Past Impact Awards Winners

IMPACT AWARDS are given each year by City Prosecutor Doug Haubert

The awards recognize individuals and groups who, working with the Long Beach City Prosecutor’s Office, and have made a positive, significant impact in the city of Long Beach in the past year.

Congratulations to Long Beach Police Resource Officer Gabriel Betanzos, given the Kim Maddox IMPACT Award, generally for his work to keep Long Beach neighborhoods safer, and specifically for his continuous and extraordinary personal efforts assisting a chronically homeless man stay connected with supportive housing. 

Attorney Robin Perry and the Long Beach Bar Association, for taking leadership role in clearing old convictions for Long Beach residents

Long Beach Justice Lab and Melissa Mojica, LMFT, for partnering with the City Prosecutor’s Office to develop the Priority Access Diversion (PAD) program, to connect incarcerated persons with critical social services.

Long Beach Police Department Vice Unit, for combating sex trafficking in California, and for connecting victims to social services.

Long Beach Unified School Board Members Dr. Felton Williams and Jon Meyer for efforts to reduce chronic truancy, improve educational outcomes, and improve the lives of Long Beach students.

Long Beach Branch NAACP and President Naomi Rainey-Pierson, for assisting with the City Prosecutor Internship Program and partnering on Law Day activities.

Brittany Gentle, Fare Compliance Officer, Los Angeles Transportation Authority, and the Long Beach Police Department Metro Unit, for improving public safety on the A Line (formerly Blue Line).

Forgotten Children, Inc., for partnering with the City Prosecutor’s Office to provide counseling, housing, and other services to victims of human trafficking.

Long Beach Police Sgt. Norma Carrillo, Detective Rodney Brown, and Technologists Jessie Macias and Marcus Briones, for their assistance with complex high-tech investigations.

Long Beach Police Detective Steve Fox, given the Kim Maddox Impact Award for his investigation of vehicle-related crimes, including a significant case where a truck driver was convicted of manslaughter after a jury trial in August 2018.

Jason Ballou and Evelina Rubio, of Lutheran Social Services of Southern California, South Bay/Long Beach, for assisting with intensive case management and housing for homeless individuals.

Cinthya Alcaraz of Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health (DMH), Court Linkage Program, and Bill Tarkanian of Los Angeles Center for Alcohol and Drug Abuse (LACADA), for helping to initiate and administer Long Beach’s Priority Access Diversion (PAD) program, connecting persons suffering from mental illness and substance abuse to residential treatment as an alternative to incarceration.

Long Beach Police Officers Nicholas Kent and Brendan Murphy, both foot patrol officers assigned to Belmont Shore, for their assistance with the City Prosecutor’s Neighborhood Impact Prosecutor program and curbing crime in Belmont Shore. 

Long Beach Police Detective Denise Green, for her exceptional work in investigating and assisting in the trial of a case involving the sexual assault of a woman.

Downtown Long Beach Alliance (DLBA) and Broc Coward, COO of DLBA, for partnering with the Long Beach Prosecutor’s Office to pioneer and implement the Neighborhood Impact Prosecutor program in Long Beach.

Megan Traver, Principal of Washington Middle School, for her efforts in connection with the “All In” program, a City of Long Beach and LBUSD partnership to reduce chronic truancy.

Long Beach Lifeguard Captain Scott Dixon and Long Beach Police Officer Jason Lehman, for their assistance with the City Prosecutor’s Summer Internship Program and Rockett Academy educational program.

Long Beach Clean Team, the team of dedicated city employees focused on areas in most need of debris removal, for its assistance with cleanup of encampments near beaches, rivers and parks.

The LA County Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (L.E.A.D.) Team, for providing coordinated social services to drug-addicted persons as part of a pilot program funded by the California Board of State and Community Corrections, including, from the Los Angeles County Office of Diversion & Reentry Director Peter Espinoza and Program Director Shoshanna Scholar; from the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department Lt. Joseph Nicassio, Deputy Eugene Gaines, and Deputy Julius Supapyotin; Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Edwin Wakabayashi; from the Homeless Outreach Program Integrated Care System (HOPICS) Gloria Johnson, Sheila Barnes, Juan Ontiveros and Kevin Lasley; from LA County Health Department, Housing for Health Program Manager Mark Faucette; and from the Long Beach Police Department Lt. Donald Mauk, Sgt. Brian Tuliau, Juan Gomez, Ernie Armond, Luis Rodriguez, Joseph Pueliu, and Christopher Zamora.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn for her support of City of Long Beach rehabilitation programs designed to assist former gang members with employment and tattoo removal. 

