The Portsmouth Police Department’s Homicide Unit won the Portsmouth Top Cop Award for raising their homicide clearance rate from 30 percent to 60 percent in less than a year. The unit accomplished this goal by going out into the community and imploring citizens to provide information after a homicide has occurred. Officers also attended vigils, gatherings, and funerals of victims and offered a great deal of support to victims' families while investigating these cases. 

The unit has broken barriers within the community, which has led to many cases being solved; giving the victims' families a form of closure, knowing that the person responsible for their loved one's death will be held accountable. 

The awards event was sponsored by the Greater Hampton Roads Regional Crime Lines, Inc. and was held at the Portsmouth Renaissance Hotel on Saturday, October 12, 2019.