Corporal Ocanas was awarded the Purple Heart Award, a long-overdue recognition of an incident that happened 26 years ago. Corporal Ocanas has been with the department for close to 27 years. He is currently a D.A.R.E. instructor for 5th graders, the coordinator for our National Night Out event, and a member of our Crime Prevention and Bike Unit. He is loved and very well respected in our community. Thank you for keeping Baytown safe!
Here's the story behind his Purple Heart Award:
On June 17, 1998, while responding to a disturbance, dispatch advised that a male was "tearing up" the house and assaulting his wife and kids. Corporal Ocanas contacted an adult male at the residence, attempting to leave in a Jeep. Corporal Ocanas stopped the male and attempted to ascertain the male's involvement. The male immediately became aggressive. Male then attempted to walk into the house, against Corporal Ocanas' commands. Corporal Ocanas attempted to detain the male by grabbing his arm. The male resisted, pulled away from Corporal Ocanas, and struck him with an elbow. Corporal Ocanas then grabbed the male and took him to the ground, where he was eventually detained in handcuffs. During the struggle on the ground, Corporal Ocanas suffered a broken leg. He was treated at the hospital and made a full recovery weeks later.