DEALING WITH DANGER — PEF members Barbara Tobin and Dawn Siary, both Albany County probation officers, were honored after defusing a potentially lethal confrontation. — Photo by Deborah A. Miles

Members first to receive award
Defusing dangerous situation earns probation officers honors

By DEBORAH A. MILES
One afternoon about a year ago, Albany County Probation Officers Barbara Tobin and Dawn Siary walked into a probationer’s tiny apartment and found homemade explosives, fatigues, night-vision goggles, loose bullets and knives scattered about.

They could see the probationer was mentally unstable. And they knew he had a history of drug abuse and mental illness.

Shortly after they arrived, he went into the bedroom area of the apartment, which was just a little bigger than a motel room. When he started to move around and went to sit on a floor mattress, both officers became suspicious of his behavior.

Tobin noticed the butt of a gun under his legs, which was partially covered by a blanket. Fortunately, without any resistance from the probationer, the officers were able to take the loaded gun and move it to another corner of the room.

These two PEF members, both with 12 years experience as probation officers, stayed with this individual for about 30 minutes, keeping him calm and at bay until help from the county Sheriff’s Department arrived.

“The sheriff’s deputies assisted us,” Tobin said. “They took the probationer away in an ambulance because he had difficulty walking and said he was experiencing pain in his legs due to blood clots.” He was charged with a misdemeanor and violating his probation.

Because of their ability to defuse the potentially violent scene, the two officers received Awards of Merit from the NYS Probation Officers Association. The award is given annually, but Tobin and Siary are the first to receive it in the Albany County department.

“We appreciate the award very much,” Siary said, “although we are both embarrassed about it.”
Tobin said approximately 90 officers work at the Albany County Probation Department and, although this particular incident is not a daily event, they all deal with serious situations.

“There is no such thing as a typical workday,” Tobin said.

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Ward Stone receives special EPA award

By DEBORAH A. MILES
“It was awe-inspiring to get an award from my country, especially when the plaque arrived on September 11, just after the World Trade Center was attacked.”

Those are the words of PEF member and state wildlife pathologist Ward Stone, who received a special award from the US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances.

Stone was honored primarily for his study of pesticides, such as diazinon, and his extensive contributions to the EPA database on wildlife pesticide poisonings. He was also recognized for his study of the West Nile Virus, a human virus that also affects birds.

“Although we are still diagnosing cases of the West Nile Virus, we are monitoring all unusual cases, and in particular, watching for anthrax in animals. It’s an ongoing activity on an inter-national level now, with the threat of bio-terrorism,” said Stone.

“All New York state labs are working together, so we’ll be in better shape to deal with whatever comes our way. None of us know right now how it’s going to play out.”

Stone said pathology is growing in importance because infectious diseases are more dangerous now than ever before. As head of the laboratory at the state Department of Environmental Conservation Wildlife Resources Center in Delmar, Stone said he hopes for a new facility beyond the current state-of-the-art.

“There are more pathology problems now with purposeful and accidental diseases that affect plants and animals, and that can result in serious problems for all of us,” he said. “We need a good facility for the decades to come.”

During his 33 years as a state pathologist, Stone publicly revealed hazards such as PCB pollution in the Hudson and St. Lawrence rivers. He credits PEF for coming to his aid when he was attacked by administrators.

“PEF helped me survive many major battles,” he said.