February 28, 2020
By News Director Jared Atha
Members of the Oklahoma Senate honored the courage and sacrifice of Oklahoma Department of Corrections employees on Thursday, acknowledging their service to the State of Oklahoma.
Lawmakers applauded ODOC staff, who were honored at the agency’s annual awards banquet in November. Sen. Wayne Shaw, R-Grove, and Rep. Justin Humphrey, R-Lane, sponsored the resolutions, which were read in the Senate chamber.
Thursday’s honorees included Correctional Officer of the Year, Sgt. Christopher Chapa. Chapa, with the help of a facility nurse and others, used his First Aid and CPR training to revive a North Fork Correctional Center inmate injured in a violent assault.
The inmate had been stabbed through the heart, was not breathing and had no pulse, but he survived his near-fatal injuries due to Sgt. Chapa’s and his coworker’s heroism.
ODOC honorees were also greeted by House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, and Rep. Humphrey.
