Troopers from Troop A Receive Service Awards

A State Police Trooper from Troop A in Southbury and a DEP Conservation Officer received awards for service during a ceremony on Wednesday, November 29, at the Connecticut State Police Training Academy in Meriden.

Twice a year, the Connecticut State Police honors Troopers who demonstrated exceptional service in the line of duty.  The ceremony also honors men and women serving in local and federal law enforcement agencies and those serving as first responders, as well as civilians.  Award winners received medals and certificates from Department of Public Safety Commissioner Leonard C. Boyle and State Police Colonel Edward Lynch.

Awards are presented in four categories:

*      The Meritorious Service Medal is awarded to any person who renders service with a high degree of alertness, perseverance and superior judgment in the performance of a difficult task resulting in the protection of life, recovery of property, the prevention of – or solving of – a major crime or the apprehension of an armed or dangerous person.

*      The Lifesaving Award is presented to any person who saves a human life or makes a valiant attempt to save a life.

*  The Outstanding Service Award is given to any person who successfully performs an extreme, complex or difficult investigation. The person also may demonstrate exceptional skill or ingenuity in the apprehension of a wanted person, provide outstanding service to the public and or continuously achieves excellence in performance of duties over an extended period of time.

*     The Unit Citation is awarded to members of a department, a command or group who combine their resources to achieve success in an investigation or event. The citation recognizes exceptional collective efforts.

Troop A barracks of the Connecticut State Police, located in Southbury, is proud have this award winner from the troop.   

Trooper Jason Cassavechia On June 3, 2006, during a heavy rainstorm, officials from the Southbury Training School called Troop A to report a missing resident. The resident had several medical conditions. Trooper Cassavechia and his K-9 Dakota responded to the scene and began a track for the missing client. After a two-hour search and a K-9 track that covered approximately 3.5 miles of heavily wooded areas, open fields and residential streets, the missing person was located by Trooper Cassavechia and K-9 Dakota deep in the woods.  Trooper Cassavechia was awarded a Lifesaving Medal.

DEP Conservation Officer John Hey On August 18, 2006, DEP Conservation Officer John Hey was in Southbury and came upon a one-car accident in which the vehicle slammed into a large tree.  A fire ignited and the operator became entrapped.  Officer Hey immediately checked for injuries and then radioed for help.  He retrieved his fire extinguisher and doused the flames, then cut the seatbelt and stayed with the operator until backup arrived. Officer Hey was awarded a Lifesaving Medal.

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