I was fortunate to have a true "hero" as a friend and a team mate for a few years. All he ever wanted was to be a SWAT team member, and once he made it, he was a great asset to us, both professionally and personally. He was a big guy, strong and fast and very "A" type personality. An aggressive yet passionate officer, just as proud to arrest the baddest of the bad as he was for helping someone out in need. On September 29, 2006 he died in the line of duty. A POS who was wanted out of New Orleans for two counts of murder attempted to ambush another officer. The POS was firing two handguns at the retreating officer when "Step" ran around the corner, saw what was happening, and then moved himself into the line of fire so the officer could safely take cover. Step was able to engage the POS, firing 13 times, 8 of which hit center mass of the suspect. During the firefight, Step was mortally wounded by a round from the suspect that entered under his vest, travelled up through his neck and severed both carotid arteries. The 5 remaining rounds in which Step missed were fired as he fell to the ground and bled to death. He sacrificed his life for a fellow officer without hesitation, to me, that is a true HERO.
Today we dedicated our outdoor range to the memory of my friend, Dennis Stepnowski
