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RESOLUTION NO. 11,224
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3 A RESOLUTION TO AFFIRM THE CITATIONS FOR OFFICER JACK
4 DAVID COOPER AND OFFICER JOHNNY LEE GRAVETT TO RECEIVE
5 THE MEDAL OF VALOR FROM THE LITTLE ROCK POLICE
6 DEPARTMENT FOR CONSPICUOUS BRAVERY DISPLAYED IN THE
7 PRESENCE OF A RISK TO LIFE.
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9 WHEREAS, on February 1, 2002, Officer Jack Cooper and Officer Johnny Gravett, during
10 an arrest and altercation in west Little Rock, so distinguished themselves as to be nominated for
11 this award pursuant to General Order 200 (II)(A) of the General Orders Rules and Regulations of the
12 Little Rock Police Department, and
13 WHEREAS, it is with great pride that the Board of Directors of the City of Little Rock,
14 Arkansas, accepts, endorses, and publishes these nominations and citations,
15 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE
16 CITY OF LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS:
17 Section 1. After proper nomination and endorsement, the following citation is hereby,
18 affirmed:
19 For conspicuous valor performed during the fulfillment of duties by Little Rock Police
20 Officer Jack David Cooper, which involved a knowing risk of life. On I February 2002 at
21 approximately 1257 hours, Officer Cooper, acting in response to a disturbance call involving a
22 male armed with a knife and barricaded within a restroom at a west Little Rock apartment
23 complex, attempted to disarm the suspect and to assure that he received appropriate medical
24 attention for the delusions he expressed about his wife and infant child having been killed by
25 vampires. Officer Cooper, working with Officer Johnny Lee Gravett, spent several minutes trying
26 to calm the suspect, and succeeded in disarming him of the lock blade knife that he had
27 brandished to several civilian workers in the office of the apartment complex. When Officer
28 Cooper attempted to escort the suspect away from the office area, a struggle ensued as the suspect
29 violently resisted leaving the area. At one point, the suspect, despite having been administered
I OC -spray to force him to submit to being taken in custody, managed to push Officer Cooper onto a
2 floor near a sofa. While propped in this position, the suspect succeeded in removing Officer
3 Cooper's weapon, but Officer Cooper continued the struggle and attempted to regain the weapon
4 and resolve the matter peacefully. The suspect then fired twice into Officer Cooper causing fatal
5 injuries. As reported by Officer Gravett, the suspect was also reaching for a backpack which
6 contained an additional firearm and other knives. The clear and present danger to himself and
7 others demonstrated by the suspect more than justified the actions taken by Officers Cooper and
8 Gravett. The courageous actions of Officer Cooper to protect others in the area were above and
9 beyond the call of duty, and reflect the best service and traditions of the Little Rock Police
10 Department. For such conspicuous valor in the face of a sure risk of death, the Little Rock Police
11 Department awards the Medal of Valor posthumously to Officer Jack David Cooper.
12 Section 2. After proper nomination and endorsement, the following citation is hereby
13 affirmed:
14 For conspicuous valor performed during the fulfillment of duties by Little Rock Police
15 Officer Johnny Lee Gravett, which involved a knowing risk of life. On 1 February 2002 at
16 approximately 1257 hours Officer Gravett, acting in response to a disturbance call involving a
17 male armed with a knife and barricaded within a restroom at a west Little Rock apartment
18 complex, worked with Officer Jack David Cooper in an attempt to disarm the suspect and to assure
19 that he received appropriate medical attention for the delusions he expressed about his wife and
20 infant child having been killed by vampires. Officer Gravett, working with Officer Cooper, spent
21 several minutes trying to calm the suspect. When it seemed appropriate for Officer Cooper to
22 escort the suspect away from the office area of the complex, where several civilian employees were
23 still located, a struggle ensued as the suspect violently resisted leaving the area. In an attempt to
24 subdue the suspect without the use of deadly force, Officer Gravett unsuccessfully attempted
25 physical restraint and the use of OC- spray. Instead, the suspect charged Officer Cooper and
26 pushed him onto a floor near a sofa. While propped in this position, the suspect obtained Officer
27 Cooper's weapon and eventually fired it twice fatally wounding Officer Cooper. Officer Gravett
28 successfully prevented the suspect from firing a round at him, or from obtaining an additional
29 handgun and knives from a nearby backpack. Unable to subdue the suspect, and with Officer
30 Cooper mortally wounded, Office Gravett used his teeth to clear the jam of his own weapon and'
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then used deadly force to neutralize the threat posed by the suspect. The clear and present danger
to himself and others demonstrated by the suspect more than justified the actions taken by Officers
Cooper and Gravett. The courageous actions of Officer Gravett to protect others in the area
knowing that one officer had been severely wounded and that the suspect intended to shoot him
were above and beyond the call of duty, and reflect the best service and traditions of the Little
Rock Police Department. For such conspicuous valor in the face of a sure risk of death, the Little
Rock Police Department awards the Medal of Valor to Officer Johnny Lee Gravett.
ADOPTED: February 5, 2002
ATTEST: APPROVED:
Nan Wood, ity Clerk
APPROVED AS TO LEGAL FORM:
!6mYtit�j
Thomas M. Carpenter, City Atlurney
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Jir0ailey, Mayor