[Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] you [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] Oh [Music] policeman thank you very much it kind of seems rude when I say the oldest police band I should have rephrased that it is our nation's first or longest standing police band let's put it that way not oldest like to welcome you all to the police Cara to me for this spring of 2019 merit awards and I wanted to introduce some of the guests we have with us today Mayor Tom Barrett chief elfonzo Morales alderman mark or Kowski assistant chief ray banks assistant Chief Mike Brunson and assistant Chief Steve Caballero thank you and would you all please rise for the presentation of colors by the Milwaukee Police Department color guard under the direction of captain Derek Harris [Music] Oh [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] Oh ready step Oh March to have our department chaplain George papa Cristo come to the stage for the invocation good afternoon as you know the nation last week celebrated police memorial week a time in which we honor all fallen officers who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in the performance of their duty at this time could we offer a mode of silence in memory of all fallen officers thank you let us pray Almighty God we thank you for the achievements brave actions and growth honor and celebration that brings us together tonight as friends as community and his family thank you for the gifts and talents of these men and women and in those around us may the hard work skill training and determination shown by the award recipients be followed by growth maturity opportunity and responsibility as they serve the Milwaukee Police Department and the citizens of Milwaukee we ask your blessing on their example sacrifice and achievement as they have pointed the way for others to follow remind us all Lord that you are interested in our success and that we are never alone in our journeys strengthen us and grant us steadfastness for the accomplishment of our mission and tasks for the building up of others for the growth and maturing of our heart mind and soul your strength enables us to protect others your providence keeps us safe help us to turn our hearts towards you each and every day we pray all this in your name Amen thank you I'd like to now call Mayor Tom Barrett to the stage Thank You captain good afternoon I am honored to join you this afternoon for a ceremony that has a new meaning to me and what I mean by that is I've had the honor of attending this ceremony for many years now and for many many years I viewed it as a very joyous occasion and in fact an occasion to see how police officers and others who helped the police department we're almost like television action figures that we see a lot of television shows about police officers and others and and they're exciting to watch and what we would see here each year we'll see that again here today is we'd see how our Milwaukee police officers are acting in ways that are could be on television that it's exciting that you can see a lot of things that are happening but I have to tell you that at the last ceremony that we had like this things changed in a way for me just as they dramatically changed probably every person in this room because that was the first time in 22 years that we were going to talk about a police officer who lost his life in the line of duty and at that ceremony we recognized officer Irvine and officer Michalski and today of course we're going to recognize officer Ritter but losing three police officers in an 8 month period changes you forever it changed you forever obviously the families that are involved are changed the most dramatically the brothers and sisters who work on the police department are changed dramatically I'm changed the city has changed because it's not a television show and it is the most sober reminder to me of how important the job you perform each and every day is how you put your lives on the line every single day and how we have individuals who have paid the ultimate sacrifice so on behalf of the citizens of the city I want to say thank you to every single person who works for this department for the sacrifices that you make on our behalf I also want to thank your family members for the sacrifices that you make on behalf of your loved ones and ultimately on behalf of the residents of this city but this is an important job just as those who serve us in the fire department play a very important role as well and I say we've got some firefighters here today and just in the last week we're reminded as to how dangerous that job can be given what happened in the Fox River Valley so to all of you who serve us and serve the public I say thank you and please continue to do the wonderful work that you do for this community god bless you all Thank You mayor our next speaker will be chief Morales Thank You Nicole Thank You mayor aldermen thank you all of you for being here in honoring our heroes are surviving heroes I want to share with you our experience that we had last year in Washington last week in Washington DC Milwaukee had the largest police representation from one organization on record and that's per the cops group in Washington we all registered went down there and for those of you who don't know what goes on in Police week it's not just a candlelight vigil it's not just a memorial where we recognize and honor our fallen heroes but it's also too kind of like a conference to work with one another other cities to cope for our members to network with other members there's classes that are out there to help cope with some of the problems that transpire as a result of some of our fallen officers it was a very humbling atmosphere and for the officers of Milwaukee that represented they're coming back reinvigorated but also to help the mission of the department helped the department members who did not go move forward as we will with the department now when you hear me say and and recognize our fallen you will hear me also say that in each and every one of you there's a story just as those that have fallen there is a lot of positive that happens with police officers the members of our organization but often times we focus on the negative our percentage of error is very minimal but it's mostly scrutinized so I'm very very happy that we can have a day twice a year where we honor the work of you what you do for a living with them what really represented the Milwaukee Police Department so I first want to reach out to you and the citizens that are here today thank you for your participation in making this city