WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) is pleased to announce that, for the second time, the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department is the featured “Community Policing in Action” photo contest winner.

The 2017 winning photo features then-Sergeant Orrlando Mayes reuniting with a young boy named Michael, whom he had rescued from a hostage situation six years earlier. Mayes, who was recently promoted to the rank of lieutenant, never expected to see the 16-month-old after the rescue, but an interesting twist of fate brought the two together again last year.

To read more about the reunion and to learn more about the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department, visit the COPS Office e-newsletter, the Community Policing Dispatch. The winning photo, taken by the department's photographer, Julie Prayter, is available to view on the COPS Office website, Twitter, and Facebook pages.

The COPS Office piloted the photo contest in 2015 to highlight positive community policing efforts across the country. After receiving an overwhelming number of submissions, the COPS Office made the photo contest an annual event. The 2017 contest garnered close to 200 photos during the one-month submission period. To learn more about the “Community Policing in Action” Photo Contest, visit photocontest.

The COPS Office is a federal agency responsible for advancing community policing nationwide. Since 1994, the COPS Office has invested more than $14 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of approximately 129,000 officers and provide a variety of knowledge resource products including publications, training and technical assistance. For additional information about the COPS Office, please visit www.cops.usdoj.gov.