MANASSAS — (Press Release) During National Police Week each year, the Rotary Club of Manassas hosts a lunch in recognition of the Manassas City Police Department’s Employee of the Year.
This year Detective Andrew Speights has been named Manassas City Police Department Officer of the Year.
Speights has just concluded a nearly four-year assignment to the Northern Virginia Regional Gang Task Force. During that time, he has developed a reputation for being a “walking encyclopedia” of gang knowledge and has been recognized for having a strong work ethic.
Some of his accomplishments over the previous year include preventing several gang-related homicides, assisting MCPD and other departments with solving several homicide investigations, being an integral investigator in numerous state and federal conspiracy cases and appearing in a Netflix documentary as an expert on gangs.
Speights has received recognition from the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), the Prince William Chamber of Commerce, MCPD and several other agencies around the region. In fact, as the Chair Person for the Northern Virginia Gang Task Force, other member agency chiefs personally shared with Chief Keen their appreciation of his professionalism, work ethic and commitment to investigating gang-related cases, not only in Manassas but in their jurisdictions.
For his efforts on the Gang Task Force, Speights is the recipient of the John Conner Memorial Award.
July 24, 2019 marks 31 years since the murder of Sergeant John Conner of the Manassas City Police Department. He was shot and killed in the line of duty during a domestic hostage situation.
City residents lined the streets to pay their last respects to Conner following his death. Today, the City honors Sergeant Conner and the sacrifices he and his family have made by naming a scholarship foundation after him.
In 1962 President John F. Kennedy designated Peace Officers Memorial Day on May 15 and the week in which it falls as National Police Week. Approximately 40,000 people attended one of the many events honoring our fallen officers during this time.
On average there are 15,000 assaults on police officers that result in injuries each year and a police officer is killed in the United States every 63 hours. In 2018 there were 158 officers killed in the line of duty.
