CRYSTAL CITY, Mo. (Sept. 30, 2025) — Officer Tyler Griffin of the Crystal City Police Department has been awarded Missouri’s prestigious Medal of Valor by Gov. Mike Kehoe, recognizing his exceptional bravery during a December 2024 shooting incident involving an armed suspect.

The Medal of Valor is Missouri’s highest public safety award, presented annually to individuals who demonstrate “exceptional courage, extraordinary decisiveness and presence of mind, and unusual swiftness of action” in the effort to save or protect human life, regardless of personal risk. It is awarded by the governor following recommendations from the Medal of Valor Review Board.

Officer Griffin’s actions during a December 8, 2024, incident were credited as the basis for the honor. On that date, officers from the Festus Police Department and Crystal City Police Department responded to a report of a man firing a handgun from his vehicle near a White Castle restaurant. The suspect, later identified as Jarrett Wade Cousins from Bradford Arkansas, fled the scene at high speed toward Crystal City.

According to authorities, Cousins’ vehicle eventually crossed a median and came to rest in the northbound lanes of U.S. Highway 61-67. He exited the car holding a firearm in each hand. Despite repeated commands from responding officers, including Griffin, Cousins allegedly refused to drop his weapons and began firing multiple rounds.

Officers returned fire, striking Cousins in the abdomen. Despite being wounded, he reportedly attempted to raise one of his firearms again. Officers, including Griffin, responded with further force to subdue him before taking him into custody.

Shell casings were later recovered from both the White Castle parking lot and the area near Cousins’ vehicle. Cousins had been transported to the Level II trauma center in St. Louis in critical condition. Later police discovered the dead body of Clara Blaxton of Arkansas in the front passenger seat of the car Cousins was driving.

The Medal of Valor was established in 2004 by the Missouri General Assembly and was first awarded for acts of bravery in 2007. Eligible recipients include law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency personnel, and corrections or civil defense officers serving state or local public agencies.

Paul Barnard Editor

Paul Barnard is the editor of the Twin City News. Barnard Graduated from Norwich University, America's oldest private military college, with a B.S. in Communications and Media Technology. There he studied journalism and marketing. For years after, Barnard was in law enforcement and gained experience in the Special Investigations Unit and publishing all the department's press releases. As Barnard's family grew, he moved on to start Twin City News.

See Full Bio