Herington man honored for assisting Marion trooper
Don Zaideman just happened to be driving down a highway in Marion County this summer when he saw a Kansas Highway Patrol trooper involved in a physical scuffle with a suspect.
Without hesitation, Zaideman jumped from his vehicle, helped Master Trooper Roger Maag wrestle the subject to the ground, and held the man there until Maag successfully handcuffed him
On Friday afternoon, Zaideman, a Herington resident, received one of the highest honors given to civilians when he was presented the Kansas Highway Patrol's Honorary Trooper Award.
The ceremony took place at 1 p.m. in the basement of the Marion Municipal Building.
Maag, a master trooper from Marion, was present, along with several KHP troopers to watch as Zaideman received his award.
The incident occurred at 7:13 a.m., July 13 after Maag initiated a vehicular pursuit on U.S.-56 in Marion County. The pursuit continued east to the U.S.-56/77 junction where the suspect's vehicle crashed.
The individual ran approximately 150 yards from the car before being caught by the trooper. It was then the physical altercation occurred and Zaideman pulled his suburban to the side of the road and jumped out to help.
"That situation could have turned bad real quick," Zaideman explained. "I never really thought about it. It was just something I knew I had to do."
Zaideman, a custodian at Herington Elementary School, and his mother, Shirley Zaideman, Herington, were on their way to Oklahoma to see Don's daughter when they saw the suspect's burning vehicle.
"We went over a hill and saw a car on fire," Zaideman recalled. "Then I saw the trooper's car and two people struggling."
While all this was going on, Shirley Zaideman said she was in the vehicle willing the suspect to give up so "no one would get hurt," she related.
Usually, Shirley travels with a water bottle; however, that day she did not have one. So Don, who had some blood on him, used his coffee to wash it off after returning to the suburban.
"The guy (suspect) had hurt his arm and I got some of his blood on me," Don said. "When we got to the (Johnson's) general store in Florence I stopped and washed it off."
Don said the incident didn't bother him immediately, but by the time they reached Newton his hands began shaking.
Don's wife, Carol Zaideman, said no one even bothered tell her about the incident until two weeks later.
"Don's mom said 'I wonder if Don will hear anything about what happened on the highway,' " Carol recalled. "And I said 'What happened?' "
Carol, a dispatcher with the Herington Police Department, said she was extremely proud of her husband.
"I just hope and pray that if something like this occurred to one of our officers, someone would come along and help," Carol said.
Capt. Steve Ragan, Salina, presented the award to Zaideman after reading a letter from Don Brownlee, KHP superintendent.
"By assisting Trooper Maag, you placed yourself in a position that could have resulted in you being injured," Brownlee wrote. "You actions also possibly prevented the trooper from being injured."
2nd Lt. Bruce Hyman, Salina, said it was quite an honor to receive the honorary trooper award. Criteria for the award includes:
— Performing in a highly meritorious manner under conditions where one's personal safety is jeopardized to aid another.
— Unselfishly giving of his or herself to assist members of this agency (KHP) in the performance of their duties; or intervening to alleviate a potentially serious situation and aid a patrol employee.
Once documentation of an incident is sent in, it must first be approved by a review board.
"It's a rare occasion to actually receive the honorary trooper award," Hyman said.
Four honorary trooper awards have been presented this year.
