In honor of Police Week, several members of the Police Department were recognized for their outstanding performance in the line of duty during the Board of Supervisors Meeting on May 13, 2019. The following officers and detectives were recommended by the Police Department's Award Committee. This committee, appointed by the Chief of Police, considers those cases of outstanding police performances as nominated by the officer's supervisor.
Official Commendation - Unit Citation - Officer Joseph McGuigan. Officer John Rushin, Officer Craiq Scully
On September 23, 2018, officers responded to a home in the 600 block of Stream View Drive for a building fire. The resident of the home advised the 911 dispatcher that there was a fire in her living room and that she was unable to evacuate the home due to her disability. Officer John Rushin arrived in less than two minutes and observed smoke coming from the home. Officer Rushin made entry to the home and was met with heavy smoke and fire just inside the threshold. Officer Rushin called out to the resident, making voice contact, but could not see the resident through the smoke. Officers Rushin, Scully, and McGuigan then entered the home, having to crawl to locate the resident. Upon reaching the resident, she was disoriented and resisted officer's efforts to remove her from the burning home. Officers Rushin and Scully were forced to stand up to carry the resident to safety, sustaining smoke inhalation in the process. Once removed from the home the resident was transported to Lansdale Hospital for treatment. The resident has since fully recovered.
Letter of Official Commendation - Detective Serqeant Glenn Davis. Detective Todd Walter, Officer Jason English
On October 5, 2018, Officer Jason English conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle for a headlight violation. During Officer English's interaction with the driver and passenger, he noted their nervous behavior and conflicting statements. During the interaction, the passenger provided an identification card from North Carolina. Officer English noted that the information displayed on the identification card was inconsistent with the information provided by the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles. When confronted with the inconsistencies, the passenger was unwavering. Officer English utilized the department's mobile fingerprint scanner to confirm the identity of the passenger. lt was determined that the passenger was providing false information to officers and was wanted for a homicide in DeKalb County, Georgia. Consent was obtained to search the vehicle. Located inside the vehicle were drugs, packaging material, blank credit cards, and equipment used to manufacture fraudulent state identification cards, including license holograms from states along the east coast. Both the passenger and driver were arrested and charged with fraud related offenses and violations of the Drug Act.
Detective Sergeant Davis and Detective Walter furthered the investigation by obtaining search warrants for phones, computers, and financial records related to the evidence seized from the subjects. Over fifty victims of identity theft and over one-hundred fraudulent credit card transactions were identified. Both subjects have since pled guilty to drug and fraud offenses and are awaiting sentencing.
