Stafford, VA. The Stafford County Sheriff’s Office was awarded a first place award in the 2018 Virginia Law Enforcement Challenge presented by the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police (VACP) for the best traffic safety programs in the state for the 2017 calendar year.

The Stafford County Sheriff’s Office was awarded first place in the category for a sheriff’s office with 151 or more deputies. According to the VACP, judges award points to the agencies in the six areas that comprise a comprehensive traffic safety program: problem identification, policies, planning, training of officers, public information and education, enforcement, and an evaluation of the outcomes of the agency’s efforts.

The Law Enforcement Challenge program, which is in its twenty-ninth year, offers awards to law enforcement agencies that demonstrate exceptional traffic safety education and enforcement activities in occupant protection, impaired driving, and speed awareness, among others.

The award recipients from the participating agencies will be presented with their first, second and third place state awards in each category at an awards luncheon on September 11, 2018 at the VACP’s 93rd Annual Training Conference in Roanoke, VA.

“We are honored to be selected for the first place award in our category,” said Sheriff David P. Decatur. “This award is a testament to the strength of our traffic safety programs and to the diligent and unwavering efforts of our deputies to keep the community safe.”