LAVONIA — Two months after a pair of Lavonia police officers were shot while conducting a traffic stop, the community gathered to watch those officers recognized for their work.
A near capacity crowd filled First Baptist Church in Lavonia Saturday night as local, state and federal officials paid tribute to the officers in a ceremony that culminated in Capt. Michael Schulman and Officer Jeffery Martin receiving Law Enforcement Purple Hearts and commendations for their handling of the incident in which they suffered gunshots.
"I'm glad that we have this opportunity to express our appreciation to Capt. Schulman and Officer Martin, but also to everyone who works every day to keep us safe," said State Sen. John Wilkinson. "I also thought about tonight, as the pastor has already alluded to, we're very fortunate that we're here tonight honoring these great officers instead of what the alternative could have been."
Wilkinson challenged those who pray daily to remember those in public safety who put on the uniform to protect communities every day.
"I can't think of anything we could do that's more important," Wilkinson said.
Frank Rotondo, executive director of the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police, addressed the crowd, but specifically the officers involved in the Dec. 12 incident in the parking lot of Zaxby's in Lavonia.
"I appreciate your tremendous diligence to come forward and get back to work, and to put your uniform on, because it's a trying situation," Rotondo said. "I've also found that you have the backing of this community, evidenced by the people here and also evidenced by the speakers who came before me."
Rotondo personally commended Schulman and Martin, saying the bodycam video from the incident likely will make departments and others who are not proponents of officer-worn cameras re-think that position.
"I like to use the phrase the law enforcement people of today are 21st Century centurions," Rotondo said. "The obstacles they face are different obstacles, and some obstacles are the same."
Rotondo attributed some of the current climate toward law enforcement to social media, but said overall the profession is better than when he entered it in January 1969.
"Continue your training, continue your education — it may save you one day," Rotondo told Schulman and Martin. "With that in mind, I wanted to tell you I reviewed the videotape from the shooting incident and I tell you, Officer, you did what has been preached for years and that is you sought cover with your weapon out to face the obstacles. If you didn’t, and you weren’t smart enough to do that you would not be here, so I think your training very clearly paid off."
A recurring theme throughout Saturday's two-hour service of celebration and thankfulness was what speakers called God's divine intervention to save the officers.
Police Chief Bruce Carlisle said one of the first calls he made was to his friend and mentor, Chief Mike Jones of Suwanee, noting they prayed on the phone and cried out to Jesus that night.
While he has no idea how many people called him, Carlisle said he asked every one of them to be praying. Those prayers, he said, worked.
"The bullet that went into Michael didn’t do what it was designed to do," Carlisle said. "It was designed to open up and fragment in a rotating shift and tear up everything in its path. It didn't do that. I don't why it didn't do that. And we couldn't understand why the bullet that hit Jeffrey didn't take his hand off. He got shot with a .40-caliber bullet. And then we realized when he went for his gun, the bullet hit his ASP baton and slowed it down enough not to take his hand off. There were miracles that night."
Congressman Doug Collins told those gathered the recent attacks on law enforcement officers across America are evidence the nation has lost its moral foundation.
"When have we become a society where it is ok to pull a gun and shoot at an officer?" Collins said. "When is it ok to shoot at anyone? When is it ok to live outside the law? We have lost our moral bearing. And if we have lost our moral bearing, right and wrong does not matter."
Other speakers included Dr. Larry Finger of Lavonia First Baptist Church, Lavonia Mayor Ralph Owens, Lavonia City Manager Charles Cawthon, Hartwell Police Chief Anthony Davis, State Rep. Alan Powell, the Rev. Todd West of Liberty Baptist Church, and the Rev. John Forbes of Pleasant Grove Baptist Church.
After being presented with the Purple Heart by Commander Farris T. Johnson of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, Schulman and Martin received departmental citations from Carlisle.
Speaking to the crowd, Schulman said he realized the only way he could get better and move on with his life was to forgive Khari Dashaun Gordon, 22, the man charged with shooting him.
"I was laying in the hospital, and I was thinking about how I could get better and how I could forgive," Schulman said. "And that guy that shot me, I'm going to forgive him because I have to. I know that all that anger that built up in me is going to affect my lifestyle. I want to get back to work, I want to get back to my family, I want to get back to what I love to do, what I enjoy doing, what I've been doing for 16 years in Lavonia."
Schulman said he has no regrets.
"If I had to do it all over again, I would," Schulman said. "That's what I'm here for. I'm here to protect and serve."
Asked after Saturday's ceremony what he will remember most about the day, Martin said, "Receiving the award. It's a great honor to receive that, and to be thought of in that way. A lot of people came to support myself and Capt. Schulman, so that's what stood out is the amount of people that came to support us and have our backs."
Martin's wife Lindsay, who played piano prior to and sang during Saturday night's service, said she is proud of how her husband handled the Dec. 12 situation, noting that at that time he had only been on the force for about six months.
"He's only been on the job since June, so I think being put in that situation so early on in his career he handled it excellent," she said. "They've kind of agreed that he handled it so well. I'm just really proud of him. He hasn't had a lot of experience, but I think his military training helped a lot and being in a situation that was as stressful as that was, him and Michael both just handled it with really grace, and he was just so calm. I couldn't be more proud of him."
Martin already has returned to work, and Schulman returned to work on light duty today (Monday, Feb. 13).
