On Wednesday, May 22, President Donald Trump presented the Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor posthumously to Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) Police Officer Brent Thompson.
Police Officer Thompson, 43, became the first DART police officer killed in the line of duty when he gave his life while engaging a mass shooter and saving the lives of countless civilians and fellow officers during a protest march in Dallas on July 7, 2016.
In attendance at the ceremony in Washington to receive his award were his wife, parents and DART Police Sargent Richard Tear.
Congress passed The Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor Act in 2001, which created the Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor, the highest national award for valor by a public safety officer. The medal is awarded annually by the President or Vice President.