Deputy Awards
BLUE MATTERS It is not every day a person is able to save a life but, for two local police officers who celebrate their duty to protect us, it could be any day.
I
t's always possible that a given law enforcement incident might escalate, which is why those protecting our community are trained for worst-case scenarios. This is exactly what happened to Jarrell officers Pacer Korn and Jermi Romero (facing page) during a routine traffic stop that turned into a heroic night.
A NORMAL NIGHT Right before Easter this year, in the pre-dawn hours, Officers Korn and Romero pulled a car over on IH-35 for speeding. Officer Korn was field training Officer Romero that night and when they reached the car and realized narcotics may be present, the routine traffic stop suddenly took a turn. The officers followed protocol by detaining the driver in the back seat of the police vehicle, and the passenger was asked to stand in front.
by Cassidie Cox photos courtesy Jarrell Police Dept.
While the officers searched the car on the side of the highway, another vehicle approached. The vehicle, an SUV driven by a drunk driver, slammed into the patrol car, which immediately burst into flames. The SUV and the rear of the patrol car were destroyed on impact. According to Officer Korn, the patrol car was hit so hard that it was pushed about 15 feet, and he was struck by the passenger side mirror, while Officer Romero was still next to the original suspects' vehicle. To make matters worse, with flames present and temperatures climbing inside the vehicle, some of the officers' stored flares and live rounds exploded and were expelled on random trajectories. “We were already elevated, having to deal with the extra stress of the search,” Romero says. “You think about those unpredictable things but they don't seem likely until they happen to you.”
W E D O I T W I T H O U T T H I N K I N G , I T ’ S PA R T O F T H E J O B. G O O D G U Y S O R B A D G U Y S , I T D O E S N ’ T M AT T E R . ~ O F C . R O M E R O 10
N O V E M B E R 2021 M Y JA R R ELL M O NT HLY
