Seven Springfield residents are going to be honored by the Springfield police department for their actions. Here’s the information released by the department today:
In the early morning hours of March 3rd, 2007, 62 year old Ronald Webster was walking in the area of 835 S. Fort, on his way to a laundromat. A subject demanding money suddenly approached him. Although Ronald was cooperative, the suspect began striking him in the head, knocking Ronald to the ground. The suspect then picked up a nearby tree limb and began hitting Ronald with the limb. Unbeknownst to the suspect, Stoney Simmons and Deanna Moore happened to be driving by and noticed Ronald on the ground. They immediately got out of their vehicle and challenged the suspect, who quickly ran away.
Soon after, Barbara Lamoureaux drove up to assist. Stoney and Deanna told Barbara what had happened and the direction the suspect had ran towards. Barbara decided to search the neighborhood for the suspect and soon located him at the intersection of Madison and Douglas. The suspect apparently noticed Barbara was following him and began running. Barbara followed the suspect to a nearby building and watched him enter an apartment. She then called 911 and waited for police.
Police soon arrived at the scene of the assault and spoke with Stoney and Deanna. At about the same time, Barbara’s phone call regarding the suspect was being dispatched to officers. Police met Barbara at the apartment and arrested the suspect for Robbery.
In addition to placing themselves in harm’s way to assist Ronald and the Springfield Police, all three citizens have re-arranged their schedules to appear as requested for all court appearances. As recognition of their efforts, Stoney will be receiving a Certificate of Commendation, while Deanna and Barbara will be receiving Letters of Commendation.
In a separate incident, another group of citizens helped a Police Officer apprehend a violent suspect. On July 13th, 2007, Springfield Police were sent to an assault at a Missouri State University parking garage. A suspect description was broadcast over the police radio and Springfield PD Officer Anthony Gomez soon located a subject matching that description. After a short amount of time, it was determined that the subject detained by Officer Gomez was, in fact, the suspect in the assault. When Gomez told the suspect he was under arrest and handcuffed him, the suspect began to violently fight the officer. During the struggle, the Officer’s handgun became unsecured and the suspect obtained a strong grip on the firearm. MSU Public Safety Supervisor Bruce Kelley was the first to arrive and he immediately took action to break the suspect’s grip on the gun. Soon after, MSU Public Safety Officers John Canella, Richard Wollard and Josh Elliott arrived. Combining their efforts, they were able to further restrain the suspect until additional officers arrived to take him into custody. As recognition of their efforts to assist Officer Gomez, Kelley will be receiving the Meritorious Service Award while Canella, Wollard and Elliott will be receiving Letters of Commendation.
A big salute to those seven folks for stepping up and being an example of the kind of folks we have in Springfield and the Ozarks.
