Law enforcement officers in several departments across Butler County get a pat on the back for the arrest last week of David A. Morrow. Police say the 31-year-old Slippery Rock man has admitted to a multitude of burglaries at vacant homes sporting “for sale” signs out front.

According to Butler police, Morrow has confessed to 23 break-ins in the city alone. Butler Township police say he's a suspect in at least 17 burglaries there. Investigators for police departments in Butler County aren't predicting the final tally — Morrow apparently isn't done talking, and they're still corroborating evidence with his confession, which was videotaped.

“He's been extremely cooperative,” Butler police Capt. David Dalcamo said, adding, “His stated motive was an addiction to illegal narcotics, specifically heroin.”

Morrow's undoing was his modus operandi. He targeted houses with “for sale” signs, knowing they would be vacant. He cut out water pipes, wires and other copper fixtures to sell for scrap.

Investigators pooled their information, teamed up and contacted scrap yards to develop leads. Ultimately they identified Morrow as a prime suspect.

Case closed — many, many cases closed. Nice work.

Jeers to Jeffrey Paul Cochran. The 41-year-old Michigan man is accused of pulling a local con job, running up a $1,213 tab for golf, food and lodging, then sending the bill to Butler Memorial Hospital.Authorities say Cochran stayed for free at Conley Resort in Penn Township from July 9 to 14. They say he ate three meals a day and played several rounds of golf — all the while pretending to be a surgeon interviewing for the job of head of the cardiac unit at Butler Memorial.Penn Township Police say Cochran has pulled this con before, including for two weeks at the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort in Fayette County, where he racked up a $16,000 bill.Armed with a warrant from Fayette County, police arrested Cochran in Michigan on Nov. 12 as he was leaving his mother's funeral. He was extradited to Fayette County, where he's been locked up since Thanksgiving Day on $150,000 bail. He was arraigned last week by Butler County District Judge Sue Haggerty via Skype while in the Fayette County Jail.He is charged here with forgery, a felony, and theft by deception, theft of services, false impersonation and identity theft.Cochran also allegedly scammed a hotel in Nebraska out of more than $3,000 in free lodging, and he has several fraud arrests and convictions in Florida between 2005 and 2008.It's particularly despicable that Cochran, a divorced, unemployed father of four children ages 2 to 14, committed alleged crimes that did nothing for the welfare of his children.

Rich Gigliotti has found his niche.The Butler High School graduate is founder and president of EnCompass Point, in Zelienople. The non-profit center provides low-cost, high-quality care for teen-agers, particularly during the “danger hours” — the after-school period before parents come home from work.During these 20 to 25 hours a week, teenage children are three times as likely to be involved with a crime, police say.EnCompass Point, which launched this school year in Calvin Presbyterian Church, is open to students ages 12 to 16 and runs from after school to 5:30 p.m. any day school is in session. About 20 teachers volunteer as tutors.According to its website, encompasspoint.org, the goal is to keep teens safe and productive during the danger hours. “We provide homework help and tutoring ... while promoting healthy lifestyles via healthy snacks and activities.”Gigliotti says his experiences as a coach, therapist and volunteer inspired EnCompass Point.“When I was working in the community as a family-based therapist, I had parents who said 'what can I get my kid to do, if they're not in a sport and don't want to be in Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts?' ” he said.Calvin Presbyterian hosts the program, although EnCompass Point is independent and has its own board of dirctors. The Rev. Graham Standish, the pastor offered the church's kitchen, fellowship hall and meeting room, which were not used during the after-school hours.It's not difficult to imagine this program being replicated in other communities, hosted by any number of churches. It's a proverbial ounce of prevention — one that's badly needed.