Will County deputy receives FOP award for action that averted potential harm to school children

Will County Sheriff's Deputy David Frederick has received an award from the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) State Lodge for his quick thinking and actions that averted potential harm to area school children who were on a field trip.

"Even though he was off duty that day, David Frederick was looking out for the safety of students who were on an outing to the zoo," said Illinois FOP State Lodge President Chris Southwood. "David's vigilance kept a known sex offender from causing any harm to innocent school children."

On May 5 this year, Deputy David Frederick, who was off duty, was serving as a chaperone for the kindergarten class of Braidwood's Reed-Custer Elementary School. The class was heading out for a field trip to Brookfield Zoo in Chicago, and while the students were boarding the bus, Frederick noticed another chaperone whom he knew to be a former inmate and registered sex offender. While keeping a close eye on the other chaperone, Frederick contacted the Braidwood Police department. By the time the buses arrived at Brookfield Zoo, police were waiting to arrest Jason Escalante, who was then jailed and charged with being a child sex offender on school grounds.

The Fraternal Order of Police, founded in 1915, is the largest organization of sworn law enforcement officers in the United States. With a proud tradition of officers representing officers, the FOP is the most respected and most recognized police organization in the country. The Illinois FOP, chartered in 1963, is the second largest State Lodge, proudly representing more than 34,000 active duty and retired police officers - more than 10 percent of all FOP members nationwide. Visit http://www.ilfop.org for more information.