Detective Sergeant William Durr of the Starkville Police Department was awarded the 2017 Distinguished Service Award for his strength, resilience and justice by Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood.
The award was presented on Monday, April 3, in Jackson, and was issued by the Crime Victim Compensation Division, the portion of the Mississippi Attorney General's Office that works with helping victims.
Durr is from Starkville, and has worked in Starkville as a police officer since 1995. Now, he is the Sergeant of the investigation unit at the Starkville Police Department.
Durr's fellow officers at SPD convinced him that they had work to do in Jackson. However, instead of receiving paperwork and handling business, Durr was surprised with the award, presented to him by the Mississippi Attorney General, himself.
Durr said there were many others he could think of who deserved the award, but he was humbled to have received it. He said his unit strives to give best service to victims that come to them after hardships, and that his motivation in his job comes from Jesus Christ and following his example.
He said Starkville's detectives believe that, no matter what the victim has gone through, each case and each victim is equally as important as the last.
"The sense of accomplishment you get is when you see the victims actually getting help," Durr said. "When you see them get some type of relief or some type of justice, that's when it is really worth it."