December 9, 2006 (Deputy Gary Parks):

A Tyler County Sheriff's Deputy was shot during a traffic stop last night in Hillister. The shooting happened at 10:30 off County Road 4455. Tyler County Sheriff Jesse Wolf says Deputy Gary Parks has been working for the department for more than 16 years. He was flown to a Beaumont hospital and the sheriff says Parks is expected to make a full recovery.

Representatives from the Texas Rangers and Tyler County Sheriff's Deputies are still searching for the shooter. Sheriff deputies are looking for a black male, in his 30's, with short hair and a thin goatee. He was last seen driving a two door, silver Mazda. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call the Tyler County Sheriff's Office.

July 14, 2005 (Officer Dan Alford):

Nashville Police Officer Dan Alford was shot in the stomach and left shoulder while trying to break up a drug deal at the John Henry Hale Homes in July. Police said his PACA vest saved his life.

“I could heat the bullets smacking the wall around my head,” Alford said at a recent press conference. “I sat there and had a conversation with myself saying, ‘I have got to return fire or this guy’s going to kill me.’ Next thing I knew, I fired until everything went quiet. It wasn’t like Hollywood where people fly through the walls or crazy things like that happen. I could have given up and personally, I think if I had just laid there I would have died or would have been killed. You can’t give up, ever.”

The suspect was shot in the arm in the gun battle. He faces attempted first-degree murder charges.

April 14, 2005 (Officer Jonathan Butcher):

Officer Jonathan Butcher responded to a disturbance call at the Kash n’ Karry in Belleview, Florida. When the Officer entered the store he asked the suspect to come outside with him. When the suspect refused Officer Butcher tired to arrest him. However, when Officer Butcher pulled his handcuffs out the suspect pulled a gun. He shot the manager of the store. The officer turned to seek cover but the suspect shot him in the back. He then turned and fired a fatal shot at the manager. Officer Butcher was hit twice. The suspect left the store and turned himself over to police at a convenient store a few miles away.

April 11, 2005 (Officer Mark Connolly):

Officer Mark Connolly was completing a traffic stop when he heard a vehicle with loud exhaust approaching his location. The vehicle was traveling at a high speed but slowed as it neared his location. Officer Connolly observed that the driver and passengers in the vehicle had a fixed gaze straight ahead making no eye contact with him.

Officer Connolly followed in his patrol unit and observed that the vehicle was exceeding the speed limit and at this time activated his emergency lights and siren. The driver of the suspicious vehicle turned off the headlights and accelerated running stop signs in an attempt to evade. Officer Connolly maintained his distance until the suspect vehicle entered a dead end street, ran off the roadway and became stuck in a ditch. Officer Connolly observed the driver, front seat passenger, and rear seat passenger exit the vehicle, fleeing on foot. He had taken his service weapon in hand as he approached the vehicle and observed that the front seat passenger although fleeing was armed with a handgun. Officer Connolly ordered the passenger to drop the weapon when he observed a muzzle blast to his right. He turned to see the driver armed with a .40 caliber handgun shooting at him. Officer Connolly began returning fire and was knocked to the ground by a round that struck him in the chest.

Febuary 14, 2005 (Deputy James Scott):

A civilian placing a 911 call to report a possible prowler at his residence said that he dropped a gun and accidentally shot himself in the leg. When the police arrived at his residence, the caller told dispatch that the officers could enter his home. As the police officers entered a back bedroom to assist the caller, he opened fire on them.

Deputy James Scott was shot three times, once in the arm and twice in the chest. Scott was taken to Cumberland Medical Center and later transferred to UT Medical Center where he was treated for his injuries.

Deputy Scott is now recovering at his home thanks to the bullet-resistant vest he was wearing.

January 23, 2005 (Morton Grove Detective):

Two North Suburban police officers were executing search and arrest warrants at an apartment in Morton Grove. The two suspects were believed to have been involved in a home invasion the day before. The officers knocked on the door and announced the warrant. They heard rustling inside and decided to kick sown the door. Upon entering the residence one of the suspects raised his gun to the officers. The officers then shot the suspect. The second suspect began shooting at police from behind a door. The officers returned fire, also shooting the second suspect. One of the officers took a direct hit to the vest. Thanks to his bullet-resistant vest this officer suffered only severe chest bruising.

