Southold 'Top Cop' Awarded for Cracking Down on Drunk Driving

SOUTHOLD, NY - As the crackdown on drunk driving has intensified on the North Fork, one police officer in Southold was honored for cuffing the greatest number of offenders over the past year.

Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone, Suffolk County Police Department Commissioner Timothy Sini and Suffolk County Stop DWI representatives on Tuesday honored 23 "Top Cop" police officers, including Officer Garrett Lake from the Southold Police Department, for leading the charge to reduce drunk driving and reckless vehicular behavior — and save countless lives.

The ceremony was held at the Suffolk County Police Academy at Suffolk County Community College and lauded law enforcement agents who made the biggest difference in their respective communities in 2015.

“It is extremely important to us that motorists who are driving while intoxicated are stopped,” Bellone said. “DWI tragedies don’t just affect those involved, they impact the families of victims as well. Suffolk County will not tolerate drunk driving on our roadways. We are committed to arresting anyone who chooses to drink and then get behind the wheel of a car, endangering the lives of others.”

Suffolk County law enforcement agencies made over 15,000 DWI arrests in the past three years.