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, Lieutenant James Wilson of the Trenton, Tennessee, Police Department responded to a residential fire. One of the first to arrive at the scene, he learned that an 18-month-old baby was inside. Without hesitation, he entered the residence and searched the living room and front bedroom before he was overcome by smoke and had to exit. Upon arrival of the fire department, Lieutenant Wilson and a fireman entered the smoke- and flame-engulfed home to search for the baby. The fireman located the child in a play pen and handed him to Lieutenant Wilson, who took the baby to safety. Lieutenant Wilson determined that the child was not breathing and performed CPR while Assistant Chief Jeff McCoy drove them to the hospital. The child survived the ordeal, and Lieutenant Wilson was treated for smoke inhalation.
Lieutenant Wilson
Assistant Chief McCoy
Special Agent Carter
Special Agent Lytal
Special Agent Johnnie Carter of the West Tennessee Judicial Violent Crime and Drug Task Force conducted a traffic stop near Memphis. The 25-year-old driver refused to roll down the window or unlock the door of the vehicle. He then began to stab himself repeatedly in the chest with a knife. Special Agent Carter called for the assistance of Special Agent David Lytal. Upon Special Agent Lytal’s arrival, both agents broke out the driver’s side window and disarmed him. Special Agent Carter, a trained EMT, immediately began treating the driver while awaiting emergency medical response. The driver, in critical condition, was transported to a local hospital and underwent emergency surgery. On-scene investigation determined that the driver was a suspect in a homicide that occurred just hours earlier in Durham, North Carolina. Criminal Investigator Tim Helldorfer later interviewed the suspect who gave a full statement relative to his involvement in the homicide.
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 can be mailed to the Editor, FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, FBI Academy, Quantico, VA 22135 or e-mailed to leb@fbiacademy.edu.