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On December 21, 2005, MADD of Massachusetts recognized nine Massachusetts State Police Officers for their anti-drunk driving efforts at an awards ceremony held at the Sheraton Tara in Braintree.
The awards were presented as part of the 2005 MADD "Drive for Life" Awards. The nine State Police recipients were: Lieutenant Steven McCarthy, Lieutenant Bruce Lint, Trooper Mark Augusta, Trooper Donald Gray, Trooper Michael Miskell, Trooper Brian O'Neill, Trooper Richard Poirer, Trooper David Stucenski and Trooper John Ragosa
Lieutenant Steven McCarthy, who is in charge of the State Police Traffic Programs Section, has been largely responsible for an increase in the State Police's overall commitment to combating drunk driving. He has dedicated time to increasing the training and certification for officers who are in charge at sobriety checkpoints. He also helped organize the first joint-checkpoint between the State Police and the Boston Police. Lt. McCarthy was responsible for writing the grant which was recently awarded to the State Police for the purchase of the first Mobile Sobriety Checkpoint Command Vehicle . He has formed a partnership with the Governor's Highway Safety Bureau resulting in targeted enforcement for OUI hot spots and an increase in funding for OUI enforcement Lt. McCarthy has worked with the Office of Alcohol Testing to revamp the process for repair of breath test instruments, to procure additional funding and to increase the number of Portable Breath Testers (PBTs) available to the state police.
Lieutenant Bruce Lint was recognized for successfully conducting all of the sobriety checkpoints for H-Troop and for playing a lead role in training all personnel in the techniques of operating those checkpoints. H-Troop's jurisdiction is the Boston Metropolitan area - a very challenging territory in which to conduct sobriety checkpoints. Lt. Lint spent many hours working on the operational planning for each Sobriety Checkpoint. He is responsible for restructuring and revising the sobriety checkpoint written procedures to comply with case law. He continues to maintain a lead role as an expert witness and trainer for sobriety checkpoints conducted across the Commonwealth.
Trooper Mark Augusta is a 12-year veteran, currently assigned to the State Police Barracks in Devens. Trooper Augusta is a hard working and dedicated police officer committed to making the highways safe. In 2005, Trooper Augusta arrested 26 people suspected of drunk driving. Nineteen of those people submitted to a Breathalyzer test. The average of those results was .15% Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) - almost twice the legal limit. Additionally, on July 31, 2005, Trooper Augusta made three separate OUI arrests.
Trooper Donald Gray is a 12-year veteran of the state police and a past recipient of this award. He is currently assigned to the State Police Barracks in Leominster and continues to stand out among his peers for his anti-drunk driving efforts. In 2005, Trooper Gray arrested 34 people suspected of drunk driving. Five of those were repeat offenders, including one sixth-offence OUI. Trooper Gray is also known to make multiple OUI arrests within a shift.
Trooper Brian O'Neill, who is currently assigned to the Medford barracks, is a diligent worker and has been a leader in drunk driving enforcement in Middlesex County. In 2005, Trooper O'Neill arrested 26 people suspected of drunk driving and has a 100% conviction rate.
Trooper Richard Poirier is among the top OUI enforcers in the Andover barracks, with 28 arrests in 2005. His commitment goes beyond enforcement to prevention, having participated in three sobriety checkpoints in 2005. At the checkpoints he acts as the initial screening officer, a critical role. Trooper Poirier's commanding officer cites his outstanding work ethic as a critical factor in attaining the barrack's goal of crash and fatality reduction through fair and aggressive enforcement.
Trooper Dave Stucenski is one of the top producers of OUI arrests for the Springfield barracks and received this award last year. In 2005, he made 47 arrests for OUI. As a result of his excellent report-writing skills, he has a strong conviction rate as well.
Trooper Michael Miskell leads the Andover Barracks with 68 OUI arrests in 2005. In his career to date, he has arrested over 500 suspected drunk drivers. Just as commendable is his 95% conviction rate with 78% of those accepting pre-trial plea agreements favorable to the Commonwealth.
Trooper John Ragosa is a June 2005 graduate of the State Police Academy assigned to the Andover Barracks. In those six months, he made 26 OUI arrests. This outstanding enforcement effort has earned him the title of "MADD's Rookie of the Year".