Major receives German award for moral courage

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Travis Edwards
  • 86th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany --  "There was no time to think; I just did it ... it was about helping someone out and doing the right thing."

Maj. Deron Warren, an emergency room physician for the Landstuhl Regional Medical Facility in Germany, stopped a robbery at a restaurant in Kaiserslautern, Germany, in April 2011.

For his bravery and courage, Polizeipräsident (commissioner) Wolfgang Erfurt, the Chief of Polizei for Kaiserslautern, awarded Warren the Auszeichnung für Zivilcourage, (civil courage award) Feb. 28, 2012. The award is only given to a handful of people each year and this was the first time the award was given to a U.S. citizen or Air Force member.

"It is a great honor for me when I get a chance to once a year honor the men and women who make extraordinary sacrifices without thinking of themselves first," said Erfurt. "Especially honorable since this is the first time we have awarded this medal to a U.S. citizen who showed active moral courage in the face of possible danger."

Warren recalled the event as it unfolded.

"The weather was nice and my family and I were out doing errands; as we got out of the car to walk to the store, I saw a struggle at the entrance to the restaurant," Warren said. "I was literally five feet away from them; the two men were struggling and speaking German, I didn't know what they were saying but when the owner of the restaurant's wife yelled for help, that's when I stepped in."

Warren grabbed the would-be thief, placed him in a headlock and slowly brought him to the ground placing his body weight on the man preventing him from fleeing the scene.

"I still didn't know what was going on, I wasn't sure if I even had the right guy or if he had a weapon or something," he said.

Warren added that the owner then placed the man in a foothold to further prevent the man from escaping until the Polizei arrived.

Only a few minutes later, security forces showed up to take initial statement and get answers, he said.

A few days later, German Police Lt. Bernd Riffel, German Police liaison officer here, called Warren to get his statement from the incident. After the meeting, Riffel decided to submit a package for the prestigious award.

"I felt what [Warren] did was good enough to warrant the award," said Riffel, who has been working on Ramstein for seven years. "This is the first time I've ever put any one in for this award and the first time I have ever seen it given to an American military member."

Warren said being a military member comes with a certain responsibility, to not only your nation, but to the country you are a guest of.

"The time where you are least prepared is the time you are tested," said Warren. "You find out who you are. Every member of the military in a different country creates an impression on that community, whether good or bad. I am just glad I was able to make a good one."