Twin Rivers Unified School Police Officer Musa Abedrabbo was clearly disappointed as he left F.C. Joyce Elementary School last month carrying a few grams of confiscated marijuana.

"I didn't cite him," Abedrabbo said of the boy found with the drugs. "I'm working on this kid."

As Abedrabbo patrolled F.C. Joyce and other North Highlands and Foothill Farms campuses, teachers and principals lauded his proactive approach. Students called him Officer Moose. Special education students hugged him.

"These officers have been fabulous, absolutely fabulous," said Laura Callaghan, a second-grade teacher at F.C. Joyce. "They have been so wonderful to our school and have helped us so much. It pains me to see the other side that people are saying."

One of those on the other side, Greg Jefferson, president of the newly formed Del Paso Heights Community Association, said his view of the department stems from its treatment of his neighborhood.

"We allege that the Police Department targeted this area to meet quotas," he said. "We can't turn the chapter until they make this community whole."

In the past two months, the department has been under attack for its aggressive policing off school campuses.

Twin Rivers police generated $45,000 by towing vehicles last year, a 55 percent increase in such revenue compared with 2008. A Bee analysis of department records showed most cars towed by the police force were not on school streets.

About three-quarters of the cars towed by the Twin Rivers Police Department during the first six months of 2010 were parked more than 1,000 feet from the center of a Twin Rivers campus, the analysis showed. More than one-third were parked at least 2,000 feet from the center of a campus.

The dispute came to the forefront two months ago when a Twin Rivers officer was shot four times in Del Paso Heights after a Saturday traffic stop.

The suspect, Tyrone Smith, 32, died in the back of a Sacramento police patrol car of undetermined causes. The officer is recovering from his wounds.

In the aftermath, Del Paso Heights' residents' frustrations with the department exploded – leading to a public examination of its police policies and tactics, the school district putting its police chief, Christopher Breck, on paid administrative leave and naming an interim chief to replace him, Capt. Trang To.

Greater Sacramento Urban League president David DeLuz said "Tyrone's death was a catalyst for us to examine the conduct and procedures of Twin Rivers."

Jefferson's group formed after the dissatisfaction with the department surfaced. Jefferson, whose wife is running in the 2012 school board race, said he wants to collect data from the Police Department so that others can understand how his community was the target of police quotas and selective enforcement.

He wants the district and Police Department to release each citation officers wrote with redacted personal information.

Since the public dissatisfaction surfaced, the department has changed direction. Interim Police Chief To promised more transparency and a commitment to community dialogue, particularly in Del Paso Heights, where most of complaints have been concentrated. The Police Department hosted an open house Friday at its Del Paso Heights headquarters.

The department also has changed some of its policies.

Department officials acknowledged profiting from traffic tickets and vehicle tows and they briefly had quotas. The department's new towing policy allows towing only on or adjacent to school streets and sites contracting for police services.

Since the new guidelines, district police have towed only half as many cars – six vehicles from Nov. 8 to Dec. 7.

Department officials said vehicles that pose a risk to students next to campuses will continue to be towed.

One such instance occurred last month as a dozen students stared at the commotion on the other side of a chain-link fence behind Kohler Elementary School in North Highlands.

On the hood of his police car, Cpl. Branche Smith laid out crystal meth and drug paraphernalia found inside a filthy and cluttered RV that had been illegally parked behind the elementary school for hours. A 54-year-old suspect was arrested.

"These are the types of people who throw needles on the side of the road where kids walk," Smith said.

Besides towing, Abedrabbo said he's glad the department is cutting back on traffic enforcement in the neighborhoods to focus more on campus activity.

"We don't need to make ourselves more busy by pulling over cars," Abedrabbo said. "There has been a big change in the last few months. Vehicle stops went down from like 10 to 15 a day to two or three. I personally feel that it's an improvement."

Abedrabbo looks for ways to connect with each kid he passes. Sometimes he says hello. Other times he plays a game of basketball or teases kids by telling them not to look at him. And he rewards them for good behavior – sometimes with a new pair of shoes or a ride home in his police car.

"Our kids need more exposure to police services," said Roxanne Mitchell, principal at Foothill Farms Middle School. "The kids adore Officer Moose. When he is on campus, there is a crowd around him."

Yvonne Gramling of Foothill Farms credits Abedrabbo with making a difference to her 11-year-old son, who moved in with her after his father went to prison.

Gramling said her son's grades shot up to B's and C's.

"Whatever he said to my son, it clicked," Gramling said.

Abedrabbo, 28, who is in his third year on the force, supports the Police Department's new direction.

"I agree with people who say the Police Department should be transparent," he said. "We chose a career in law enforcement and people should know what we do and why."

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Call The Bee's Melody Gutierrez, (916) 326-5521. The Bee's Phillip Reese contributed to this report.

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