Bartlett Cop Wins Kane Co. Officer Of The Year Award

ELGIN, IL - From the Kane County Chiefs Of Police Association: The Kane County Chiefs of Police Association, in partnership with the Batavia Moose Lodge #682 would like to announce the winner of the Louis Spuhler Award for outstanding police work in 2017. The winner is Officer John Maertzig, Bartlett Police Department.

The following is a summary of the incident taken from the nomination letter submitted by Chief Patrick Ullrich:

During the past year, Officer Maertzig was recognized for saving the lives of four different individuals and displaying exceptional courage during several different high-risk incidents. On February 25, Officer Maertzig played a critical role in saving the lives of two different individuals during the same 12-hour shift. He successfully revived an unresponsive male after performing CPR. Within hours of that incident, Officer Maertzig revived an unresponsive male who had apparently overdosed on heroin by administering two doses of Narcan.

In October, Bartlett Police Officers were dispatched to a domestic situation involving a firearm. Officer Maertzig volunteered to carry the ballistic shield and make contact with the husband who was armed with a handgun. He resolved the situation peacefully and the husband voluntarily surrendered the weapon.

On December 10, 2017, Officer Maertzig received Bartlett’s Unit Citation Award for his actions during an incident involving a suicidal person who was armed and barricaded inside a residence. Officer Maertzig made verbal contact with the individual and established a rapport with him until the Northern Illinois Alarm System Emergency Response Team arrived on scene. The individual eventually surrendered and was transported to a hospital for evaluation. Two weeks later, on Christmas Eve, Officer Maertzig and another officer were credited with performing CPR and utilizing an AED to save the life of a male who went into cardiac arrest.

The Louis Spuhler Award is named after a retired Lieutenant from the Kane County Sheriff who approached the Batavia Moose Lodge with an idea to recognize the top police officer in the county. Lt. Spuhler passed away before he could see his idea put into action. The award was named in his honor. This was the 41st annual event.

From Kane County Chiefs of Police Association Award Committee Chair, Chief David Kintz, “Each of the 13 nominations this year was an example of the great work that officers do throughout the county on a daily basis. It is a difficult process for the Batavia Moose Lodge to only pick one winner.” Chief David Summer, President of the Kane County Chiefs of Police Association, added “All the front-line officers are the true heroes in our profession. They are the ones who protect us from evil as well as providing positive services for those in need”.

The event was held at the Pheasant Run Resort. Rockford Police Chief Dan O’Shea was the keynote speaker. Chief O’Shea applauded the great work that officers do every day. He spoke of the importance of taking care of the mental health of officers and several programs he has been able to implement in Rockford.

Photo courtesy of Kane County Chiefs of Police Association