GIRARD — A “selfless act” by a Maplewood High School graduate is credited for saving the life of a man on the brink of suicide.

Daniel Morrison, a sergeant in the Ohio State Highway Patrol, was off duty Dec. 31, and driving home from Fowler in the westbound lanes of Interstate 80 in Girard, with his wife Casey and his daughters Madelynn and Isabella.

When he saw a man running on the Interstate, toward the center lane, his training kicked in and he sprang into action.

Without hesitation, Morrison pulled over and asked Casey to call 911. She made the call and went to help her husband, flagging oncoming traffic as Sgt. Morrison approached the man. Morrison was able to convince the man to step away from the center lane and walked him toward the shoulder of the road.

“I told him that everything was going to be OK,” Morrison said. “He was yelling a lot at first, which turned into crying. He had recently lost some family members and was going through some tough times, so I just tried to help him.”

Morrison attempted to console the man, who was distraught due to medical and family issues. In an attempt to prevent the man from harming himself, Morrison took him into custody until additional law enforcement arrived. The man was then transported to a local hospital for both a physical and mental evaluation.

“There was no hesitation,” Morrison said. “I’m just used to working up on Interstate 80, and my experiences and training definitely kicked in. I just started to slow down immediately when I saw that I was able to do something.”

The Girard Police Department took over the incident and later determined that the man intended to commit suicide that day.

Morrison, a member of the 150th Academy Class, was awarded for his heroic actions during the Superintendent’s Citation of Merit Award presentation at the

Lisbon patrol post last week.

Patrol Superintendent Col. Richard Fambro presented the award to Morrison for his courageous handling of the dangerous situation and exemplifying the patrol’s core values.

“It takes a selfless act,” Fambro said. “You go into the mode of being a trooper at that very moment, and you aren’t thinking about anything else. I don’t know that I would have done the same thing.”

Morrison earned his commission in April 2011, was promoted to sergeant in September 2017 and is currently assigned to the Lisbon post.

“We live in a world today where people don’t have time for that, much less doing it for total strangers and not knowing what the outcome is going to be,” Fambro said. “We always talk about putting service above self, and that is certainly what he did that day. This is just another example of the Patrol being a family affair.”

While Morrison was very gracious to receive the award, his humble attitude led him to believe that he was just doing his duty.

“It’s a great honor to get this award, but I never expected it. I never hesitated and just did what I had to do in order to save somebody from harming himself,” Morrison said.