Watch: Vermont state trooper makes heroic rescue of 8-year-old girl from icy pond



A Vermont state trooper made a heroic rescue of an 8-year-old from an icy pond.

Two sisters were playing on a frozen pond when they fell into the water in northwestern Vermont. An 80-year-old homeowner was able to pull the younger girl to shore, but the neighbor was unable to swim and couldn't save the older sister. The elderly man contacted the police.

Vermont State Trooper Michelle Archer responded to an emergency call about a small child plunging into a frigid pond on private property in Cambridge, Vermont. Archer was in the area and arrived at the scene within five minutes after the 911 call was made.

Archer retrieved a rope and flotation device from her police cruiser. The state trooper noticed the motionless girl in the middle of the pond, as seen in the police bodycam video.

Despite the freezing temperatures, Archer jumped into the icy water to rescue the 8-year-old girl.

Archer swam to the helpless girl in the bone-chillingly cold water and rescued the girl by bringing her back to the snow-covered shore.

The child snapped back to life and began making noises after being rescued from the freezing water.

A second state trooper arrived at the scene as Archer was bringing her out of the water. The second Vermont state trooper carried the girl to an ambulance that was already there.

The girl was rushed to the University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington, Vermont. Despite her injuries first thought to be life-threatening, the girl has made a complete recovery and returned home within several days.

"There wasn’t a whole lot of thinking going on. Something was taking over – training. It was the opposite of panic," Archer told local outlet Vermont News First.

Vermont State Police officials commended Archer, trooper Keith Cote, and the homeowner “for their selfless, heroic conduct, and all three have been recommended to receive the agency’s Lifesaving Award."

The incident happened on Dec. 17, but authorities didn't release the police bodycam footage until Friday.

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Body cam video: Vermont State Police Trooper dives into icy pond to save child www.youtube.com

Officers won't face charges for shooting anti-'Cop City' militant who shot Georgia state trooper in the gut



Police encountered a leftist militant earlier this year who had taken a forward operating position near the future Atlanta Public Safety Training Center in DeKalb County's South River Forest, which radicals have dubbed "Cop City." Rather than comply with officers' lawful orders, the militant opened fire, striking a Georgia state trooper in the gut.

For crossing the blue line, 26-year-old Manuel Esteban Paez Teran paid the price.

On Friday, the special prosecutor tasked with investigating the shooting indicated that no criminal charges will be brought against the Georgia State Patrol troopers involved in the Venezuelan's demise.

The shooting

Leftist groups have long campaigned against the construction of the new $90 million police training center in Dekalb County's South River Forest, employing terroristic tactics to get their way.

Militants have conducted firebombings on police officers and law enforcement offices; attacks on firefighters and medics; sabotage on construction equipment; and intimidation efforts at the home of at least one state trooper.

In response this violent campaign, multiple law enforcement agencies executed a joint operation on Jan. 18 near the future training center in order to "identify people who are trespassing and committing other crimes on the property," according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

In his 31-page report released Friday, Mountain Circuit District Attorney Pro Tempore George R. Christian noted the operation comprised two teams, the second of which included GSP SWAT team members, GBI special agents, Atlanta Police Department officers, and K-9 units.

This second team, assigned to an area known as RC Park, cleared a barricade and entered a wooded area, where they removed three individuals without incident. After dealing with the initial group of trespassers, officers encountered Teran.

Teran, a radical who used "they/it" pronouns, was in his tent with the flap closed when troopers arrived. The troopers present at the time of the shooting were Mark Lamb, Jonathan Salcedo, Bryland Myers, Ronaldo Kegel, Royce Zah, and Jerry Parrish.

According to the prosecutor, the troopers clearly identified themselves as members of law enforcement — a fact also clear from the unmistakable markings on their uniforms. Teran reportedly refused to leave, prompting troopers to use nonlethal pepper ball rounds.

In response to the nonlethal rounds, "Teran began firing from inside the tent at the Troopers," wrote Christian.

It appears from the report that Teran fired at least four shots. One of those bullets struck Parrish "in the body below his armor plate and above his belt on his right side" and ended up "lodged adjacent to his spine."

Having been forewarned of possible improvised explosive devices in the area, hearing the gunshots, and figuring at least one of their fellow officers for wounded or worse, the troopers — including Parrish — returned fire. They managed to hit Teran at least 57 times.

Investigators found a Smith & Wesson M&P Shield 9mm, 90 rounds of handgun ammunition, foreign currency, a Venezuelan passport, an Industrial Workers of the World membership card, a Florida driver's license, and a Panamanian ID card in Teran's tent.

The reaction

In the aftermath of the shooting, leftist groups called for retaliation.

TheBlaze previously reported that in one post on the website "Scenes from the Atlanta Forest," leftists noted, "An unnamed forest defender has been shot and killed in Weelaunee. Consider this a call for reciprocal violence to be done to the police and their allies. On Friday, January 20th, wherever you are, you are invited to participate in a night of rage in order to honor the memory of our fallen comrade. ... Make them pay."

