Top cops: Azle officers recognized at in-house awards ceremony

AZLE — Thursday night, July 25, the Azle Police Department hosted a small, private award and pinning ceremony for officers and their families at the Orchard Event Venue. Police Chief Ben Hall said this is the first year the department has had a dedicated ceremony of this kind, which the department used to honor the accomplishments and recognize the experiences of officers going back the last eight years.

Hall, who became Azle’s chief in 2022, said he was inspired to host this event because of the rough transition the department faced with the sudden retirement of one of its lieutenants as well as its former chief. Hall said the department had failed to properly record certain notable events, in his view, and this ceremony was the department’s way of rectifying the situation and setting a good precedent for the future.

“When I first got here, we were talking about commendations and recognition and it kind of became apparent that there was a gap,” Hall said. “With the loss of these people a lot of history went with them, where there may have been written commendations or things prepared, a lot of that stuff got lost.”

The first to be recognized was new Azle Officer Stefan Beard. Beard, originally from Chicago, Illinois, attended the University of Texas at San Antonio on a full football scholarship. With hopes of a future in law enforcement, Beard joined the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office as a detention officer and graduated from the police academy in 2023. Beard was joined by his wife and children. Beard said he feels blessed and grateful for the opportunity to serve the Azle community.

Another new officer, Joe Nelson, earned an associate degree in applied science from Kaplan College, received his basic peace officer licensing at Weatherford College and is working toward an intermediate license. Nelson has a passion for helping others and building strong relationships with the community. He has a goal of one day being a K-9 unit. He enjoys arts, crafts and spending time with his partner Chandler, family and friends.

The chief then recognized two corporals who were promoted in the last year. Officers Loren Lyon and Kevin Nguyen were recognized with a pining ceremony, along with their wives.

“When you take on a formal role of leadership at the police department there’s a level of responsibility that goes with it. You’re now not just in charge of yourself, you’re in charge of your coworkers and you’re in charge of officers and to some degree you’re in charge of your sergeant because if you screw up, your sergeant is going to hear about it. From a leadership perspective, this is the beginning of forming the rest of your career. It’s important to understand with each step, the burden becomes bigger, and the hard stuff becomes harder but there’s also more rewards because you’re touching more lives,” Hall said.

To conclude the ceremony, Cpl. Angel Perez was recognized with the APD’s Medal of Honor. This commendation came as a result of an incident in which Perez shot and killed an individual in the spring of 2016. Perez responded to a report of a man firing a gun in the 600 block of Alameda Road. When Perez arrived, 51-year-old Mark Minnick reportedly advanced toward Perez and pointed his weapon at the officer after an effort was made to deescalate the situation. Perez was placed on administrative leave during an investigation into the incident; he was found to be justified in defending himself.

“It is my privilege to present this final award,” Hall said. “It really should have been covered years ago. The decision he made is one that sticks with an officer for a lifetime … Cpl. Perez is commended for his bravery. His heroism and his professionalism were demonstrated, as well as his willingness to place himself at imminent risk of serious violence, injury or death in the service of his community. Unless you have known a person who has been through what he has been through or been through it yourself, you don’t get the full impact of those moments in life.”

Other awards from the evening include

• Officer Brock Royal, Cpl. Angel Perez, and Officer David Beane were each recognized individually with a Lifesaving Award for instances in which their actions helped to protect or ensure the safety and lives of others.
• Perez, Sgt. Jordan MacQuarrie, Officer Jason Castro, senior dispatcher Somer Lukowsky, and dispatcher Tessa Erwin were recognized together for Lifesaving and Exemplary Service Awards for their actions in resolving a critical missing person’s case.
• Loren Lyon, Sgt. Richard Lukowsky, Cpl. Chris Javarone, Cpl. Ty Tapp, and Cpl. Mike Winterrowd were presented with an Exemplary Service Award for their response to a serious accident involving death.
• Royal and Sgt. Eric Scheid were recognized together with a Lifesaving Award.
• Javarone and Officer Joseph Giittinger were recognized together with a Lifesaving Award.
• Kevin Nguyen and Perez were recognized together with a Lifesaving Award.
• Officer Marco Gallardo was recognized with an Exemplary Service Award.
• Officer Joseph Giittinger received the Purple Heart Award.

By the ceremony’s conclusion, the APD had presented one Medal of Honor, one Purple Heart Award, 11 Lifesaving Awards and 10 Exemplary Service Awards.