In the past, a committee made recommendations for the Award. Due to a death, medical issues, and retirements, the committee ceased to function after 2005, and the award was not presented for two years.

Rather than using committee recommendations, the WSATI Southern Chapter Executive Board wanted all of the Southern Chapter members involved in the decision making process for the Billy Osborn Memorial Award. Nominations were requested from WSATI Southern Chapter members for the 2007 Billy Osborn Memorial Award. The Award was reinstituted in 2008, with the awarding of the 2007 Billy Osborn Memorial Award.

If you did not know Billy, Billy was a long-time friend of law enforcement while he was the manager of the State Farm Auto Theft Unit. Billy was also a long-time member of the Southern Chapter of WSATI. Billy was one of those people who you could always count on when you needed something, whether it was something planned months in advance or something that came up which needed immediate response. Quite literally, Billy would find a vehicle for a bait car at a moment’s notice, or somehow locate $5,000 buy money late on a Friday afternoon…and he would deliver them to you with a smile on his face. After Billy’s untimely death, the WSATI Southern Chapter memorialized him by establishing an annual award to recognize an individual within the Southern Chapter who showed the contribution and dedication to vehicle theft investigation and the WSATI Southern Chapter that was so apparent by Billy.