safe keep moving the mission forward and may God bless you [Applause] in my notes it says introduce yourself and when the chief called me by name I realized I forgot to do that so I'm captain Nicole Waldner I'm the training director here at the Academy and I'm not the MC for today's ceremony but I'm just the introducer so I wanted to say thank you for coming there's a lot of important stories in today's ceremony so I'd like to invite the mayor back on stage because today we're gonna highlight our officers good work can they her out heroic actions of our citizens and we're also going to honor police officer Matthew Ritenour at this time I would like to call mrs. Caroline Ritenour to the stage On February 6 2019 police officer Matthew Ritter and the officers from the tactical enforcement unit responded to the 2900 block of South 12th Street to execute a high-risk warrant the team approached the residents and encountered a lock exterior door with ease the team breached the outer door and ascended the stairs to the upper level at the top of the stairway the team was confronted with another locked door located in a very confined area because of the tight space it was determined a one-man Ram was required to access the point of entry numerous instructions and announcements were made to alert the occupants of police presence officer ritenour a former US Marine left the safety of the officers that provided him with the ballistic shield protection with the one-man battering ram officer ritenour delivered two strikes the second strike caused a hole in the door upon delivering the second strike a suspect armed with a rifle fired several rounds from the opposite side of the door at officer Ritenour and his team officer Ritenour was severely wounded and subsequently succumbed to his injuries Officer ritenour exhibited exceptional courage and bravery to accept the sole responsibility to breach the door in order to apprehend a violent criminal and protect Milwaukee and his residents officer ritenour paid the ultimate sacrifice for his courage bravery and loss we will honor him in our hearts and in our memories thank you Matt [Applause] okay maybe this time it is News reporter Sean Gallagher from TMJ for and when I heard that it was Sean Gallagher I did what every law enforcement officer does to investigate something I googled him and in the Google you will see when you google Sean Gallagher that not only is he a news reporter for TMJ for but apparently he was a Harlem Globetrotter for a day in which he made an incredible and yet I think a little bit luck was involved shot while on TV so look at that so please Sean come up to the stage to continue doesn't matter what happens in my life that'll be exactly what I'm remembered for forever good afternoon everybody thank you very much my name is Sean Gallagher I'm a reporter at today's TMJ for as a member of the media I think that we see a lot of the work that officers and fire officials do during the their times it's before sunrise many times late at night in the cold in the rain it's something a lot of residents don't see we see it often times we're told to back up which I understand don't worry but we really appreciate everything that you do the stories that I read that I'm going to read today were absolutely incredible I've covered a small portion of them but the things that you do day in and day out are absolutely miraculous and each and every one of you should be proud of the work that you're doing and I'm very honored that I can be here today to share in that now let's honor some of this tremendous work and of the incredible men and women in this room from district 3 I'd like to call captain Jeffrey Norman or a district 3 representative to the stage police sergeant Raymond and Hewitt from district 3 is receiving the Meritorious Service Award on November 26 20:18 sergeant hewitt responded to the 2900 block of west Clybourn street to investigate a suicidal critical missing subject upon his arrival sergeant hewitt observed the suicidal subject running on the rooftop of a building the Milwaukee Fire Department responded to the location to provide officers with a ladder without hesitation sergeant Hewitt climbed on to the snow and ice covered roof and spoke with the individual the subject continued to climb up the roof and eventually reach the third storey of the building sergeant Hewitt established a rapport with the individual and subsequently convinced the individual to come down sergeant Hewitt escorted the subject to the ladder and the subject was able to safely leave the roof the actions of sergeant Hewitt prevented the subject who was suffering a mental crisis from injury or death also from district 3 I'd like to call police sergeant Michael W la sanski who's receiving the Meritorious Service Award on November 6 2018 sergeant Lee sanski responded to the 2900 block of West Michigan for a subject with a gun complaint squads on scene told the dispatcher that a man was standing in front of a building armed with an ar-15 rifle and several other handguns the man made threats to fire his weapons and told officers that he had already fired multiple rounds an hour prior to their arrival when sergeant lizanne skee arrived he approached the subject from behind and observed a rifle strapped over the subjects left shoulder as the subject had both hands in the air pointing his cellphone toward the officers livestreaming the interaction sergeant was sanski ran toward the subject from behind gained control of his arms and decentralised it sergeant lizanne ski's actions prevented the subject from accessing his firearms until officers were able to handcuff him a rifle and three handguns were recovered sergeant Lee sanski demonstrated extreme bravery that led to the arrest of an armed suspect with injury to the suspect officers or without I'm sorry injury to the suspect officers or citizens now I'd like to call mr. Larry Holland to the stage he will be receiving a meritorious conduct award on December 17th 2018 mr. Holland was in the area of the 1600 block of North Holly Road when he observed a vehicle on fire as he approached the vehicle he observed an unconscious man slumped over the steering wheel mr. Holland without hesitation pulled the citizen from the burning vehicle and moved him out of harm's way the Milwaukee Fire Department arrived on scene and extinguished the fire mr. Holland remained on scene to further assist authorities and provide information about the events that occurred it was later learned that the citizen while driving suffered a stroke that caused an accident which resulted in the vehicle fire the citizen