Four Obion County Deputies Awarded Medals Of Valor

Sgt. Preston Aldridge and Deputy Joshua Hutchens are receiving the Medal of Valor for their heroic efforts in July 2021, during a 12 hour stand off situation where a child was being used as a hostage. Both Aldridge and Hutchens held their positions for many hours attempting to make contact with the armed suspect. When the opportunity presented itself, Hutchens used his negotiation skills to convince the suspect to hand over the child , so the child could be looked at by medical personnel. It was during this exchange that Sgt. Aldridge and Deputy Hutchens seized the opportunity to gain control of the suspect to prevent him from retreating back inside the house. This allowed other Law Enforcement on the scene to enter the home and take the suspect into custody. Sgt Aldridge and Deputy Hutchens’ training, patience, quick thinking, and bravery combined resulted in two lives being saved that day.

Deputy Stacey Bostwick is receiving the Medal of Valor for saving the life of an individual from a drug overdose in October 2021. Deputy Bostwick responded to a call of two individuals found unresponsive in a parking lot. Once on scene he found one subject to be conscious but having slurred speech, constricted pupils, and having trouble holding balance. The other subject was still unresponsive, pale in color, with shallow and weak breathing. Deputy Bostwick’s training as a Law Enforcement Office and an EMT led him to recognize these to be a signs of a serious drug overdose, and at this point he chose to administer NARCAN to the unresponsive victim. The victim did show signs of improvement after the first dose was administered, but a second dose was needed along with other measures to keep this person alive until the ambulance was on scene to transport the subject to the hospital. If it had not been for Deputy Bostwick, we do not believe that person would be here today. His actions on the scene that day saved a life and allowed them to see another day.

Sergeant Joseph Key is receiving the Medal of Valor for his actions in October 2021. Sgt Key responded to a call of a female inside her bedroom with a gun to her head threatening suicide. He used his training and negotiation skills to convince the woman to remove her finger from the trigger of the weapon while they talked further. Sgt. Key was later able to convince her to remove the gun from her head and lay the weapon on the bed. This gave other deputies on scene the opportunity to safely detain her until EMS arrived to escort her to the hospital to receive the proper care. It was Sgt. Key’s training, patience, understanding, and negotiation skills that allowed him to save a life that day.

We are beyond proud of these Deputies and there aren’t enough words to convey the significance of their actions. So today we honor them each with the Medal of Valor, a Valor pin, and a Certificate of Appreciation from the Obion County Sheriff’s Office. Their bravery, dedication, and heroism are exemplary of what all Law Enforcement Officers should strive to be in the line of duty.