At their October 17, 2023, meeting, Mayor Jonathan McCollar and the Statesboro City Council honored eight Statesboro Police Officers for their heroic action in two separate dangerous incidents.
Mike Broadhead, Statesboro Police Chief, presented three officers with the department's highest honor: the Medal of Valor. Five additional officers were presented with the department's Meritorious Service Award.
MEDAL OF VALOR
This recognition is awarded to a sworn officer for displaying exceptional and courageous action, risking life or bodily injury in the performance of duty, thereby earning honor and distinction and bringing favorable recognition to themselves and the department. This award is considered the highest award issued to a sworn officer. The action by the officer must have been a voluntary act and of personal bravery or self sacrifice so conspicuous as to clearly distinguish the individual for gallantry and involved great danger and a risk of life.
Presentation of the Medal of Valor to:
- Sergeant Nathaniel Janney
- Officer Logan Gay
- Officer Jonathan Treloar
Presentation of a Meritorious Service Award to:
- Captain Jared Akins
- Corporal Jessica Collins
- APO Joey DeLoach
- Officer Damien Truesdale
- Communications Officer Sydney Johns
Below are the details of the two incidents in which the officers' unimaginable heroism was honored. Each of the three Medal of Valor officers will share more about these events from their perspective.
Five different shooters fired more than 100 rounds
On Saturday, September 23, 2023, at approximately 3:00 am, SPD officers were dispatched to the area of Johnson Street and Spruce Street for reported "shots fired." Upon arrival, officers observed dozens of people fleeing in cars, and many more fleeing the area on foot. Gunshots were audible as officers arrived, and officers could observe muzzle flashes in multiple directions. It was later determined that at least 5 different shooters fired more than 100 rounds during a street party.
As Sergeant Nathaniel Janney arrived on scene, he could hear the gunshots and also saw muzzle flashes from more than one location in the immediate area. He observed one specific male holding an AR-style firearm and saw the subject discharge the rifle. The offender then saw Sergeant Janney and began to flee the area on foot, still holding the rifle.
Sergeant Janney initially pursued the suspect in his car until the person entered a wooded area. Sergeant Janney then left the cover of his patrol car and proceeded to engage in a foot pursuit over rough and uneven ground.
Advanced Patrol Officer Logan Gay arrived and heard Sergeant Janney call out the pursuit over the police radio. He then observed the foot pursuit between Sergeant Janney and the armed male. Advanced Patrol Officer Gay maneuvered his patrol car in an effort to "cut off" the escaping subject, and encountered him approximately one block away. He exited his patrol car and ordered the suspect to halt at gunpoint.
The subject ultimately surrendered, and Advanced Patrol Officer Gay was able to get the subject to lay down as Sergeant Janney arrived to handcuff the individual.
These officers were confronted with an active shooting and a chaotic scene. They engaged in a pursuit with an armed subject who was seen discharging a rifle in a crowd, and then actively attempted to evade capture. These two officers remained composed while dealing with a dangerous and armed subject.
Medal of Valor Recipient Sergeant Nathaniel Janney
Grice Connect gave Sergeant Nathaniel Janney an opportunity to share more about his heroic actions. Below are our questions and his responses.
GC: What does it mean to receive this award and recognition by the Department and City Council?
I feel that it is a great honor and one of the highest achievements of my almost 8 years with the Department, 10 years with the City of Statesboro, and 15 years in Public Safety.
GC: Is there anything else you would like to share about this event from your perspective?
Although I am receiving this award along with one of my shift mates, I feel that I cannot accept all of the recognition for such a positive outcome of the incident without first acknowledging the importance of the group effort of my entire Patrol Team that night. Although only a few Officers were initially able to respond to the incident as it was unfolding, I feel that those Officers were some of the most courageous, bravest, selfless, dedicated, and well trained Officers that I have the privilege of serving with every night.
These few Officers were able to respond to an absolutely large chaotic scene with overwhelming dangers to their own lives, and with all odds stacked against them, they were still able to maintain the safety of the scene, apprehend an armed dangerous fleeing offender, and provide necessary care to victims while still working the large, spread out, complex crime scene.
GC: From your perspective, how can citizens help support your work as a police officer?
I feel that citizens need to become more involved with their community in order to better assist Officers with the performance of their duties by being good witnesses and taking a stand to not allow criminal or deviant behavior to take place that may endanger the lives or safety of others. Citizens need to recognize that the City is growing larger and larger everyday at an exponential amount, but their Police Force is not adequately growing as fast to keep up with the influx of demand as it needs to be, thus creating scenarios where Officers are constantly overworked, exhausted, and overwhelmed from taking on the high demands of the job while still working almost triple the workload of what they would normally be if the Department was fully staffed.
Medal of Valor Recipient Advanced Patrol Officer Logan Gay
Grice Connect gave Advanced Patrol Officer Logan Gay an opportunity to share more about his heroic actions. Below are our questions and his responses.
GC: What does it mean to receive this award and recognition by the Department and City Council?
Earning this award was a huge honor. I have worked at the department for 3 years, and this award has been the proudest one of my career so far.