was safely transported to a hospital for medical treatment and mr. Holland later called the Milwaukee Police Department to follow up on the condition of the citizen and also offered a prayer for him mr. Holland's willingness to put his life on the line for a complete stranger is commendatory his selfless actions were instrumental in saving the life of this citizen [Applause] from district 4 I'd like to call captain Heather worth or a district 4 representative police officer Irving R Hernandez maestra and police officer Joseph E Laspisa please come to the stage these officers will be receiving a life-saving award on November 28th 2018 officer Hernandez maestra officer of Laspisa and officer Miller responded to the 6300 block of North 91st Street for a shooting upon their arrival they found the victim lying on the ground suffering from a gunshot wound to his upper groin area in an attempt to stop the bleeding officer Miller applied pressure to the wound officer Laspisa a trained combat lifesaver in the United States Marine Corps assess the victim's injuries and determined with a tourniquet it would not be an effect it would not be effective because the wound was high and the amount of blood observed on the ground surrounding the victim excessive officer Hernandez maestra relieved officer Laspisa and officer Miller continued to keep the victim alert while Officer Laspisa retrieved a medical trauma pack from his squad as a result of officer loose pieces medical training he applied a combat style roll of gauze to the victims wound and continued to apply pressure until the Milwaukee Fire Department arrived the heroic actions of these officers were instrumental in saving the life of this victim I'd now like to call police officer Sherita el Townsend police officer Ryan D Webb and police officer Ian B West to the stage they also will be receiving the life-saving award I'd also like to call police sergeant Troy P Johnson to the stage he will be receiving the Meritorious Service Award on April 2nd 2019 a City of Milwaukee parking enforcement officer placed a parking ticket on an illegally parked vehicle he was then confronted by two suspects who argued with him about issuing the citation the suspects then assaulted the parking enforcement officer stabbing him multiple times after the violent encounter the parking enforcement officer gathered enough strength to drive to the District four police station upon his arrival he collapsed on the ground police officer Woods observed the victim fall and notified sergeant Troy Johnson sergeant Johnson immediately ran outside and requested medical attention additional squads and a first-aid kit sergeant Johnson instructed police officer Ryan Webb to apply pressure to the wounds police officer excuse me police officer Sherita Townsend retrieved the first-aid kit she and Police Officer Ian wess applied pressure to the stab wounds sergeant Johnson instructed officer Nathan woods to respond to the Milwaukee Fire Department fire station located on an adjacent parking lot for immediate medical assistance although the victim was in severe pain and distress he provided a description of the suspects which was broadcast of responding officers the suspects were located and later provided a full confession sergeant Johnson officers Townsend Webb West and woods quick and decisive actions saved the life of the parking enforcement officer and led to the arrest of multiple suspects [Applause] now I'd like to call police officer Anthony s Presti to the stage who's receiving a life-saving award and police officer Charles a Copeland who is receiving the Meritorious Service Award on January 5th 2019 officer Copeland officer Nimr and officer Presti responded to a suicide attempt it was reported that the subject was bipolar and violent took a large amount of pain pills and locked herself inside a bathroom upon their arrival officers Copeland and Presti made numerous attempts to contact the subject by knocking on the door and contacting family members concerned for the subjects well-being officer Copeland kicked in the door allowing for the officers to enter the apartment and upon entering the apartment officer Presti observed the subject seated on the window ledge outside the apartment building officer press team methodically approached the subject from behind grabbed her upper torso and pulled her inside the apartment to safety these quick actions of the officers prevented the loss of life an absolutely fantastic job guys I'd like to call miss LaDonna M Davis to the stage now she's receiving the valorous conduct award on March 8th 2019 miss Davis a registered nurse was at the Walgreens located at 90 40 West Good Hope Road as she exited the store she heard a female scream for help she approached the female and observed a male subject in the driver's seat of a vehicle miss Davis pulled the subject from the vehicle and placed him on the ground she noticed his subjects breathing was extremely shallow as miss Davis performed CPR on the subject she was informed the subject just used heroin and overdosed miss Davis instructed a citizen citizen to go inside Walgreens and request narcan from the pharmacy miss Davis continued CPR for several minutes until a pharmacist responded and provided her with the narcan miss Davis administered the narcan and the subjects breathing returned to normal and he became alert the Milwaukee Fire Department arrived and provided and further medical attention but miss Davis's quick thinking and heroic actions saved the life of this citizen I'd like to now call mr. Daniel J Lang to the stage he's receiving a meritorious conduct award on June 8th police officer Charles Irvine jr. and his partner officer Matthew Schell Z were in pursuit of a vehicle when their squad lost control and was involved in a rollover crash as mr. Daniel Lang drove home he approached the intersection and noticed the overturned squat mr. lang immediately stopped and rendered aid and as he approached the crash site he became aware of officer Scholes EES attempt to free himself mr. lang assisted and stayed with him until additional MPD members and members of the Milwaukee Fire Department arrived mr. Lang's rapid response actions and to render aid and provide comfort to officer Scholes II during the time of need exemplifies extreme courage and compassion his outstanding actions went beyond an ordinary citizens response and will forever be commended by the Milwaukee Police Department I'd now like to call district 5s captain captain Boris tor sinha vich to the stage or a district 5 representative I'd now like to call to the stage mr. ahmed and al imam