Orange County, California, Sheriff Sandra Hutchens To Receive HopeLine Law Enforcement Partnership Award From Verizon Wireless

BASKING RIDGE, NJ, and IRVINE, CA — Verizon Wireless, a corporate leader in domestic violence prevention, said today that Sheriff Sandra Hutchens of Orange County, Calif., will be the recipient of the company’s HopeLine® Law Enforcement Partnership Award during the National Sheriffs’ Association’s annual conference being held in Anaheim, Calif. The award recognizes individuals or agencies involved in law enforcement that have demonstrated extraordinary commitment and focus on preventing domestic violence and raising awareness in their communities.

In addition to the award, Verizon Wireless will present a $10,000 donation to Laura’s House, the only state-approved comprehensive domestic violence shelter in South Orange County, in recognition of Sheriff Hutchens’ work. Laura’s House, founded in 1991, provides residential shelter services, counseling and legal services to hundreds of women and children as well as fields thousands of crisis calls each year on its Crisis Hotline.

“Verizon Wireless shares Sheriff Hutchens’ commitment to addressing domestic violence in Orange County and raising awareness of this important issue, which touches so many lives,” said Luis Cruz, regional president for Verizon Wireless. “We’re so proud to stand beside the sheriff and all members of law enforcement as they do the hard work of keeping our communities safe from violence.”

Under the leadership of Sheriff Hutchens, the Family Protection Unit in Orange County investigated more than 2,600 criminal and non-criminal acts in 2009. As part of their work on domestic violence cases, these investigators obtain 911 tapes; check field interviews from the responding deputies; and collect medical records, photographs and prior incidents of domestic violence from the suspect and victim before each case is submitted to the District Attorney’s office for consideration. None of the cases can simply be cleared, even if the victim refuses to prosecute.

Sheriff Hutchens joins a distinguished list of national recipients of the HopeLine Law Enforcement Partnership Award, including Police Chief Ronald L. DePompa of the Glendale, Calif., Police Department; the Georgia chapter of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE); and Sheriff Al Lamberti of the Broward County, Fla., Sheriff’s Office.

Verizon Wireless is a recognized corporate leader for its commitment to preventing domestic violence and raising awareness of the issue through the company’s HopeLine program. HopeLine collects no-longer-used wireless phones and accessories from any wireless service provider, turning them into wireless phones and service to be used by domestic violence survivors and financial support for non-profit advocacy agencies. Remaining phones are recycled in an environmentally sound way.

For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline. A complete list of past recipients of the HopeLine Law Enforcement Partnership Award is also available online at www.verizon.com/about/responsibility/domestic-violence-prevention.

About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless operates the nation’s most reliable and largest wireless voice and 3G data network, serving nearly 93 million customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with 81,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE, NASDAQ: VZ) and Vodafone (LSE, NASDAQ: VOD). For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.

About the National Sheriffs’ Association
The National Sheriffs’ Association (NSA) is the largest association of law enforcement professionals in the United States, representing more than 3,000 sheriffs across the nation, and a total membership of more than 20,000. NSA is a non-profit organization dedicated to raising the level of professionalism among sheriffs, their deputies, and others in the field of criminal justice and public safety. Throughout its sixty-eight-year history, NSA has served as an information clearinghouse for sheriffs, deputies, chiefs of police, other law enforcement professionals, state governments and the federal government. NSA also provides management training for sheriffs and their command personnel at the National Sheriffs’ Institute and through other innovative programs, workshops, and seminars. The National Sheriffs’ Association, located in Alexandria, Virginia, also oversees the highly successful Triad Program and Neighborhood Watch.

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