[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Pages 415-416]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       RECOGNIZING BRANDON MOORE

  Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Madam President, I rise today to honor Detective 
Brandon Moore, of the Morrow County, OH, Sheriff's Department and 
Ohio's first recipient of the Congressional Badge of Bravery.
  Established in 2008, the Congressional Badge of Bravery is an annual 
award from the U.S. Attorney General to public safety officers who 
display bravery in the line of duty.
  Earlier this month, Congressman Jim Jordan and I had the honor of 
presenting the award to Detective Moore, along with Morrow County 
Sheriff Steven Brenneman and sheriffs and law enforcement officers from 
across central Ohio.
  It was an honor to meet Detective Moore--to hear his story of heroism 
and to see his humility firsthand.
  In October 2010, Detective Moore was shot multiple times and nearly 
killed in the line of duty during an ambush and firefight.
  When you hear about what happened, you can imagine the scene.
  Then-Deputy Sheriff Moore received a report of neighbors engaged in a 
property dispute.
  He traveled to the scene. But in the course of the investigation, he 
suspected criminal drug activity in one of the homes.
  The story quickly turned to the unimaginable.
  One of the neighbors came out of his house with an assault rifle and 
started firing.
  Detective Moore was shot in the groin, leg, foot, and abdomen.
  As Detective Moore has described it, the normal reaction of fear, 
shock, doubt, and panic was overwhelmed by a calmness that only highly-
skilled police training could provide.
  Severely wounded and laying on the ground--Detective Moore first used 
his belt to create a tourniquet on his leg. He then shot and disabled 
his assailant from more than 50 yards away.
  In doing so, he saved himself, three civilians, and other officers.
  Yet his injuries were so life-threatening that he made the 
unimaginable call to his wife--Diandra, his high school sweetheart--
explaining what happened, wanting her to know how much he loved her and 
their children, Alec and Andrew.

[[Page 416]]

  Fortunately, help quickly arrived to the scene.
  Detective Moore was airlifted to the hospital for multiple surgeries 
and where he stayed for a month.
  Law enforcement from across central Ohio visited the hospital to show 
their support--speaking volumes of the solidarity of a sacred 
brotherhood and sisterhood.
  Today, Detective Moore is on the road to recovery--well ahead of 
schedule.
  He was told it could take two or three years before he could return 
to duty. Detective Moore thinks he'll do it in 18 months.
  He recently hit one of his goals of running a quarter of a mile 
without stopping. Before April, his goal is to run half a mile.
  And as difficult as the recovery has been for him--he remains 
grounded by humility and faith, and the love of his family.
  Diandra has been with him on every step of the highs and lows of 
rehabilitation.
  To their children, Alec and Andrew, when you're older, you'll 
understand more than most people, the meaning of duty, love, and faith.
  I had the honor of meeting Detective Moore's parents, who raised him 
and his siblings near my hometown of Mansfield, OH.
  His parents--mother Tommie and father Jim--still live there.
  Jim is also a police officer--the sense of duty and faith runs deep 
in the family.
  And it's not just for a father seeing a son follow his footsteps--
it's also for a mother seeing both her husband and son put on a uniform 
to protect the public.
  Like much of our great State, Mansfield is a place where you grow up 
with the values of hard work and fair play--service, community, and 
faith.
  Detective Moore's story illustrates those values as clearly as any.
  We ask a great deal from our law enforcement officials--to risk their 
lives each day and each night.
  And while we may never guarantee their safety, in honoring their 
service we give meaning to their sacrifice.
  That's what the Congressional Badge of Bravery reflects--the very 
character of our Nation that honors those who serve us.
  We ask. And as he says himself, guided by faith in God, family, and 
his fellow officers, Detective Moore gave. And we're all humbled by 
that service.
  Thank you, Detective Brandon Moore. A proud State and grateful Nation 
continue to offer our prayers and well wishes for you and your family.
  I yield the floor.

                          ____________________