LOS LUNAS — The New Mexico DRE Program is recognizing a local law enforcement officer who has gone above and beyond in holding drug-impaired drivers accountable in 2021.
The New Mexico DRE Committee has selected Officer Raymond Torres, of the Los Lunas Police Department, as the New Mexico Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) of the Year for 2021.
Throughout 2021, Torres continuously sought out and identified drug-impaired drivers and removed them from New Mexico’s roadways. Torres’ enforcement evaluations alone, accounted for more than 7 percent of the states’ total enforcement evaluations for 2021.
Throughout 2021, Torres has been called upon by members of his own agency, as well as surrounding agencies to assist in impaired driving investigations.
In 2021, Torres maintained a 100 percent accuracy rate in determining the specific drug category (or categories) a suspected drug-impaired driver was under the influence of, as corroborated by toxicology results.
Torres has been certified as a New Mexico Drug Recognition Expert since 2018. He is currently assigned to the Los Lunas Police Departments’ DWI unit, and he serves the Los Lunas Police Department and State of New Mexico as a Standardized Field Sobriety Testing/DWI Instructor.
Torres utilizes his instructorship to emphasize the importance of the DRE Program to members of his own agency as well as surrounding agencies in SFST refreshers and basic SFST classes, which he leads or assists with.
Torres will be recognized at the New Mexico DRE committee meeting in March, and has been invited to attend the 28th annual conference on Drugs, Alcohol and Impaired Driving in San Antonio, Texas, in August.
The Valencia County News-Bulletin is a locally owned and operated community newspaper, dedicated to serving Valencia County since 1910 through the highest journalistic and professional business standards. The VCNB is published weekly on Thursdays, including holidays both in print and online.
673
April 19, 2024
