Abilene Police Department promotion ceremony honors multiple officers, one Medal of Valor

ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) – The Abilene Police Department (APD) recognized and promoted multiple officers and a forensic scientist at the department’s main conference room on Thursday evening.

APD celebrated an officer’s promotion to Sergeant while another was awarded the Medal of Honor.

Officer Jerod Daniel was promoted to Sergeant, and Officer Ryan Arnold received the Medal of Valor for his actions in March 2024, when he entered a burning home on South Willis and rescued a disabled woman.

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Assistant Chief Joel Harris discussed the last time an officer had a Medal of Valor award.

“I think the last time we gave one out was in 2017, and this year, we had an officer who put himself at great risk to go into a burning house to carry a woman out. So, we’re happy to recognize him tonight.” Harris said.

During the ceremony, Harris addressed the performance of APD officers.

“I think our officers have shown a great deal of not only compassion and empathy when dealing with citizens, but also a great deal of bravery and the ability to operate really well under stress. There’s several awards tonight where you can see that they really performed under stress, sometimes in a stressful situation where a citizen’s life could be lost if they didn’t intervene, sometimes putting themselves in harm’s way in order to accomplish that. Really proud of the courage demonstrated in the professionalism. Harris said.

Kyle Lassetter was named Officer of the Year, and several other awards were presented, including Commendation and Meritorious Service awards, seven Life-Saving Awards, and the Civilian of the Year award, which went to Dianna Arndt.

Several awards were presented, including Commendation and Meritorious Service awards, seven Life-Saving Awards, and the Civilian of the Year award, which was given to Forensic Scientist Dianna Arndt. Officer Kyle Lassetter was named as the Officer of the Year.