Brevard County Sheriff’s Agent Peter Stead Earns Life Saving Award, Medal of Valor
By Space Coast Daily // March 18, 2016
honored for exemplary performance of his duties
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – I had the honor of presenting Agent Peter Stead of the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office with a Life Saving Award and Medal of Valor, as well as recognizing him as Deputy of the Month, for his heroic actions in August 2015.
Agent Stead was originally hired as a Deputy Sheriff in October 2011 and was subsequently assigned as a Field Training Officer in September of 2014.
In August of 2015, just days after being assigned to the position of Agent in our Criminal Investigations Unit, Agent Stead and fellow agents were in the process of investigating criminal activity when they responded to a residence in the Port St. John area for a follow up investigation.
The case quickly turned into a volatile encounter during which time Agent Casey Smith was struck twice with shots fired from a subject within the residence. Agent Stead and a fellow agent were able to drag the injured agent out of the line of fire and administer emergency medical treatment.
The suspect continued to fire on the agents and Agent Stead used his body to provide cover and protect the critically injured Agent from being struck again, while lifesaving measures were being performed. Without question, Agent Stead’s actions helped save the life of a member of our BCSO family and fellow agent.
I want to personally commend Agent Stead for his exemplary performance of his duties. The outstanding teamwork and heroic actions of Agent Stead and all of the personnel involved in this incident are part of the reason that Agent Smith is alive and with us today.
Agent Peter Stead is a credit to the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office and the Citizens of Brevard County and I could not be more proud of him. Agent Jason Roberts and Agent Casey Smith were also recognized for their heroic actions and presented their awards at our Agency’s Annual Award Ceremony earlier this month.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey has been a law enforcement officer for over three decades. Sheriff Ivey is a graduate of the FBI National Academy and has a Bachelor’s Degree from Daytona State College in Management and Supervision. Sheriff Ivey’s background in law enforcement is inclusive of Management, Criminal Investigations, Narcotics, Patrol Services, Public Integrity Investigations, and Corrections.
Prior to being elected in 2012, Sheriff Ivey served the citizens of the State of Florida as a Resident Agent in Charge for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. As a member of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Sheriff Ivey developed and created the country’s first ever statewide Task Force on Identity Theft. That same year the Task Force was named one of the top five most innovative programs in the country by the International Association of Chiefs of Police and investigated approximately 44 million dollars in fraud cases. Additionally, as a member of FDLE, Sheriff Ivey created the Child Abduction Response Team (C.A.R.T) that re-defined the way Child Abduction cases are conducted throughout the country today. The program was later selected as the most innovative program in the country by the International Association of Chiefs of Police and is now used as a nationwide model in the response and investigation of child abductions.
Sheriff Ivey has testified before the United States Congress on law enforcement related matters and has extensive experience in the area of Public Integrity Investigations. Sheriff Ivey was honored as the Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s Special Agent of the Year (1996) and was also recognized by the Commissioner of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for his Outstanding Contributions to Criminal Justice. In August of 2011 Sheriff Ivey was honored by the National Organization of Victims Advocacy for his work at the national level as an advocate of victim’s rights and protection.
Sheriff Ivey speaks regularly on topics such as Identity Theft, Crime in America, Human Trafficking, Domestic Violence, and Self Defense through Mental Preparedness. Sheriff Ivey firmly believes that Crime Prevention and Education are vital to reduce our crime rate and protect our community.
