MOUNT GILEAD — The future changed rather quickly for Morrow County Sheriff’s Deputy Brandon Moore on Oct. 21, 2010. Moore paid a visit to a farm near the Knox-Morrow county line on a tip of landowners growing marijuana and was subsequently shot by the suspect while attempting to take photos.
“The first thing I thought was mental fear and panic,” said Moore. “But things then calmed down when I got my gun out and focused on putting bullets on the target.”
Moore sustained gunshot wounds to his left leg, thigh and groin but was able to draw his .40-caliber handgun and wound the suspect in the leg, who was then taken into custody and arrested.
“Things just changed so dramatically,” said Moore about the shooting. “Everything later became peaceful because I knew help was on the way,” he said, telling how he pulled off his belt and used it as a tourniquet on his leg. Reports later showed that he could have bled to death within five minutes if the bullet had entered his body just a fraction of an inch differently.
Moore then spent a month at Grant Medical Center and several weeks at Morrow County Hospital. He has gone through 10 surgeries, including the removal of his spleen and the insertion of a titanium rod in his shattered femur.
Despite the extent of his injuries, Moore’s recovery is moving along rather quickly.
“It’s hard to believe it’s been more than four months already,” said Moore. “The doctor said it will now be about a week and a half until I can put any weight on my foot.”
With all the pain and stress heaped on him for numerous weeks on end, Moore kept his spirits up. Some good news finally came his way recently when he was selected as the National Sheriff’s Association Deputy Sheriff of the Year. “I was really excited,” said Moore when he first heard about the award. “It’s a big honor since hundreds of thousands in the United States are nominated. To be the one selected is really exciting.”
Moore’s nomination for the honor came from Morrow County Sheriff Steven Brenneman, based on his bravery and dedication to his job.
“I was quite pleased. It was well deserving,” said Brenneman. “It’s not just for him but for other officers as well. It recognizes everything he has gone through.”
The interest in law enforcement for Moore began when he worked a campus safety position while in college. He went through Ohio Highway Patrol Academy training and followed up with continuing education classes. He was a security guard for Brinks in North Canton and was a sheriff’s officer at a corrections office before landing a spot at the Morrow County Sheriff’s Office where he has been employed the past eight years.
