IDOT honors Carol Stream's traffic enforcement efforts

Carol Stream Police Department's traffic safety enforcement efforts have won praise from the Illinois Department of Transportation.

Scott Kristiansen, a law enforcement liaison for IDOT, presented awards this week to several village police officers.

Kristiansen said the Carol Stream officers were honored for their work in cracking down on drunken drivers as well as enforcement efforts involving speeding and seat-belt regulations.

Officer Darren Boshart and Officer Brian Plackett received awards for DUI arrests. Boshart has made at least 100 DUI arrests and Plackett has made at least 300.

Plackett also received recognition for writing at least 5,000 seat-belt citations.

Kristiansen said Plackett is the only officer in Illinois who has been recognized for reaching the 5,000 mark for safety-belt citations.

"He's one of a kind in Illinois," Kristiansen said.

Officer Daniel Stafiej was commended for issuing at least 1,000 seat-belt citations, while Sgt. James Lucas and officer Charles McGuire were honored for hitting the 2,000 and 1,000 marks for speeding citations, respectively.

Along with the individual awards, the Carol Stream department also won praise for its success during the 2013 Illinois Traffic Safety Challenge.

The challenge is organized by the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police Traffic Committee. It recognizes creativity, commitment and innovation in traffic safety programs, according to Kristiansen, who is the Challenge's program director.

Because the Carol Stream department previously won first place among agencies of its size, it was placed into the Championship division this time around.

The department won first place in that division for the 2013-2014 Challenge.

Kristiansen said according to statistics submitted by Carol Stream, the department recorded 373 roadway crashes in 2013 - a drop from 1,042 in 2008.