Newport names top cops

Deepa Bharath

NEWPORT BEACH -- Officer Joseph Wingert looked over to the table where

his family was seated.

His wife, Janet, was in tears and his sons, Christopher, 14, and Joey,

11, smiled at their father as he was named the Newport Beach Police

Department’s Officer of the Year early Thursday at a special awards

ceremony.

“Wanting to win this award is always at the back of your mind,” said

Wingert, who joined the Newport Beach police in 1980. “You hope to win it

someday but wonder if you will.”

Wingert was one of several officers who were honored for their work

last year.

Such events offer an opportunity for the community to see and

appreciate the good work done by police officers, said Newport Beach

Police Chief Bob McDonell.

“It also allows [officers] to see support from the community,” he

said. “It is very gratifying and has a tremendous impact on all of us.”

The department does face significant challenges in the near future,

one of them being the annexation of Newport Coast, which will require

hiring more officers, McDonell said.

“We need to ensure that we hire the same superior quality of

officers,” he said.

The recognition both motivates and inspires, said Det. David Byington,

part of the department’s narcotics team who won a merit award.

“This means a lot to us,” he said. “Feedback’s always good.”

Drugs pose a significant problem in the beach communities, Byington

said.

“Where the money is is where the dope is,” he said. “We could have 10

more people in our division, and we’d still be busy. It’s like shoveling

sand against the tide.”

For Crime Scene Investigator Don Gage, who earned the Civilian of the

Year award, the satisfaction comes from the fact that he finds “something

that identifies suspects and possibly gets them convicted.”

Gage was one of the officers who investigated and testified in the

case of Eric Bechler, the Newport Heights man found guilty of murdering

his wife during a boating trip three years ago.

Gage was called to look for physical evidence where there was none. It

was a case with no body and no blood.

“That started as a know-nothing case,” he said. “But it got

somewhere.”

BOX

NEWPORT BEACH POLICE DEPARTMENT AWARDS

LIFESAVING AWARD

Sgt. Mike McDermott

Sgt. Mike Everton

Sgt. Pete Perrin

Officer Jeff Brouwer

Officer Bob Watts

Officer Joseph Wingert

Officer John Yim

Dispatcher Julie Faster

MERIT AWARD

Det. Randy Slaughter

Sgt. John Freeman

Dave Byington

Steve Burdette

Tom Weizoerick

VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR

Sandy Meadows

RESERVE OFFICER OF THE YEAR

Troy Long

CIVILIAN OF THE YEAR

Don Gage

SUPERVISOR OF THE YEAR

Craig Fox

OFFICER OF THE YEAR

Joseph Wingert