SandBox Comments: Pueblo Chieftain "Officers recognized for courage, service"

"Police officers face death and danger more than most.


They're trained how to respond and act in threatening situations. But after the gunshots and the smoke settles, they're left with an experience for which no amount of training can prepare them....


.....More than 200 fellow officers and city and civic leaders at Pueblo Community College attended the event at which 18 officers and two civilians were honored.....


Romero was awarded for saving a grandmother and trying to save a 3-year-old child from a burning apartment Dec. 13, 2010.


Trujillo was awarded for fatally shooting a man who brandished a gun at him in February......


.....In September, Romero also was named the Colorado Police Protective Association's Officer of the Year....


...Recipients of the Department Commendation, given to officers and civilians for "outstanding" acts and achievements, were:

• Detective Chris D'Amour, for an eight-month investigation that dismantled a methamphetamine drug trafficking ring that netted more than 12 pounds of meth. The operation netted 12 arrests and involved 18 undercover purchases and wire taps. D'Amour worked with the Drug Enforcement Administration's Southern Colorado Drug Task Force.

• Detective Marc DeFusco, DEA task force member, for Operation Blanca Peak, a six-month investigation that dismantled a drug ring responsible for bringing into Pueblo 25 kilograms of cocaine and 15 pounds of meth every month from California. The operation netted four arrests, 11 pounds of meth, 3 kilos of coke, the seizure of a Bessemer nightclub and other property totaling more than $550,000.

• Detectives Brian Roman and Jeff Maize were honored for going undercover in 2010 to purchase 26 stolen guns and artifacts from Bent's Old Fort in La Junta and the Kit Carson Museum in Kit Carson. One of the guns they recovered was an 1874 Colt revolver valued at $70,000. The two are members of the federal Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives gun task force.

• Cpls. Manuel Eurioste and Carl Groller for disarming a robbery suspect armed with a butcher knife in February 2010.

Recipients of the Life Saving Award were:

• Officers Deb Romano and Gabe Maldonado, honored for rescuing an elderly couple from the porch of a burning house this past January. The elderly couple managed to get out of the house but were unable to leave the porch. Romano and Maldonado removed them before the house was engulfed in flames.

Recipients of the Distinguished Service Award, given to officers who carry out their duties in the face of serious bodily injury, were:

• Sgt. Rick Lancendorfer and officer Nick Martinez, who apprehended a carjacking suspect who was reportedly armed with a grenade in April 2010. The man challenged Martinez to shoot him and Lancendorfer, noticing the suspect didn't have a grenade, shot him with a Taser.

• Cpl. David Beshany and officer Jason Smith were honored for arresting two armed men who robbed a North Side fast-food restaurant this past August.

Recipients of the Chief's Award, honored for performances outside of other awards criteria, were:

• Kim Jeffries, dispatch supervisor, honored for bringing a new fire station's response system online and solving last-minute glitches in the system.

• Detective Mark Bravo, honored for counseling and supporting officers and their families involved in fatal shootings.

• Capt. Rich Goddard and dispatch supervisor Laura Wittrup, for improving working conditions and operations in the department's dispatch center."

(Nick Bonham)

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