Sheriff honors citizen heroes
Published: August 21, 2007
CROWN POINT — Art Hamilton was in a neighbor’s yard when Lake County sheriff’s police Officer Joe Kraus’ patrol car spun out of control and came to rest in a church parking lot near 93rd Avenue and Merrillville Road in Crown Point.
Hamilton, 55, Gary Lucas, age not available, Rose Ann Colon, 44, and her son Walter, 29, decided in that moment to be something other than bystanders.
When the patrol car began to burn that May 11, they pulled the officer from the car. Friday, the Lake County sheriff recognized them for their heroism with special Citizens Life Saving Awards.
“We were glad to help, and I think I speak for everybody when I say we’d do it again,” said Lucas, responding to a heartfelt thank you from Kraus and his family during a ceremony at the Lake County sheriff’s office.
Lucas, a sheet metal worker from Crown Point, was out driving when he came upon the accident scene, and Rose Ann Colon and her son Walter, both of Hammond, were on their way to get business licenses at the Lake County courthouse.
The Colons saw the entire accident as they drove toward the courthouse that day. They saw Kraus’ car clip a curb as he tried to avoid other vehicles that had not yielded to his blaring sirens, she said.
When a fire in the patrol car began to spread and the smell of gasoline filled the car’s interior, the witnesses decided it was time to act.
Realizing pulling the officer from the passenger side was not an option because of the car’s condition, they wrestled the driver’s-side door open and carefully carried Kraus, who was bleeding from injuries to his head, to safety.
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