Bulletin Notes

Law enforcement officers are challenged daily in the performance of their duties; they face each challenge freely and unselfishly while answering the call to duty. In certain instances, their actions warrant special attention from their respective departments. The Bulletin also wants to recognize those situations that transcend the normal rigors of the law enforcement profession.

One morning, Officer Nathan McDonald of the Grand Prairie, Texas, Police Department was dispatched to a residential fire. The first to arrive at the scene, Officer McDonald saw that the fire already had fully engulfed the house and that flames were shooting through the roof. He soon was joined by Lieutenant Randy Wills, a certified peace officer and an arson investigator with the Grand Prairie Fire Department. The two officers learned that an elderly man was trapped inside. After rushing to the rear bedroom, they saw that he was physically unable to leave his bed. Immediately, Officer McDonald and Lieutenant Wills broke the window, entered, and extracted the incapacitated man. Shortly thereafter, the ceiling collapsed, and the room was fully engulfed.

Officer Nathan McDonald and Lieutenant Randy Wills of the Grand Prairie, Texas Police Department rescued an elderly man who was trapped inside a house on fire. McDonald was a Bulletin Notes recipient in October 2010.

Officer McDonald

Officer Nathan McDonald and Lieutenant Randy Wills of the Grand Prairie, Texas Police Department rescued an elderly man who was trapped inside a house on fire. Wills was a Bulletin Notes recipient in October 2010.

Lieutenant Wills


Officer Ben Kelly of the Seattle, Washington Police Department killed a wanted suspect who had murdered three police officers. Kelly was a Bulletin Notes recipient in October 2010.

Officer Kelly

Officer Ben Kelly of the Seattle, Washington, Police Department was investigating an unoccupied stolen vehicle parked with its hood up and engine running. He looked in his side mirror and saw a man wearing a hooded sweatshirt that covered his head approaching the rear of the patrol car. Officer Kelly exited his vehicle and immediately recognized the man as the suspect wanted for ambushing and killing four Lakewood, Washington, Police Department officers just three days earlier. The man had both hands in his sweatshirt pockets and then began to pull out a pistol while approaching Officer Kelly. The suspect ignored repeated verbal commands to show his hands and continued to move in a threatening manner. Officer Kelly, recognizing the grave danger he was in, fired his service weapon and killed the suspect, ending the confrontation. It was later determined that the individual’s pistol belonged to one of the murdered officers.


Nominations for the Bulletin Notes should be based on either the rescue of one or more citizens or arrest(s) made at unusual risk to an officer’s safety. Submissions should include a short write-up (maximum of 250 words), a separate photograph of each nominee, and a letter from the department’s ranking officer endorsing the nomination. Submissions should be sent to the Editor, FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, FBI Academy, Quantico, VA 22135.