Tagged: Miami-Dade police

Barrel-chested Leo Thalassites squints like Clint Eastwood, hops around like Jackie Chan and has been an active cop for nearly six decades. He is 86 years old.

He first joined the Miami-Dade Police Department in 1956. He moved to the Hialeah Police Department in 1963, where he has been on active duty ever since.  And now, according to the International Police Association, he is the oldest active police officer.

Not everyone remembers the moment when they lost the innocence of their childhood. But Paul Novack is reminded of that moment every day.

“Something about the Goldman house is that I drive by it at least twice a day,” says Novack. “It’s a constant reminder of what happened here in 1966.”

What happened in 1966 was suddenly the town of Surfside – Paul Novack’s town – became a place where horrendous crime happened. It began when a robber slipped in through the unlocked back door March 28, 1966, while the Goldman family slept.

Florida is back on the nation's legal map today with two cases before the U. S. Supreme Court, both of them involving police dogs whose well-trained noses led to now-controversial drug arrests.

From The Washington Post: