Cheers to the anonymous caller whose tip to Butler police led to the arrest of a suspected serial tire slasher.

Oscar Cosme Jr., 34, of Butler was arrested Thursday, accused of slashing 21 tires on more than a dozen vehicles, including four police cruisers, on the night of Nov. 17.

The anonymous tipster identified Cosme from a surveillance video taken the night of the slashings inside the A-Plus gas station on West Jefferson Street.

Police had posted a photograph of a suspect from that video on its Facebook page, believing the man was connected to the slashings because his body frame and clothing matched a surveillance video at the police station showing an individual slashing the tires of police cars.

When police responded to talk with Cosme, he claimed he saw a photograph of himself on the department's Facebook page and was on his way to speak with police.

The locations of the tire slashings followed the route that Cosme told police he followed walking home that night.

The case is a good example of police work, and of police reliance on a good rapport with the public. And the message bears repeating: If you see something, say something. Crimes committed against any individual in the community are crimes against the entire community.

Jeer D

The driver was loaded. So was his gun.

Consequently, Tyler J. Prokay is charged with a felony count of unlicensed concealment of a firearm, in addition to DUI and related counts, according to an arrest warrant issued last week by District Judge Lewis Stoughton.

State police said Prokay, 29, of Parker Township, had a blood alcohol level of 0.30 percent on Nov. 6, the day he crashed his pickup truck into a utility pole in Washington Township. That's nearly four times the legal limit of 0.08 percent.

How drunk is 0.30 percent? Officers investigating the crash found Prokay slumped over in the driver's seat, “breathing but unresponsive,” according to their affidavit.

Just prior to the wreck, Prokay was seen driving on the wrong side of the road, weaving in and out of his traffic lane — a terrible accident waiting to happen.

Most DUI offenses in Pennsylvania are considered a misdemeanor, and misdemeanor offenses carry only a fraction of the penalty and punishment Prokay faces if he's convicted on the felony gun charge.

Ironically, as blood-alcohol concentration increases, so does the potential for damage and death from a DUI accident — while in all likelihood the threat of gun violation goes down, since an intoxicated individual is less likely to hit anything with that bullet — that big vehicle is likely a deadlier weapon under those circumstances.

Given the comparison, maybe a stiffer sentencing for drunken drivers merits consideration.

Cheers to Slippery Rock University as it prepares to celebrate its 125th anniversary in 2014.As part of the celebration, the school is attempting to locate descendants of its founders, who will be invited as guests of honor to a big party in June. Descendants of early students and employees also are being sought and invited.SRU hopes to locate one of the original 100 stock certificates issued to raise money for the school's founding.In the late 1880s, the residents of what was then called Centerville were interested in opening a state school. To raise money, they sold stock to 100 people for $100 per share.The school once might have owned one or more of the certificates, but records prior to 1915 were lost many years ago during a flood in the basement of SRU's Old Main.The June celebration presents an opportunity to reclaim some of SRU's early history, much of which got washed away in that early flood. Bob Watson, interim vice president for student affairs, says he wants to know what descendants know and to see if they have any memorabilia or documents.Best wishes and cheers to Slippery Rock University as the school strives to reclaim, preserve and celebrate its early heritage.