22nd-ANNUAL EVENT HONORS LOCAL POLICE IN FIGHT AGAINST DUI

Washington, DC, Dec. 13 – Fifteen (15) Washington-metropolitan area police officers were cited today for their “outstanding commitment in the fight against drunk driving in Greater Washington” and presented with the area’s 22nd-annual “Law Enforcement Awards of Excellence for Impaired Driving Prevention.”

Bestowed this morning at a regional ceremony held in McLean, Virginia, the nonprofit Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP) presented its 2019 Law Enforcement Awards to:

• Officer Patrick Cushing City of Alexandria Police Department

• Corporal Bret Kooharian Arlington County Police Department

• Officer Bryce Cooper City of Falls Church Police Department

• DWI Enforcement Squad Fairfax County Police Department

• Senior Sergeant Bobby Galpin Town of Herndon Police Department

• Deputy Caleb Hwang Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office

• Trooper First Class Anthony Wallace Maryland State Police

• Officer Henry Gallagher Metropolitan Police Department

• Corporal Patricia Cox Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority

• Police Officer III John Romack Montgomery County Department of Police

• Corporal Thomas Kosakowski Prince George’s County Police Department

• Officer Chad Mason Prince William County Police Department

• Officer Daniel Begendorf United States Capitol Police

• Officer Christopher Gogarty United States Park Police

• Trooper Lucie Vajglova Virginia State Police

The annual awards, presented at a ceremony this morning at Maggiano’s Little Italy in the Tysons Galleria, were bestowed by WRAP in memory of Metropolitan Police Department’s Motor Patrol Officer Anthony W. Simms. Officer Simms, as a result of injuries sustained while on duty, lost his life to an impaired driver during Memorial Day weekend in 1996. WRAP’s 2019 Law Enforcement Awards were presented by Officer Simms’ widow, Lieutenant Pamela Simms, also formerly with the Metropolitan Police Department, along with News4’s (NBC) Traffic Reporter Melissa Mollet. Today’s event speakers included Virginia’s Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security Brian Moran, Congressman Gerry Connolly (D-VA), Metropolitan Police Department (D.C.) Chief Peter Newsham (the Metropolitan Police Department co-hosted this morning’s event with WRAP) and Richard Leotta, father of late Montgomery County Police Officer Noah Leotta.

“Today’s awardees represent the front lines in the fight against drunk driving in Greater Washington,” said Kurt Gregory Erickson, WRAP’s President. “Their collective effort to annually arrest and remove over 13,500 drunk drivers from Washington-metropolitan area roadways has undoubtedly saved lives.”

In addition to receiving the Law Enforcement Awards, each of the 2019 WRAP honorees also received a pair of complementary Washington Nationals tickets (courtesy of the Washington Nationals) and a $ 25 gift card to Glory Days Grill (courtesy of Glory Days Grill).

Sponsors of WRAP’s 2019 Law Enforcement Awards & Holiday Campaign Kick-Off included The Beer Institute, BREAKTHRU BEVERAGE – Washington, D.C., GEICO, Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility, George Washington University Hospital, Glory Days Grill, Interstate Moving | Relocation | Logistic and Lyft.

Founded in 1982, the nonprofit [501(c)(3)] Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP) is a coalition of diverse interests using effective education, innovative programs and targeted advocacy to end alcohol-impaired driving and underage drinking in the Washington, DC metro area. Through public education, innovative health education programs and advocacy, WRAP is credited with historically keeping the metro-Washington area’s alcohol-related traffic deaths lower than the national average. WRAP, however, may best be known to area residents via the organization’s popular free safe ride service for would-be drunk drivers, SoberRide®.

(WRAP’s holiday free safe ride service for would-be drunk drivers, SoberRide, will operate between 10:00 pm and 4:00 am each evening between December 20th and January 1, 2020. During these evening hours, Washington-metropolitan area residents ages 21 and older celebrating with alcohol may download the Lyft app to their phones and enter the applicable code in the app’s ‘Promo’ section. During this campaign, there will be three different single use promo codes issued. Each code is valid for up to $15 off one ride taken home in Lyft’s Washington, D.C. coverage area. WRAP’s Holiday SoberRide promo codes will be posted at 9:00 pm on December 20, December 27 and December 31 on www.SoberRide.com. Limited quantities available. See www.SoberRide.com for more details.)