A letter of commendation will be awarded to all other officers who were involved and assisted in the incident.
Woodruff said, “We are a team; it is important to give recognition to all those who were involved, not just one.”
Based on that conviction, Woodruff insisted that each officer who was involved in the incident receive a letter of commendation.
Woodruff also praised Meeker Police Chief Robert Hervey’s assistance in the incident.
Woodruff suffered a stab wound to the abdomen Aug. 21 while trying to prevent a domestic situation from erupting at Pioneers Medical Center. Woodruff had to be airlifted to Grand Junction, where he underwent surgery to repair the wound, which was not life-threatening.
The Rio Blanco County Sheriff’s Office reported that at roughly 3:50 p.m. Aug. 21, Woodruff and Meeker Police Chief Robert Hervey responded to the hospital after being contacted by the parents of Logan Piper, 19, of Meeker. The parents were reportedly bringing their son to the hospital for an evaluation and treatment and felt that he might become uncooperative once at the hospital.
Woodruff and Hervey were inside the hospital when the parents arrived.
Piper reportedly began fighting with his father in the parking lot outside the emergency room entrance and allegedly assaulted his father, knocking him to the ground.
A nurse inside the hospital told Woodruff and Hervey about the fight, and they both reportedly ran to the parking lot and confronted Piper. Upon contact, Piper allegedly sprayed Woodruff with pepper spray and then produced a knife with the blade extended, allegedly stabbing the sheriff once in the left lower stomach.
According to the sheriff’s office, the weapon was a folding knife about 3.5 inches in length with a blade one inch in width.
Piper then reportedly began running south with Woodruff and Hervey in chase. Woodruff, however was only able to run a few feet before his injury stopped him.
Hervey radioed for assistance and multiple units from the Rio Blanco County Sheriff’s Office, the Meeker Police Department, the Colorado State Patrol and Colorado Parks and Wildlife responded.
According to a RBCSO press release, Piper ran into the hospital employee parking lot south of the hospital and south of Cleveland Street.
After a brief standoff with Hervey, Undersheriff Michael Joos and Colorado State Trooper Mark Patterson, Piper was taken into custody and transported to the Rio Blanco County Detention Center, where he was held on a $100,000 bond for the initial charges of attempted first-degree murder and first-degree assault.
Woodruff was airlifted to St. Mary’s Hospital in Grand Junction, where he underwent surgery.
Fortunately, the knife blade missed all vital organs and Woodruff was released from St. Mary’s late Friday afternoon. Woodruff returned home to Meeker and was expected to make a full recovery in four to six weeks.
Travis Mobley of the RBCSO said Friday that the initial charges of attempted first-degree murder and first-degree assault have since been amended to one charge of assault with extreme indifference, assault in the first degree for threatening a police officer and two counts of felony menacing. Mobley said Piper is still in custody in lieu of the $100,000 bond.
The Meeker office of the Ninth Judicial District of Colorado reported Friday that the preliminary hearing for Piper will be held Feb. 6.
RBCSO Patrol Sgt. Glenn Wilson expressed the significance of Woodruff’s award when he said, “The Purple Heart is among the highest honors. It recognizes one who puts himself in harm’s way.” Referring then to Woodruff, Wilson added, “It’s hard for a humble man to take credit for that.”
