Alan Guderjahn honored in Malta with Purple Heart

Retired Phillips County Sheriff's Deputy Alan Guderjahn has received the Purple Heart Award for an incident in which he was injured. Alan was the responding officer for a 911 call about a male walking along the highway in only socks, underwear, and a sweatshirt. When he made contact, Alan attempted to talk to the man and encourage him to get in his patrol vehicle to go to the hospital for help. Without provocation or warning, the individual pulled a knife from his sweat-shirt and attacked Deputy Guderjahn. Alan was badly cut and had life-threatening injuries.

Each year, members of the Montana Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association have the opportunity to nominate dedicated and deserving colleagues for awards. MSPOA recognizes officers for lifetime achievement in law enforcement, on-going contribution to the profession, agency, and community, and for specific incidents. Due to COVID-19, the annual awards banquet was canceled. In place of the annual banquet, MSPOA board members traveled the state and gave out awards at the recipients' home agency.

All of the award recipients are public officials dedicated and committed to being the professional and honorable law enforcement officers and civil servants the citizens of Montana expect.