Greene County Prosecuting Attorney David Hayes shows Greene Central Communications operator Christy Beegle her Excellence in Service Award as Sheriff Scott Anger looks on.
Xenia police officer Rudy Jones gets congratulations from fellow award recipient Richard Hochstettler, a deputy in the Greene County Sheriff’s Office.
Photos by Scott Halasz | Greene County News
Xenia police officer Rudy Jones listens to Violence Free Futures executive director Debbie Matheson (hidden behind Jones) talk about why he is receiving an Excellence in Service Award. Also pictured are Greene County Prosecuting Attorney David Hayes, Sheriff Scott Anger, and Det. Holly Clay.
Greene County Prosecuting Attorney David Hayes presents an Excellence in Service Award to Richard Hochstettler, a deputy in the Greene County Sheriff’s Office, as Sheriff Scott Anger looks on.
XENIA — A sheriff’s deputy, road officer, and dispatch communications operator were honored for their work by the Greene County Consortium on Domestic and Sexual Violence on Wednesday.
Deputy Richard Hochstettler, officer Rudy Jones and Greene Central Communications operator Christy Beegle received Excellence in Service Awards from the consortium, which includes Violence Free Futures, the Greene County Prosecutor’s Office, and the Greene County Sheriff’s Office.
Each were nominated because of how they handled domestic violence cases.
Hochstettler responded to a call involving a suicidal Army combat veteran and his wife. The veteran assaulted his wife, threatened her with a knife, and held her against her will for a significant amount of time. Hochstettler took great care of both the victim and the suspect in this case, according to the consortium. His work and diligent efforts led to a three-count indictment and guilty pleas to two of them.
“It always feels good to have your work recognized for being good or of high quality,” Hochstettler said after the ceremony. “For me that award means a lot because to me it’s not a reflection of me, it’s a reflection of the people that poured into me and allowed me to do my job at a high level. So that award is truly for them, I just humbly accept it on their behalf.”
Hochstettler asked to have the case assigned to him so that he could see it through a resolution and become more knowledgeable in the felony process.
“(In most cases) you respond to it, you do the report, and then you send it off,” he said. “This one I wanted to run all the way through and make sure I got those victims justice.”
Jones was nominated for his actions in April regarding a 20-year-old victim. The female had just met her boyfriend a year ago when almost instantly the verbal abuse began, to which escalated into physical abuse by December. When she was brought to Violence Free Futures in the middle of the night, she was bruised head-to-toe, swollen and suffering from head and strangulation trauma.
Upon arrival, the victim was set on not sharing too many details about her abuser as she didn’t want him in any more trouble or to break her loyalty to him. Jones was direct, supportive, and conveyed a matter-of-fact tone of voice when speaking to the victim, in addition to his calm presence. He was patient even though the victim’s willingness to cooperate wasn’t present, and he was able to gain her trust while gathering the information.
Beegle was awarded for her immediate response to a 911 hang-up call. A female answered unable to talk and give information as the perpetrator was still in the house. Beegle was able to determine the caller’s location and continue to speak with her as deputies were being dispatched. Beegle remained on the phone with the caller and provided her reassurance that help was on the way.
A recording of part of the call was played and served as an example of her work during her 21-year career.
Reach Scott Halasz at 937-502-4507.
