Riverside Police Officer Honored for Law Enforcement, Volunteer Work

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that K9 Officer Andrew Marr of the Riverside, Mo., Police Department has received the 2016 Enoch B. Morelock Award.

The Enoch B. Morelock Award is an annual recognition of outstanding moral character, service to law enforcement and service to the community. Marr was honored on Thursday, Aug. 18, 2016, during the 14th Annual LECC Training Seminar in Springfield, Mo. The prestigious law enforcement award, presented annually by the U.S. Attorney’s Office Law Enforcement Coordinating Committee, is named in honor of Sullivan County Sheriff Enoch B. Morelock, who was the first recorded line of duty death in the Western District of Missouri on Dec. 19, 1847.

Marr was recognized for his life-saving actions and display of compassion that occurred on May 23, 2016. Shortly after 10 p.m., Marr (newly appointed K9 officer) arrived to back up another officer who had stopped behind what appeared to be a stalled vehicle on the I-635 bridge over the Missouri River. They encountered a man standing between the vehicle and the concrete barrier wall. Marr arrived and, as the senior officer working with two younger officers, took control and began talking to the man in hopes of persuading him to get off the wall. Marr assured the man he would get help.

With radio chatter about getting rescue boats in the water, the man began to lean forward and push off the wall. Marr grabbed him and pulled him back over the wall. With the help of other officers, Marr was able to place the man in handcuffs for his safety.

Marr placed his arm around the man and began to ask him what was wrong. Marr continued to sit with the man and comfort him, patting him on the shoulder and talking with him until EMS arrived.

In addition to his police work, Marr is a volunteer firefighter with the West Platte Fire Department, responding to fire and emergency calls on his off time to help protect his community.

His compassion doesn't stop there; since 2011 Marr has been a member of the Missouri Law Enforcement Funeral Assistance Team. After the loss of good friend and co-worker, Officer Jeff Taylor, Marr decided he wanted to join the team and give back to other agencies and families who suffer through a line of duty death. Marr has been co-chair of the Funeral Team’s annual fundraiser motorcycle ride for the past three years, which is the main source of funding for the team’s activities.

Enoch B. Morelock Award

Sullivan County Sheriff Enoch B. Morelock was the first recorded line of duty death in the Western District of Missouri on Dec. 19, 1847, in Sullivan County. Sheriff Morelock was shot and killed during a court‑ordered sale of the accused=s property. The accused killer, Patrick McIntry, was charged with 1^st Degree Murder but was later acquitted. Within a year Mr. McIntry was found shot to death on the banks of a local river.

The annual Enoch B. Morelock Award recognizes individuals with outstanding moral character, service to law enforcement and to the community outside of law enforcement. Recipients may include officers from local police departments, sheriffs= offices, state agencies, or federal agencies as well as investigators from prosecutors= offices.