Police > Awards

Two Athens-Clarke County Police Department officers have been honored with the Governor’s Public Safety Award / Acts of Heroism at a ceremony at the Georgia Public Safety Training Center in Forsyth. They were nominated by Chief Joseph H. Lumpkin, Sr.

On April 11, 2009, Senior Police Officers (SPOs) Harrison Daniel (left) and James Moss (right with Governor Sonny Perdue) responded to a vehicle accident on Tallassee Rd. SPO Daniel located a vehicle that had crashed head-on into a tree and was fully engulfed in flames. He heard a man screaming for help.

SPO Daniel retrieved a fire extinguisher from his vehicle and rushed to assist the victim. SPO Moss arrived and also began fighting the fire. They attempted to pull the driver from the vehicle but he was pinned as a result of the impact from the crash. SPO Daniel attempted to force the door open with a pry bar, but he was unable to do so.

Throughout the ordeal, the officers constantly talked with the man who was begging for help. They refused to surrender and kept telling him not to give up and that they were not going to leave him. The Fire Department arrived and extinguished the fire and the man was pulled from the vehicle. The driver sustained massive burns to both legs, and was rushed to a local hospital and then transferred in critical condition to an Augusta burn center.

Without question, if it had not been for the heroic efforts of SPOs Daniel and Moss, the driver would not have initially survived the crash. Not only did the officers prevent the fire from reaching driver’s torso, but their encouraging words and presence helped him fight the excruciating pain and not surrender to the ease of retreating to death.

Even when the fire was dangerously giving signs of exploding, they fought on and refused to retreat, far more than could be expected of a police officer in the regular line of duty. Sadly, the victim succumbed to his injuries and died approximately one month later.

These officers endangered their lives and sustained injuries of their own during this incident. It was for these reasons they were nominated for the Governor’s Public Safety Award / Acts of Heroism.