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The contest, now in its fourth year, recognizes the bravery of the nation's First Responders - bravery Deputy Lawing displayed while deployed as part of a SWAT team to an incident in which he was shot and seriously wounded.
On December 12, 2007, officers in Burke County became involved in a standoff with an armed suspect who threatened to shoot anyone who approached her door. The SWAT Team, including Martin Lawing, was deployed, and Deputy Lawing was assigned to throw a phone into the woman's home so negotiators could try to establish communications. As he approached the home, police say the woman made good on her threat, opening fire and hitting Deputy Lawing in the neck. The wound has left him paralyzed, but he is undergoing intense physical therapy and hopes to regain the use of his legs.
Deputy Lawing, 31, joined the Burke County Sheriff's Office in 2002. He formerly served for five years in the U.S. Army's elite 3rd Ranger Battalion. He was one of more than 1,000 First Responders nominated by members of the public in the 2008 AMW All-Star Contest, and was chosen by online voting as one of eight weekly finalists. Then, through votes cast by the public at the America's Most Wanted website, www.amw.com, and via text message from Sprint phones, Martin Lawing was chosen as the AMW All-Star Contest Grand Prize winner.
AMW host John Walsh broke the news to Deputy Lawing in a phone call to the rehabilitation facility where the lawman is undergoing therapy. "Thank you for your courageous service," Walsh told him, "a lot of people besides your family are proud of you."
"We congratulate Deputy Martin Lawing on winning the 2008 All-Star Contest and for his selfless dedication and service to the community," said Chris Hackett, vice president of business and government solutions at Sprint. "Sprint continues its efforts to support the public safety community and their mission of protecting our families. For us at Sprint, it is not an opportunity but an obligation to serve the First Responder community."
As the Grand Prize winner, Martin Lawing will receive a check for $10,000 from Sprint, and be the guest of Sprint and John Walsh at the NASCAR SPRINT Cup Series™ All-Star Race in Charlotte, NC, on May 17.
A profile of Deputy Martin Lawing will be featured in the broadcast of America's Most Wanted on Saturday, May 24 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. In addition, Deputy Lawing's biography is featured on the AMW website (www.amw.com/allstar), along with profiles of all the First Responders who were nominated for the prize.
Photo Credit: FOX Television
