Western Slope Law Enforcement Champions Announced by CDOT and MADD   Eight Local Officers and State Troopers Win Awards

 GRAND JUNCTION – The Colorado Department of Transportation and Mothers Against Drunk Driving have announced the winners of the 2019 Law Enforcement Champion awards for the western slope of Colorado. These awards focus on efforts to reduce impaired driving and increase the use of seat belts.

The Law Enforcement Champion award winners are:

• MADD Hero Award--Western Slope: Trooper Jordan Horan, Colorado State Patrol Troop 5C
• Outstanding Individual Dedication to Impaired Driving Enforcement--Western Slope, Colorado State Patrol: Trooper Ben Carnes, Colorado State Patrol Troop 4A
• Outstanding Individual Dedication to Impaired Driving Enforcement--Western Slope: Sergeant Robb Windham, Carbondale Police Department
• Outstanding Individual Dedication to Impaired Driving Enforcement--Western Slope: Deputy  Amanda Simon, Mesa County Sheriff's Office
• Outstanding Dedication to Occupant Protection--Mountain, Colorado State Patrol: Corporal Jason Shimp, Colorado State Patrol Troop 4B
• Outstanding Dedication to Occupant Protection--Rural, Colorado State Patrol: Trooper Ramiro Contreras, Colorado State Patrol Troop 5B
• Drug Recognition Expert of the Year--Rural: Master Trooper David Copeland, Colorado State Patrol

“We are ever grateful to the brave men and women in law enforcement who keep our roads and communities safe,” said CDOT Executive Director Shoshana Lew. “At CDOT, we are committed to taking a holistic approach to the safety of our system — and part of that is recognizing the service of public safety officials, as well as our responsibility to do whatever we can to keep them safe on the job.” 

A law enforcement champion is an individual that shows outstanding support for impaired driving, traffic safety, or occupant protection enforcement. This can be demonstrated by the number of citations written or arrests made during the established enforcement periods throughout the year.  It can also be demonstrated by drug recognition expert activity, high visibility enforcement tactics and other related activities.

“So many people will never know the debt that they owe to our law enforcement heroes. Every time they stop a drunk or drugged driver, they potentially save a life,” said MADD Colorado State Executive Director Fran Lanzer. “We’re fortunate to have so many dedicated men and women protecting our communities.”

The awards were presented at an event on May 8 at Redlands Mesa Golf Course in Grand Junction, CO. Sponsors of the event included Bachus and Schanker, Walmart, Uber Colorado, and Laser Technology.

The CDOT Highway Safety Office provides funding to Colorado law enforcement for impaired driving and seat belt enforcement, education and awareness campaigns. The Heat Is On campaign runs throughout the year with 15 specific high visibility impaired driving enforcement periods centered on national holidays and large public events. Enforcement periods can include sobriety checkpoints, saturation patrols and additional law enforcement on duty dedicated to impaired driving enforcement. More details about impaired driving enforcement plans, arrest totals and safety tips can be found at HeatIsOnColorado.com.

In 2017, seat belts saved an estimated 226 lives in Colorado.  An additional 70 lives could have been saved if everyone in Colorado buckled up. The current seat belt use rate is 86%. There are three high visibility CIOT enforcement periods that take place each year in Colorado. The next one begins May 20. For more information about seat belt safety and enforcement citation numbers, visit SeatBeltsColorado.com.

Whole System. Whole Safety  

To heighten safety awareness, CDOT recently announced its Whole System Whole Safety initiative. This project takes a systematic statewide approach to safety combining the benefits of CDOT’s programs that address driving behaviors, our built environment and the organization's operations. The goal is to improve the safety of Colorado’s transportation network by reducing the rate and severity of crashes and improving safety conditions for those traveling by all transportation modes. The program has one simple mission - to get everyone home safely.

About CDOT

CDOT has approximately 3,000 employees located at its Denver headquarters and in regional offices throughout Colorado, and manages more than 23,000 lane miles of highway and 3,429 bridges. CDOT also manages grant partnerships with a range of other agencies, including metropolitan planning organizations, local governments and airports. It also administers Bustang, the state-owned and operated interregional express service. Governor Polis has charged CDOT to further build on the state’s intermodal mobility options.  

About Mothers Against Drunk Driving

Founded in 1980 by a mother whose daughter was killed by a drunk driver, Mothers Against Drunk Driving® (MADD) is the nation’s largest nonprofit working to end drunk driving, help fight drugged driving, support the victims of these violent crimes and prevent underage drinking. MADD has helped to save nearly 380,000 lives, reduce drunk driving deaths by more than 50 percent and promote designating a non-drinking driver. MADD’s Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving® calls for law enforcement support, ignition interlocks for all offenders and advanced vehicle technology. MADD has provided supportive services to nearly one million drunk and drugged driving victims and survivors at no charge through local victim advocates and the 24-Hour Victim Help Line 1-877-MADD-HELP. Visit www.madd.org or call 1-877-ASK-MADD.