Carpenter parked his vehicle in a nearby driveway and ran over to where the man was lying in the road. By this time, a woman was kneeling by the man and holding some sort of bandage to the man’s head. Carpenter went back to his car and called 911. Describing the situation in full detail, he requested assistance. He took off his jacket, got a blanket from his car and went back to where the man was lying. Both Carpenter and the woman covered the injured man with the blanket. Carpenter then went ahead of where the man was in the road and directed the oncoming automobile traffic around the accident. About 5 to 10 minutes later the Salt Lake City Fire Department arrived, and they took the man to the hospital.

Carpenter could have gone home then, except that one other thing happened.

While Carpenter was watching Fire Department officers put the man in the ambulance, a young man stepped out of the crowd and confessed, “I’m the one that hit him.” Carpenter could see that this young man was shaken. He told him that the police would soon be there and that everything would be fine.

The young man’s name was Jason, and he seemed to Carpenter to be in bad shape. He would be rational one minute, then start crying and being emotional the next. He seemed to Carpenter to be running on adrenalin, perhaps even in shock.

Recognizing Jason’s instability, Carpenter calmed him down and got another blanket out of his car for him, while they waited for the police. It had been over an hour since Carpenter first called 911. He called again to find out that his call-in was second on the roster, as the police had to go to another site first.

Carpenter asked the 911 operator: “Do you want the witnesses to stay or leave?” She said that the driver of the car who caused the accident would have to stay and wait for the police, but she took several other witness statements over Carpenter’s cell phone.

Selflessly, Carpenter stayed on the scene, because he was worried about Jason and just did not think it was right to leave him alone until the matter was resolved.

Fortunately, an establishment located near the scene of the accident allowed Carpenter and Jason to wait inside their building in a warm, dry place, until the police finally arrived several hours after the initial 911 call. Carpenter did not have to give a statement, but he stayed to support Jason, who was still seemingly in a state of shock, until he gave a statement to the police.

As Carpenter was leaving to go home, Jason asked if he wanted his blanket back. Officer Carpenter told him, “No, you can keep it.”

Reflecting on Carpenter’s thoughtfulness and generosity, San Francisco Director of Field Operations Nat Aycox says, “Officer Carpenter went beyond the call of duty to assist two accident victims in their time of need, and we commend him. His selfless actions reflect positively on CBP.”