- November 17, 2024
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The following is an adapted news release from the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office:
The quick thinking and of a Flagler County deputy placed on light duty after he was injured in a traffic stop has led to two arrests.
In 2010, Deputy Samuel (Sam) Bell was conducting a traffic stop when a drunk driver at the wheel of a Doge Ram pickup almost ran him over.
Bell dove to the pavement to get out of the truck’s way, but his left knee was injured, and he needed three surgeries.
The Sheriff’s Office placed him on light duty, working at the front desk of the Sheriff’s Operations Center in Bunnell.
“Typically, I answer phone calls and assist with walk-ins,” said Deputy Bell. “I am grateful and appreciative that I can continue to serve the public.”
But working at a desk didn’t make him any less a law enforcement officer: the deputy, on two separate occasions, recognized men who were trying to retrieve cars from impound as criminals.
The first was 24-year-old Shawn Michael Stone, an Ormond Beach resident Bell thought had an active warrant. He did: five active felony warrants, from Volusia County.
A few days later, Bell nabbed another: 37-year-old Rodney Levon Hill, a Palm Coast resident Bell thought was on felony probation. Bell put in a call to Hill’s probation officer, who said Hill had just violated probation by leaving his home.
Stone and Hill were both arrested.
“Deputy Bell has proven to be a law enforcement officer with great integrity,” Sheriff James L. Manfre said. “His actions and quick thinking resulted in two arrests being made right on our front steps.”
