S.R. No. 556
1-1 SENATE RESOLUTION
1-2 WHEREAS, The Senate of the State of Texas is proud to
1-3 commend Detective Johnny Santana of the Beeville Police Department
1-4 for his invaluable contributions to the Complete Spanish Field
1-5 Reference Manual for Public Safety Officers; and
1-6 WHEREAS, In its third edition, the manual is the first
1-7 pocket-size encyclopedia of information on Hispanic language and
1-8 culture; and
1-9 WHEREAS, Use of the 152-page book has spread throughout
1-10 the nation and is being adopted as an official handbook by police
1-11 agencies everywhere; and
1-12 WHEREAS, Robert L. Dent, a senior trooper with the Oregon
1-13 State Police, compiled the manual several years ago so law
1-14 enforcement officers throughout the United States could communicate
1-15 with Spanish-speaking witnesses, victims, and suspects; and
1-16 WHEREAS, At the request of Officer Dent, who heard of
1-17 Officer Santana through a mutual friend, Johnny Santana contributed
1-18 seven pages of information to the manual, including names of Hispanic
1-19 street and prison gangs and six pages of slang phrases used in the
1-20 Spanish dialect the detective calls "Cholo" or Tex-Mex; and
1-21 WHEREAS, A native-born Mexican, Johnny Santana travelled
1-22 extensively with his family and learned the Cholo dialect, or slang,
1-23 spoken by the pachuco gangs; and
2-1 WHEREAS, As a student at Teresa de Avila parochial college
2-2 in Ciudad Juarez, Johnny Santana began to appreciate the academic
2-3 discipline that taught him the importance of learning to read and
2-4 write some of the languages and customs of people he had known;
2-5 his teachers taught him to listen to different languages as well
2-6 as the different accents found in all languages; and
2-7 WHEREAS, Detective Santana firmly believes the manual will
2-8 be a valuable tool that will save the lives of police personnel
2-9 when they become involved in potentially dangerous situations with
2-10 Spanish-speaking suspects; and
2-11 WHEREAS, The safety of our nation's police officers is of
2-12 grave concern to all of us and their protection in the line of duty
2-13 is of utmost importance; the information compiled in the
2-14 Complete Spanish Field Reference Manual for Public Safety Officers
2-15 will serve as an important instrument for officers in Texas as well
2-16 as across the United States; now, therefore, be it
2-17 RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas,
2-18 73rd Legislature, hereby commend Detective Johnny Santana of
2-19 the Beeville Police Department for sharing his knowledge with
2-20 his fellow officers; and, be it further
2-21 RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared for
2-22 the esteemed individual as an expression of the admiration and
2-23 respect of the Texas Senate.
2-24 Truan
2-25 Armbrister Leedom Rosson
3-1 Barrientos Lucio Shapiro
3-2 Bivins Luna Shelley
3-3 Brown Madla Sibley
3-4 Carriker Moncrief Sims
3-5 Ellis Montford Turner
3-6 Haley Nelson Wentworth
3-7 Harris of Dallas Parker West
3-8 Harris of Tarrant Patterson Whitmire
3-9 Henderson Ratliff Zaffirini
3-10 Bullock, President of the Senate
3-11 _____________________________________
3-12 President of the Senate
3-13 I hereby certify that the
3-14 above Resolution was adopted by
3-15 the Senate on April 6, 1993.
3-16 _____________________________________
3-17 Secretary of the Senate
3-18 _____________________________________
3-19 Member, Texas Senate