12 06:38 PM
More propaganda from the old boys and girls club. There is serious evidence of perjury and fraud at the SBPD. But hey first responder heroes, by all means circle the wagons around your lying mascot Kasi and forget all about the oath you took to follow the law.
COMMENT 330851P	2012-10-12 06:36 PM
822...he was NOT drunk. He didn't take off fast enough at a light . You need to go to the reports and read them....the SBPD blew this one. Sorry they keep stepping in it. Cam is such an embarressment! Sure wish he had got that job in San Berdo!
COMMENT 330856P	2012-10-12 06:35 PM
Someone's sure crabby. Didn't Ben Franklin quip the follow: Don't argue with someone that buys ink by the barrel. Seems the POA should read "Poor Richard's Alamanc". Lots of good lessions there.
COMMENT 330848	2012-10-12 06:32 PM
Freedom of the press implies responsibility, too. Maybe she did things wrong, but NP did not go about exposing them the right way. Therefore, presumption of innocence and fairness is on her side. The reporter was absurdly biased, as in gained materially by pursuing the story. Period. Leave her alone. Start over NP if you think something is wrong in the department. Otherwise you owe everyone an apology. She's saved lives.
COMMENT 330847	2012-10-12 06:31 PM
#330843 It looks like the Police Department has come on to voice their opinions. Your words say it all. Not very nice.
COMMENT 330842P	2012-10-12 06:21 PM
Those of you who think that you get anything like "facts" from the the NewPress have not been paying any attention to what has gone one. I will take the SBPD any day over Wendy and her friends. Bottom line - Peter Lance is a drunk and drove that way. He is a danger to all who encounter him on the road. When he kills someone driving drunk are you still going to think that Wendy did the right thing by giving him her paper to vilify the officer that arrested him?
COMMENT 330840	2012-10-12 06:18 PM
330831 Wow! I didn't see that article. That is so scary.
COMMENT 330980	2012-10-12 05:46 PM
The SBPOA failed to address the main issue of the latest News-Press articles- did Kasi Beutel lie in a police report claiming she witnessed a bag of heroin fall out of a DUI suspect's pocket? In a series of video stills published in last Sunday's News-Press Beutel is shown looking away from the suspect when a Sheriff's Deputy found a bag of heroin on the floor of the County Jail booking room. Beutel claimed in her arrest report that she witnessed the bag fall out of the suspect's sweater. The video proved that Beutel's eye witness account is false. The deputy never claimed the bag came from the suspect. It was Beutel's report that caused the suspect to be charged with posession of heroin. The charge was later dismissed.
COMMENT 330830	2012-10-12 05:44 PM
330825 Right on and I for one have become a subsciber. It's about time we the taxpayer can get some facts.
COMMENT 330827	2012-10-12 05:41 PM
I hope the News Press finds themselves loosing yet more readers (or the last few they still have) I know I have stopped buying the News Press AND no longer advertise with them
COMMENT 330879	2012-10-12 05:40 PM
Officer Beutel should be fired. She lies on police reports and got caught. So what happens to her? she get promoted. She knows very well how much a dui makes for the city and her. She will do anything to get a conviction and lies are her way to do that. Her and cam need to go. They talk to us like they are our parents and we are children. She got busted in court making up lies with another officer and the judge throws a fine at the defense attorney... go figure... SBPD , SBSO and the DA's office are very corrupt. Thank you Peter Lance for shedding light on what happens behind closed doors in this town.
COMMENT 330823	2012-10-12 05:35 PM
Here's a headline for law enforcement: Don't try to arrest Wendy's friends!
COMMENT 330822	2012-10-12 05:30 PM
One thing that bothers me about all this is that Peter Lance drove drunk. Improper procedure may have been followed pulling him over and processing him, but the bottom line is that a drunk driver was taken off the road that night and he didn't kill anybody. I'm very disappointed that the News Press would allow use of their news pages in this way for Mr. Lance's grandstanding. He should count himself lucky that he got off, and lay low. I'm very disappointed that improper procedure was followed. Most of all, I'm disappointed that a drunk driver got off.
COMMENT 330856P	2012-10-12 05:17 PM
Ummm....how is this any different from when the police arrest someone and then in their press release villify that person. That's right it sure doesn't feel good and serves to prejudice the jury. Now, with heightened insight and understanding, maybe the PD and DA can be a little more civilized when they annouce when someone is charged and arrested.
COMMENT 330813	2012-10-12 05:15 PM
I don't know anything about Officer Buetel, but I do find the NP articles biased and consider them opinion pieces, not reporting. If the NP was interested in reporting on this topic, they should have hired a neutral reporter to do so.
COMMENT 331153P	2012-10-12 05:07 PM
Thank you Officer Beutel. You are a hero and we, the community, appreciate you...

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