April 12, 2006                        

Troopers and Auxiliary Trooper from Troop H and Troop W
Receive Service Awards

State Police Troopers and an Auxiliary Trooper from Troop H in Hartford and Troop W in Windsor Locks received awards for service during a ceremony Wednesday, April 12, at the Connecticut State Police Training Academy in Meriden.

Twice a year, the Connecticut State Police honors troopers who demonstrated bravery and outstanding 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.  Award winners received medals and certificates from Department of Public Safety Commissioner Leonard C. Boyle and Governor M. Jodi Rell.

Awards are presented in four categories:

Ø      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.

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

Ø      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.

Ø      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 H barracks of the Connecticut State Police, located in Hartford, and Troop W, located at Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks, are proud to have several individual award winners and a Unit Citation from the awards ceremony.   

Trooper Kevin Dowe, Trooper First Class Keith Loveland, Trooper Gregory Capps, Dispatcher Paula Freeman, Sergeant Steven Hall, Trooper Brian Marino, Trooper Jay Cockfield, Trooper Joe Morelli, Officer Charles Allen (of the East Granby Resident Trooper’s Office).   In August of 2005, Troop H was alerted by Officer Allen to an armed robbery that had taken place at a service station on Route 20 in East Granby.  A detailed description of the vehicle used in the crime was broadcast.  The vehicle involved was suspected in seven prior armed robberies in the surrounding area.  At this time, Sgt. Hall ordered all available troopers to take up posts on I-91.  Troopers Dowe, Loveland, Marino, Cockfield and Morelli took up posts on I-91 South. 

Trooper Capps and Dispatcher Freeman contacted all local police departments regarding the vehicle, as it began to engage Trooper Dowe in pursuit. Trooper Capps and Dispatcher Freeman coordinated all resources and maintained visual contact of the vehicle with the use of highway cameras. They also kept local departments aware of the direction, speed and other pertinent information pertaining to the pursuit. They directed needed assistance to intercept the suspects and terminate the pursuit. 

Trooper Dowe, along with Trooper Loveland, assisted in the successful termination of the pursuit.  Troopers Marino, Cockfield and Morelli arrived on scene and conducted a search of the immediate area for contraband that had been thrown from the vehicle during the pursuit and Sgt. Hall ensured proper handling and seizure of several pieces of evidence linking the suspects to the crime.

Troopers Dowe, Loveland and Capps, along with Dispatcher Freeman, earned awards for Meritorious Service for this case.  Sgt. Hall and Troopers Cockfield, Marino and Morelli, as well as Officer Allen, received a Unit Citation award for this incident.

     Trooper First Class Henry Arroyo.  Last December, Trooper Arroyo came upon a motor vehicle accident involving two cars and a pedestrian on the exit ramp to Route 75 in Windsor Locks.  Upon arrival, Trooper Arroyo determined that the pedestrian victim had sustained a traumatic head injury and was fading in and out of consciousness.  Trooper Arroyo stabilized the victim’s head to maintain an open airway and initiated a dialogue with the victim.  Trooper Arroyo’s efforts proved successful as the vital signs of the victim improved significantly and remained stable until the arrival of ambulance personnel. Trooper Arroyo received a Lifesaving Medal.  

Auxiliary State Trooper John Corsair.  Aux. Trooper Corsair has been described by one of his State Police supervisors as a man “who is always there to help a fellow Trooper. He is a man who always performs any assignment in a professional manner and his interaction with the public is always positive.” Aux. Trooper Corsair makes himself available at a moment’s notice to respond to a call. For his tireless efforts, Aux. Trooper Corsair was named Auxiliary State Trooper of the Year. 

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