One Night in the Life of a News Stringer

by Kati Garner | July 31, 2010 at 02:37 pm

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A news stringer is a freelance journalist or photographer who contributes reports, videos or photos to news organizations, local and national.

One of Sacramento's (CA) news stringers is Ed Fogle, owner of SacMav Rapid Media. Fogle says he and his crew "deliver a raw window to the scene where the action is happenng, right to your computer and file footage runs from incident footage that they supply to local and national media, seen on daily news."

Friday evening I joined Fogle's crew and rode with them from 6:30pm until Saturday 4:30am.The first part of our shift started with a serious accident in north Sacramento and ended with a motorcycle fatality in south Sacramento.

SacMav has several police/fire scanners in operation in the vehicle. With scanners running, dispatchers and first responders talking constantly on the different channels, we drove through different areas of Sacramento, of course never knowing where and when an incident may occur.

Stretches between calls was as exciting as watching grass grow.

I was in the midst of passionate, lighted-hearted people as we roamed,making it a good adventure.

Our first pursuit of a story took us to south Sacramento on Calvine Road. Initial information relayed over the scanners was a head-on collision requiring extraction from the vehicle.

As we exited Hwy 99, it was determined the accident was not as serious as originally reported. We headed back closer to downtown Sacramento

Around 9:30pm we responded to a report of a severed leg caused by the driver of a Winnebago RV.

Photo#1 This is the first scene we came to. Crime Scene Investigators (CSI) inspect the front of the Winnebago that fatally injured a woman. The driver, allegedly drunk, was apprehended about one mile from the scene of the crime, near Edgewater and Baxter Streets in north Sacramento. A police officer who was in the area caught him when he fled the RV.

The scenario began near North A St and Ahern St at around 9 p.m.

The driver, Darryl Alexander, knew the 56 year old woman he was visiting. Friends there tried to talk him out of leaving since he was drunk. He first backed over her and, then going forward, ran over her again. Witnesses could see that her legs were mangled. Awitness reported that her chest was caved in. She was rushed to the hospital. Around 5am Saturday, she died.

Alexander was arrested for felony hit and run and felony drunk driving. He also faces charges of vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and parole violation, according to Leong, Sacramento Police Dept Public Information Officer.

Photo#2 At North A St and Ahern St, Sacramento City Police Officers shine a light on a shoe belonging to the victim of the hit and run. A pile of clothes lay on the ground, to the right of the police officers, where Alexander ran over a female friend twice.

Photo#3 A witness verified this man, Darryl Alexander, was driving the Winnebago in the hit and run accident.

Photo#4 Fogle interviews Sacramento Police Officer Wann at the scene of the hit and run.

Photo#5 11:15pm, a dispatcher reports a truck ran into a wall in the Rosemont area on Manlove Rd. The truck sustained front end damage from colliding with a wall covered with bushes.

Photo#6 California Highway Patrol Officers talk with the suspected drunk driver of the pickup truck. The truck slammed into a wall covered with bushes (right). Minor Injuries sustained. The driver was put into a Highway Patrol car and removed from the scene.

Photo#7 A City of Sacramento Police Officer inspects the rear wheel of a Harley Davidson after it's driver died at the scene. The fatal motorcycle accident along Pocket Rd near West Shore Dr. in south Sacramento was apparently the result of the rider traveling westbound at excessive speed around a bend and losing control. Unknown if alcohol was involved. The photo at the uppermost top of page shows the intersection of Pocket Rd and West Shore Dr.

Photo#8 The motorcyclist was driving in the lane the police cars have blocked.

Photo#9 Our last response ended on a light note:

About 2:30am, we pull into Shari's parking lot along Florin Rd. just west of I-5. Simultaneously the scanner reports a break-in at Jimboys Tacos, at our location, with a taxicab parked outside. Shortly thereafter police cars show up. The police retreat as they soon discover the person inside had the right to be in there.

All Photos | Kati Garner

For more information about SacMav Rapid Media:maverickphotography.us/NewsRoomSupport.aspx