One year ago, officer McDonnell "Doug" Jones detained a burglar after a scuffle that led to a broken hand.

About a year before that, Officer Dennis Chesgreen prevented a machete attack on a fellow police officer.

The year prior to Chesgreen's machete incident, Detective Timothy Zombro continued a search and seizure assignment while suffering from a torn meniscus in his knee. He later needed surgery and missed six weeks of work.

The three officers from the Wilkens Police Station, along with 25 others from the Baltimore County Police Department, were honored for acts deemed by the department as "heroic" on Oct. 27 at the Oregon Ridge Conference Center in Cockeysville.

Jones and Zombro were two of five who received Purple Hearts, and Chesgreen was given the Medal of Honor.

"This agency's departmental values are integrity, fairness and service," said Baltimore County Police Chief Jim Johnson, who presented the awards with County Executive Jim Smith. "The individuals we are honoring tonight show the true meaning of service."

Last week's award recipients also included a member of the Baltimore City Police Department, and a county resident.

Department members said the awards have been given out for many years, but the ceremony only began about three years ago.

Officer McDonnell Jones

On Oct.19, 2008, Jones, 33, was patrolling local businesses, aware someone had been breaking into convenience stores and stealing cigarettes.

He noticed that the door of High's Convenience Store on Maiden Choice Lane was shattered.

"I look through the plate glass window, and he's there clearing out the shelves," Jones said.

Jones drew his gun and began yelling instructions to the man, while simultaneously radioing in a report of the incident.

Jones, a member of the Baltimore County Police Department for six years, said the man then charged the door and took off running.

He chased the suspect for a quarter of a mile and, after receiving a fat lip and a broken hand, managed to get him in handcuffs.

"Any fight like that, when you're by yourself, yeah, you're scared," said Jones, the father of a newborn at the time. "But you get that adrenaline rush, and your training kicks in. It was just all about winning."

Officer Dennis Chesgreen

Chesgreen, 32, answered a domestic violence call with officer Michael Duncan on Dec. 15, 2007.

He said the two approached the house on Edmondson Avenue and knocked on the door.

"The light was on in the living room and it turned off," said Chesgreen, who is married with two children, 10 weeks old and 2-and-a-half years old. "The next thing we knew, he opened the door and shot pepper spray at us."

Chesgreen was able to avoid the spray, but Duncan was incapacitated by it.

The man then pulled out a machete, and lifted it above Duncan.

Chesgreen fired his gun.

"The first thing I thought of was, 'Is officer Duncan OK?' " he said.

The man died of a gunshot wound before he arrived at the hospital.

Chesgreen, who has been at the department for 10 years, said the incident was unsettling, but, "luckily we're trained to deal with situations like that, so we can all go home at night."

Detective Tim Zombro

On Dec. 20, 2006, Det. Tim Zombro, 39, was carrying out a search and seizure warrant.

After he forced open a door and entered a room, Zombro did not see the one-foot drop in the floor.

"I basically just stepped into the room, and my knee hyper-extended," said Zombro, who has been with the department for 14 years. "I got back up and continued searching the room."

A visit to the doctor a day after the incident showed that he had finished the house search on a torn meniscus in his knee.

"At first, it was one of those things that you kind of walk off," he said. "But it just wasn't going away."

He received surgery about two weeks later, and stayed home for six weeks.

He played the incident down, saying that he "got an award for tripping," but said that it is an honor.

"It's pretty cool to be recognized for something like this," said Zombro, who is married with 5-year-old twins. "It's a neat experience."

---

user comments (0)