Sparta Police Officer Earns Mothers Against Drunk Drivers 'Top Cop' Award

SPARTA, NJ-  For the second consecutive year Sparta Police Officer Michael Poon earned the “Top Cop Award of Excellence” from the Mother Against Drunk Drivers or MADD.

“I’m proud of him,” Sparta Police Chief Jeff McCarrick.  “He’s a good, young proactive officer.”

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In 2023 Poon made 10 drunk driving arrests.  In 2022 he had 14 drunk driving arrests when he earned the recognition for the first time, according to McCarrick

“He could have saved several lives by taking 10 DWIs off the road,” McCarrick said. He said there were other officers that had seven, eight, nine intoxicated driver arrests. McCarrick said he has heard Sparta Police have a reputation for pulling a lot of people over but that is all in an effort to keep residents safe.

Officer Poon earned this recognition because of his proactive enforcement, stopping cars and investigating suspicious behavior that led to arrests, McCarrick said.  Poon also followed up on information from concerned citizens calling about drivers they see on the road around them, as all Sparta officers do he said.

“We like that people give us a heads up about drivers who appear to be impaired,” McCarrick said.

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Sparta Police Officers have “a lot of training from the New Jersey State Police including intoxicated driver awareness courses” provide for free, according to the chief.

Poon is scheduled to get advanced training and is being considered for training to be certified as a Drug Recognition Expert the chief said. He is currently the head firearms instructor, training Sparta Police Officers throughout the year.

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