Spring 2004 Edition

Second Graders Locked Up     After announcing that "they were wanted in three states for staying up past their bedtime", Police Sergeant Robert Boyle recently locked up a group of boys in one of the Fair Lawn Municipal Building's prisons cells.    Their few minutes of jail-time was part of a Cub Scout tour of Fair Lawn's Police Station.    The boys also visited the Communications Room and learned how the police dispatchers answer 911 calls.  Andrew, an eight year old Radburn School student, said "it's awesome how the computers show who is calling and where they live.  If the police officer picks up the phone and doesn't hear anybody on the other end, he just calls back or drives over to their house."    The kids stood quietly when Boyle told them a story of two 12 year old Fair Lawn girls who recently got themselves into big trouble.  The girls thought it was funny to repeatedly call 911 from a River Road pay phone.  The girls didn't know that at the very same time they were placing ten crank calls to 911, a Fair Lawn man was having a heart attack at High School tennis courts.  The man's friends were desperately trying to get help, but no one was picking up their calls to 911.  Boyle said "fortunately, one of the man's friends was smart enough to call the Elmwood Park Police station, who immediately contacted the Fair Lawn police by radio.  After arranging for an ambulance, the Fair Lawn Police Sgt. on duty went out to River Road and arrested the two girls."   The police tour fascinated the boys.  Bryan Guner said "I actually got to sit in the police car and I even got to see the big gun."  Ayal Pessar, said "the toilets in the jail cells are really cool."  One second grader, pointing to the surveillance cameras, asked "can you watch people on TV when they go to the bathroom?"   Another boy asked (before getting a nasty glare from his Mom) "where do you keep the donuts?"   The boys were pleased that the cameras couldn't monitor the prisoners while they were on the toilet.  But, they were disappointed when Sgt. Boyle said "we don't have any donuts here, right now".     The cub scout den leader, Janice Pessar, told Fair Lawn News "when I was a kid I learned that policemen were my friends.  After the tour, I felt that the kids could really approach these police officers.  They aren't big scary guys with guns and walkie-talkies, but people the boys could approach if they are ever in trouble."   Although the boys' parents enjoyed the tour, they did seem a bit disappointed when Sgt. Boyle unlocked the jail cells and let their rambunctious boys go free.     Sgt. Boyle showing the boys that after someone touches a piece of paper, you can spread powder on the sheet to reveal fingerprints.