For Immediate Release

Date: Thursday, Oct. 14, 2004

Josephine County Deputy Honored with Tom Rice Award

Josephine County Marine Deputy Ernie Fields was honored by the Oregon State Marine Board recently with a special award for his service as a training instructor working to improve the skills of marine officers across the state.

The award was the Marine Board’s first ever Tom Rice Instructor Award. The late Tom Rice was a respected and well-liked marine deputy and instructor who served Josephine County and the Marine Board for years. He was killed in a helicopter accident while on duty in 2002.

“Deputy Fields is an outstanding member o the Marine Board’s law enforcement instructor program,” said Tony Van Meter, Marine Board Law Enforcement Training Coordinator. “He has been a trainer for over a decade, serving as a core instructor, boat operations instructor, white water drift boat and jet boat instruction. Ernie has always gone above and beyond the call of duty to ensure a safe and comfortable training experience for students from across the state.”

The award was especially meaningful, according to Van Meter, because Dep. Fields was a good friend of Rice. The award will now be issued annually.

Other awards announced during the meeting include: Top Seasonal Deputy, seasonal program to Brad Maesner, Deschutes County; Top Seasonal Deputy, year-round program to Dep. Jessica Harkin, Multnomah County; Rookie of the Year to Dep. Jon Bock, Lane County; Trooper of the Year to Sr. Trooper Marshall Maher, NW District Oregon State Police; Award of Excellence to Sgt. Marc Heckathorn, Jefferson County; Special Award to Lt. Steve Lane, OSP NW Region Manager; Marine Investigation Award to Dep. Tom Turk, Jackson County; Certificate of Appreciation for theft and investigation support to Jackson County; Top Boating Under the Influence enforcement award to Dep. Jimmy Gyllenskog, Jackson County; Program Manager of the Year to Lt. Monte Reiser, Multnomah County; Most Improved Program to Multnomah County; Seasonal Program of the Year award to Polk County; Yearly Program of the Year award to Jackson County.