To read the newspapers and watch TV one would think that law enforcement is despised by most of the public…not true, and we in law enforcement know it. I receive notes and calls every week from citizens that congratulate our deputies on their service to them personally or to someone they know. This scenario was played out yesterday, Wednesday, in Forest and this office wants to recognize the citizens who took the time to assist one of our deputies. We will have a short ceremony in the parking lot of Trio’s Pizza, Forest, VA,(beside Sheetz near Perrowville Road) Friday, June 12 at 2:00PM. At least one of the ‘Good Samaritan Citizens’ will be there to accept our thanks and a small token of our appreciation. We are attempting to locate the others.
Please see below the comments from Deputy Daniel’s email sent to me this morning.
“Yesterday during my motorcycle pursuit, that turned into foot pursuit in Forest, I was reminded that even with all that is taking place in our country, law enforcement ‘battering’ , that we still have some grateful citizens in our community that appreciate what we do. This happened yesterday and took place in probably the busiest part of the day, lots of traffic, in Forest. As a result, a lot of citizens witnessed this ordeal. Also, a lot of people, including the motorcyclist, could have been injured, possibly killed due to his reckless regard for the public. Due to manpower being stretched razor thin with our office I didn’t have a back up unit even remotely close…not blaming anyone…we were super busy. Not one but 4 different citizens stopped to help. The first one pointed me in the direction where the cyclist had gone… I had lost sight of the driver and was not sure which way to go. Then I was stopped by another man who told me which way the driver went after he had abandoned his motorcycle. After a grueling foot pursuit , a citizens stopped gave me a ride on the back of his truck to get closer to the suspect who had crossed Rt. 221 and entered Trio Pizza. Once inside the pizza restaurant employees pointed to where the suspect was hiding. After he was taken into custody several people at the bank near Sheetz clapped and cheered as he was walked back to my patrol car. I know we get thanks from the public, but I wish somehow I could thank the public for their support. So the moral of story is keep your head up sheep dogs, some still support what we do!”
Arrested:
Ryan D. Ellis
Ryan D. Ellis
Age 22
Forest, VA
Charged with Speeding, Reckless Driving and Felony Elude Police.
Released on unsecured bond.
