Nearly two dozen Jacksonville area law enforcement officers have been presented with Meritorious Service Awards from the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) State Lodge for their on-duty actions to defuse two recent incidents involving armed and dangerous suspects.
The awards were presented during a November 13 meeting of the Jacksonville City Council.
“Jacksonville’s finest lived up to their names this summer by defusing two potentially deadly situations with no injury or loss of life,” said Illinois FOP State Lodge President Chris Southwood. “Nearly two dozen officers used their training, kept their cool, removed dangerous suspects from the streets, and kept the city’s residents safe. They have set an example for others in local law enforcement.”
On July 27 — Jacksonville Police officers responded to a local residence after a mentally distraught and potentially armed subject contacted the department by phone and made rambling and troublesome statements. Officers approached the subject’s apartment with caution because they suspected the person was having a mental health crisis, but when he saw the officers the subject started yelling for them to back off and made suicidal and homicidal threats, stating that he had a shotgun and would shoot any civilians or officers who attempted to get in.
The responding officers immediately set up a perimeter, evacuated residents that were in danger if shots were to be fired, and utilized de-escalation techniques during the two-hour standoff which ultimately led to taking the subject into custody without harm.
Officers receiving FOP Meritorious Service Awards for the July 27 incident include Jacksonville Police Department Commander Doug Thompson; Deputy Chief Chad Moore; Lt. Sean Haefeli; and Patrolmen Jarrett Davidson, Phillip Warren, Ryan Crouse, Luke Coop, Taylor Kirchhofer, Clayton Sexton, and Kevin Ray.
On August 7 — Jacksonville Police officers responded to an armed robbery, and upon arrival at the scene they encountered an armed suspect brandishing a handgun who fled into an apartment building. For the next several hours during the standoff the officers dealt with a very tense and unpredictable situation. The officers utilized de-escalation techniques and were ultimately able to take the suspect into custody without harm.
Officers receiving FOP Meritorious Service Awards for the August 7 incident include Jacksonville Police Department Commander Doug Thompson; Deputy Chiefs Chad Moore and Rodney Cox; Lt. Sean Walker; Lt. Matt Martin; Sgt. Brian Baptist; Sgt. Jordan Poeschel; Det. Kyle Chumley; Det. Luke Poore; Patrolmen Josh Radliff, Jarrett Davidson, Dave Turner, Robert Kaufmann and Ryan Dudley; South Jacksonville Police Officer Brian Wilson; and Morgan County Sheriff’s Deputy Derek Suttles.