Antonio Gilbreath and Sylvester (Duke) Givens, both filmmakers and photographers from Long Beach, for their inspired work documenting and describing the City Prosecutor’s community-based programs.

Los Angeles County Deputy Probation Officer Valerie Kane, PhD., for her dedication to collaborating with prosecutors to protect the public while rehabilitating those convicted of crimes.

Long Beach Police Detective David Whelan and Police Officer Aaron Dodson, for their investigation of a 2017 commercial trucking enforcement case resulting in one of the largest criminal settlements in Long Beach history – $333,000 in fines and payments.

Long Beach Mentoring Connection (including Power4Youth, Catholic Big Brothers Big Sisters, LB BLAST, Operation Jumpstart), for partnering with the city prosecutor’s office to provide mentors for at-risk youth.

Mary White, GEMS Uncovered, for partnering to provide counseling and other services to victims of human trafficking.

Detective Ben Vargas, Long Beach Police Department, Robbery Detail, for his exemplary investigation of a serial thief, who was convicted and sentenced to eight years in county jail.

Dr. Dennis Clark and Lisa Waide, R.N. of Laser M.D., for providing free/low-cost tattoo removal services for human trafficking victims and former gang members.

Long Beach Human Trafficking Task Force and State Assembly Member Patrick O’Donnell, for fighting for legislation to combat sex trafficking in California.

Pacific Gateway, for partnering with the city prosecutor’s office to develop the PATH program to divert nonviolent, youthful offenders into employment and job training opportunities.

Long Beach Police Detective Rudy Romero, Domestic Violence Detail, was the recipient of the inaugural Kim Maddox IMPACT Award, for his skilled, thorough, and responsive detective work, which assisted in convicting obtain a six and one half year jail sentence for a man who systematically and continually harassed and terrorized women he met online.

Long Beach Police Department’s Quality of Life Police Officers Christopher Roth and Brad Futak, as well as East Division Patrol Officer Johnny Dodson, III, for their efforts to assist homeless persons transition from life on the streets.

Dr. Erin Simon, Director of Student Services, Long Beach Unified School District, for her successful effort to reduce chronic truancy and assisting students considered at-risk.

Long Beach Community Foundation, and its Executive Director Marcelle Epley, for the creation of a crime prevention fund to support victims of crime and reduce violence.

Laserfiche, a Long Beach-based technology company, and its CEO Chris Wacker, for development of software used by police and prosecutors to enforce court orders and reduce crime.

Karen Wyatt, of Helpline Youth Counseling, and Claudia Lopez, of Long Beach Trauma Recovery Center at St. Mary’s Medical Center, for their work supporting human trafficking victims as part of the City Prosecutor’s Directed Services Program.

Los Angeles County Deputy Sheriff Latosha Walker, as well as Deputy Attorneys General Maggy Krell and Jessica Owen, for their collaboration with the City Prosecutor’s Office resulting in the prosecution of gang-related hate crime involving human trafficking.

Hon. Jackie Lacey, Los Angeles District Attorney, for leading the LA County Prosecutors Association and handling the transfer of cases from felony to misdemeanor as a result of Prop. 47.

Richard Funke and Robert Belcher of the Long Beach Police Department and Cynthia Martinez of LBPD Court Affairs for assisting with trial preparation.

Tracy Colunga, Violence Prevention Coordinator for the City of Long Beach, for creating the city’s first Violence Prevention Plan and helping to secure grant funding to reduce gang activity.

Detective David Ternullo of the LBPD Violent Crimes Unit for preparing cases for criminal charge filing.