GC: Is there anything else you would like to share about this event from your perspective?
It was a great job for the entire shift. I feel that if any other officer was put in that position, they would react the same way.
GC: From your perspective, how can citizens help support your work as a police officer?
If you see something, say something. Understand that the department is short handed at the time, but every officer I have seen work does an amazing job and tries to help to the best of their abilities.
Suspect with gun chased on foot and taken into custody without harm
On Friday, May 5th, 2023, SPD Officer Jonathan Treloar responded to the area of Morris Heights apartments on a report of a juvenile with a firearm. There had been a number of recent shooting incidents in this specific neighborhood in the days previous to this call. Upon arrival, Officer Treloar observed a subject matching the clothing description as reported by the unidentified caller.
When the subject saw the officer, he immediately fled on foot, and Officer Treloar engaged in a foot pursuit. At one point, the male subject stumbled, and in so doing, a pistol fell out of the pocket of his hoodie. He immediately retrieved the pistol and pointed it in the officer's direction.
Officer Treloar took immediate evasive action. The subject, rather than shooting at the officer, chose to turn and run, while still maintaining the pistol in his hand. Officer Treloar reengaged in the pursuit, continuously giving the subject verbal commands to surrender. When the subject realized he was not going to be able to escape, he ultimately threw the pistol down and surrendered. Officer Treloar was able to take the suspect into custody and retrieved the discarded pistol.
Officer Jonathan Treloar's display of professionalism and restraint is to be commended. This situation was tense and rapidly evolving, and the officer was able to maintain his composure throughout the incident. Officer Treloar's actions on May 5th, 2023 displayed conspicuous valor at the risk of his own life.
Medal of Valor Presented to Office Jonathan Trealoar
Grice Connect gave Officer Jonathon Trealor an opportunity to share more about his heroic actions. Below are our questions and his responses.
GC: What does it mean to receive this award and recognition by the Department and City Council?
I feel extremely humbled and undeserving to have received the award from my department. Everyone appreciates being recognized for a job well done. I work alongside exceptional people. Many who carry a tremendous burden of responsibility and an enormous weight for the city in which they work. I believe recognition from City Council to officers is imperative. Officers need to know they are supported in their duties.
The City Council acknowledging the efforts of officers is a great step in developing a cohesive community where everyone benefits from a well fostered relationship. My peers, supervisors, and friends that I work beside daily have been the most supportive in the award recognition. They are the ones who know my character and are inevitably always there to make sure we are all safe at the end of every shift.
In short, I appreciate the effort of the City Council to recognize the effort of an isolated incident that just happened to be something I was involved in. Getting their support for the day-to-day work we do is also important.
GC: Is there anything else you would like to share about this event from your perspective?
As an officer, you are given an immense amount of responsibility and a heavy degree of accountability. It weighs on you; we have bad days, feel tired, and know that the perception of officers is not always a positive one. The events that transpired on that day will never leave me. A moment etched in time that I will revisit every time I drive down the road or patrol the area.
I will always be thankful for the outcome. I danced as closely to the line of not going home to my family as I possibly could have. God certainly smiled on the situation and granted everyone grace that day. I made a choice that was a culmination of years of training and effort. Every repetition, every session, the entirety of the event falls into milliseconds of decision making. I have had immense support from those who I work with. Every single person I worked with on that day had my back and have continued too. Not one single person is successful alone. I received an award for a collective effort that no one sees day in and day out by exceptional people.
I was able to do my job that day because I knew my supervisor would be there for me, and my co-workers were there when I needed them. A single day I had pales in comparison to the exceptionally difficult choices officers at Statesboro PD make daily. In past and present, the department has employed an overwhelming amount of tactful and valiant officers that have carried the burden far greater than I.
GC: From your perspective, how can citizens help support your work as a police officer?
I believe most people genuinely are naive to what officers do on a daily basis. I know, I certainly was before I began working as an officer. I never dreamed of being in law enforcement. I walked into the PD with hair down my back and a long beard. Not exactly the perfect representation of what most people envision an officer to be. I say that to reiterate, I had no idea about what police encountered and did daily. It is arduous both mentally and physically. It takes a massive toll on the people doing it; they need support.
Not everyone can come to do the job. However, to gain insight and perspective, you have to ask questions. I would encourage the public to ask questions about what officers do. How they can support and foster good relations with the police? Officers want a good relationship with the people they serve; they want a safe community to work in and support. That takes a collective effort from all of us. Take the ideas you have of officers, and talk to them. They are people who have aspirations, families, and genuinely care about the people they serve.
A grateful community
We should all be tremendously grateful to be served by dedicated and heroic police officers who make up the SPD. These officers train for worst case scenarios and often put their lives in great danger to ensure the health and safety of others. Their heroic response and peaceful resolution of these two dangerous incidents are a testimony to their countless hours of training. They performed their duties extraordinarily well and tremendously heroically.
These men are not an exception to the rule of the men and women who bravely serve, but an example of the quality of the team that identify themselves with honor as Statesboro Police Officers.