The Boerne Police Department held their annual Awards Ceremony on March 11, 2021 to recognize exemplary service in 2020.
“The police department is proud to recognize the hard work all these individuals and the rest of the team that make us successful in delivering the best service we can,” Chief James Kohler said. “I would also like to thank our citizens for their continued support.”
The awards are as followed:
37 officers received the Safe Driving Award for 2020. That is a new record for the Boerne Police Department
20 officers earned the Fit for Duty Award after taking their annual physical fitness test. The Top Fit Award was earned by Lisa Rowe. After competitive course of fire, Officer Nicholas McWright earned the Top Gun Award.
4 Certificate of Merits Awards were earned by Dispatcher Leann Irvin and Officers Bo Patton, Detective James Vela, and Captain Steve Perez for their outstanding work in policing.
A Letter of Commendation was issued to Officer Michele Van Stavern. Officer Brandon Rowe received his third Life Saving Award since joining the police department.
Sergeant James Schmidt and Officer Paul Bilotta each received the Medal of Valor Award which stemmed from an Officer Involved Shooting. On April 9, 2020, a suspect was at a local hotel with a gun, he led police on a chase and opened fire upon on them after stopping on I-10 outside the city.
Detective Micah Binkley earned Officer of the Year and Dispatcher Leticia Moncada earned Dispatcher of the Year honors. This award is voted on by their peers.
Finally, the police department recognized several officers for their educational achievements: Officer Bo Patton, Communications Manager Nathan Taylor, Lieutenant Cody Lackey earned their bachelor’s degrees Officer Rebecca Foley, Officer Khalid Alabaidi, and Detective Pablo Morales earned their master’s degrees.