HIGHWAY SAFETY

Police Department

Beckley Police Department

The Beckley Police Department has long been a strong advocate for highway safety. Since 1991 the department has designated an officer to work in conjunction with the WV Governor’s Highway Safety Office to serve as the regional highway safety coordinator for southern West Virginia.

Beckley Police Sergeant Jamie Wilhite was appointed the SRHSP coordinator in October 2017. He is one of eight coordinators in the Mountain State directed by the WV Governor’s Highway Safety Office to manage and coordinate the highway safety efforts of law enforcement agencies state wide. His vast responsibilities include coordinating the enforcement activities of up to 36 law enforcement agencies in seven southern counties by dispersing supplemental funding for alcohol enforcement and a large variety of patrols and checkpoints on our roadways throughout southern West Virginia. Other areas of responsibility include coordinating local, state, and national highway safety enforcement campaigns, law enforcement training, child passenger safety, driving safety, student education and awareness, and highway safety media relations.
Sergeant Wilhite is a native of Raleigh County and graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School. He attended Concord College and Marshall University before serving with the Army National Guard as part of Operation Noble Eagle. Sergeant Wilhite was sworn in with the Beckley Police Department in March 2006 and is a graduate of the WV State Police 128th Basic Academy Class. Prior to his appointment to the highway safety coordinator position in 2017, he served his department as a uniformed patrol officer, field training officer and road supervisor.
In 2011 Sergeant Wilhite was awarded the FOP Distinguished Service Award. Additionally, throughout his career he has received multiple regional highway safety awards including DUI Enforcement, Occupant Protection and Target Red. He has also been named to the Governor’s Highway Safety Top 52 DUI Enforcement list each year from 2012-2016.

The Southern Regional Highway Safety Program serves Raleigh, Fayette, Greenbrier, Nicholas, Braxton, Pocahontas, and Webster Counties. Previous members of the Beckley Police Department who have served as the coordinator of the WV Southern Regional Highway Safety Program include: Lt. Bill Kelly, Lt. Bob Tipton, Capt. J.D. Meadows, Cpl. Jeff McPeake, Lt. George Hunter and Capt. Paul Blume