al Hamadi at who's receiving the valorous conduct award on March 22nd 2019 mr. Almonte was driving south on Teutonia avenue when he observed a vehicle strike a pedestrian pinning the pedestrian against a building the driver exited the vehicle pushed the vehicle off of the pedestrian but then fled on foot mr. al Hamadi had stopped his vehicle and ran to assist the pedestrian he assessed her injuries and noticed her right leg was seriously injured and was bleeding profusely Mr Al Hamad ani I'm sorry retrieved a cell phone charging cable from his vehicle and applied it as a tourniquet to her leg he remained at the scene and provided officers a detailed description of the subject who fled the victim was transported to a local hospital for medical attention however her leg was amputated due to significant trauma Thank You mr. al Hammond ani for your heroic and selfless actions and for staying with the victim during such a traumatic event I'd now like to call district 6 captain captain Kristen raced right to the stage I'd also like to call police officer Ethan a Oh smack who's receiving a life-saving award on February 27 2019 officer Oh smack and officer gray check responded to the report of a young woman who overdosed on heroin upon their arrival they were advised that the female was not breathing officers observed her lying motionless on the floor and that her lips had turned blue officer grey chick immediately administered narcan and officer Oh smack administered chest compressions for almost three minutes until the female began to breathe on her own the Milwaukee Fire Department arrived on-scene provided medical attention and transported the female to the hospital Thank You officer Oh smack for your actions saved the life of this individual I'd now like to call police officer Ryan W risky and police officer Mark J char Mehta to the stage they will be receiving the life-saving award on March 8th 2019 officer Radetzky and officer Mehta were dispatched to a call of an injured sick person they were informed a female lost consciousness turned blue and was unresponsive officer reduce key arrived and observed the female lying lifeless on the living-room floor officer Radetzky determined the subject was pulseless and not breathing he immediately began CPR while officer Mehta determined the female overdose and administered narcan after the female did not respond to the narcan officer sure Mehta took over the chest compressions the female then became responsive and started to breathe on her own medical attention arrived and the female was then transported to a hospital officer risky and officer Mehta's quick and decisive actions saved the life of this citizen I now like to call mr. gerald DS Arling to the stage he's receiving the meritorious conduct award on November 30th 2018 a truck driver parked his semi-trailer truck at the loading dock of a business as the driver worked between the truck and the loading dock the truck rolled backwards and crushed him between the truck and the dock mr. Gerald's Arling who is also a truck driver heard the victims screaming and calling for help mr. darling responded to the screams for help and found the driver trapped at the loading dock mr. darling ran to the front of the semi jumped into the cab and pulled the truck forward releasing the truck driver from the dock mr. darling summoned medical attention and the truck driver was taken to the hospital and treated for his injuries mr. darling selfless and heroic acts were instrumental in saving the life of this truck driver Thank You mr. Zara I'd now like to call district 7s captain captain Willie Murphy to the stage or a district 7 representative I'd also like to call police officer Daniel ace turma to the stage he is receiving a meritorious service award on November 21st 2018 of 21st 2018 officer Sturmer was on his way to work when he observed a vehicle parked on the shoulder at the top of the Daniel hone Memorial Bridge officer sterner took the initiative to return to the top of the bridge and check the welfare of the occupants inside the vehicle upon his return officers Therma made contact with a subject who's visually upset and crying inside of the vehicle officer Surma spoke with the individual and learned the subject had driven himself to the location to commit suicide officer Cermak contacted emergency response services to request additional assistance for the subject officer Surma remained with the subject and continued to engage him in conversation until resources from the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office and Milwaukee Police Department arrived on-scene officer Sturm is off-duty actions directly impacted an individual in crisis and aided in saving his life I'd like to call specialized patrol divisions captain captain Derek Harris or an SPD representative to the stage I'd also like to call police officer Lane see Grady to the stage who is receiving a Medal of Honor Award we'd also like to call police sergeant Bradley J boudin Hagan police officer Trevor de Bourgh police officer Nick homely police officer Pro Scipio I'm sorry procopio G Orlando police officer aeryn LT sure police officer Kent D tichel and police officer Matthew jeiza wore ski who are receiving the Medal of Valor combat award I'd also like to call to the stage Milwaukee Fire Department paramedic firefighter amber Bushman and paramedic firefighter Josh long for the Vallauris valorous conduct award On February 6 2019 the Milwaukee Police Department's tactical enforcement unit conducted a high-risk arrest search warrant in the 2900 block of South twelfth Street the Milwaukee Fire Department tactical emergency unit also responded to the scene due to the nature of the warrant during the execution of the warrant the subject suspect discharged a rifle from inside the residence at the teu team police officer Matthew Ritter was gravely wounded and succumbed to his injuries to breach the lock to entry on the second level of the residence officer Ritenour assumed the duties of the one man ram officer Ritter was the first in the line of fire followed by officer lane great as shots rang out officer Ritenour collapsed in milliseconds officer lane grady advanced and provided cover from additional gunfire for his remaining team members despite the trauma and overwhelming emotional adversity officer grady recognized the suspects intent to surrender officer Grady gave clear commands to the suspect that resulted in an arrest officer Grady remained professional and shown amazing restraint officer Grady's quick decision-making abilities can only be described as truly extraordinary after officer