The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office has been named the 2009 MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) - Georgia Statewide Agency of the Year.  The award was announced Friday, March 26 at the organization’s annual Golden Shield Honors luncheon held at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta.

This is the second time the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office has been selected MADD’s Statewide Agency of the Year.  The agency was also selected for the top honors in 2007.

“Competition for this award is very fierce,” said Sheriff Ted Paxton. “We compete against agencies that are much larger such as the City of Atlanta Police Dept., DeKalb County Police Dept. and the Cobb County Police Dept., just to name a few. It’s an honor to have been selected as the top agency in the entire state. I am very proud of the men and women who work diligently to deter drinking and driving in our county.”

In addition to receiving the top honor bestowed by MADD, four Forsyth County deputies received Gold Pins for making between 100 and 149 D.U.I. (Driving Under the Influence) arrests in 2009.  They are: Cpl. Richard Thompson, Cpl. Kris Hall, Deputy First Class Troy Embrey and Deputy First Class Matthew Runion. Two other Forsyth County deputies received Bronze Pins for making between 25 and 49 D.U.I. arrests in 2009. They are: Deputy First Class Brandon Wiley and Deputy Sheriff William Sessa.

“The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office as a whole contributed to our accomplishments, “explained Lt. Col. Gene Moss, commander of the Enforcement Bureau. “From the deputies conducting traffic stops and safety checkpoints, to the detention officers performing Intoxilyzer tests, to the administrative staff and records staff processing paperwork, to the deputies in the School Resource Officer Unit and the Community Relations Unit conducting countless meetings educating citizens, to the school system providing its support, it’s a group effort.”

Beginning with this year’s awards, MADD started allowing agencies to dedicate deputy pins and agency awards to a victim of a D.U.I. fatality. The Sheriff’s Office dedicated its Statewide Agency of the Year award and its deputy pins in memory of Carl Thomas Lotspeich, brother of Sheriff’s Office investigator Deidre Lotspeich. Lotspeich was killed on June 1, 2009, when his vehicle was struck on the Dallas Toll way in Dallas, Texas by an intoxicated wrong-way driver.

The criteria for receiving the MADD Statewide Agency of the Year award is a law enforcement agency must demonstrate excellence in implementing innovative techniques in the detection and deterrence of traffic violations and D.U.I. The Sheriff’s Office participates regularly in enforcement efforts such as “Click It or Ticket”, “Operation Zero Tolerance”, and “100 Days of Summer Heat”, as well as conducting hundreds of safety checkpoints. In addition, enforcement efforts also concentrate on stopping the sale of alcohol to minors by local businesses.

The Sheriff’s Office provides many educational programs geared at deterring the use of alcohol and drugs while driving. These include the “Ghost Out” program held annually at Forsyth County high schools to educate teenagers about drinking and driving during the prom season. The P.R.I.D.E. program, Fatal Vision Goggle classes, Teen Global Safety Week, the S.T.O.P.P.E.D. program and the S.A.D.D. (Students Against Destructive Decisions) Safety Checkpoints at the high schools, are just a few additional ways the Sheriff’s Office is helping to educate youth and teen drivers about the need for traffic safety.  For more information about these programs, go to www.forsythsheriff.org.

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