LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION honoring Juanita Holmes upon the occasion of her
designation for special recognition at the 4th Annual Salute to Women of
Valor on May 12, 2011

WHEREAS, The State of New York is home to countless women who have
contributed to the advancement of our culture through their traditional
and non-traditional roles in society; and
WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to recognize and pay
tribute to those Women of Valor within the Empire State who have made
strong contributions to their communities and who inspire others through
their model citizenship; and
WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its long-
standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to honor
Juanita Holmes upon the occasion of her designation for special recogni-
tion at the 4th Annual Salute to Women of Valor to be held at Brooklyn
College's Student Union on Thursday, May 12, 2011; and
WHEREAS, Women of every race, class, and ethnic background have made
historic contributions to the growth and strength of New York State in
countless recorded and unrecorded ways; and
WHEREAS, This Legislative Body has set aside time to recognize the
unique contributions that valiant women have made to this great Empire
State and its society; and
WHEREAS, Juanita Holmes started her police career in 1987 with
intentions to make a difference in her community; and
WHEREAS, Upon graduating from the academy, Juanita Holmes was assigned
to Alphabet City's 9th Precinct; during that time, drugs had been ravag-
ing the community; as a Police Officer, she made Alphabet City her
second home and made a name for herself in those streets as someone the
community could trust; she built an image and approach that the people
could relate to; and
WHEREAS, The skills Juanita Holmes honed as an officer, she took to
the 101st Precinct in the Rockaways; while in this capacity, Officer
Holmes realized she wanted to be an example for her family and the women
that she had inspired; she soon became a supervisor, and later was, in
1996, promoted to Sergeant and moved to 113th Precinct in Queens; while
in Queens she became known as a woman with integrity and great purpose;
and
WHEREAS, Juanita Holmes was asked to join the Bronx Inspections Unit,
where she learned how to instruct police officers on the proper way to
handle their jobs; and
WHEREAS, In 2002, she was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant, and
reassigned to Police Service Area 8 in the Bronx; and
WHEREAS, While working in the Housing Bureau, Juanita Holmes was
viewed as the leading woman in law enforcement; she again moved to
Police Service Area 7, where she studied hard and in 2007, was promoted
to Captain; she quickly ascended to the esteemed executive ranks of the
NYPD; and
WHEREAS, As Captain, Juanita Holmes was asked to return to her roots;
she was assigned to the 103rd Precinct in Queens, and was tasked with
heavy responsibility, while the Community was in an uproar over the Sean
Bell incident; she called upon both her upbringing and the skills that
she acquired while working as a police officer to reestablish a bond
between the community and the police; and
WHEREAS, In 2008, Juanita Holmes was promoted to Commanding Officer of
Police Service Area 2, which covers East New York, Brownsville, and
Crowns Heights; and

WHEREAS, Having embraced the various challenges that came with the new
assignment and seeing the crime rate drop, these facts didn't go unno-
ticed by the top brass in NYPD so, in 2009, Juanita Holmes was again
promoted to Deputy Inspector and assigned to the 81st Precinct in
Bedford-Stuyvesant; and
WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is pleased to have this opportunity to
express its highest admiration for Deputy Inspector Juanita Holmes, and
to wish her continued success in all of her future endeavors; and
WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body that when individ-
uals of such noble aims and accomplishments are brought to our atten-
tion, they should be celebrated and recognized by all the citizens of
the great State of New York; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
honor Juanita Holmes upon the occasion of her designation for special
recognition at the 4th Annual Salute to Women of Valor; and be it
further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to Juanita Holmes.