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Brooks receives Medal of Merit from U.S. Capitol Police

Congressman Mo Brooks

Wednesday morning, Congressman Mo Brooks, R-Huntsville, was awarded the Medal of Merit by the United States Capitol Police for his conduct during the baseball field shooting in 2017.

The award states, “Medal of Merit presented to The Honorable Mo Brooks for your bravery in the face of an active shooter, and for the immediate response in aiding the wounded and injured following the Alexandria Shooting Incident at Eugene Simpson Stadium Park on June 14, 2017.”

“I am honored by the U.S. Capitol Police award of their Medal of Merit,” Brooks said. “Quite frankly, I did little more than anyone else did on the baseball field that fateful day when five innocent people were shot in a hail of gunfire that saw well over 100 bullets fired in roughly seven minutes. When I saw Zack Barth dive into our dugout with a bullet hole in his leg, it seemed only natural to take off my belt for use as a tourniquet. When the ‘shooter down’ cry went out, it seemed only natural to run onto the field to help a colleague and friend, Congressman Steve Scalise, by applying pressure to the bullet hole in his hip to slow down his blood loss. I am confident that, had the situations been reversed, they would have done the same for me.”

“To me, the real heroes of the baseball field assassination attempt are U.S. Capitol Police officers Crystal Griner and David Bailey, both of whom exposed themselves and defended our lives against vastly superior firepower, even after being wounded,” Brooks said. “To me, the real heroes are Alexandria Police Department officers Nicole Battaglia, Alexander Jensen and Kevin Jobe, who did not hesitate to rush into a chaotic scene of rapid-fire gunfire. Each of these officers showed true bravery, helped slow down and kill the assassin as he was working his way into position to shoot into a first base dugout full of congressmen and staffers and saved dozens of lives. I will never forget all these officers did to prevent a political assassination attempt from being much, much more deadly and worse. I am forever grateful for their courage and bravery.”

On June 14, 2017, during a practice session for the annual Congressional Baseball Game for Charity in Alexandria, Virginia, James Hodgkinson shot U.S. House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, U.S. Capitol Police officer Crystal Griner, congressional aide Zack Barth and lobbyist Matt Mika.

Hodgkinson was killed on the scene in the gun battle with police. Hodgkinson was a 66-year-old from Illinois, who had been a campaign volunteer for Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign. Brooks’ name was printed on a short list of congressmen in Hodgkinson’s possession when he was killed.

Brooks represents Alabama’s Fifth Congressional District.

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Brandon Moseley is a former reporter at the Alabama Political Reporter.

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