The UTMB Police Department was honored recently by the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators. In a ceremony held last month in Orlando, the department received two of the four international awards given.
The International Medal of Valor was awarded to UTMB Sgt. Kristopher McGill; officers Travis Gonzales, Arron Hernandez and Shantardrick Hester; and telecommunicators Alana Dickey and Daniel Markovich, recognizing their response to the report of a fatal assault in August 2022.
UTMB Police responded to a Galveston Police Department call about an assault taking place outside an apartment complex across from UTMB’s Galveston Campus. Because of the proximity to campus, UTMB Officers were the first to arrive on scene to find a male on the ground bleeding from multiple stab wounds. The officers also observed several other males fleeing from the scene. McGill immediately attempted to render life-saving aide to the victim, who unfortunately succumbed to his injures. Other UTMB officers gave chase to the suspects, who had run onto UTMB campus property. Two of the three subjects were subsequently apprehended by UTMB officers and charged with murder.
“For UTMB to be recognize nationally is a real honor,” UTMB Police Chief Ken Adcox said. “I could not be prouder of the men and women who make up our police department than I am at this moment.”
IACLEA also honored Adcox, who received the Administrative Excellence Awards in recognition of the department’s programs and innovative training opportunities relating to the prevention of violence in the workplace.