These nominees must be submitted to department by 5 January, 2018.
PROGRAM GOAL
The Preamble of the
Constitution of The American Legion includes as one of its major objectives
“….to maintain Law and Order.” The goal
of the National Law Enforcement Officer of the Year Award is to select a well
rounded Law Enforcement Officer who has exceeded, above and beyond, the duty
requirements expected of his/her position and has demonstrated a distinctive
patter of community service coupled with professional achievement. Episodes of heroism will, of course, also be
included where noted. A major secondary
purpose of this award is to encourage the further development of Department and
Post Law and Order Committees in all Departments in recognition of enforcement
officers by Post, Departments and the National Headquarters of The American
Legion.
ELIGIBILITY
CRITERIA
ü Be a citizen of the United States
ü Be a living, active, full-time paid, sworn law
enforcement officer entrusted with full authority and with powers of arrest.
ü Reside or be assigned for duty to a City, County,
District, State or Federal Law Enforcement Agency within the Department for
which they are selected.
ü Be selected as the Department Law Enforcement Officer
of the Year and then submitted into National competition.
ü Federal agents
serving in overseas Departments may be nominated by that overseas Department.
ü Department nominees are not required to be veterans or
members of The American Legion.
ü Military police officers or investigators are not
eligible to participate in this competition.
ü Nominees selected for this award should be available
to receive this award at the American Legion National Convention.
DEPARTMENT
APPLICATION
Application packets should
include a completed application form used as the cover page of this
application. Also included should be 12
pages of service documentation, the first 6 pages will be on sided 8/12” x 11”
bond paper and include approximately four or five pages of the individual’s
service narrative. The second 6 pages
may be two-sided and include press articles.
Within the service documentation, a letter from the nominee’s commanding
officer or supervisor must be included.
Specific acts of community service, heroism and meritorious performance
recognized by his/her law enforcement agency should also be included and
documented. Outstanding service to
Community, State or Nation by the officer, in both on-duty and off-duty activities,
should be explained for the past year and may include previous years. Also include a 5” x 7” photograph of the
nominee as well as a copy of your nominee’s State or Federal certification as a
law enforcement officer. Departments
should submit 3 copies of the completed application to:
The American Legion
National Security –
Foreign Relations Division
1608 K Street N.W.
Washington, D.C.
20006
Due by February 1st each year.
JUDGING AND
GUIDELINES
Guidelines will be based
on the following criteria and maximum percentage points will be allocated as
follows:
·
Community Service
……………. 50 Points
·
Professional
Career ……………. 25 Points
·
Heroism……………………………….
20 Points
·
Letters of
Recognition, news clippings, etc…. 5 Points
Judges
will be selected by the Chairman of the Law and Order Committee from members of
this committee and the National Security Commission. Each Judge will represent his/her Region and
will select a Regional winner from Regions other than their own. Alternate-at-large judges may also be
selected at the Washington Conference.
The National winner will be selected from the Regional winners during
the Spring meeting of the National Executive Committee.
