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At its regular meeting on November 7, the Bartlesville City Council presented officers from the Bartlesville Police Department with awards to recognize the tactics they used during a recent incident in September that involved a woman waving a knife and threating people on the Pathfinder route.

Chief Tracy Roles, Sgt. Tyler Diedrich, Sgt. Travis Martinez, Cpl. Brad Dunkle, and Reserve Officer Ray Raley were honored with the what the City Council was calling a "Life Saving Award." Presenting the award on behalf of the City Council was Deputy Chief Rocky Bevard.

The incident occurred on September 20 in the early afternoon when a Dispatch call reported a woman chasing another woman with a knife on the Pathfinder near Chick-Fil-A. The woman with the knife was ultimately found ear the disk golf course in a wooded area. During the encounter between the woman and officers, she was instructed several times to drop the knife but did not obey. Officers reported that the knife was attached to a long stick and the blade appeared to be up to six inches long. During their encounter with the woman, she did attempt to charge towards the officers but rather than escalate the situation by forceably attacking her, they maintained a negotiation stance and talked to the woman for over 30 minutes until she turned away and began walking away on the Pathfinder. At that point, the officers were able to approach the woman and subdue her. 

As part of the presentation, City Manager Mike Bailey said, "This situation could have ended very differently, given the circumstances and weapons involved." Bailey praised the tactics used by the officers in handling the incident so it came to a peaceful end without injury to either officers, the woman, or any other by-stander in the area.