Senator Mary Beth Carozza presented five surviving police officers with state commendations during a Dec. 10 ceremony at the Pocomoke City headquarters of armor manufacture Hardwire LLC. Photo by Brian Shane

By Brian Shane

Staff Writer

Philadelphia Police Sgt. Erik Bullock was called into a middle-of-the-night barricade situation on April 30, 2023. It dragged on for 20 hours before police decided to make entry into the building. When officers breached the door, the suspect was right there with a shotgun – and struck Bullock at point-blank range in his abdomen and shoulder.

“I didn’t realize I got hit here” – Bullock runs a hand along his midsection – “until I got down and took my vest off. If it wasn’t for you guys, I wouldn’t be here. That blast was definitely fatal. I was sore for a couple days but that’s about it. My family thanks you so much.”

Bullock was one of five police officers whose lives were saved by bulletproof vests manufactured by Pocomoke City-based Hardwire LLC. The men and their families got to share their stories of survival and thank Hardwire employees in person Dec. 10 at company headquarters for a special event called “Hardwire Saves.”

“These guys are still sitting up, going out every day. I can’t say enough about what you do to make that happen,” said Sgt. Ed Hinchey, the event’s emcee and former police officer from Pittsburgh who also was saved from gunfire by his ballistic armor. He now works for Safariland, an armor distributor represented at the event.

“Every step on the line, every person that runs a forklift with material, may be bringing in the next piece of equipment that’s going to bring these guys home to their families – and makes the difference between a celebration like this, or a name being engraved on the wall in Judiciary Square at the police memorial site,” Hinchey added.

The soft armor worn by the officers whose lives were saved has been in development for a decade. Hardwire CEO and founder George Tunis said this product is now the de facto standard for Special Forces, the Army and the Marines. “Essentially, the exact same fear is on these officers that were speaking today,” he said.

An engineer by trade working with composites, Tunis in 2000 founded Hardwire in his garage. He grew the company by securing government contracts with the military. Now an industry leader, Hardwire is now headquartered in a 130,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in downtown Pocomoke City.

The ballistic armor manufactured in Pocomoke is made from some of the world’s strongest fibers. When those textiles are layered and then pressed by machines exerting tons of pressure, it becomes a composite material that can stop slow or stop bullets moving at supersonic speed.

Some bulletproof material made by Hardwire can be as thin as a clipboard – in fact, they do sell bulletproof clipboards, which can also double as a handheld whiteboard.

The company saw early success making landmine-resistant armor for soldiers in combat before pivoting to ballistic armor, for both police officers and their vehicles. Tunis said his company is now involved in manufacturing ultra-strong molded steel as well.

“What’s amazing is we’ve moved not just to police armor, but the entire DOJ, the FBI, the DEA, the U. S. Marshals, everything they wear except their underwear and their helmets, we make,” he said.

Other officers recognized included Anthony Huizar from Sparks, Nevada, who was shot in the chest during a traffic stop in late March by a suspect. Deputy Aaron Reynolds from Broadwater County, Montana, survived a head-on highway collision in January because his armor took the brunt of the impact.

Officer Matthew Haney with the Phoenix Police took a .45 caliber round to his abdomen on Sept. 3, and his Hardwire armor slowed it to the point where the bullet ended up lodged in between his lower rib, inches from his lungs. His partner, Officer Zane Coolidge, shot in the neck, did not survive the alleyway gunfight.

“Out of all that, it was an outpatient surgery to get the bullet out. I left with a big fat bruise, a hole in my heart, but I was able to go home. Then I got the news that we had baby number two on the way,” recalled an emotional Haney.

Jeremy McKenna was just nine days out of the academy on June 30, 2023. As a sheriff’s deputy in Clackamas County, Oregon, he and a partner were deep in the woods tracking down burglary suspects at a homeless encampment. One man, shirtless, puts his hands up – but then he reached around back and pulled out a pistol.

“As soon as he put his hand down, I knew it was on. I didn’t have the time to react,” McKenna recalled.

By the time was able to return fire, the first shot shattered his hip. The second hit him squarely in the chest. His ballistic vest stopped that almost-lethal impact, right over his heart.

“I would have been dead. Like, I wouldn’t be here today. I wouldn’t be having Christmas with my daughter, my wife. I wouldn’t get to see my family if it wasn’t for you guys,” McKenna said.

Each of the front-line officers at the ceremony was honored with a General Assembly citation by State Sen. Mary Beth Carozza (R-38C).

“These are my constituents that produced the armor that saved your lives,” she told them, recognizing each by name. “But I’m also here because of what you did, how you responded in those situations. We want to recognize that your heroic efforts. Your bravery saved countless lives in that incident, and day in and day out.”