Long Beach Fire Department firefighters Chris Barton, Jason Cash, Andy Chan, Wayne Chaney, Joel Davis, Chris Duffy, Mark Fort, Keith Farrell, Dennis Garrett, Tony Gomez, Phil Gonzal, Matt Hoch, Jackawa Jackson, Sid Jackson, Teron Mays, Kelvin McCaleb, Chris Milburn, Ernesto Torres and Tyler Viana for creating the Rockett Academy mentoring program for Long Beach Unified School District seventh grade students.

Calvin Lane of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department and Jason Marks of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for helping to reduce gang activity by providing their expert knowledge.

Beth Aboites of UrbanFin (Seventh Street Church) for helping the Long Beach City Prosecutor’s Truancy Program provide school uniforms, supplies and shoes for needy children.

Long Beach Police Department, Vice Division, for the entire team’s success in investigating cases of human trafficking and assisting with victims.

Gabby Guillen and Marvin Kelly, of Homeboy Industries, for working on a tattoo removal program that assists former Long Beach gang members with free tattoo removal.

Leilani Ronca, Code Enforcement Officer in the Neighborhood Services Bureau, for her personal efforts to eliminate blight and abate public nuisance properties.

Tiffany Brown, Director of Coordinated Student Services for the Long Beach Unified School District, for her efforts to work with his staff to reduce chronic truancy in the district.

Long Beach Police Officers David Corcoran, Jeannie Villanueva, Gabriel Carrillo, Carlos Del Real and Pedro Valenzuela, for their efforts resulting in the successful arrest and prosecution of a gang-related hate crime in September 2013.

Jessica Quintana, Pastor Wayne Chaney Jr. and Pastor Gregory Sanders, for their assistance with developing and implementing Operation Opt Out — a City Prosecutor program assisting people formerly associated with street gangs — was a job well done.

Detective Mark Steenhausen, LBPD, for his investigation and personal efforts on the “Baby Maggie” case which was originally reported as a baby found at a gas station, but ultimately proved to be a case of child abandonment by the mother.

Patrol Officers Josh Brearley and Andrew Fox and the North Division Directed Enforcement Team (DET), LBPD, for their success in combating gang related crime.

Criminalist Greg Gossage and Police Officer Tyrone Anderson, LBPD, for their technical expertise and hard work relating to DUI investigations.

Judith Crumpton, local animal advocate, for her efforts to bring to fruition an annual conference on animal care and cruelty prevention.

Detective David Strohman, Narcotics Division, LBPD, for leadership in the effort to reduce illegal drug activity in Long Beach.

Lenny Arkinstall, Executive Director, Los Cerritos Wetlands Stewards, Inc., for utilizing the City Prosecutor’s Community Service Worker (CSW) program to preserve sensitive wetlands.

Bernardo Barajas, Police Officer, LBPD, for his efforts to combat gang related crime.

Sean Parilla, Police Officer, LBPD, for his efforts to reduce the number of unsafe and overweight trucks on city streets.

Che Scott, Counselor, Long Beach Unified School District, for his efforts to reduce truancy at Washington Middle School.

West Division Directed Enforcement Team (DET), LBPD, for the entire team’s success in combating gang related crime.

2012 In the News
Press Telegram
Long Beach Post
Gazettes

Project IMPACT

The City Prosecutor’s Office has a unique community prosecution program that focuses on gang, drug, and quality of life crimes. The prototype was developed in one of the most troubled areas in central Long Beach. Originally funded with a two-year Federal grant, the program proved so successful that it has been continued as Project IMPACT.

Attorneys in the City Prosecutor Office work in the neighborhoods with police, the Community Development Code Enforcement officials, and area residents to identify problem locations and community issues, and to target criminal activity. When the police, prosecutors, code enforcement officials, and neighborhood residents work together, we have shown there can be a dramatic drop in the rate of nuisance crimes. In fact, our efforts have been so successful that other cities in California and across the nation have contacted the City Prosecutor’s Office to implement similar versions of the Long Beach community-based law enforcement program in their own jurisdictions.

[Note: Due to City budget cuts, Project IMPACT was suspended in 2009. Some Project IMPACT components have been reassigned to other areas in the office.]