Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Assistant San Diego sheriff took $10,000 trip to Israel

Mossad briefing and winery visit included in second officer's $5500 junket

Harvest time at Assaf winery
Harvest time at Assaf winery

San Diego and Israel have at least one thing in common: border troubles.

So, although the degree of the difficulties may be a bit different, assistant sheriff Patricia Duke set out earlier this year for the besieged country for "training and networking on border security issues."

A sheriff's captain took advantage of a similar junket last month.

Duke's nine-day trip, costing a total of $10,337, was paid for by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee — AIPAC for short — according to a disclosure sheriff Bill Gore's office filed this summer.

According to her profile on the sheriff's website, Duke, assistant sheriff since 2011, runs the department's Law Enforcement Services Bureau, which "provides general and specialized law enforcement operations," the sheriff's website says.

AIPAC set up the U.S. law-enforcement training program last year, according to a news release posted by Utah County sheriff James Tracy:

Sponsored
Sponsored

"Israel has been preparing for and responding to terror attacks for 50 years. Our goal is to ensure that U.S. law enforcement and first responders have the opportunity to learn from Israel's vast experience in this critical area. This trip is an important part of AIPAC's new homeland security initiative," said AIPAC Board Member Harriet Zimmerman.

San Diego sheriff's spokesperson Jan Caldwell said this year's trip hosted a number of law-enforcement officers from U.S. border cities.

AIPAC was not the only group to help Sheriff Gore with the training of his troops. According to a November 15 disclosure, the Anti-Defamation League coughed up $5500 for Cpt. Michael Barnett's nine-day Israel trip last month for the ADL's so-called Western States Counterterrorism Training Seminar.

A post last month on the league's website by San Diego regional director Tammy Gillies described the tour:

I have the honor of leading the ADL Western States Counterterrorism Seminar and will be spending the next 7 days on a journey through Israel with 15 law enforcement executives from all over California and Washington.

We began our trip with a delicious and informative dinner on the top floor of our hotel with a magnificent view of the walls of the Old City.

We learned how the [Israel National Police] works with the [Israel Defense Forces], the Mossad, and Shin Bet and how everyone must put their egos aside to work together. As the Brigadier General told us, “we learned by blood that we must work together.”

The next day, it was up early for the U.S. law enforcers and a session on handling the news media.

Our day continued at Mabat 2000 in the Old City with a fascinating briefing from Mickey Rosenfeld, spokesman for foreign media, Israel National Police. We learned about the role of media in times of crisis and the importance of the role of media vis a via [sic] security.

During its tour, the group hit several border stops:

...We made our way to the beautiful Assaf Winery where one or two group members seemed prepared to hang up their badges and work for the Assaf family making wine in this beautiful part of the world.

After a fantastic lunch and wine tasting we asked the owner how he feels about being so close to the Border. He only half-jokingly told us that he feels he is so close that the rockets will go right over them. What a way to live?

In a subsequent post, Gillies wrote:

After a wonderful dinner with our friends from the IDF and the Israeli National Police, we headed to the Dublin pub, a fantastic Irish Bar in Jerusalem. It was a fun evening of getting to know each other better and sharing thoughts about the past few days.

The next day it was time for a meeting with the commander of the Eilat police station, but not before another reportedly tasty repast.

After a fantastic Italian style lunch with about 8 different types of pasta and pizza at the delicious Pastory restaurant, Commander Cohen takes us to the Border Police Station at Taba, and then on to the Border crossing.

Standing at the checkpoint at Taba, we see the Egyptian and Israeli flags just feet apart.

You can literally have one foot in Israel and one in Egypt. We are told by Commander Cohen that it takes a terrorist merely 3 minutes on a jet-ski to get from the shores of Aqaba, to the shores of Eilat. Seeing firsthand the closeness of Israel’s neighbors is truly eye-opening for our group!

Wrote Gillies as the tour concluded:

As we had our closing dinner, we reflected on our experiences and the journey we had taken together.

As one Police Chief says, “This trip has completely changed my perspective on Israel. Not that it was bad, but I didn’t care much because I had no reason to care. This has changed forever.”

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Reader Music Issue short takes

Obervatory's mosh pit, frenetic Rafael Payare, Lemonhead chaos, bleedforthescene, Coronado Tasting Room
Harvest time at Assaf winery
Harvest time at Assaf winery

San Diego and Israel have at least one thing in common: border troubles.

