Police Chief Doug Woodard said Lawson is “very well thought of” in the department, has a positive attitude and is extremely thorough and detail oriented.
“Scott works very, very hard, through his interview process, talking to people, talking to witnesses, talking to suspects,” Woodard said during the Feb. 23 meeting. “A confession is not what he’s after. He’s after the truth. Sometimes that takes a lot longer, but he puts in the time.”
In April, following an aggravated robbery, Lawson interviewed three suspects, carried out numerous “clever” interviews techniques and obtained confessions from three suspects, each of whom is serving a prison sentence of between three and six years, Woodward said.
In May, during a case involving an aggravated robbery, Lawson located a large amount of gummy bears laced with THC, which were “so new to the area that no one really knew how to test them,” he said. The department sent them to Michigan, where Lawson located a laboratory that would test them.
“He had to coordinate with the prosecutor’s office how they might go about prosecuting them because they had never done that,” Woodward said. “Through that also, that same case, he was able to seize about $24,000 cash and then also get a conviction and the suspect was sentenced to six years.”
In August, Lawson conducted a lengthy investigation into the death of a 6-week-old child, arrested a suspect. The wording from the prosecutor was “this was a textbook investigation on the way this type of case should be handled.”
Following a November bank robbery, Lawson located and interviewed suspects, obtained a search warrant and located evidence, including cash, clothing and a dye pack.
Woodward said even though Lawson always remains quite busy, he always takes a lot of time to do detailed work and is helpful in assisting the younger officers who regularly seek him out.
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