St Johns County wildlife officer named State’s Officer of the Year

St Johns County Fish and Wildlife Conservation officer, Lee Lawshe, has received the agency’s 2014 Law Enforcement Officer of the Year award, according to an announcement received by Historic City News this morning.

This award is only one of several prestigious awards that Lawshe received this year.

“Lawshe stands out among the Commission’s 853 Wildlife Officers in the field; he has proved to be an exemplary officer and an asset to the state’s citizens and natural resources,” said director, Colonel Calvin Adams, during a Commission meeting held at the Florida Public Safety Institute near Tallahassee. “He represents the best of what a Wildlife Officer should be.”

Lawshe was recently selected to receive these additional awards:

Florida Wildlife Federation’s Wildlife Officer of the Year
State Law Enforcement Chiefs Association’s Officer of the Year
Shikar-Safari Club International 2013 Wildlife Officer of the Year

Lawshe joined the Division of Law Enforcement of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission in 2008, coming from Airborne Ranger School with awards for his tour in the Middle East, where he was attached to a Quick Reaction Force.

In 2013, Lawshe’s notable activities included rescuing a man who had been missing for days in a swamp, apprehending a suspect during a manhunt, and catching people illegally harvesting redfish, trespassing, and harming gopher tortoises.