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Programs
Helene and Joseph Sherwood Prize for Combating Hate
Law enforcement officers put their lives on the line every day to protect Americans from the threat of extremism, terrorism and hate—and are often the first line of defense. The Anti-Defamation League's Sherwood Prize recognizes those law enforcement professionals who are so committed to their work that they make a significant difference in their communities and serve as role models for their departments. We honor those officers who go above and beyond the call of duty to protect the community from hatred and bigotry.
Award Specifics
The Sherwood Prize is awarded to honorees at an annual luncheon along with their supervisors, superior officers and their guests. This is an opportunity to showcase the individual(s)/unit/department's accomplishments in local media and to share successful programs and activities with other agencies. Previous winners are listed below.
How to Nominate
Law Enforcement personnel, units or departments serving areas in Imperial, Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, Santa Barbara, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Luis Obispo and Ventura Counties are eligible. Applications can be downloaded here (pdf). Please contact us with any questions or call (310) 446-8000.
Criteria
The award focuses on law enforcement activities during the 2010 and 2011 calendar years that demonstrate relentless dedication to containing and minimizing the prevalence and severity of hate motivated behavior. A Sherwood Prize award nominee should have demonstrated a commitment of personal time to do one or more of the following:
- Demonstrated an outstanding commitment to combating extremism, bigotry and hatred by performing acts outside the normal scope of duties.
- Made an impact on victims of hate crimes or bias-motivated incidents.
- Provided opportunities for education to reduce hate crimes and bias motivated activity.
- Used innovative approaches to enforce or prosecute hate crime laws.
- Made a significant difference in their community and served as a role model for his or her agency.
Selection Process
A distinguished group of police chiefs and sheriffs, under the leadership of San Luis Obispo Chief Deborah Linden along with the Sherwood Family and the ADL staff, select those individuals whose stellar service and commitment should be recognized.
The current Sherwood Prize Selection Committee members are:
- Chief Steve Beeuwsaert, California Highway Patrol
- Sheriff Geoff Dean, Ventura County Sheriff's Department
- Sheriff William D. Gore, San Diego County Sheriff's Department
- Chief Rob Handy, San Bernardino Police Department
- Sheriff Sandra Hutchens, Orange County Sheriff's Department
- Chief Deborah Linden, San Luis Obispo Police Department, Chair
- Chief David L. Maggard, Jr., Irvine Police Department
- Asst. Director in Charge Steven M. Martinez, FBI, Los Angeles
- Chief Jim McDonnell, Long Beach Police Department
- Assistant Chief Michel Moore, Los Angeles Police Department
- Chief Camerino Sanchez, Santa Barbara Police Department
- Sheriff Stan Sniff, Riverside County Sheriff's Department
- Special Agent in Charge John Torres, ATF, Los Angeles
- Chief Greg Williamson, Bakersfield Police Department
Sherwood Prize Past Recipients
This award has been presented to law enforcement professionals since 1996. These are the previous three years of recipients:
2011
Investigator William "Bill" Beeman
Investigator James "Jim" Karr
Orange County Sherriff's Department
Instrumental in collecting, cataloging and providing information about white racist gangs (WRGs) to law enforcement resulting in numerous critical arrests.
Sergeant Kevin Kilgore
UCLA Police Department
Works with the UCLA Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community to combat hate via personal victim assistance and extensive community involvement.
Commander Josef Levy
Long Beach Police Department
Trained thousands of officers and community leaders on issues involving hate crimes and racial profiling in programs such as the Long Beach Police Department Human Relations Training and Human Dignity Program.
2010
Avenues Gang Investigation and Prosecution
United States Attorney's Office, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Drug Enforcement Administration, Internal Revenue Service, Los Angeles Police Department and the Riverside County Sherriff's Department
Collaboration of local and federal law enforcement agencies worked to destroy the Avenues gang and rebuild the neighborhoods it once terrorized.
Orange County Racist Gangs Prosecution
Orange County District Attorney's Office,
Homicide and Gang Units
Worked creatively to solve the unique problems associated with prosecution of white racist gangs in Orange County, seriously weakening many of the county's most notorious groups.
The SHARE Tolerance Program
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department,
Field Operations Region I
Created a unique program which utilizes the credibility of uniformed officers and a mobile learning center to deliver a vital message against hate in Southern California.
Varrio Hawaiian Gardens Gang Task Force
"Operation Knockout"
United States Attorney's Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Drug Enforcement Administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Internal Revenue Service, Los Angeles District Attorney's Office, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department
A broad collaborative effort to dismantle the Varrio Hawaiian Gardens gang, a hate-filled group known for race-based attacks in Hawaiian Gardens.
2009
Detective Ebrahim Ashabi
Long Beach Police Department
Created an extensive course on radical Islam, mainly on his own time, to give the law enforcement community tools to combat this new threat.
Parole Agent Eric Kraus
California Department of Corrections
Became an expert on white racist gangs and hate groups and helped make law enforcement more effective in confronting criminal behavior of these gangs.
Van Nuys Juvenile Impact Boot Camp
Joint Award to Los Angeles Police Department and Los Angeles Unified School Police for outstanding commitment to affecting the lives of at-risk youth.
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