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2008 Law Enforcement Officer
of the Year
Investigator Larry Kish, Denton County Sheriff's Department
 On June 26, 2008
at approximately 7:40 AM Denton County Communications received an
emergency phone call from a 911-only cell phone.
Only a faint female voice was heard before the line
disconnected; at the time it was uncertain exactly what she said.
This type of cell phone is only allowed to call 911 and
location information is very limited.
These types of phones are not able to be traced and most of
the time the callers are never found.
The call was very brief but stayed connected long enough
for the GPS location to pin point an area on Doc Holiday Lane
outside of the Sanger city limits.
Corporal Pena was dispatched to the area to attempt to
locate the caller. Due
to the uncertainty of what was said on the phone an additional
police unit was being sent to assist.
The closest unit was coming from Sanger and was on a
traffic stop at the time. Inv.
Kish was in the area and heard the details on his radio.
He began to head that direction to assist the deputy.
Inv. Kish was the first unit to arrive in the area and as
he pulled up, communications received another call from a
residence at the end of the street.
The caller was advising that her son had beat up her and
his girlfriend and that he was throwing things around the house.
As communications was giving the updated location
information to Inv. Kish, he advised that he could hear things
being thrown around in the house.
As Inv. Kish was approaching the house the suspect began
shooting at him. The
entire incident included multiple shots being fired before the
closest cover unit could arrive and many more as the situation
unfolded. Inv. Kish
quickly took cover and advised what was going on as well as what
needed to happen. He
displayed extreme bravery and maintained a level of calmness so
that the situation could be relayed to the incoming units as well
as communications in a clear and precise manner.
Throughout the entire incident he took charge and
instructed the incoming units on where to go and how to set up all
while being shot at. He
was able to keep the entire scene safe and under control until the
suspect finally ran out of ammunition.
After the
incident was complete it was further recognized that the first two
units on scene, Corporal Pena and Investigator Kish, had taken
cover behind each of their vehicles until additional units could
approach from the opposite end.
As shots were streaming by they were yelling to one another
to make sure that each was okay.
Investigator Kish assessed the situation and quickly
determined a plan of action. The
suspect would stand in the doorway and fire out of the door and
then duck back inside the trailer.
After the fact, it was also learned that the suspect was
actually operating out of a travel trailer parked behind the
mobile home that was initially thought to be the location.
Upon further investigation, one of the female victims had
been kidnapped from a location in Sanger, taken to a field and
forced to do acts at gunpoint.
The suspect then took her to his mother’s house and
continued to assault her throughout the night.
She was able to sneak out of the travel trailer when the
suspect went to his vehicle. That
was when she dialed 911 from the cell phone.
After listening to the original call again the caller could
be heard saying “You have to find me before he gets back.”
We believe he had every intention of killing her before it
was over. He also had
assaulted his mother that morning and made threats to kill
himself.
Due to Investigator Kish’s steadfast bravery and attention to
detail, the suspect was apprehended without any injuries to any
law enforcement personnel. The
suspect only had self inflicted injuries and there were two (2)
female victims that had been assaulted by the suspect prior to law
enforcement’s arrival. It
is completely amazing that such a chaotic and uncontrolled
situation could be maintained by the instincts and courage of
Investigator Kish.
These types of
situations often end in serious injury if they are not fatal.
The ability for each officer and deputy to come out of the
incident without harm is attributable to the leadership of
Investigator Kish. All
of the responding units took the example led by Inv. Kish and
displayed true bravery and commitment until the incident was
complete. It takes a
true leader to be able to take charge while under fire and Inv.
Kish did so in an exemplary manner.
Many people do not understand how dangerous even a
“routine” incident can be.
Law Enforcement Officers and Deputies put themselves at
risk each day and many situations are not acknowledged because no
one was injured. It
was the quick thinking, bravery and leadership of Investigator
Kish that allowed these officers and deputies to walk away safely.
2008 Firefighter of the Year
Firefighter Michael Schmidt, Denton Fire Department
 On June 6, 2008 at approximately 11
PM, Mike Schmidt was fishing with a friend from a dock on Lake
Lewisville. They heard
a loud noise which
sounded like an explosion. When
they turned to see what caused the loud crash, headlights from a
vehicle could be seen in the water.
Without giving it a second thought, Mike turned and ran
toward the sinking vehicle, scaled a ten foot security fence and
dove into the water. He
climbed on the hood of the vehicle looking to see if anyone was
inside. Seeing the
driver inside he tried to pry the broken windshield from the
vehicle but was unsuccessful.
When he realized the vehicle was going under the water line
he strengthened his grip and rode the vehicle twenty-five feet
to the bottom of the lake.
When the vehicle settled on the bottom, Mike swam to the
door, opened it and pulled the panicked victim out and up to the
surface. Once on the
surface, he asked if anyone else was inside.
No one was.
By
placing another’s safety above his own, Firefighter Schmidt clearly
saved this person’s life. Mike
Schmidt performed an act far beyond the call of duty in
which grave personal harm was imminent for him, as well as the
trapped victim. He did
not hesitate to place another person’s life above his own.
2008 Telecommunicator of
the Year
Telecommunicator Gwinna
Pedigo, Lewisville Police Dept./Communications
 Gwinna
Pedigo has been a fixture in the telecommunications, and EMS
dispatch, world of Denton County for 23 years.
She has served as a dispatcher, supervisor and now, trainer. She brings
extensive experience, and integrity, to a job where it would be
impossible to pinpoint a single call, or incident, that she had
not personnally handled this
year. Whether it was a
robbery, structure fire, medical emergency, major accident or simply
helping a senior citizen to find a phone number; Ms. Pedigo provides the best
level of customer service available anywhere.
Her role as a leader is demonstrated day in, and day out.
She comes to work with an exempliary attitude and has not lost her
compassion for helping people.
Our officers and fire fighters feel comfortable knowing
that she is directing them to calls.
Callers may not know it at the time, but they are getting
the best of the best when they hear Gwinna Pedigo's voice on the other end of
a 911 dispatch call.
Ms. Pedigo's most important role, currently, is as a trainer, using her vast knowledge, experience and skills to
model future dispatchers.
She is creating a legacy for top notch technical community service unmatched throughout the
Greater Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex. We are most honored, and
privilidged, to have her among our ranks.
L-R; Investigator L. Kish, TC G. Pedigo & FF M. Schmidt
2008
Troy LaGrone Citizenship Award
Tim and Kim Lindt
"The Lindts received the Troy LaGrone Award for Community Service in recognition of their work with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission to promote boat safety on the state’s lakes. Their daughter Britteny was killed in 2006 by a drunken boater on Lewisville Lake, and they have worked tirelessly since then to raise money for boating safety programs and to raise awareness of its importance."
- Courtesy Dallas Morning News
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