On Monday, the Honey Grove City Council together with Honey Grove Police Chief Leigh Dixon, Fannin County Judge Randy Moore, and Fannin County Sheriff Mark Johnson recognized the heroic efforts of local law enforcement officers.
The recognition was in relation to a 10-hour standoff off with a man who had barricaded himself inside a home in Honey Grove the night of June 15, 2021.
Honey Grove Officer David Pruiett was the first to arrive on the scene of a domestic violence call and quickly took cover as a barrage of bullets came his way; one striking him in the leg. Precinct 3 Constable Kevin Mayberry arrived on the scene soon after and without hesitation ran towards Pruiett, dodging bullets to get his fellow officer to safety.
The standoff came to an end when officers entered the home around 9:20 a.m. the next morning, finding the man deceased.
Mayberry recalled taking “somewhere around 97 rounds in 13 minutes” and having to “run through bullets (to get to Pruiett), shoot my way to him and shoot my way back.”
Both Pruiett, who was flown to a Plano Hospital and released June 23, and Mayberry were recognized during the city council meeting along with Fannin County Detective B.J. Rogers and Seargent Cody Dixon.
Dixon arrived on the scene shortly after Mayberry and helped carry Pruiett to a patrol car to get him to an ambulance. Rogers piloted a drone watching over the residence for SWAT teams to be able to safely move in.
Honey Grove Mayor Claude Caffee said the council wanted to consider the feeling of those involved when asked why the officers hadn’t been honored sooner.
“We believe it is appropriate to allow them time to work through some of these issues and that this night would be more enjoyable as time has passed,” said Mayor Caffee. “Both of these individuals, we felt, deserved some recognition for the efforts they made. They were certainly not alone; we had probably 50 or 60 people from other law enforcement agencies who showed up in Honey Grove that night.”
The Paris Police Department SWAT team, Lamar and Fannin County Deputies, DPS SWAT, Texas Rangers, and the Plano Bomb Squad all responded.