Ritter was wounded the unit transitioned its role into that of an officer rescue sergeant Bradley boudin Hagen officer Trevor de Boer officer aren t sure officer Kent tussle and officer Matthews O'War ski carried officer Ritenour away from the residence the team began tactical emergency critical care officer Nick O'Malley maintained lethal cover to protect the rescue team from additional gunfire as they cared for officer Ritter Milwaukee Fire Department paramedic firefighter Amber Bushman and Milwaukee Fire Department paramedic firefighter Josh long quickly went to officer Ritter's aid assess his condition and administered life-saving efforts MFD personnel are unarmed but Bushman and long exposed themselves to great risk and danger to provide medical attention to officer Ritter bushmen and long were also liaisons and coordinated the arrival of a medical unit and other MFD resources bushmen long and M F D personnel bridged the gap from the scene of the incident to the hospital as officer Ritenour received medical attention from Bushman and long sergeant Wooten Hagan officers Grady tissues O'War ski in Orlando returned to the residence to engage the threat the suspect and several other individuals were taken into custody without further incident for the exceptional bravery demonstrated at the risk of losing his own life for the lives of his team officer Grady is awarded the highest award granted by the Milwaukee Police Department the Medal of Honor for the demonstration of exceptional courage and performance of their duties in an extremely dangerous situation sergeant Wooten Hagan officers de Bourgh Lee Orlando t-shirt trishul and svorski are awarded the Medal of Valor combat for the response that went well above and beyond the call of duty and at the risk of their own safety MPD honors MFD paramedic firefighter amber Bushman and MFD paramedic firefighter Josh long with the valorous conduct award [Applause] I'd now like to call a police officer Alberto Figueroa he is receiving a purple valorous star award On January 21 21st 2019 officer Alberto Figueroa conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle for a broken tail lamp officer Figueroa approached the vehicle and began to speak with the occupants two vehicles were observed driving recklessly in the direction of the traffic stop one vehicle crashed violently into a vehicle parked behind officer Figueroa squad the second reckless vehicle crashed into officer Figueroa and trapped him between the two vehicles as the striking vehicle fled the scene officer Figueroa was hurled into the middle of the street where he laid lifeless unresponsive and not breathing an occupant from the traffic stop pulled officer Figueroa to safety the citizen performed CPR and instructed a friend to call for medical attention officer Figueroa was transported to a hospital where he underwent several emergency surgeries it's been four months since that incident officer Figueroa remains under medical care for the serious injuries sustained that night we recognize officer Figueroa for his sacrifice as he protected and served the residents of the City of Milwaukee and the Milwaukee Police Department [Applause] to call mr. Charles a page to the stage he's receiving of valorous conduct award on January 21st 2019 police officer Alberto Figueroa conducted trap a traffic stop of a vehicle for a broken tail lamp officer Figueroa approached the vehicle and began to speak with the occupants two vehicles were observed driving recklessly in the direction of the traffic stop one vehicle crashed violently into a vehicle parked behind officer Figueroa squad the second reckless vehicle crashed into officer Figueroa and trapped him between the two vehicles as the striking vehicle fled the scene officer Figueroa was hurled into the middle of the street and mr. Charles Page exited the vehicle grabbed officer Figueroa and pulled him to the curb to safety officer Figueroa was unconscious and not breathing and mr. page began to perform CPR on officer Figueroa until he became responsive and opened his eyes mr. page remained calm in a stressful situation and demonstrated courage and compassion his heroic and selfless actions directly save the life of officer Figueroa [Applause] I'd like to call captain John Corbett of sensitive Crimes Division to the stage or a representative I'd also like to call officer Benjamin J Smith he is receiving an Excellence in Police Service Award police officer Benjamin Smith has been assigned to the sensitive Crimes Division missing persons unit since September of 2000 over the years he has investigated numerous juvenile critical missing and long-term missing person cases while assigned to the division he helped develop strong relationships with numerous law enforcement agencies community partners and Milwaukee residents he's displayed dedication to the families impacted by mental health crises cognitive disorders and criminal victimizations his service can be exemplified in his work in the following missing person case on December 13 2014 officer Smith was assigned to investigate a complaint of a missing 18 year old female over a two-year period officer Smith conducted search warrants interviewed numerous witnesses and remained in contact with the family unfortunately in 2016 the missing woman was found deceased officer Smith displayed empathy compassion and generosity to the family as they mourn the loss of their loved one in 2018 officer Smith hosted a Christmas event for the families impacted by the crime he ensured the family of the 18 year old victim was supported and welcomed during the event officer Smith's passion to assist victims and their families truly demonstrates his commitment to serving the citizens of Milwaukee and the Milwaukee Police Department and now like to call captain Paul Wow the captain of the Special Investigations Division or a representative to the stage I'd also like to call detective Thomas J Obregon as he receives the Meritorious Service Award on November 30th 2018 members of the Special Investigations Division responded to the 3000 block of North first Street to check for a subject wanted on several felony warrants the subject was known to have a history of mental illness and resisting arrests the subject also made comments to family and friends that he would never go back to jail upon arrival officers located the subject in the second floor of a residence the subject had closed and locked the door and refused to surrender the subject armed himself with a knife placed it to his throat and stated he would rather kill himself than go back to jail detective Oberg on a trained