It is an Erie police officer's job to serve and protect the citizens of Erie.

But sometimes those officers go above and beyond, or their bravery in an intense situation deserves recognition.

And on Monday, several officers are honored for doing just that.

Erie Mayor Joe Sinnott presented Erie Police Patrolmen John Wilson and Josh Allison with the City of Erie Combat Cross.

They also received commendations for their bravery in line of duty in early morning of January 27th, when a suspect fled from a routine traffic stop.

That suspect, drove his car onto the grounds of the Soldiers and Sailors Home, and opened fire on police, "Essentially we tried to do a traffic stop and the guy tried to kill us, and possibly the people in the Soldiers and Sailors home or other citizens of Erie, and we stopped him from doing so," said Allison.

"It was one of the most extreme situations, stressful situations I've been in on this job," said Wilson.

Patrolman Daniel Shields also received an award for his role in the incident, Sinnott said Shields helped contain the suspect following the shooting.


And Corporal Tom Lenox received a proclamation Monday, for his leadership in Police Athletic League, or PAL. Corporal Lenox spearheaded a kids camp over the summer at Gannon University, and participates three days a week with PAL.

On Monday, Lenox also recognized the other officers who rally behind PAL, for their work above and beyond patrolling the streets.

And while Lenox is humbled by the recognition, he says making an impact is the real reward, "When you see the kids really appreciate the fact that you're there and spending time with them, and giving them attention, and actually empowering them that they can do something and they can work hard to achieve their goals... to me that's my reward," said Cpl. Lenox.


Mayor Sinnott and Police Chief Don Dacus also recognized all of the detectives with the Major Crimes Unit. They cleared 100% of the homicide cases this year, "That's a statistic that's almost unheard of," said Sinnott. "It shows the great work that these men and women do to clear these cases, they're working very hard on them to keep the community safe and they've accomplished something very important, a 100% clearing rate is a great thing," Sinnott continued.

"The amount of time and effort that has to go in to clearing one homicide case, let alone multiple cases, this unit has proved to be very efficient and effective in their duties," said Chief Dacus.

So whether it's clearing cases, outstanding bravery, or building relationships in the community, Chief Dacus says he's happy these officers are being recognized, "It's important for the morale of the department, it's important to these officers, but more importantly it's even important to their families to let them know that the sacrifices that their loved ones are doing on a daily basis has not gone unnoticed," said Dacus.