Last month, I was honored to receive the Frank J. Kelley Justice Award from the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan in recognition of my career of service to our state and my dedication to public safety.

I felt truly blessed and humbled to receive this honor from Michigan’s county prosecutors, who work tirelessly every day to protect our families, punish offenders and support victims.

PAAM president and Iron County Prosecuting Attorney Melissa Powell presented me with the tribute, which is PAAM’s highest award and is reserved for individuals who have devoted themselves to serving crime victims and improving the criminal justice system.

Powell said, “As practitioners in the prosecution field, sometimes we forget what our jobs look like from the outside. That is why we are so grateful to have Senator Proos as a partner who continuously represents the best interests of public safety. His passion to craft laws that will make our criminal justice system more efficient and just will go a long way for Michigan’s citizens.”

Cass County Prosecutor Victor Fitz said, “John is certainly deserving of this award. He has shown considerable legislative leadership in the area of public safety. Law enforcement appreciates his continuing efforts to make our state a safer place.”

I was proud to partner with our prosecutors as we enacted bipartisan, comprehensive reforms to create a smarter and more effective criminal justice system that results in better outcomes, safer communities and reduced costs to taxpayers.

The restorative justice reforms we achieved will help reduce recidivism and ensure that the safety of the public is always the top priority. They represent a fundamental shift in our justice system from simply punishing criminals to correcting bad behavior and rehabilitating offenders.

Roughly 90 percent of Michigan’s 42,000 prisoners will eventually return to our communities, which makes the effective rehabilitation of our prisoners critically important.

A key purpose of our reform was to focus our criminal justice system on using proven, data-driven approaches to better measure what works best to treat prisoners so they can eventually be successfully reintroduced back into society and become productive citizens.

I greatly appreciate the dedication of our prosecutors and their recognition of our work to help improve safety and break the cycle of crime.

Sen. John Proos, R-St. Joseph, represents southwest Michigan.