member of the Crisis Negotiation team immediately began a dialogue with the subject in a calm and reassuring manner detective Obregon attempted to convince the subject to drop the knife and peacefully surrender after five hours of negotiations he convinced the subject to disarm himself open the door and surrender after his surrender a visibly shaken and distraught subject thanked detective Obregon for talking with him for so long that subject refused to leave the residence without giving detective Oberg on a hug first detective Oberg ons personal and professional skills as well as his tenacity and perseverance led to a successful and peaceful arrest of a wanted felon [Applause] I'd now like to call detective Paul D Martinez detective Richard m to show knee police officer Joseph L Esqueda police officer Daniel J Keller and police officer Andrew J Molina to the stage they are all receiving a meritorious service award on June 7th 2018 police officer Charles Irvine jr. and his partner Matthew Chelsea were in pursuit of a vehicle used in a felony offenses when their squad was involved in a rollover crash officer Irvine succumbed to his injuries and all four shows he suffered significant injuries with no information other than the suspect fled in a black volkswagen passat officers began to search for the suspect detective Gabbard officer chuan and officer Heidemann coordinated their efforts and provided real-time intelligence to the officers on the street as a team they identified the owner of the vehicle other vehicles linked to the suspect and other imperative intelligence the intelligence fusion Center provided detective Paul Martinez detective Richard Tish yoni officer Joseph Esqueda officer daniel keller and officer andrew molina with the intelligence gathered this information assisted the team in setting up surveillance on the suspects vehicle while doing so they observed the suspect entering a different vehicle with two small children the team conducted rolling surveillance and eventually attempted to apprehend the suspect the suspect once again fled from officers and the team continued to gather additional intelligence about the suspect and set up a methodical investigation and surveillance plan their diligent efforts resulted in the arrest of a wanted subject the members of the intelligence fusion center and Special Investigations Division acted decisively and without delay their actions directly contributed to the Swift apprehension of the suspect responsible for the injuries to officer Matthew Scholes II and the death of police officer Charles Irvine Junior [Applause] I'd now like to call captain Jeffrey Point the captain of the technical communications division to the stage or at CCD representative I'd also like to call emergency communications operator one Tina M Torres cruise to the stage who's receiving a meritorious service award on June 13 2018 operator Torres crews received a 911 call from a citizen reporting she was being held hostage at gunpoint the citizen called from a cell phone and the exact location of the citizen was not provided before she disconnected the call over a two-hour period several 911 calls were received from the citizen however she could not provide the operator with the information and disconnected every call squads made several attempts to locate the citizen by responding to the coordinates of the cell phone calls officers were unable to locate the citizen an anonymous third party then called 911 to report a citizen was texting him stating that she was being held hostage operator Torres Cruz asked to the third-party caller to text the victim and request that she call 911 and leave the line open the call came in the the line was left to open and the address was plotted responding officers located the victim arrested the suspect and as a direct result of operator Torres Cruz's skills and quick thinking the victim was safely removed from harm's way [Applause] I'd like to call emergency communications operator 1 Jasmine M words to the stage she is receiving a meritorious service award on August 29th 2018 operator Woods received a 911 call from a citizen experiencing a mental health crisis the citizen reported she was bipolar and schizophrenic and stated that she felt she was going to hurt someone the citizens started crying out hysterically for help stating she wanted to kill herself while on the phone with operator words the citizen cut herself with a knife operator words immediately called for medical attention for the citizen and updated responding squads that the citizen reported she was armed with a knife operator words remained on the line with the citizen and built a rapport with her eventually calling her down operator words also convince the citizen to disarm herself before officers arrived when officers arrived on scene and spoke with the citizen until she agreed to voluntary voluntarily seek help at a hospital officers commended operator words for her great work with the citizen as they firmly believed her actions definitely contributed to the successful interaction and outcome for a citizen in need of help [Applause] I'd now like to call emergency communications operator Yvonne M Gagliano to the stage who's receiving a meritorious service award on May 4th 2018 operator Galliano received a call from the Milwaukee County crisis hotline reporting that they received a call from a despondent individual who was sobbing uncontrollably they further you and in addition she requested sprint to conduct an exigent circumstances trace of the cellphone the intelligence fusion center informed operator Galliano that the phone number listed to an address located in West Allis she then contacted the West Allis Police Department and request a squad to be sent to the address to check for the subject west allis responded to the address located the individual and rendered medical aid operator gaglianone resourcefulness and quick thinking saved the life of a distress suicidal citizen [Applause] I'd like to call emergency communications operator to Caroline R Strickland to the stage now she is also receiving Meritorious Service Award on February 28 2018 operator Strickland received a 911 call from an individual who stated he suffered from mental health issues was off his medication and was feeling suicidal while speaking with the subject operator Strickland requested that he provide his location to her along with the physical description of himself this information was relayed to responding officers an operator Strickland engaged in dialogue with the subject and provided reassurance that the help was on the way the subject requested