TTPD Honors Officer of the Year, Officer of the Quarter, Life Saving Recipient at Quarterly Awards Ceremony

The Texarkana, Texas Police Department held its quarterly awards ceremony Tuesday, October 20, at the department’s Spring Lake Park Training Center, honoring a civilian employee and recognizing several officers for outstanding service — including its Officer of the Quarter, Officer of the Year, and a Life Saving Award recipient.

Civilian Award of Excellence — Crime Analyst Rachel Mabe

Rachel Mabe has served with the department for nearly two years and was promoted to crime analyst a little over a year ago. Coming from a background in education, she has helped reinvent how the department uses crime data, coordinating with its patrol, special investigations and operations divisions, as well as state and federal partners. She was recently admitted to the specialized 130-hour Crime Analysis Certificate Program at Sam Houston State University, and her work has helped reduce calls for service in previously high-crime areas.

Officer of the Quarter — Officer Matt Cashatt

Officer Matt Cashatt was named Officer of the Quarter for July–September 2026. With more than 28 years of service, Cashatt has served in the patrol division, as a school resource officer and a crimes against persons detective before becoming the department’s training coordinator in 2017. In that role he has coordinated more than 62,000 hours of training for nearly 3,000 sworn and civilian personnel across 62 law enforcement agencies. He was also recognized for developing a multi-day session to help out-of-state officers obtain Texas license certification and volunteering to manage training-compliance reporting for more than 50 officers at a neighboring agency.

Officer of the Year — Officer Jacob Miramontes

Officer Jacob Miramontes was named TTPD Officer of the Year. Miramontes has served with the department for a little less than two years, previously serving seven years with the Richardson, Texas Police Department, and currently works as a patrol officer and field training officer. In 2026, he responded to more than 1,500 calls for service, made over 300 arrests, conducted close to 1,000 traffic stops, and averaged 11.7 activity contacts per 12-hour shift. He was also named one of the department’s Officers of the Quarter earlier in 2026 before being selected as Officer of the Year.

Life Saving Award — Officer Hunter Hinds

Officer Hunter Hinds received the department’s Life Saving Award. Hinds, who has served with TTPD about a year and a half, responded on Dec. 21 to a shooting in the 3000 block of Lester Street, where he found a victim suffering a single gunshot wound to the neck. Acting immediately, he applied direct pressure and packed the wound with gauze from his trauma kit, holding pressure while offering the victim calm reassurance until EMS arrived and took over treatment.

The victim ultimately survived the traumatic injury. Emergency physician Dr. Jeb Frost credited Hinds’ prompt recognition of the bleeding and effective hemorrhage control as contributing materially to the successful outcome.

Chief Kevin Schutte presided over the ceremony, thanking the officers and the families and community members who attended to recognize their service.