2010 LSP Awards Ceremony Honors Heroes From Across The State

Baton Rouge

Louisiana State Police honored troopers, officers, and civilians today for their extraordinary efforts over the past year at the 2010 LSP Awards Ceremony, held at the Louisiana State Police Training Academy in Baton Rouge.

Stories of bravery, dedication, and exceptional work ethic were the common themes throughout the ceremony. Awards presented today are as follows:

· Medal of Valor - for conspicuous and intrepid gallantry at the risk of the officer’s or citizen’s life while having full knowledge of that risk. The act must be clearly above and beyond the call-of-duty. o On March 30, 2010, State Troopers with the Emergency Services Unit and Air Support Unit responded to a devastating fire at the Coco Industries plant in Denham Springs, LA. The fire fully engulfed the chemical plant, which contained numerous deadly hazardous materials. At great risk to their own safety, troopers spent countless hours on the ground and in the air battling the raging inferno until it was successfully brought under control. The heroic efforts of the following troopers protected the lives of emergency responders and neighboring residents:
- Deputy Command Technician Chris Viator
- Technician Supervisor Raphael “Ray” Meyers
- Technician Supervisor Leonard “Lee” Lewis
- Senior Technician Johnny Sparks
- Technician Travis Day
- Technician Steven Long
- DPS Officer Matthey “Matt” Hall
- Pilot Dean LeVergne

· Lifesaving- for any act which saves or prolongs the life of another. o On July 10, 2010, Sgt. Russell Mayfield and his wife Lisa were attending a birthday party for their daughter at the neighborhood pool in the Troop L area. Lisa suddenly jumped into the pool and pulled nine-year-old girl’s lifeless body from the bottom. Sgt. Mayfield and the child’s mother, Kim Stewart immediately performed CPR until the girl began to breathe again. After a brief hospital stay, the girl is doing well today with no complications. Receiving the Lifesaving Award were:
- Sergeant Russell Mayfield
- Mrs. Lisa Mayfield
- Ms. Kim Stewart o On November 8, 2009, Trooper Anthony Efthemes was dispatched to the I-210 Calcasieu River Bridge in Troop D where he encountered an individual trying to jump from the bridge. Tpr. Efthemes was able to convince the despondent person from jumping off a bridge that was approximately 135 feet above the water.

o On Sunday, August 22, 2010, Trooper Ben Fox was patrolling Troop D in Calcasieu parish when he observed a white female sitting on the guard rail facing east over the westbound lanes of I-10. Tpr Fox approached her and began to speak to her. When he got close to her, he grabbed her and pulled her to safety. o On September 9, 2009, Trooper Daniel Fontenot was at a local restaurant in the Troop D area eating lunch when a small child sitting next to him began to choke on a piece of food. He immediately assisted the child and dislodged the obstruction. o On October 7, 2009, Sgt. Kevin Cannatella was westbound on I-10 in St. John Parish in Troop B when he observed a white male standing on the opposite side of the elevated railing with a rope tied around his neck and the other end tied to the bridge rail. Sgt. Cannatella was able to talk the man into climbing back over the bridge rail and removing the noose from around his neck. o On January 21, 2010, Trooper Leeman Howard attempted to stop a vehicle in the Troop C area that fled from him at a high rate of speed. During the pursuit, the fleeing vehicle crashed into a water-filled ditch. Tpr. Howard jumped into the ditch and freed the trapped occupants before they drowned. o On August 4th, 2010, Trooper Thomas Wild investigated a crash in the Troop A area in Ascension Parish in which a vehicle had overturned several times near a cane field. The driver was unconscious and was transported to a hospital in Baton Rouge. Although a thorough search of the area turned up no one else, Tpr. Wild later learned there might have been a passenger in the vehicle. On his own time, Tpr. Wild went back to the scene and searched the cane field where he located a critically injured person and got him immediate medical attention. o On August 26, 2010, David Domangue and Matthew Matherne, both civilians, observed a serious vehicle crash near Galliano in which one of the vehicles involved caught on fire. Domangue and Matherne were able to free the trapped occupant and bring him to safety. Both Domangue and Matherne were awarded the civilian Life-Saving Award. o On November 2, 2009, Brandon Gomez witnessed a single-vehicle crash on Hooper Road in East Baton Rouge Parish in which a single vehicle ran off Hooper Road and into a pond. Five people were trapped in the vehicle, three of which were young children. Mr. Gomez jumped into the cold water and was able to rescue the children. o On May 9, 2010, Hunter Marie was a passenger in a single-vehicle crash where the vehicle overturned and came to rest in a bayou in the Troop C area. Hunter realized that his mother was unable to swim and dove into the water to help save her. o On March 5, 2010, a single vehicle crashed and entered the Tiger Bayou in the Troop C area. Three passengers were trapped inside, including a two-year-old girl. Witnesses, Mr. John Gil and Mr. Dean Demers observed the vehicle begin to sink and jumped in the water along with two other witnesses, Mr. Brandon Watson and Mr. Treymone Shelvin, and rescued the occupants. Receiving the civilian Life-Saving Award were:
- Mr. Dean Demers
- Mr. Brandon Watson
- Mr. Treymone Shelvin
- Mr. John Gil