to speak with operator Strickland until officers arrived once officers arrived the subject was transported to a facility where he received the help he requested operator Strickland was effective in displaying empathy and building a rapport with the citizen in need [Applause] operator Strickland if you can remain on stage I'd also like to call emergency communications operator to Tristan je Brodie emergency communications operator to Anoma stoy burr an emergency communications operator one Beatriz Ferreira to the stage they're all receiving a meritorious service award on April 2nd 2018 operator Brody received a 911 call from a subject stating he was having suicidal thoughts and requested the phone number to the suicide hotline operator Brody provided the subject with the phone number and requested his name and a location in an effort to send a squad to his location the subject refused to provide the information however remained on the line with operator Brody operator Brody was able to build a rapport with the subject who remained on the line for 40 minutes talking through the reasons for his suicidal thoughts while operator Brody showed empathy and remained on the line with the subject operators stiver Strickland and Ferreira worked together as a team and attempted to find the name and location of the caller with assistance from the Milwaukee County Crisis Line the operators learned that the caller may have been the same citizen that called the crisis line earlier in the day using the information operator Brody identified the caller calmed him down and remained on the line with him until officers arrived as a result of their professionalism and collaborative efforts as a citizen experiencing a mental health crisis agreed to voluntarily seek help at a hospital [Applause] I'd like to call Milwaukee police departments honor guard to the stage captain Derek L Harris lieutenant Charles Gerard lieutenant madrina dela Cruz police sergeant Trent D little Police Sergeant Matthew P Palmer police sergeant Dorian L Ratliff police officer Jamie ARS a police officer Brian J juris police officer Elvis M black police officer Eric a Northwood police officer Peter a foul police officer Eric F Smith to the stage these members are all receiving an Excellence in Police Service Award the Milwaukee Police Department was fortunate to not have an experienced an in line duty death for approximately 22 years during that time period the activities of the honor guard primarily consisted of casket watch at funerals of retired MPD officers and the presentation of colors at various events ceremonies and memorials between June 7th 2018 and February 6 2019 the department tragically experienced three in in the line of duty deaths in eight months the honor guard was called to serve in a much different role providing honors to our fallen officers the planning coordination and their execution of these honor guards were tremendous undertaking members of the honor guard rearranged schedules canceled vacations off days and worked tirelessly to provide an honor watch for each fallen officer their dedication to the mission they were asked to perform cannot be overstated they endured a physical and emotional toll as they were required to be at their best for each and every task not once but three times the members of the honor guard performed the most solemn and noble tasks they could be asked to perform they gave their best to honor the lives and the lives of those lost and Milwaukee the Police Department is fortunate to have an honor guard that perform their duties with dedication honor and respect [Applause] I'd now like to call police officer Andrew our gross police officer Ryan M Reagan police officer Nicholas J romão and police officer Gerald W winding these officers are receiving the Excellence in Police Service Award these officers are being recognized for receiving numerous consistent letters of commendation these letters show the daily outstanding performance of these officers as well as their willingness to go above and beyond the ordinary call of duty we appreciate the faithful contribution these officers make to the department's mission [Applause] I'd now like to call captain of police Derek L Harris to the stage again he will be receiving the Chiefs superior leadership award captain Derek Harris is the commander of the specialized patrol division the division is comprised of the tactical enforcement unit and the motorcycle unit and as you just heard he's also responsible for the Milwaukee Police Department's honor guard all three units played a vital role in the coordination of events for the line of duty deaths of police officers Charles Irvine jr. and police officer Michael Mahal Ski On February 6 2019 the Milwaukee Police Department once again felt the pain and anguish as they learned the untimely death of police officer Matthew ritenour officer ritenour was assigned to the tactical enforcement unit commanded by Captain Harris during this difficult time captain Harris cared for the emotional needs of those under his command he reached out to each unit several times a day to check on their well-being he shielded officers from the media or well-intentioned citizens during their time of vulnerability he spent countless hours away from his own support system his family therefore we would like to recognize and thank his family who played a crucial role in supporting and caring for him as he cared for the specialized patrol division captain Derek Harris exemplified the qualities of a true leader he represented the Milwaukee Police Department and specialized patrol division with dignity honor and professionalism during the most challenging time in the recent history of the Milwaukee Police Department [Applause] I'd like to call police officer Elvis m-lok again to the stage he will be receiving the Chiefs superior leadership award police officer Elvis lock is assigned to the specialized patrol division and is also a member of the Milwaukee Police Department's honor guard the honor guard led several functions regarding honors and logistics for the inline duty deaths of our fallen heroes after the untimely death of police officer Ritenour officer lock immediately recognized captain Harris's need for assistance with the coordination of the required events that followed officer lock assumed the duties and responsibilities far greater than his rank would imply officer lock coordinated the honor the honor watch for officer ritenour and he made contact with honor guards from across the state coordinated the security detail with the Wisconsin Department of Justice and so much more