Kenneth D. Abbott of the Absconder Recovery Unit of the Lansing area, was chosen Michigan Corrections Officer of the Year for 1992. He was selected by a committee of the Michigan Correctional Officers' Training Council.

The Recovery Unit, one of seven such operations, works to locate offenders who have absconded from supervision or escaped from a prison. Abbott is part of the team that covers the western and northern sections of Michigan.

Abbot helped to start the Lansing branch of the unit in 1986. Since then, he has been directly responsible for arresting 187 escaped prison inmates and 149 parole absconders. He also assisted local television media in starting the "Crime Stoppers" segment of a local news cast.

Director McGinnis said Abbott "has earned the respect of officers from the FBI, Michigan State Police Fugitive Team, and the Lansing, Jackson and Battle Creek police departments."

The finalist in the Officer of the Year competition were: George Demenov, an officer at the Carson City Regional Facility; Wynda Glover, an officer at the E.C. Brooks Regional Facility; Philip W. Morris, an officer at the Department's boot camp program at Cassidy Lake; and James E. Sivrais, an officer at Camp Pellston.

Every institution and field service region nominated an individual for the honor and the list was narrowed down to five by a committee which included past winners of the title, a representative of the MCO and security and training representatives of the Department.

Abbott and the other finalists and nominees will be honored at an evening banquet May 8 in Lansing cosponsored by the MCO and the Department.