Investigator reaches career apex with state award

Tahlequah Daily Press - 10/18/2019

Oct. 16--Tahlequah'sStephanie Stephens was recently recognized as Domestic Violence Investigator of the Year for the state.

On Oct. 3, Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter awarded the District 27 Investigator during the 12th Annual Domestic Violence Awareness Month Press Conference and Awards Ceremony at the Oklahoma Judicial Center Auditorium in Oklahoma City.

"I'm humbled and I'm honored, and it just means so much to me to be recognized for the work I do," said Stephens. "I do work hard and I do put my heart into these cases, and so for me to win this award, it means so much and I'm eternally grateful."

Stephens was born in Seagoville, Texas, and has been a Tahlequah resident for the past 29 years. She worked in the emergency medical field for several years before she eventually turned to dispatch for the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office.

"I worked for about eight months as a dispatcher and a reserve officer under Sheriff Delena Goss and then when Norman [Fisher] took over in 2005, I became a jailer and a reserve officer," she said.

In 2006, she left CCSO and went to the Tahlequah Police Department, where she worked as a dispatcher, reserve officer, and a jailer. She then transitioned to the Cherokee County Detention Center, serving as a supervisor for about a year.

"I came back to the sheriff's office and went to full-time CLEET," she said. "From the time that I got my reserve certification -- I started out as a river ranger and worked my way up to be the supervising ranger for Oklahoma Scenic Rivers Commission, which is now Grand River Dam Authority."

After six years working for OSRC, she returned to the sheriff's office and was offered the rank of investigator for the District Attorney's Office a year later.

Stephens said she wanted to become involved with investigative work while she was working on the streets as a patrol officer.

"I would take reports and then never know how they ended up, and I never got to see the justice for the victim from the report I took," she said. "That became a goal of mine, and I always felt working for the District Attorney's Office was one of the most prestigious jobs you could have."

Considering her long resumé, Stephens said that with everything she absorbed before she was an investigator, she can draw from the experiences and do a better job with her cases.

She cited one difficulty she faces when working with domestic violence, stalking, teen dating violence, and sexual crime victims.

"Knowing someone is guilty as sin and not having the evidence to prove it -- that is heart-wrenching," she said. "I'm pretty tenacious and I'll dig and try every angle I can, but there are times where I just can't get anything."

Since becoming an investigator, she said one case has stuck with her all these years -- and it was her first "big case."

"The young lady had been sexually molested by her stepfather for about eight years," she said. "I did some digging on the stepfather and we were able to bring charges against him, and her mother, too."

She said the man was sent to prison, and the victim is now living a better life and doing well.

"That was my whole goal: to get justice for her and to make sure she was going to be OK, and we accomplished it," she said. "I'm all about taking care of our kids and any of our victims who are involved in these types of crimes."

During her award speech, Stephens challenged those in the audience to stand up and speak out if they witness cases of domestic violence.

"We must empower our victims to overcome their circumstances and take back control of their situation by utilizing the resources provided by our organizations," she said.

The next task Stephens would like to accomplish is to finish school at Northeastern State University and get her degree as a paralegal.

"I wanted something I could fall back on, still be involved with law, and have something I can retire on," she said.

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