Four deputies earn Medal of Valor

Crash victim saved in rescue effort

By JOHN RECH

news@theeveningtimes.com

If not for the pandemic, the lifesaving heroics of four Crittenden County Deputies may never have happened. Deputies Chad Rash, Prince Bohanon, Jonathon Cody, and John Roland earned medals of valor for saving the victim in a fiery single vehicle accident.

Sheriff Mike Allen said most of the shift start up meetings had changed from the usual meeting room in the detention center to outdoors in the parking lot as a precaution since the coronavirus outbreak. That’s where a passing motorist reported a crash. On February 28, a passerby pulled up as the shift met and alerted the deputies to an accident on the other side of the train tracks on AFCO Road, just a couple of blocks from the sheriff’s office. The good Samaritan reported the driver appeared to be unconscious.

When deputies got to the crash the rear quarter panel was on fire. Deputies worked to wake the man and pull him out of the vehicle through the passenger door as the fire engulfed the car. “They found him unresponsive and when he woke up he was belligerent and fought with deputies,” said Allen during the commendation ceremony for the for deputies. “Flames had already entered the interior of the vehicle when deputies pulled him from behind the wheel.”

During the commendation ceremony for the quartet on Monday morning, Allen said the deputies’ supervisors, Lt. Mike Strayhorn and Sgt. Scott Glass, nominated the deputies

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Four Crittenden County Sheriff on Charlie shift pulled the driver from this burnt car saving his life on February 28. Their supervisors recognized their heroic efforts with medals of valor on Monday morning.

Submitted by Crittenden County Sheriff Office VALOR

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from Charlie shift for the medal of valor. Allen indicated the valiant action of the deputies met “all” the standards for the medal.

“Without regard to their own personal safety they did exhibit exceptional courage, extraordinary decisiveness and presence of mind to work together regardless of their personal safety to save or protect a human life,” said Allen.

Four Crittenden County Sheriff Deputies received medals of valor on Monday morning for saving a man from his burning vehicle. Pictured left to right at the commendation ceremony, Deputy John Rolland, Sheriff Mike Allen, Deputy Jonathon Cody, Deputy Prince Bohanon, Deputy Chad Rash, and Enforcement Division Chief George Blair.

Photo by John Rech

CODY

RASH

BOHANON

ROLLAND