GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Gwinnett County leaders gathered together on Thursday to recognize police officers, firefighters and other public safety professionals for going above and beyond the call of duty.
Channel 2′s Steve Gehlbach was at the Gwinnett County Valor Awards ceremony, where first responders were honored for their heroic, lifesaving actions.
Those honored included a communications officer who took a 911 call from a domestic violence victim and helped save her life after she was shot and officers who helped respond to an active shooter outside the county jail.
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It’s the 20th year that the Gwinnett County Chamber of Commerce presented the honors, recognizing not only those who protect and serve but those went above and beyond in life-threatening situations.
“With no tourniquet available, Officer Etienne resourcefully used a belt as a makeshift solution,” Sgt. Gregory Ross said, presenting a life-saving award to Officer Feniel Etienne, a senior officer with the Lilburn Police Department.
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Etienne was off-duty when a gunman shot someone at a Suwanee automotive shop. He immediately jumped into action.
“Happy to be there and able to serve somebody,” he said.
The top award, the gold medal for valor, went to five sheriff’s deputies for dealing with an active shooter at the jail in October.
A man in body armor showed up at the jail’s entrance with his two-year-old daughter, acting erratically. Deputies identified the potential threat as he returned the child to his car and got a shotgun out.
Eventually, the man opened fire at officers with a handgun and they fired back, hitting him.
“Their courage under fire and commitment to protecting lives prevented what could have easily been a mass tragedy,” Ross said at the ceremony.
The deputies said that “we just came together that day,” calling it a true team effort as other deputies and jail staff locked down inside and got visitors and others out of harm’s way.
The gunman from the shooting recovered and is in custody at the jail, facing multiple charges including aggravated assault against law enforcement officers.
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