State Honors Top State Troopers
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CBS) -- The Officer of the Year for the Illinois State Police is proficient at racking up DUI and other traffic arrests, but he's modest about it.
"I work midnights, when most of the impaired drivers are out, so that's to my benefit," said Trooper Marvin Wagle.
He was presented a 2012 Ford Interceptor SUV on Wednesday, to serve as his patrol car for the next year.
Wagle said he appreciates the new set of wheels, as more than one person has lost control of himself or herself in one way or another in the back of his old one.
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Wagle is a four-year State Police veteran, who lives in Galesburg, and patrols a district that includes Knox, Henry, Mercer, and Rock Island Counties.
Other awards at the ISP's annual ceremony Wednesday included Stacie Speith as Forensic Scientist of the Year, and Cheryl Clodfelter as Telecommunicator of the Year. Speith works at the crime lab in Carbondale, and Clodfelter has worked in Carmi.
The consolidation of 21 communications centers into four is the latest example of belt-tightening that state government has forced upon Illinois State Police
State Police Director Hiram Grau, said, "These are very, very difficult times, but fortunately our guys just – men and women – go about doing their business doing what they do every single day, and I imagine many of them don't even realize they are doing more with less. They are taking on more responsibility. They are just so dedicated."
The annual awards ceremony took place at Glenwood High School in Chatham, near Springfield.
