Benton, Arkansas – Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Devin Bohannon has received statewide recognition after what began as an ordinary traffic stop turned into the recovery of a young girl who had reportedly been missing.
The Morgan Nick Foundation presented Bohannon with the 2026 Morgan’s Choice Award during the 15th Annual Missing Persons Event at the Benton Event Center earlier this week.
Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin hosted the ceremony, which focuses on raising awareness about people who remain missing across Arkansas while also highlighting the challenges law enforcement agencies and families face while trying to locate them.
For Bohannon, however, the recognition is secondary to what happened during a traffic stop in January 2026.
“This is a major award,” said Bohannon, who thanked God for the recognition. “I’m honored and blessed and glad to be able to receive this award. It’s not about the award; it was about finding closure for that family. Off of a simple traffic stop, I changed the life of a family that was looking for their loved one.”
Routine traffic stop quickly raised concerns for deputy
Bohannon initially believed he was dealing with a relatively ordinary traffic violation when he stopped a vehicle because the driver was not wearing a seatbelt.
As he spoke with the people inside, however, the situation began to feel unusual.
A young girl in the vehicle caught Bohannon’s attention. According to the Sheriff’s Office, she was connected to a multiagency missing persons investigation and had been reported missing.
Rather than quickly finishing the traffic stop, Bohannon continued observing what was happening. He noticed several details that caused him to become increasingly concerned about the girl’s safety and the relationship between her and the driver.
“She was giving me too many signs,” said Bohannon. “She was telling me stuff without telling me. She was moving too much, doing a lot of recording and pacing, and she was nervous. He really seemed like he didn’t know her, but he was trying to play it off.”
Those observations changed the direction of the encounter.
Bohannon remained calm while speaking with the girl and worked to establish enough trust for her to communicate with him. She initially gave the deputy an alias rather than her actual identity.
His approach eventually helped her feel comfortable enough to provide her real name. Once Bohannon learned who she was, the traffic stop became a recovery operation.
The discovery was particularly significant because Bohannon had less than one year of law enforcement training at the time.
“We go over different tactics once you go to LEEDA for training, but it’s different once you’re actually out there in the real world, putting boots on the ground and obviously finding stuff,” said Bohannon, who had less than a year of law enforcement training under his belt at the time of the rescue. “So, when I stumbled across it, it was major to me at the time.”
Award carries connection to one of Arkansas’ best known missing child cases
The Morgan’s Choice Award is closely tied to the disappearance of Morgan Nick, whose case has remained part of Arkansas’ public consciousness for more than three decades.
Morgan was 6 years old when she disappeared on June 9, 1995, during a Little League baseball game in Alma.
She was last seen near her mother’s vehicle, where she had stopped to remove sand from her shoes. Authorities say she was abducted by an unidentified man, and she remains missing.
Her disappearance eventually led to the creation of the Morgan Nick Foundation and, later, the Morgan’s Choice Award.
During this year’s luncheon, Morgan’s mother, Colleen Nick, personally presented the award to Bohannon. She said the Jefferson County deputy’s actions represented the “spirit of the Morgan’s Choice Award.”
“Deputy Bohannon, thank you for your vigilance, your compassion, your professionalism and your unwavering commitment to protecting children,” said Colleen Nick. “Thank you for reminding all of us that sometimes the greatest acts of heroism begin with taking just a little more time, asking one more question and refusing to give up on a child.”
Jefferson County Sheriff Lafayette Woods Jr. also praised Bohannon’s actions and his ability to recognize that the situation was more serious than it initially appeared.
Woods said Bohannon’s actions “brought hope where there was uncertainty” during what had been an extremely difficult period, especially for the girl’s family.
“Deputy Bohannon’s actions brought an endangered child home safely and likely prevented further victimization,” said Woods. “That is more than exceptional police work – it is extraordinary public service. His professionalism, integrity and unwavering commitment to protecting the most vulnerable among us reflect the values of this sheriff’s office and the oath we take to serve with honor.”
For Bohannon, the encounter also became an important early lesson in his law enforcement career.
The deputy said learning that the girl was a missing person changed his life and reinforced the importance of treating every encounter individually rather than assuming that a seemingly simple traffic stop will remain routine.
He said the experience continues to remind him that “you never know who you’re going to come in contact with.”
“Every traffic stop is not going to be the same,” he said. “Every traffic stop is not going to be routine. It’s always going to be something different at each one. I guess God led me to pull that car over for a reason and that’s one less family going without.”
What started with a seatbelt violation ultimately became much more significant. By paying attention to the girl’s behavior, taking additional time and continuing to ask questions, Bohannon was able to identify a missing person and help return her to safety.
The Morgan’s Choice Award now recognizes that decision and the actions that followed, while also connecting Bohannon’s work with the wider purpose of the annual event and the continuing effort to locate missing people throughout Arkansas.
