Commending courage
State honors cops who went above and beyond
Police officers from around the state were honored yesterday at the State House with the annual George L. Hanna Memorial Awards for Bravery for their actions over the course of the year that went above and beyond the call of duty, exhibiting extraordinary bravery and courage in the face of extreme risk.
Six Braintree police officers were given the prestigious Medal of Honor for “exceptional” levels of professionalism, competence, leadership and clear thinking during a dangerous incident while on or off duty during an incident on May 5, 2017, after serving a kidnapping warrant to a suspect at a Braintree motel.
“None of these officers knew then what they know now. Their capabilities as officers, their dedication to their duty and each other, their commitment to the Braintree Police Department, and their very lives, would be put to the ultimate test that evening,” according to a summary of the Braintree incident.
The officers are: William R. Cushing Jr., Donald M. Delaney, Paul H. Hamilton, John M. Hurley, Ryan P. McHugh and Stephen T. Wallace.
On the night of May 5, the officers responded to the hotel room of the suspect, Tizaya Jordan Robinson, 25, who was wanted on a kidnapping charge and were greeted with a “hail of gunfire.”
Delaney was struck in the head with a 9mm round. Additional rounds fired by the suspect sent Hamilton to the ground, shattering his elbow and causing a leg wound. Delaney returned fire despite wounds to his left eye, arm, and the gunshot wound to his head. Cushing and McHugh then stepped into the line of fire and shot back, letting Delaney escape.
An ambulance waiting nearby was unable to reach them because it would have passed in front of the suspect’s hotel room. Hurley and Wallace, a former firefighter and paramedic, instead used Wallace’s police vehicle to evacuate Delaney.
Nine more officers were recognized with the Medal of Valor for their work in 2017, the secondhighest award given. The nine recipients include Everett police Sgt. Lawrence Jedrey, Chelsea police officer Robert Hammond, MBTA officer James J. Davie, Worcester police officer Robert D. Sansoucy, and Massachusetts State Police troopers Michael C. Caranfa, Robert R. Holland, George N. Katsarakes, David T. Nims and Daniel T. Purtell.
The George L. Hanna Awards for Bravery are named in memory of state trooper George L. Hanna, who was shot and killed in the line of duty during a traffic stop in Auburn on Feb. 26, 1983.