throughout this tragic event officer lock constantly led up and exhibited all of the great qualities of an extraordinary leader officer locks personal dedication and hard work allowed captain Harris to care for the needs of the members of the specialized patrol division officer Locke distinguished himself as a leader as he fulfilled a critical role during a time the department grieved a fallen officer [Applause] I'd now like to call police officer Thomas ich lined to the stage officer thomas klein distinguished himself as a leader by volunteering to fulfill the critical role of organizing logistics for the funeral of officer michael mahal Skee who died in the line of duty officer klein procured staff and resources necessary to accommodate the thousands of family friends citizens and law enforcement officers who attended the service he worked an additional 90 hours to organize execute and lead a fluid operation officer Kline and officer Michalski were Academy classmates the Milwaukee Police Department's fortunate to have members that demonstrate exceptional leadership self-sacrifice and courage in what was an extremely difficult situation both physically and emotionally [Applause] I'd now like to call police officer Jose a Acevedo to the stage when the department experienced the in line duty death of police officer Charles Irvine junior police officer Acevedo sensed what most members of the Milwaukee Police Department felt an overwhelming desire to help officer Acevedo initiated a memorial shirt fundraiser that donated proceeds to the Irvine family officer Acevedo enlisted the help of other department members and formed a fundraiser committee he provided the startup cost to design sell and distribute the memorial shirts officer Acevedo and the committee never expected the overwhelming response thousands of orders were received and processed community partners and law enforcement agencies across the state reached out to participate in the fundraiser to help the Irvine family officer Acevedo dedicated months to complete the tasks required for the enormous undertaking the majority of the work occurred outside of his regular hours of duty and officer Acevedo sacrificed countless hours of personal time with his family to ensure the success of this fundraiser once the fundraiser for the Irvine family was completed the department experienced the in line duty deaths of both police officer Michael Mahal ski and police officer Matthew Ritenour officer Acevedo effectively responded to each incident and led the committee with memorial shirt fundraisers for each family officer Acevedo distinguished himself as a leader and as a result of personal dedication and hard work the committee raised a significant amount of money for the families the Milwaukee Police Department is fortunate to have a compassionate and motivated leader like police officer Jose Acevedo that supports the families of our fallen heroes [Applause] I'd now like to call to the stage the following members of the sensitive Crimes Division Detective Kenneth J justice detective Jorge o Suarez police officer Luis s Bray I'm sorry Louise espera and crime analyst Jason M ruff for the unit service award in less than a month between October 21st 2018 and November 13 2018 five sexual assaults perpetrated by a stranger occurred in the City of Milwaukee the victims of the sexual assaults were females that ranged from 15 to 20 years old the sexual assault shared similar methods of operation and through the thorough investigations the sensitive crimes members were able to link the cases together and develop a suspect during the interview process detective Kenneth justice officer John Mueller and officer Barbara Court cared for the victims physical and emotional needs crime analyst Jason ruff researched the department's intelligence databases and developed the name of a possible suspect analyst ruff coordinated his efforts with detective John Charles detective Charles compiled a photo array and several victims positively identified the suspect that suspect was taken into custody and interrogated by Detective Jorge Suarez detective Suarez utilized his skills as an interrogator and obtained a statement from the suspect the suspect confessed to all five sexual assaults and identified his co-actors officer muehler sent the victim sexual assault kits to the Wisconsin regional crime lab DNA standards from three of the suspects managed it matched the DNA on the sexual assault kits detective James Hunter assisted in the recovery of the vehicle used in the sexual assaults and detective virtus neck drafted an ex and executed search warrants that resulted in the recovery of additional evidence the members of the sensitive Crimes Division worked diligently as a team and brought closure to these victims the members exemplified the mission of the Milwaukee Police Department and showed their determination to apprehend dangerous and violent criminals [Applause] now ladies and gentlemen let's all give another round of applause to all the men and women who received recognition tonight [Applause] okay I'd like to think no I told them don't leave me but I'm spoken police language I'd like to thank Sean Gallagher again for going through there was a lot of awards to be given today and it was a rough year and as he was able to speak so articulately I was back there with tears in my eyes so I thank you and you go normally we give a beer mug but I gave him a water bottle for his [Applause] the nation's longest standing police band once again and our color guard I'd like to thank my staff for putting the merit Awards together and and bringing this to a successful conclusion and ramp our athletic association is providing refreshments in 182 which is directly out of that back door and if you get a chance as you're walking around and feel free to walk around and take pictures I want you to see that the Historical Society has had it set up a display typically we have our memorial wall just outside these doors and unfortunately with the last three line-of-duty deaths we had nowhere to put the pictures and it was outdated and we determined that it needed the recognition it deserved so it's being remodeled there's pictures of what it's going to look like in the near future when all our fundraising efforts are over but I encourage you to go look at what its gonna be hopefully in in the next six months so that you can see what it looks like next Memorial or merit Awards thank you all for coming thank you for all your hard work thank you for all the family support and enjoy the refreshments [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music]