Sheriff Kevin Tolson is proud to announce awards and commendations for the months of October and November.
November 2019 Awards and Commendations
Detention Employee of the Month – Detention Officer Ashley Wray
Officer Wray was nominated for this award by a coworker.
Officer Wray has become an integral part of C-Team in her short amount of time here. She always has a positive attitude and can be counted on to excel at any task that she is assigned. Her dedication and positivity is contagious to all those around her.
As a housing unit officer, she is policy driven and attentive to her surroundings. Recently, she discovered a letter that seemed suspicious inside of a housing unit. She investigated and was able to determine the likelihood of illegal substances inside the housing unit. Later that day she found the substance in question.
Officer Wray is a self-proclaimed “nosey” officer who is dedicated to the safety and security of the facility and all those within it. She is driven to learn and better herself as a person and an officer. Given the opportunity, Officer Wray will become an influential leader and a standard to train by at YCDC.
Lifesaving Award – Nurse Leigh Bell
On November 15, 2019, Nurse Bell responded to a medical emergency in the booking area. When she arrived, Nurse Bell found a female inmate completely unresponsive and not breathing in the cell. She recognized that the inmate was in distress and determined that it was a possible overdose situation. Nurse Bell delivered a dose of Narcan nasal spray to the inmate, and the inmate quickly became alert and responsive. The inmate admitted to fentanyl use prior in the day while being housed at another facility.
Nurse Bell’s quick assessment of the situation and decision to utilize Narcan was integral in saving this inmate’s life.
Sergeant Thomas Cole
Over the past few months, Sergeant Cole spearheaded our agency’s uniform exchange. Even though there were a few issues with the ordering of the uniforms, including discrepancies with the amounts of uniform shirts ordered/received, Sergeant Cole managed these developments, as well as the employee expectations while the issues were resolved. Sergeant Cole remained organized and professional while issuing the appropriate uniform shirts to all staff. While we are still awaiting the new uniform pants, Sergeant Cole remains in contact with the appropriate vendors and has an organized plan to issue the new uniform pants once they arrive.
Lieutenant Crystal Blauser
On November 15, 2019, Lieutenant Blauser responded to an emergency situation in the booking area. Nurse Bell provided the direct medical attention and assessment, and determined that the inmate was suffering from a possible illegal drug overdose. Nurse Bell requested her Narcan nasal spray from her cart. While staff in the immediate area could not immediately locate her cart, Lieutenant Blauser removed her issued Narcan nasal spray from her duty belt and allowed Nurse Bell to administer it to the inmate. Lieutenant Blauser’s preparedness with carrying her issued Narcan on her duty belt decreased the amount of time needed to administer the Narcan, which could have been fundamental to saving the inmate’s life.
October 2019 Awards and Commendations
October Employee of the Month: Melanie Thomas
Mell Thomas has been selected as the October Employee of the Month for all of her hard work with rolling out the new YCSO uniforms. Mell has worked tirelessly over the past few months fitting all deputies for the new uniforms, ordering and then distributing these uniforms. When there was a problem with the new uniform pants, Mell quickly devised a strategy to get the correct pants delivered and distributed.
Mell is certainly an asset to the Sheriff’s Office. She comes in early, works late and is always helpful when working with colleagues and outside vendors. Mell is to be commended for her tireless work ethic and willingness to find solutions to problems.
Commendations:
Deputy Michael Hawkins:
Deputy Hawkins is to be commended for his work on a child abuse case. After responding to a call for service regarding potential child abuse, Deputy Hawkins questioned witnesses and was able to develop a suspect. Deputy Hawkins interviewed the suspect and determined that the suspect’s explanation did not match the child’s injury. Deputy Hawkins advised the child’s mother to take the child to the hospital to have the injuries examined and the child ended up being admitted for further care and assessment.
Deputy Hawkins then obtained an arrest warrant for the suspect and brought him into custody. Once the suspect was booked into the jail, Deputy Hawkins interviewed the suspect again and obtained a full confession.
Deputy Hawkins built a very strong case against this defendant and is to be commended for his thoroughness in this investigation.
** Come back to this article soon. More commendations to come. **