Each year, the publication, “Homeland Security Today” honors shining stars in the community who are making their own unique, invaluable contributions to advance the mission of keeping America safer from myriad threats. On December 11, Colonel David R. Hines, Sheriff of Hanover County, was awarded “Excellence In Outreach” at a ceremony in Washington D.C. Lieutenant Colonel Allen Davidson and Lieutenant Terry Sullivan accepted the award on his behalf.
“Colonel Hines has developed homeland security measures to partner with federal, state, local and private-sector partners through multiple innovative initiatives that are at the core of Sheriff’s Office operations. These innovations include efforts to educate the public about homeland security priorities, threats and vulnerabilities; promote suspicious activity reporting; and fostering state, national and international partnerships that led to the development of the Hanover Sheriff’s Office SHIELD initiative and the Global SHIELD Network, incorporating a community policing strategy that provides a formal platform for any citizen to partner with the Sheriff’s Office and receive not only the latest terrorism information from around the world but local and regional crime trends as well. The foundation for the SHIELD initiative in Hanover County was built on streamlining already established partners in the Neighborhood Watch, Business Watch and Worship Watch programs; 160 churches actively participate in the Worship Watch program. The model has been shared with multiple metropolitan police agencies to assist them in developing a SHIELD initiative. International law enforcement from have also reached out to the Hanover Sheriff’s Office in their efforts to develop a similar model”.
