January 27, 2003

Lansing - The Michigan State Police Board of Awards is please to announce that Detective Sergeant Katherine A. Trietch, of the Ionia Post, and Detective Sergeant Sally I. Wolter, of the Lakeview Post, have been awarded the Michigan State Police Meritorious Service Award. They are credited for diligence and perseverance under uncommon circumstances and for going beyond what is typically expected of law enforcement officers.

Upon interviewing several individuals involved in breaking and entering incidents in three counties, Trietch and Wolter determined these crimes were being committed to obtain cash for the purchase of Oxycontin. Oxycontin a newly developed, highly addictive painkiller, had recently became available by prescription for terminally ill patients.

Trietch and Wolter spent the next two years investigating crimes associated with Oxycontin. During the process of the investigation, they identified 48 subjects who were committing crimes to support their Oxycontin addiction, as well as three doctors who were over prescribing the drug.

Trietch and Wolter also educated other law enforcement agencies, doctors and pharmacies about the dangers associated with Oxycontin. Their efforts to educate, train and increase media attention to the problem caused law enforcement to experience a significant drop in crimes associated with Oxycontin.

The Michigan State Police Board of Awards recognizes Trietch and Wolter for going above and beyond what is expected of detectives in helping to educate law enforcement officers on this dangerous drug.

Trietch joined the department in 1989, and graduated as a member of the 106^th Trooper Recruit School. She served as a trooper at the Lapeer and Flint posts, before being transferred to the Ionia Post in 1997, when she became a detective sergeant. A native of Clare, Trietch currently lives in Lake Odessa.

Wolter joined the department in 1986, and graduated as a member of the 100^th Trooper Recruit School. She served as a trooper at the Pontiac, Flint and Reed City posts before being reassigned to the Ionia Post as a sergeant. She then transferred to the Lakeview Post in 1999, and was re-assigned as a detective sergeant in 2000. A native of Flint, Wolter currently lives in Rockford.

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