FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE OJP

THURSDAY, AUGUST 08, 2002????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????202-307-0703

 

NOMINATIONS FOR HIGHEST PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICER?

AWARD DUE AUGUST 15

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. ? Nominations for the Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor, the highest national award for valor by a public safety officer, will close Thursday, August 15, the Justice Department announced today.? The Medal of Valor is authorized by the Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor Act of 2001 and will be awarded annually by the President to public safety officers cited by the Attorney General, for extraordinary valor above and beyond the call of duty.

 

?So many of our law enforcement, firefighters, emergency medical personnel and other safety officers deserve recognition,? said Assistant Attorney General Deborah J. Daniels of the Office of Justice Programs, which is administering the program.? ?We want to encourage agencies to submit nominations of these heroic individuals.?

 

To be considered for the 2002 Medal of Valor, public safety officers must be nominated by the chiefs or directors of their employing agencies for exceptional acts of valor that occurred between May 31, 2001 and May 31, 2002.? All interested parties should contact the Department of Justice Response Center, or access the OJP web page, to receive a nomination form before the final submission deadline.

 

Medals will be awarded based on the recommendations of an 11-member review board comprising representatives of the public safety community and the public, and appointed by the President, the Majority and Minority Leaders of the U.S. Senate, and the Speaker and the Minority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives. The Medal of Valor Act allows the board to recommend a maximum of five recipients annually.

 

Additional information on the award, including the design of the Medal of Valor and the Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor nomination form, can be accessed from http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ or by contacting the Department of Justice Response Center at 1-800-421-6770.

 

?????????? Media should contact OJP?s Office of Congressional and Public Affairs at 202-307-0703.? ???

 

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