A homicide investigator and an undercover detective are lauded for compassion and dedication.
By LEANORA MINAI
Published January 11, 2004
ST. PETERSBURG - Homicide Sgt. Mike Puetz secretly wiped a suspect's spit from the street, collecting DNA linking the man to two rapes.
Intelligence Detective Robert Stewart guarded the Russian ambassador and helped protect former President George Bush during visits to the city.
Both St. Petersburg police employees received the annual Ned March award Friday for outstanding work over the years.
Puetz, 50, and Stewart, 46, accepted $250 checks and plaques from the St. Petersburg Rotary Club during a luncheon.
Puetz thanked his homicide detectives by name. They investigated 25 killings last year.
"These are the people I get the pleasure of waking up at 3 a.m. to make sense of something totally senseless," said Puetz, a 25-year employee.
The award is named after Ned March, a former Rotary Club member who established the honor in 1952. Although he died 11 years later, the Rotary Club continued the tradition and has given more than 95 awards to city officers.
"We have great people in this police department," said police Chief Chuck Harmon.
Puetz, whose family attended the ceremony, is known for remaining calm in stressful situations, showing compassion for crime victims and always taking time to talk to family members.
He was singled out for organizing the investigation of last spring's series of drug-related drive-by shootings, one of which killed an innocent woman and injured an officer.
In a show of appreciation, detectives presented Puetz with a framed photograph of himself.
There was Puetz, exhausted after a murder investigation, passed out in an office chair. His legs were propped on the desk, the telephone in his lap.
"I think it needs to go in his office," joked his wife, Mary Puetz, holding the framed photograph. "He says it needs to go over the mantle, but I don't think it fits the decor."
Stewart's friends and family also attended the awards banquet.
A lot of Stewart's work is secret. His picture can't appear on TV or in the newspaper. He develops confidential street contacts to apprehend fugitives.
"They come down for the fun and the sun, the beaches," Stewart said. "Then we locate them and direct them to the hotel - the Pinellas County Jail."
An officer for 22 years, Stewart is also known for his compassion, mentoring at-risk youth and donating his vacation hours to ill officers.
