Detroit Police Officer LeAnn Dean, a 1987 graduate of Belleville High School, was honored with a Medal of Valor at the Dec. 2 “Above & Beyond Awards Ceremony” at Cobo Hall.
The ceremony was put on by the Detroit Public Safety Foundation with major contributions from PVS Chemicals Inc. and Quicken Loans.
Officer Dean was honored along with Officers Lloyd Allen, Cyd Bright, and Thomas Cooper for an incident that started at about 9:40 a.m. Feb. 16.
Officers Dean and Cooper, both assigned to the Fourth Precinct, were working as Scout 0404. While on patrol, they observed smoke coming from the roof of an occupied apartment building at 5900 Michigan. Believing the building was on fire, Officer Dean notified dispatch and requested fire to respond. The officers exited their patrol vehicle and immediately entered the apartment building.
Once inside, they found the hallways and stairs filled with smoke. They began pounding on apartment doors and shouting, “Fire! Fire! You have to leave the building!”
People inside, many of them small children, began leaving the smoke-filled building. After several minutes, the officers left the building to get fresh air. At that point, additional police and fire units were arriving on the scene.
Officers Dean and Cooper reentered the building along with Officers Allen and Bright. The officers continued to warn the occupants and managed to clear the entire building, including freeing a man who was locked in a storage room in the basement.
After exiting the building the second time, Officers Dean and Cooper were treated for smoke inhalation.
“The actions of Officers Dean, Cooper, Allen and Bright were heroic and selfless and helped to save many lives,” the information in the printed program said.
Each person being honored that evening in the huge event were permitted to bring four guests. Officer Dean brought her father Harry Dean of Belleville, her sister Sue Gadja of Van Buren Township and her brother and his wife Edward and Lisa Fleming of Dearborn.
Her son Matthew Ruiz, 19, a senior at a Dearborn High School, had to play on his hockey team that night in order to qualify for the finals a few days later so he was unable to attend the event.
Officer Dean is celebrating her 21st year with the Detroit Police Department. She is the daughter of Harry and the late Dorothy Dean of Belleville.
Among those making remarks at the event was Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan who said, “I want to congratulate the recipients of the Medal of Valor, Purple Heart, Public Safety Partnership, and City Change Maker Awards. I applaud the efforts of tonight’s honored guests, volunteers, and sponsors for making a positive impact in our community, and going above and beyond the normal demands of service.”
Officer LeAnn Dean