Various radicals took to the streets in the days that followed, including Jared Dowell, the son of House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.).

A nonprofit founded by twice-failed gubernatorial candidate and election denier Stacey Abrams sided with the extremists, demanding "justice" for Teran, who went by "Tortuguita."

According to the special prosecutor, justice had already been served on Jan. 18.

Justified

Christian wrote that in light of "the severity of the crimes of Aggravated Assault, Felony Obstruction and Hindering, Attempted Murder, and Possession of a Firearm During commission of these crimes that were committed by Teran, Teran was an immediate threat to Lamb and his fellow Troopers."

"Looking at the totality of the circumstances, the use of lethal (deadly) force was objectively reasonable and Trooper Lamb did not act with any criminal intent," added Christian.

The prosecutor reached the same conclusion for all other troopers involved, indicating no criminal charges will be brought against them as they "did not commit any criminal offense."

Unhappy leftists

Reuters reported that Brian Spears, an attorney for Teran's family, said that the family is disappointed by Christian's decision, urging officials to release the full report.

"Release the file now. No more excuses," said Joel Paez, Teran's father, reported WSB-TV.

The GBI indicated in a statement that requests for records in this case will be denied until that time the criminal investigation and prosecution by the state of Georgia and Attorney General's Office are no longer pending.

Teran's mother responded to the results of the investigation, saying, "No matter how the case is resolved, nothing will bring Manuel back. ... For me, justice would be for people to follow Manuel's example," reported the Guardian.

The Vote to Stop Cop City campaign issued a statement on X, saying, "The state's response to Tortuguita's murder has been to lie and cover up the facts. Today's announcement is just the latest in a long line of changing stories and withholding evidence. Tortuguita's memory and the memories of all those stolen by police killings demand that we all continue the collective struggle for a future without state violence. In their name, we fight to Stop Cop City."

Defend the Atlanta Forest wrote, "Justice doesnt [sic] come from the courts; it comes from our dedication to fight for liberation through hardships. We honor the dead by refusing to give up."

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Video: Man punches state trooper in face on side of highway — and Good Samaritans pull over to help subdue attacker



Dashcam video caught an unsettling scene, as a man who had been walking along the shoulder of Interstate 4 punched a Florida Highway Patrol officer in the face, WTSP-TV reported.

What are the details?

The state trooper was called just before 10 a.m. Friday about a man who was wearing a Mickey Mouse shirt and carrying a duffle bag walking on the left shoulder of the interstate just west of exit 5 in Tampa, the station said.

The trooper approached the man — identified as Alexander Hernandez Delgado — and asked him why he walking along the interstate, WTSP said.

Dash cam shows drivers help Florida trooper punched by suspect on I-4youtu.be

Delgado told the trooper he's an artist, and his mother had just kicked him out of the house, the station said, citing the FHP report. After running his name through a database, the trooper reportedly tried to search Delgado and put him in the back of his cruiser, WTSP said.

"The subject became argumentative and stated that I am bothering him and that he would like to be left alone," the trooper noted in the arrest report, according to the station. "I state to him that I'm just trying to assist him off the interstate and attempted to guide the subject toward the back seat of my patrol vehicle."

Dashcam video then captured the moment Delgado punched the officer in the face.

"The subject attempted to run north toward the center median guardrail, and I attempted to place the subject in custody, and the subject proceeds to resist with violence throwing several punches and striking me again," the trooper noted in the report, according to WTSP.

Dashcam video showed the officer tackling Delgado near the median, but authorities said Delgado kept fighting, the station noted.

Good Samaritans step up

But soon a truck driver pulled over, ran toward the scuffle, and helped subdue Delgado so the trooper could handcuff him.

Image source: YouTube screenshot

Other drivers also pulled over and ran to the scene to help the trooper.

Image source: YouTube screenshot

What happened to the trooper and the suspect?

Paramedics checked out the trooper and Delgado, WTSP said. The trooper had a bloody nose but was otherwise OK, the station said, adding that Delgado had a minor cut on his chin.

Delgado was arrested and booked into the Hillsborough County Jail on charges of battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting an officer with violence, WTSP reported.

Alexander Hernandez Delgado (pictured below) has been charged with battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting officer with violence. He's being held in the Hillsborough County Jail without bond.pic.twitter.com/aTuXkYVjOv
— Shane Battis TV (@Shane Battis TV) 1647700180

'The cops can't do it all themselves'

Randy Sutton — founder of Wounded Blue, an organization that helps law enforcement officers who are injured in the line of duty — had high praise for the motorists who stopped to help the trooper.

“The cops can’t do it all themselves,” Sutton told WFLA-TV, adding that “every officer, doesn’t matter what community they serve, is in danger, every single day that they’re out on the streets."

The trooper went right back to work Friday following the incident, the station said, adding that the Good Samaritan motorists also went about their day's business.