A Columbus police officer was recognized for his efforts in combating drug-impaired driving.
Sgt. Ben Goodin, a 4½-year veteran of Columbus Police Department, received the 2017 Indiana Drug Recognition Expert of the Year award Feb. 27 at a banquet in Hamilton County.
Columbus Police Department also received the Agency Leadership Award for its drug impaired driving enforcement efforts.
“It is important to have DREs (drug recognition experts) available due to the increased number of drug-impaired drivers on our streets and highways,” Goodin said. “If we did not have officers specifically trained to detect drug-impaired driving, there would a greater risk to the public for vehicle crashes.”
The number of DRE evaluations Goodin administered for drug-impaired driving nearly doubled from 2016 to 2017, he said.
Goodin is one of two drug recognition experts on the Columbus Police Department. CPD is expected to send two additional officers off to DRE training later this year.