· Service Injury – for significant injuries incurred while acting within the scope of official duty o On July 3, 2010, Lt. David Conaway stopped a speeding motorist in Iberville Parish on Interstate 10 in Troop A. Immediately after stopping the vehicle, the driver exited and began firing a handgun at Lt. Conaway. Lt. Conaway was struck twice by bullets but was able to take cover behind his vehicle and call for assistance. The suspect was apprehended minutes later.
Trooper of the Year- for consistent display of outstanding qualities that exemplify a member of the Louisiana State Police.
· Nominees -Uniformed Trooper of The Year:
o Senior Trooper Chris Anderson
o Senior Trooper Murray Buquet
o Trooper Kenneth Giacone
o Trooper Thomas Wild · Nominees- Plainclothes Trooper of The Year
o Senior Trooper Jeff Holey
o Master Trooper Hal Hutchinson

Trooper of the Year Awards:

Uniformed – Senior Trooper Chris Anderson
Plainclothes – Master Trooper Hal Hutchinson

· S/T Chris Anderson has served as a Louisiana State Trooper for 11 years and served as a member of the Troop B Criminal Patrols Unit for the past six years. S/T Anderson has been responsible for several large narcotics seizures himself and assisted in many more including a seizure of 171 pounds of Methamphetamine. Through his knowledge, experience and hard work, he was able to find the contraband located in a hidden compartment inside the external fuel tank of a pickup truck. This seizure was the largest Methamphetamine seizure, incurred during a traffic stop, throughout the United States for 2010. S/T Anderson was also responsible for the seizure of 23 kilos of Cocaine, resulting from a traffic stop. Once again, the contraband was located in a hidden compartment in the ceiling and walls of a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) tractor trailer. On yet another traffic stop, ST Anderson seized $36,000.00 in narcotics-related U.S. currency. · Master Trooper Hal Hutchinson has focused his attention on investigating internet predators of children as well as those who manufacture, distribute, and possess images and videos of child pornography. In 2009, Trooper M/Hutchinson opened and closed 26 criminal investigations, targeting either persons attempting to entice juveniles into sexual acts through the internet, persons distributing and possessing child pornography, or persons engaging in sex acts with children. During the course of investigations, Master Trooper Hutchinson was responsible for the arrest of 20 violators. In November of 2009, when allegations of child exploitation were brought to his attention, M/Trooper Hutchinson, being a single father of three young girls, easily gained the trust of the victim and was able to obtain vital information needed to develop probable cause for the arrest of suspects who had victimized the young child. Based solely on the information developed by Master Trooper Hutchinson, he was able to arrest 10 persons on a variety of crimes involving inappropriate sexual contact with the child, which spanned over a six-year period. Two of these arrestees were the child's mother and stepfather. Further, because of his keen ability to engage children, M/Trooper Hutchinson was able to identify an additional victim, the initial victim's eight-year-old sister. His ability to react quickly resulted in the child being successfully removed from a volatile home, and essentially ending her sexual abuse.

DPS Officer of the Year – for consistent display of outstanding qualities that exemplify a member of the Department of Public Safety Police
· Nominees:
o Officer Eldon Batiste
o Officer Roger Cutrer
o Officer Joe Salinas

DPS Officer of the Year- Officer Eldon Batiste

· Officer Eldon Batiste has been employed with DPS Police since June 2006 and was transferred to Capitol Detail in May 2009. From September 1, 2009 to September 1, 2010 Officers Batiste has made fifty-three (53) arrests, thirty-nine (39) of which were fugitive warrants. Several of his narcotics arrests have led to information resulting in numerous other arrests. Officer Batiste has also written over five hundred and seventy-five (575) citations/warnings and seized one-hundred and nineteen (119) license plates from vehicles with no proof of insurance.

Richard Honeycutt Award – for outstanding service and dedication to duty by a Communications Officer. Awarded to:

· Communications Supervisor Geraldine “Deanie” Mula (Troop C) o Mrs. Mula recently retired after serving more than 32 years as a dispatcher and supervisor. She began her career at Troop C in 1978 as a radio operator and continued in that position throughout her career. She has received several commendations recognizing her professionalism and commitment to her duties. She was recognized on multiple occasions for her initiative and dedication for her role in the apprehension of felony suspects. She was also recognized by other local law enforcement agencies for her assistance in training their dispatchers on new communications equipment.

Bluemax Award – for recovery of the most stolen vehicles with arrest in a 12-month period. Awarded to: · Trooper Douglas Thompson
o For eight stolen vehicle recoveries leading to apprehensions.

Meritorious Service Award – for performance of duty that exceeds the normal expectations of duty and demonstrates an exceptional degree of good judgment, initiative, and competence. Awarded to:

· Sergeant E.J. Chesne
o On July 3, 2010, Lt. David Conaway was shot during a traffic stop on Interstate 10 in Iberville Parish. After learning of the shooting, Sgt. E.J. Chesne monitored traffic on Interstate 10 until he located the suspect vehicle involved in the shooting. Sgt. Chesne stopped the vehicle and took the two suspects involved into custody without incident.