Sheriffs’ group honors officials, civilians for service

A Lincoln County man who rescued a motorist from a submerged SUV and a Penobscot County Jail corrections officer who revived an inmate who tried to commit suicide were among nearly a dozen people recognized for their actions by the state’s sheriffs.

The annual awards by the Maine Sheriffs’ Association announced earlier this month recognized law enforcement officials and civilians for going the extra yard and in some cases risking their lives to save others.

Lincoln County resident Arnie Hall was given the civilian Presidential Valor award for pulling a man from a submerged 1998 Chevrolet Blazer in the water in Jefferson on Aug. 5, 2003, after an automobile accident. The investigation revealed that the motorist had been intoxicated and had serious medical problems, conditions that would have made the motorist unable to get out of the vehicle.

The sheriffs’ organization named Douglas Libby, a corrections officer at Penobscot County Jail, as Corrections Officer of the Year, acknowledging his efforts on Sept. 17, 2003, to revive an inmate who had strangled himself with a blanket. Paramedics from the Bangor Fire Department continued the resuscitation efforts under way. At a local hospital, the inmate was given only a 3 percent chance to survive, but he did.

“Through a combination of a miracle and the initial skill of Corrections Officer Douglas Libby, and those who later came to assist, the inmate is now walking and is able to communicate with his mother,” Penobscot County Glenn Ross wrote in his recommendation for the award.

Somerset County Deputy Paul York and Lincoln County Detective Sgt. Jason Pease were jointly given the law enforcement Presidential Valor award.

York placed himself in harm’s way – in the line of fire twice – during an April 6, 2003, incident in Solon in which a woman threatened to kill herself and the deputy who had come to remove her from the residence. She fired shots from within the home, although York didn’t and he managed to take her into custody without taking any lives.

Pease was commended for handling an incident on Christmas night 2002 when, during one of the worst snowstorms of the year, he was injured by a man who stole his cruiser, dragging Pease for about 50 feet. Pease fired his gun, disabling the cruiser, allowing for the quick capture of the suspect and preventing him from causing further damage, wrote Lincoln County Sheriff Todd Brackett.

Aroostook County Sheriff’s Deputy Lt. Keith Wheeler of Monticello has served with the Sheriff’s Department since 1972 and this year was named Deputy of the Year. His work in drug enforcement over the last 10 years has resulted in the seizure of thousands of marijuana plants, including from a group of people based in Kennebec and Androscoggin counties who were growing plants in Aroostook County for sale in southern Maine.

David Comeau, a resident of Lovell in Oxford County, was the co-recipient with Hall of the civilian Presidential Valor award. In January 2003, Comeau helped rescue two snowmobilers who had fallen through the ice on Kezar Lake and were fighting for their lives. Two others died.

Also recognized by the sheriff’s organization were:

. Chief Deputy Craig Clossey of Aroostook County Sheriff’s Department, named Manager of the Year.

. Darla Jewett, named Citizen of the Year for her work as co-chairman of the Lincoln-Sagadahoc Multi-County Jail Project for the last three years.

. Louise Schimke, a dispatcher with Kennebec County, as Communications Officer of the Year.

. Debra Rhoads, executive secretary for Cumberland County Sheriff Mark Dion, named Employee of the Year.

. Robert L. Martin was given the Presidential Citation Award.