Detroit police officer Roy Gilbert, 42, has been named the nation’s 2007 Police Officer of the Year by Parade magazine and the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Detroit News reports. Gilbert was honored yesterday at the IACP convention in New Orleans for heroism in the line of duty when he saved his own life and that of his wounded partner Dec. 30 by exchanging shots with a carjacking suspect, firing his weapon 11 times until the assailant fell and dropped his gun.
Gilbert and officer John McKee, 35 were on patrol at 3 a.m. when they wound up chasing the man into an alley, where McKee tackled him. As McKee struggled to handcuff him, he shot McKee in the face and abdomen. He fired at Gilbert, knocking him down as the bullet ripped through the officer’s jacket. Gilbert returned the fire and killed the man. McKee returned to work last week.
Link: http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007710160334