Ballwin Police Officer Honored for Heroics

Editor's Note: The following was submitted by the :

Officer Derek Loeffel of the Ballwin Police Department recently was presented with The John J. McAtee Police Recognition Award, given by Mental Health America of Eastern Missouri, for acting above and beyond the call of duty while working with an individual experiencing a mental health crisis.

The award stemmed from an incident on October 8, when Loeffel responded to a domestic assault call. The suspect had assaulted a family member multiple times and had made several threats of suicide, authories said. When he arrived, the suspect allegedly was searching for a box cutter to use as a weapon. The female subject “continued to be combative and aggressive in her attempts to assault her family member in Loeffel’s presence,” police said. Loeffel managed to calm and restrain the subject before any physical harm was inflicted and made arrangements for the subject to be taken to a nearby hospital for evaluations.

Loeffel was also recently honored and received a Ballwin Police Department Commendation for a heroic and selfless act last month. On April 12, while traveling home from his shift, Loeffel encountered a two-car collision on Westbound Highway 64 in St. Charles County. After stopping his car to provide assistance, Loeffel said he noticed fuel was leaking from the engine compartment of an overturned vehicle that still had a passenger inside. Police said Loeffel immediately determined it was necessary to remove the occupant because of the fire risk.  Police said Loeffel removed the victim through a broken window, “just prior to the front end of the vehicle becoming engulfed in flames.” The victim sustained only minor injuries and was transported to a local hospital for treatment.