January 1, 2005 (Officers Keith Meadows):

Veteran police officers Keith Meadows and Jay Farr arrived at the 800 block of Johnston Street to serve a warrant on Bernard Woods. Woods, an ex-convict, was wanted for his involvement in two recent incidents involving women. According to police, when the officers arrived at the residence, Woods fired at them from inside without warning.

Meadows were struck in the chest, but the bullet apparently ricocheted off his concealable bullet-resistant vest. He was also shot in the forearm.

Farr was hit a number of times in the elbow and hip. Although his vest did not take a direct hit, police say it did impede the progress of one of the bullets which struck Farr's arm.

After the shooting, Woods retreated into the house. Shortly afterwards, more police arrived to assist Meadows and Farr. Woods eventually emerged and shot at police again in an attempt to escape. They returned fire, killing Woods.

The wounded officers were taken to a hospital. Meadows was released the same day. Farr was released a few days later.

Both officers were wearing PACA's RTGS Level II concealable vests.

October 23, 2004 (Reserve Officer Sammy Lawrimore):

Somerville Police Department reserve officer Sammy Lawrimore II was shot once in the chest during a nighttime shootout with a man who ran from police when asked for identification. The man, identified as Scott Joseph Bartlow, ran behind a building and shot at police when they followed him.

Officer Lawrimore was struck once in the chest, but the round was stopped by his bullet-resistant PACA concealable body armor. Officer Lawrimore was able to recover quickly and grab Bartlow's gun. Another officer on the scene fired at Bartlow, killing him.

Officer Lawrimore was only a few feet away from his assailant when he was shot at. He was examined at a nearby hospital and released.

"A bulletproof vest saved his life," said Somerville Mayor Ray Long.

Officer Lawrimore was wearing a ZPG Level IIIA concealable vest.

September 12, 2004 (EMT Christopher Cook):

Timothy Koch, Manager of Somar Enterprises, recently mailed a letter and newspaper article thanking PACA on behalf of one of their customers. Christopher Cook credits a PACA vest with saving his life in a near-fatal bomb explosion. Chris purchased the Vector KGSIII vest shortly before deploying to Iraq.

Cook, whose family lives in Mukwonago, was among eight injured members of a Waukesha-based Guard unit that was targeted by a suicide car bomber Sunday as the American soldiers convoyed through Baghdad.

The National Guard would not release the names of those injured in the attack on Company B of the 118th Medical Battalion -- a unit activated in February to provide medical help to U.S. troops in Iraq.

Family members identified Cook, an emergency room nurse at Waukesha Memorial Hospital, as one of the three most seriously hurt. All three are being flown to a hospital in Germany for treatment. Four others suffered minor injuries, and one other was getting medical care in Iraq. None of the injuries was life-threatening, Guard officials said.

According to his mother, Cook suffered multiple fractures in his left leg, a broken right ankle and bomb shrapnel in his face and elsewhere. Those closest to Cook presume the injury means his tour of duty in Iraq is over.

Michelle Tenhagen of Elkhorn, his fiancée, said she hopes that he will be back in Wisconsin soon and that the two of them can move ahead with a wedding that has been in the works for about two years.

Tenhagen, also a nurse, said he told her that more surgeries will be needed to repair his left leg.

"He can recover from this," she said. "I'm just trying to be strong about it, because I know when he gets home; he's going to need a lot of help."

April 24, 2004 (Officer Christopher Ford):

Police Officer Chris Ford was hit four times by gunshots, but survived the one aimed at his heart, thanks to his PACA body armor.

Officer Ford came in contact with the shooter, Eric Boykin, at the end of an early morning high-speed car chase which led police up and down highways and dirt roads. Boykin, 32, was a suspect in an attempted murder from an earlier shooting at a convenience store. The chase ended in Elamville around 2:30 a.m. when Boykin's vehicle blew through spike strips placed in the road by Alabama State Troopers. As police surrounded the suspect's red Honda Accord, he opened fire on them. Officer Ford was hit four times and was knocked down, but was able to get up and return fire. Boykin, who was shooting from within his car, was killed shortly after by police.

Alabama State Trooper Lt. Charles Ward pulled the injured officer into his patrol car and proceeded immediately to Dale Medical Center in Ozark. Officer Ford underwent emergency surgery to repair damage to his shoulder and left forearm, and was listed in stable condition.

