by Joe Wilhelm Jr.
Staff Writer
One Jacksonville teenager went from being punished to being praised recently because of his heroic act. Jamar Williams was one of many honorees at an awards ceremony at the Police Memorial Building Thursday.
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office held its Meritorious Awards Ceremony Thursday to recognize noteworthy service of its employees and citizens of Jacksonville.
The 14-year-old Williams was the smallest person recognized but he may have been involved in one of the bigger acts of courage recognized in the ceremony.
“I was nervous when I saw the car flip over,” said Williams. “My thought was that I needed to get her to safety.”
Williams was with his mother, Michelle, because he was being punished for being disrespectful to one of his teachers. Michelle Williams is a school bus driver who was transporting seniors from the Mayor’s Holiday Festival for Senior Citizens at the Osborn Center to the parking lot.
Williams reported that he saw an 83-year-old woman get into her car and attempt to back out of her parking space. Instead of backing up, the car accelerated forward over a concrete barrier, through a parking lot and into a tree. The car overturned after hitting the tree and Williams immediately ran to the scene. He noticed gas spilling from the tank and quickly helped the woman from her vehicle.
“Jamar, I am incredibly impressed with your actions and ability to remain calm and help this woman,” said Sheriff John Rutherford. “Your quick actions kept her from receiving further injuries as a result of being trapped in an overturned car.”
Rutherford had additional praise for Williams’ parents.
“Y’all have done a fine job raising this young man, congratulations,” said Rutherford.
Television cameras were focused on Williams after the ceremony because of his act of courage and bravery, but the spotlight is a place you won’t find the JSO’s “Police Officer of the Month,” Tracy Stapp.
“Being recognized is a great honor, but I don’t like being in the public spotlight,” said Stapp, an evidence technician with the JSO Crime Scene Unit, who was the lead technician on the case involving the shooting of Jaguar Richard Collier. “You don’t think about the spotlight when you are involved in a case like that. You go there to do a job and to, hopefully, find the evidence that will put someone behind bars.”
The JSO helps protect the public by putting criminals behind bars, but officers also have a duty to serve the public and that’s why Officer Stephen Rhatigan was honored with a “Lifesaving Award.”
He was attending a Mother’s Day luncheon at the Florida Tackle and Gun Club when one of the members of the club suffered a heart attack while cooking the meal.
Rhatigan helped perform CPR on friend Bill Lyle, who was without a pulse and had developed blue coloration in his lips.
“We got his color back by the time the ambulance arrived,” said Rhatigan. “I was told he was talking by the time he got to the hospital. Seeing someone up and around again, that makes it all worth it.”
All the awards
Police Officer of the Month
Tracy Stapp
Corrections Officer of the Month
Edward “Teddy” Clayman
Civilian of the Month
Tiffany Mackey, Community Affairs-P.A.L
Reserve Officer of the Month
Charles Haas
Police Supervisor of the Month
Sgt. Randall Crews
Corrections Supervisor of the Month
Sgt. George Pratt
20 Years of Service
Corrections Officer Sharon Floyd
Police Officer Denise Hughes
Corrections Officer Kelly Rollyson
Officer Lavall Thomas
Police Emergency Communications Officer (PECO) III Gail West
25 Years of Service
Corrections Sgt. Jeffery Whitmore
Promotions
Police Lt. Cary Cowan Jr.
Police Sgt. Chad Collier
Police Sgt. Chip Remolde
PECO IV Lisa Janson
PECO III LaDonna Barber
Certificates of Appreciation
Nathaniel Rarey, citizen (Representing Walmart who contributes to I.M. Sulzbacher Center programs)
Jamar Williams, citizen (14-year-old rescued 83-year-old woman from an overturned car.)
College Degree
Officer Shannon Hartley, Masters of Science in Criminology from Florida State University.
Lifesaving Awards
Officer Gregg Mattison (helped elderly woman get away from a house fire.)
Officer Stephen Rhatigan (helped resuscitate heart attack victim.)
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