When the moment came yesterday to honor the Baltimore officer who rescued a pit bull that had been set on fire 10 days ago, sparking a furor over animal cruelty and a reward that now tops $23,000, the city's police commissioner didn't credit her training, her bosses or her colleagues.
He praised Officer Syreeta Teel's parents, Thurman and Deborah Evon, who he noted instilled values that transcend any training the Police Department can provide.
"Officer Teel didn't need us to teach her to be a good person," said Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III at the City Hall ceremony that included the officer, her mother, father and sister and a bevy of city leaders.
"We are incredibly honored by her service, and the city is better for it," Bealefeld said.
Teel's parents beamed as official after official took to the podium and thanked their 25-year-old daughter - the mayor, the police chief, the commander of the Western District, the head of animal control and the director of the Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter, where veterinarians tried but ultimately failed to nurse the dog they named Phoenix back to health.
Veterinarians in Pennsylvania had to euthanize Phoenix last weekend, and since then people from around the country have flooded the city with e-mails, letters and money for a reward for tips leading to an arrest and a conviction of whoever poured gasoline on the dog and set her ablaze.
Police said they were investigating leads but said nothing else about the probe.
Teel was on routine patrol last month when she saw smoke, turned a corner and saw the dog injured in the middle of Presbury Street. She said onlookers watched but did nothing, and later refused to help police identify an attacker. Teel used her sweater to put out the flames and quickly got the dog help.
"I didn't expect this at all," Teel said about the attention the case has prompted. "I was just doing what my family taught me to do."
Jennifer Mead-Brause, executive director of the animal rescue and care shelter, told Teel that while some "just see a dog, you saw a living being that was suffering and in need of your help. ... We know that in Phoenix's eyes, you were her hero."
