20-02-2025
‘Selfless': Sergeant honored for helping injured girl
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A Clare County sheriff's deputy is being honored for braving a potentially dangerous home to help a 12-year-old girl who had been shot.
Sgt. James Dawson was presented with the Sheriff's Office Bravery Award Thursday, the Clare County Sheriff's Office announced in a release, for his 'brave and selfless acts' Tuesday near the Isabella-Midland county line.
Around midnight Tuesday, troopers responded to a home on NE County Line Road near Shearer Road, northwest of Midland, for a report of shots fired, according to the Michigan State Police.
MSP: Man taken into custody northwest of Midland; girl hurt
When troopers approached, they say a man came out of the home and shot at them. Troopers returned fire and the man went back into the home, according to MSP.
Dawson responded to the scene to assist state police. When he showed up, he learned that the man was believed to be back inside the home or in a vehicle in the driveway, the release says. Also inside the home, a trooper told Dawson, was a 12-year-old girl who had suffered a gunshot wound, according to the sheriff's office.
When Dawson heard this, he 'recognized the need for immediate action' to get the girl out so that she could get medical attention, the office said. Traveling through the woods, Dawson made his way to the home. Alone, he made entry and found the 12-year-old girl, according to the Clare County Sheriff's Office.
The sheriff's office reported that the girl was scared to leave, because the man had not been taken into custody, but Dawson reassured her that he would keep her safe. He helped the girl out of the home and into a waiting ambulance. She was taken to the hospital; state police said her injuries were not considered life-threatening.
The man was eventually taken into custody around 4 p.m. Tuesday, according to MSP.
The sheriff's office praised Dawson for his actions, saying he 'acted selflessly' and put himself in danger to help the injured girl.
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