So, although the degree of the difficulties may be a bit different, assistant sheriff Patricia Duke set out earlier this year for the besieged country for "training and networking on border security issues."

A sheriff's captain took advantage of a similar junket last month.

Duke's nine-day trip, costing a total of $10,337, was paid for by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee — AIPAC for short — according to a disclosure sheriff Bill Gore's office filed this summer.

According to her profile on the sheriff's website, Duke, assistant sheriff since 2011, runs the department's Law Enforcement Services Bureau, which "provides general and specialized law enforcement operations," the sheriff's website says.

AIPAC set up the U.S. law-enforcement training program last year, according to a news release posted by Utah County sheriff James Tracy:

Sponsored
Sponsored

"Israel has been preparing for and responding to terror attacks for 50 years. Our goal is to ensure that U.S. law enforcement and first responders have the opportunity to learn from Israel's vast experience in this critical area. This trip is an important part of AIPAC's new homeland security initiative," said AIPAC Board Member Harriet Zimmerman.

San Diego sheriff's spokesperson Jan Caldwell said this year's trip hosted a number of law-enforcement officers from U.S. border cities.

AIPAC was not the only group to help Sheriff Gore with the training of his troops. According to a November 15 disclosure, the Anti-Defamation League coughed up $5500 for Cpt. Michael Barnett's nine-day Israel trip last month for the ADL's so-called Western States Counterterrorism Training Seminar.

A post last month on the league's website by San Diego regional director Tammy Gillies described the tour:

I have the honor of leading the ADL Western States Counterterrorism Seminar and will be spending the next 7 days on a journey through Israel with 15 law enforcement executives from all over California and Washington.

We began our trip with a delicious and informative dinner on the top floor of our hotel with a magnificent view of the walls of the Old City.

We learned how the [Israel National Police] works with the [Israel Defense Forces], the Mossad, and Shin Bet and how everyone must put their egos aside to work together. As the Brigadier General told us, “we learned by blood that we must work together.”

The next day, it was up early for the U.S. law enforcers and a session on handling the news media.

Our day continued at Mabat 2000 in the Old City with a fascinating briefing from Mickey Rosenfeld, spokesman for foreign media, Israel National Police. We learned about the role of media in times of crisis and the importance of the role of media vis a via [sic] security.

During its tour, the group hit several border stops:

...We made our way to the beautiful Assaf Winery where one or two group members seemed prepared to hang up their badges and work for the Assaf family making wine in this beautiful part of the world.

After a fantastic lunch and wine tasting we asked the owner how he feels about being so close to the Border. He only half-jokingly told us that he feels he is so close that the rockets will go right over them. What a way to live?

In a subsequent post, Gillies wrote:

After a wonderful dinner with our friends from the IDF and the Israeli National Police, we headed to the Dublin pub, a fantastic Irish Bar in Jerusalem. It was a fun evening of getting to know each other better and sharing thoughts about the past few days.

The next day it was time for a meeting with the commander of the Eilat police station, but not before another reportedly tasty repast.

After a fantastic Italian style lunch with about 8 different types of pasta and pizza at the delicious Pastory restaurant, Commander Cohen takes us to the Border Police Station at Taba, and then on to the Border crossing.

Standing at the checkpoint at Taba, we see the Egyptian and Israeli flags just feet apart.

You can literally have one foot in Israel and one in Egypt. We are told by Commander Cohen that it takes a terrorist merely 3 minutes on a jet-ski to get from the shores of Aqaba, to the shores of Eilat. Seeing firsthand the closeness of Israel’s neighbors is truly eye-opening for our group!

Wrote Gillies as the tour concluded:

As we had our closing dinner, we reflected on our experiences and the journey we had taken together.

As one Police Chief says, “This trip has completely changed my perspective on Israel. Not that it was bad, but I didn’t care much because I had no reason to care. This has changed forever.”

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Centennial Salute to San Diego’s Military, East Village Block Party, Birding Basics Class

Events March 29-March 30, 2024
Next Article

20 Best Online Casinos USA For Real Money (2024 List)

USA Online Casinos: Top 20 Online Casino Sites of 2024
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.