Although no driver wants to see the flashing lights and sirens that indicate they are about to be pulled over, traffic enforcement is a crucial part of what any law enforcement agency does. In the Silver State, an initiative known as Joining Forces draws together jurisdictions from all across the state for a single purpose, traffic enforcement events aimed at ensuring that the rules of the road are being followed.
For many years, the Nye County Sheriff’s Office has taken part in this statewide effort and its successes with the program in the past year were such that the department has been named as Agency of the Year from the state of Nevada Department of Public Safety.
The announcement was made during the Nye County Commission’s Sept. 19 meeting. Nye County Grants Administrator Jessica McCutcheon explained county officials had recently attended an annual safety summit at which NCSO, along with one of its officers, were all recognized by the state.
“‘There are 28 agencies which include Las Vegas Metro, North Las Vegas, Henderson, Reno, Sparks and Washoe County, that participated in the 2023 Joining Forces program throughout Nevada,’” McCutcheon read from a letter from the department of public safety. “‘The agencies participated in 12 scheduled events throughout the year, focusing on five areas of high-visibility enforcement, which are: impaired drivers; click-it or ticket; speed; distracted driving; and pedestrian-vulnerable road users. The Nye County Sheriff’s Office has participated in all events to date and out of all 28 agencies, Nye County was selected and awarded the Agency of the Year Award from the state of Nevada, Department of Public Safety.”
McCutcheon also spotlighted Nye County Sheriff’s Lt. James McRae, who was instrumental in the traffic enforcement program.
“‘The coordinators are also recognized for their outstanding work in scheduling the Joining Forces events, compiling and completing the reports, managing the allocated budgets and attending required meetings. They are the point of contact for their agency and a vital part of the program. Lt. James McRae was awarded Outstanding Coordinator for the Nye County Sheriff’s Office,” McCutcheon noted, adding, “This is a huge acknowledgement, and testament, to our Nye County Sheriff’s department, our sheriff, our officers who work these events and Lt. McRae, who put all of the events together.”
Before moving on to the next agenda item, a third award was highlighted, one that was bestowed upon McCutcheon herself. A very proud Nye County Manager Tim Sutton announced, “Jessica also received an award for the Joining Forces grant, the Award of Excellence for Outstanding Grant Management.”
Officials heaped praise upon all of those honored by the state and offered their thanks to everyone for their hard work and dedication to public safety, after which they approved the acceptance of the next round of Joining Forces grant funding, in the amount of $34,000.
“This is annually awarded by the Nevada State Department of Public Safety to support the cost of traffic enforcement events that are focused on reducing fatalities and serious injury crashes in Nevada,” the agenda item detailed. “The award provides funding for enhanced enforcement of safety belt and child safety seat laws, speed enforcement laws, pedestrian safety, and to reduce distracted and impaired driving through Selective Traffic Enforcement Programs (STEP), saturation patrols and checkpoints. The grant period is from Oct. 1, 2023 through Sept. 30, 2024.”
Contact reporter Robin Hebrock at rhebrock@pvtimes.com