For Immediate Release:
Wednesday, October 21, 2020
Contact:
Laura Brewer (919) 716-6484
NOTE: Pictures available here.
(RALEIGH) Attorney General Josh Stein today announced that Chief Mark Holtzman, Dr. Ogugua Ndili Obi, and Sheriff Keith Stone were awarded the Attorney General’s Dogwood Award. These awards are given annually to honor North Carolinians who are dedicated to keeping people safe, healthy, and happy in their communities.
Chief Mark Holtzman
“Chief Mark Holtzman is a strong advocate for victims of sexual assault,” said Attorney General Josh Stein. “He has been able to fully test the backlog of untested sexual assault kits in the Greenville Police Department’s custody. Doing so helps to get justice for victims and make our communities safer from rapists.”
Chief Mark Holtzman has been the Chief of Police of the Greenville Police Department since 2015.
Dr. Ogugua Ndili Obi
“Dr. Obi and her team have risked their own personal safety to bravely care for COVID-19 patients,” said Attorney General Josh Stein. “It is my honor to recognize Dr. Obi and all the medical professionals on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic. Every North Carolinian owes a debt of gratitude to the health care professionals who are responding to this crisis.”
Dr. Ogugua Ndili Obi is an assistant professor at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University and a pulmonologist and critical care physician with Vidant Medical Center.
Sheriff Keith Stone
“The opioid epidemic has torn families apart all over our state,” said Attorney General Josh Stein. “A key part of confronting this crisis is strong enforcement of our laws to hold accountable the dealers and traffickers who are responsible for addiction and death while also treating the disease of addiction. I am proud to work alongside Sheriff Stone to fight the opioid epidemic and admire his work to arrest traffickers and put addiction treatment medication in the Nash County Jail.”
Under Sheriff Stone’s leadership, the Nash County Sheriff’s Office has participated in multiple federal and state partnerships to investigate and arrest drug dealers and traffickers.
A full list of the 2020 Dogwood Award recipients is below:
- Randy Abbott, volunteer coordinator, SAFE Project, Greensboro
- Sheriff Charles Blackwood, Orange County Sheriff’s Office, Hillsborough
- Dr. Carly Brown, Masks of Love, Asheville
- District Attorney Ben David, New Hanover & Pender County District Attorney’s Office, Wilmington
- District Attorney Satana Deberry, Durham County District Attorney’s Office, Durham
- Christian Dueñas, DACA recipient and advocate, Durham
- Bishop Todd Fulton, Mt. Moriah Outreach Center, Kernersville
- Peter Gilbert, Legal Aid of North Carolina, Durham
- Peter Gwaltney, North Carolina Bankers Association, Wake Forest
- Hayley Harris and Lara Purnell, Layers of Dignity, Raleigh
- Chief Mark Holtzman, Greenville Police Department, Greenville
- Mayor Vi Lyles, Charlotte
- Beth Messersmith, MomsRising, Durham
- Mike Reardon, Carolina Climbers Association, Asheville
- Sec. Michael Regan, North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, Raleigh
- Sheriff Danny Rogers, Guilford County Sheriff’s Office, Greensboro
- Rep. Carson Smith, District 16, Hampstead
- Jessie Smith, UNC School of Government, Chapel Hill
- Principal Chief Richard Sneed, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, Cherokee
- Sheriff Keith Stone, Nash County Sheriff’s Office, Nashville
- Isaac Sturgill, Legal Aid of North Carolina, Charlotte
- Frank Timberlake, Rich Square Market, Rich Square
- Dr. Ogugua Ndili Obi, Vidant Health, Greenville
- Wendy Mateo-Pascual, Latinx community advocate, Concord
- Dr. Anuradha Rao-Patel, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, Durham
- Amy Upham, Buncombe County Opioid Response Coordinator, Asheville
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