By Marcus K. Garner
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. — Sandy Springs K-9 police officer Mike Dewald was recognized last month by a national law enforcement association for outstanding work.
Dewald received the National Criminal Enforcement Association’s street-level enforcement awards for seizing the most weapons, the most marijuana, the most ecstasy and the most methamphetamine in non-investigation-related arrests.
“Because these weren’t the results of narcotics investigations, it was a lot harder to confiscate,” said police Lt. Steve Rose, noting that such seizures require significant proof in court.
“He’s got a knack for getting arrests and getting them convicted in court.”
Last year Dewald, working with his 2-year-old Dutch Shepherd partner Amos, seized 22 guns, 100 pounds of marijuana, 2,150 Ecstasy tablets and five ounces of methamphetamine.
The 36-year-old husband and father of four worked for the DeKalb County Police Department before joining the newly formed Sandy Springs police in 2006.
He’d been tapped for several NCEA awards from his service in DeKalb, Rose said. And Dewald’s drug policing earned him the highly sought-after post as a K-9 officer.
“His work this year exceeded what he did last year,” Rose said. “Part of the reason we hired him was because of his street-level drug interdiction.”
Copyright 2008 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution