BY JOHN SNYDER
OF PASCACK PRESS
TOWNSHIP OF WASHINGTON, N.J. —— Two Township police officers, Cpl. Steven Riedel and Officer Michael Ferrarini, each have saved “at least one life—guaranteed” and in fact have saved generations of lives by keeping drunk drivers off the road.
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That’s according to Montvale native and Teaneck personal injury attorney Steven Benvenisti, who serves on the national Board of Directors of Mothers Against Drunk Driving and the board of trustees for The Brain Injury Alliance of New Jersey.
Benvenisti, a motivational speaker, spoke at Monday’s mayor and council meeting to present Riedel and Ferrarini with framed Law Enforcement Recognition Awards for Distinguished Service from MADD, thanking them for their work keeping the roads safe—and so much more.
The national award is MADD’s most prestigious honor, Benvenisti said, calling Riedel and Ferrarini heroes for their record of success against “the violent crime of drunk driving.”
He added those who have been saved don’t even know it, and their families have been spared untold loss and heartache, “all because of an effective traffic stop and arrest that these gentlemen made.”
Also on hand were Police Chief Glenn Hooper and many others from the Police Department.
State data show Riedel and Ferrarini led the department in such stops and arrests—including for controlled dangerous substances—in 2016, and the award is for that achievement. This was Riedel’s sixth such award. Ferrarini is now a two-time winner, Benvenisti told Pascack Press.
The issue is more than academic for Benvenisti, who as a pedestrian was struck down by a drunk driver nearly three decades ago, when he was in college. He nearly died.
He is a partner at Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C., where he dedicates his law practice to representing DUI victims and individuals suffering from traumatic brain injuries.
Each spring, Benvenisti visits high schools nationwide to tell his story in, as his website notes, “the hope that students can grasp the risks associated with drinking and drunk driving.”
In his autobiography, “Spring Break: A True Story of Hope and Determination” (2012), he discusses his hardships and recovery from his event.
“Officers, I know you’re very humble. But I guarantee you, not a doubt in my mind, the two of you have saved lives,” Benvenisti said.
“And because of just that one life that’s been saved—and I guarantee you that that’s been done—that one individual can contribute to the community, can contribute to society, can start a family; they can contribute to society, it goes on for generations,” he said.
“When you multiply that by the many lives that these gentlemen have saved […] it’s so powerful and so important,” he added.
In addition to the awards, Benvenisti handed the officers copies of his book, a copy of a “contract for life” he created for parents and teenagers, and “I pledge” keychains that make it easy for car keys to be removed and handed over to a safe driver in the case of impairment.
MADD is a Texas-based nonprofit organization that seeks to stop drunk driving in the United States and Canada, support those affected by drunk driving, prevent underage drinking, and strive for stricter impaired driving policy.
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Photo by John Snyder