On Wednesday, the Washington Traffic Safety Commission honored San Juan County Sheriff Rob Nou and Deputy Prosecutor Kim McClay with Target Zero Traffic Safety Awards for their work in tackling the problem of impaired and drunken drivers on county roads.

Target Zero has the ambitious goal of eliminating traffic fatalities in the state by 2030 and a major part of the effort focuses on getting impaired drivers off the road. The statewide awards are given to a wide range of community leaders, law enforcement personnel, engineers and others who “go beyond their job duties” to improve safety on the road.

“I’m really proud of them for what they’re doing for our community,” said County Prosecutor Randall Gaylord. “They have taken their own initiative and exercised their own leadership to accomplish what they have done to earn this award.”

During this past year, Nou and McClay arranged for every San Juan County Sheriff’s deputy to receive specialized training in investigating driving under the influence cases, administering field sobriety tests, dealing with situations in which drivers refuse to take a breath test, and writing effective reports – all aimed at helping in the prosecution of crimes ranging from DUI to vehicular homicide.

“DUI is consistently the most frequently committed crime in the state of Washington,” Nou said. “Nationwide, it’s responsible for, in the ballpark of 30,000 deaths each year. The removal of impaired drivers from the road is, in a very real sense, homicide prevention.”

Deputy Prosecutor McClay, who is leaving the prosecutor’s office for a position as a corporate lawyer on the mainland, described the award as “a great way to end my career as a prosecutor.”

“Working alongside Sheriff Nou has been a privilege,” she said. “He is truly doing great things and guiding the Sheriff’s Department into the future.”