Columbia County deputies among those honored for their bravery
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Deputies from across the state of Georgia were honored for their bravery in the face of danger at the Georgia Sheriffs Association’s annual awards ceremony on Tuesday.
Among those honored, three Columbia County deputies were awarded Valor Awards for their bravery after a traffic stop claimed the life of a fellow deputy and sent another to the hospital.
Deputies Andrew Brown, Jared Mason and Gavin White received awards for valor for their heroic actions during the deadly traffic stop.
The shooting claimed the life of Deputy White, who’s still on the road to recovery.
Columbia County Sheriff Clay Whittle praised the deputies for their teamwork during a very scary situation.
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“I’m proud to tell you that Deputy Gavin White is here today, alive and well, thanks to the heroic action of himself and the other deputies, and I am very proud to issue these awards of valor to these three deputies today,” said Whittle.
The regional force investigation team, made up of deputies from Columbia, Burke and Richmond counties, are still investigating what happened that night.
“We had unbelievably clear communications on our radio, from Andrew Brown, from Gavin White himself, and from Jared Mason,” said Whittle. “After the suspect had been neutralized, Andrew Brown realized Gavin White was greatly wounded and was bleeding profusely, then loaded him into one of the shot patrol cars with a flat tire on the front and drove him approximately 4.5 miles to the nearest hospital where they were able to render aid and stop his bleeding.”
Also honored were Barrow County Sheriff’s deputies Sgt. Donovan Boyd and Deputy Brandon King for their heroic response to a deadly school shooting at Apalachee High School on Sept. 4.
The shooting left two teachers and two students dead and injured nine others.
Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith nominated Boyd and King. According to Smith, the deputies’ swift and selfless response prevented any further losses. Smith was named Georgia Sheriff of the Year for his handling of the shooting.
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“It’s literally like fighting the gates of hell with a water pistol,” Smith said. “At the end of the day, all they cared about was making sure other people were OK.”
Smith said the deputies sprinted 76 yards in 38 seconds to confront the shooter.
Smith says the shooter was tackled seven seconds later. The suspect was handcuffed and in custody less than a minute after shots were first reported.
Boyd had stopped by the school to drop off a Bible for a study group. Smith said that God was working that day to get people in place to quickly apprehend the suspect.
“God put them there for a reason—to save lives,” Smith said. “I couldn’t be prouder. I love them so much.”
The suspected shooter now faces more than 50 charges, including felony and malice murder. He has pleaded not guilty.
His father is also facing charges. We expect his trial will begin in the fall.
The victims of the Sept. 4 shooting were 14-year-old students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, math teacher Cristina Irimie and football coach and teacher Richard Aspinwall.
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