Boykin's rampage reportedly began after an argument with a man in the convenience store concerning a woman. After the shooting at the store, Boykin was said to have fired shots randomly in the woman's neighborhood just before the car chase with police began.

Officer Ford was wearing a ZG Level II concealable vest.

April 19, 2004 (Officer Thomas Meyer):

St. Louis Metro Police Officer Thomas Meyer was saved from injury by his bullet-resistant vest when a man slashed at him with a knife in an early morning confrontation on the street. The officer shot and wounded his attacker, who ran off but was found about three hours later. The 20-year-old suspect was taken to a local hospital in serious condition with a gunshot wound to his right side. Police were seeking an assault charge against him from the circuit attorney's office.

According to police, Officer Meyer stopped to question the man at about 12:45 a.m., but the man ignored him and continued walking. Officer Meyer went around the corner to look for him when he was attacked by the suspect. The officer's shirt was slashed and his miniature radio cord cut, but his body armor protected him, police said.

The attacker used a knife in a stabbing motion towards Officer Meyer's chest. As a result of the officer leaning back to avoid the blow, the stabbing motion became a slashing one, and the blade bounced off the soft trauma plate, which was inserted in the officer's vest over his heart. Officer Meyer fell back, and then fired one shot at his assailant, who ran off.

Officer Meyer was wearing a KGS Level II concealable vest.

March 23, 2004 (Officer Willard Keith Stine):

Police Officer Keith Stine was searching a cemetery for a robbery suspect on the night of March 24 when the suspect popped up from behind a headstone five-to-six feet away and fired two shots into Stine's chest with a handgun. Stine was spared serious injury, thanks to his PACA ZG2 vest. Although Stine was blinded by the muzzle flash, he did manage to fire one shot in the direction of the shooter. When Clay Police Chief Cindy Cato arrived on the scene, Stine had resumed his search for the suspect, assisted by Webster County Deputy Steve Madden.

Stine had been with the Clay Police Department for only one month, and had received his PACA vest just six days earlier. According to Cato, Officer Stine is on paid administrative leave, and will return to active duty soon.

October 18, 2003 (Officer Shannon Ashe):

On Saturday, October 18th, 2003 at approximately 1810 hours I responded to subject with a gun call on Magnolia Street in the town of Sylva. Upon my arrival and shortly after I got out of my patrol vehicle, a white male (later determined to be Harold mcVay) pointed a semiautomatic handgun at me and fired twice. One of the rounds struck the PACA body armor I was wearing. The round hit the vest in my abdomen over my liver and just below my rib cage.

The body armor stopped the bullet from penetrating my body and from what my doctors tell me, saved my life. I was able to return fire but I did not hit the suspect. After back up arrived on the scene, I was transported to Harris Regional Hospital by Westcare EMS. Shortly after I had arrived at the hospital, the suspect was shot by a Deputy Sheriff. He ahs survived and is being held in a state prison Hospital until his trial.

My injuries were bruising and soreness. The impact area is still sore and hard from the impact, but my doctor seems to believe that it should heal.

I would like to thank you for your excellent product you manufacture. Please keep up the good work.

Sincerely,

Shannon Ashe

Police Officer

August 14, 2003 (Officer James Graham):

On August 14, 2003, Officer James Graham was inside his car blocking the inside lane of traffic due to an automobile accident. The driver of a Ford truck hit his patrol car from the rear as Officer Graham sat inside. The officer was taken to Christus St. Elizabeth Hospital for evaluation.

August 2003 (Unknown Soldier):

In August 2003, an unkown soldier in Iraq was working at a detainee and interrogation facility. The soldier had just pulled in to the parking lot and exited his vehicle when a IED went off in a tree about 15 meters away. The IED was a pipe bomb made with PVC Pipe and shotgun shells. The soldier suffered from a concussion and his eardrums were injured. He had shrapnel taken out of his shin, feet, middle thigh, and his arm. His vest ensured that no shrapnel hit his torso.

August 1, 2003 (Officer Shane Woodward):

On August 11, 2003, Officer Shane Woodward responded to a call of shots fired. The suspect shot Officer Woodward three times with a shotgun. The first two shots struck the officer in the wrist and bicep. The third shot struck the officer’s torso where it was stopped by his body armor.

Gallatin Interim Chief Caldwell Jenkins said, “The body armor quite possibly saved his life.”

