Valor Awards
Meritorious Service
Officer Robert Mulhern
EMT Jeffrey Mobilio
EMT Anton Brown
Haddon Local 257
Over, driver
Haddon Township Police Officer Robert Mulhern, still young in
his career, looks back on a frightening October 2016 traffic stop
with a violent motorist fully aware of two things.
“That could have gone real bad, real quick, if something else
had happened,” Mulhern said. “It’s just one of those things you
hope you’re ready for when the time comes. You do everything
you can to prepare for it, and have to have the mentality that
you’re not going to lose.”
When Moore, who joined Haddon four years ago, stopped a
vehicle on Oct. 29, 2016, he had no idea what was about to hap-
pen. The incident started to go bad when the driver initially tried
to avoid the stop before eventually pulling over. Once Mulhern
approached, the man refused to turn off the engine or even give
his name.
“That’s when he tried taking off,” Mulhern described. “I jumped
in the car and tried to stop it and put it in park, but he wouldn’t
let me.”
The vehicle swerved into a parked car, but Mulhern was able to
jump out before the collision. At that point, he ordered the man
out of the car at gunpoint, but the man instead chose to rush at
Mulhern and attempted to take the gun away.
“He tried to run and fight with me while my gun was still out,”
Mulhern said, adding that the man was shot in the right leg
during the struggle. “At that point, I was able to reholster and get
him to the ground and hold him down.”
The story didn’t end there. Mulhern credits two EMTs – An-
ton Brown and Jeffrey Mobilio – for making the difference in an
incident that might have turned out much worse had they not
arrived quickly. Brown and Mobilio heard the gunshot and im-
mediately jumped in to assist Mulhern.
“They had no weapons. No vests. They knew nothing about
what was going on and they tried to help me. Mulhern shared.
SECOND TIME AROUND CONTINUED FROM PAGE 62
“We heard the gunfire go off and at that point we came up
(from cover) with our weapons,” DiFabio recounted. “We then
located the suspect who had gone from the driver’s side of the
vehicle over to the passenger side.”
The gunshots that DiFabio heard came from Harris, who drew
his sidearm once threatened by the suspect.
“I created distance between us and I shot him,” Harris stated.
“I hit him seven times out of nine.”
DiFabio then followed the suspect, shooting at him until he
disappeared over the bulkhead into the water. It was only once
the SWAT team arrived to secure the scene that DiFabio and Har-
ris were able to step back and try to make sense of what had just
taken place.
“Did that really just happen?” Harris remembers asking DiFa-
“It’s amazing. I’m so glad they were there,”
Mulhern explained that, adding he didn’t know the men previ-
ously and had not met them prior to the Valor Awards. He made
plans to present them with their awards.
“They put their lives on the line and they weren’t required to,”
he added.
An appreciative Mulhern is also thankful for the outpouring of
support he received following the incident, a moment which has
refocused him moving forward in his career.
“It’s taught me to be cautious on every traffic stop,” Mulhern
explained. “And to be aware about where your head should be at
all times.” d
bio while taking cover after the shots were fired. “This was the
second time I fired my weapon in the line of duty.
DiFabio remembers the scene unfolding in slow motion, al-
lowing him to use every bit of his tactical training to respond.
“Fortunately, in our department we get a ton of great train-
ing. So, it was like muscle memory for me,” DiFabio confirmed.
“Looking back, if I could say I’m proud of something, it was that.”
The pride in their response was especially strong for Harris,
who saw accepting the Meritorious Service Award with DiFabio
as his last hoorah in law enforcement. After serving 18 years and
surviving two critical events, Harris has retired a hero of Local 137
and the NJ State PBA.
“I have a beautiful wife and two beautiful kids that I have to go
home to,” Harris stated. “Shooting your gun once is enough, then
having to do it twice – it’s enough for me.” d
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