The ‘Officer of the Month’ award recognizes the efforts of an individual with the rank of patrol officer from Division or a Special Unit, who has demonstrated exceptional dedication in the performance of his/her duties during the previous month. I am very pleased to announce that our selection for this month’s LPD ‘Officer of the Month’ is Officer Jeremy Picanco of the Second Division. This nomination was submitted by Lieutenant Michael O’Connell, and additional positive comments were submitted by those in attendance, including Captain David Brown who spoke on Lieutenant O’Connell’s behalf, and whose follow-up email stated that “Officer Picanco is a great choice, he is eager to learn, and has demonstrated a strong work ethic.”
In his written nomination, Lieutenant O’Connell reported that “Officer Picanco has only been with the department since January, and in that time, all of his training officers had expressed that he is eager to learn, easy to work with, and has shown great ability.” Lieutenant O’Connell also stated that “as the Second Division Commanding Officer, I have witnessed this first hand.”
Lieutenant O’Connell’s nomination further discussed the following recent incidents regarding Officer Picanco as noted below:
- In late August, Officer Picanco, along with Officer Bulgar Limchao, interrupted a B&E to a motor vehicle.
- In September, Officer Picanco and the entire Division responded to a mass shooting where two homicides were recorded. According to on-scene supervisors, “Officer Picanco performed admirably, at a difficult scene.”
- On the day following the homicides, CID had put a BOLO out for a motor vehicle believed to be involved. After learning that the vehicle had a hit on FLOCK, Officer Picanco and Officer Peter Welch located the suspect vehicle on Eastern Avenue, and then conducted a motor vehicle stop; where it was subsequently impounded, and all three occupants identified.
- Following an armed carjacking, Officer Picanco located the carjacked vehicle, and after initially trying to stop the car, initiated a pursuit. After the vehicle crashed, he initiated a foot pursuit of the driver, where he was able to catch and detain the driver at gunpoint until the arrival and assistance of backup officers.
As stated by Lieutenant O’Connell, “these are some of the major incidents that Officer Picanco has been involved with recently, but they are indicative of his daily approach to policework, wherein he comes to work daily, with a zeal to learn and to do his job, with an impact on crime and service to his community. ”
Congratulations and thank you to Officer Picanco for a job well done.