“Had he not been wearing it, we don’t know what might have happened, had that shot got into his body,” adds Don Bandy, President of Gallatin’s Fraternal Order of Police.

May 24, 2003 (Officer Chris Cornwall):

On May 24, 2003, Officers Chris Cornwall and Steve mcCall were sent to investigate a report of a menacing. The officers were told that the caller had been threatened with a gun by the suspect. The caller took the officers to the apartment where the suspect lived. When the officers knocked on the door, the suspect opened the door and fired one round into the chest of Officer Cornwall. The officer was struck in the center of the chest. Officer Cornwall returned fire. The suspect jumped from a third story window to escape capture. The suspect broke his pelvis in the jump. Officer Cornwall was taken to Miami Valley Hospital where he was treated and released.

May 23, 2003 (Officer Peter Garrito):

On May 22, 2003, Officer Peter Garrito and Officer Daniel Perez were on routine patrol when they were approached by a man who said he was being followed and was afraid he would be robbed. When the officers approached the suspect, a gun fell from his waistband. Officer Garrito picked up the gun and the suspect pulled another gun and opened fire. Garrito then fired at the suspect with the gun he picked up. The suspect was struck several times.

Officer Garrito was taken to Kings County Hospital. An attending doctor said he would have been killed by one of the bullets, which hit directly over his heart, if he had not been wearing his ballistic vest.

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said the shooting marked the 81st time that a bullet-resistant vest has been credited with saving the life of a New York City police officer since the department began using them in 1983.

April 28, 2003 (Officer Greg Rushing):

On April 28, 2003, Officer Greg Rushing was involved in a head-on collision in Marion, KY. Officer Rushing’s cruiser collided with a tree. Thanks to his ballistic vest, Trooper Rushing feels that he walked away from the accident without being seriously injured.

November 24, 2002 (Trooper Gary R Horner):

On November 24, 2002, Trooper Horner was completing a routine security check of the westbound rest area on Interstate 64 in New Kent County when he observed a suspicious male in a sleeping bag. Trooper Horner approached the person and requested identification. The man began to fire at Trooper Horner with a 9mm handgun. Trooper Horner was struck six times. He was shot three times in the chest area, which his ballistic vest stopped. Trooper Horner had the presence of mind to reload his service pistol during the exchange of gunfire. The man was fatally wounded and died at the scene. Trooper Horner made a full recovery.

October 25, 2002 (Officer Thomas Roberts):

On October 25, 2002, Officer Thomas Roberts was operating an unmarked police car. He observed a serious traffic infraction and took up the hunt for the offending vehicle. While in pursuit, Officer Roberts lost control of his vehicle and collided with a tree. Due to Officer Roberts PACA vest he did not receive blunt force chest trauma, broken ribs or internal organ damage. He did break his pelvis and damage his ankle. He was cut out of his cruiser by the Jaws of Life and flown via PennStar to St. Luke’s Hospital.

July 29, 2002 (Officer Matthew Youngs):

On Monday, July 29, 2002, Officer Matthew Youngs attempted contact with an assault suspect following a brief foot chase. The suspect became trapped between two buildings and attempted to climb a six foot fence. When ordered off the fence and to the ground, the suspect dropped to a crouch between a large metal utility box and an adjacent building. When Officer Youngs moved to obtain a better view of the suspect’s actions, the suspect moved from hid concealed position, assumed a three point stance and shot Officer Youngs once in the chest with a Charter Arms .38 Special.

The suspect and Officer Youngs traded gunfire for only a few seconds. In this brief time, Officer Youngs was shot three more times. The suspect was shot eight times and died on the scene.

If Officer Youngs had not been wearing his VWC KGSIIIA vest, he would not be alive today.

January 2002 (Officer Raul DeJesus):

In January 2002, Officer Raul DeJesus was in the process of escorting an offender to his cell at the Connally Unit in Kenedy, TX. As he walked past a row of cells, another inmate attempted to stab Officer DeJesus in the right torso. The assailant used a homemade spearing weapon. The weapon was made of tightly rolled paper tipped with a pointed metal object. Thanks to Officer DeJesus’s stab-resistant body armor the attempt failed.

According to officials at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, this wasn’t the time a thrust vest have proven valuable. More than 1,550 vests have been distributed to Texas Prison units in the last two years.