Today, Mayor John Whitmire will honor a local Houston truck driver, John Phillip Lally, Jr., with the Carnegie Medal for Heroism during a public session at Houston City Hall. The award, given by the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, recognizes individuals who perform extraordinary acts of heroism. The ceremony is set to take place within the historic walls of the council chambers, where seventeen winners from across the U.S. and Canada are being lauded this year.

According to the City of Houston announcement, the council meeting commences at 1:30 p.m. at 901 Bagby, Houston. Lally, a 40-year-old delivery truck driver, happened upon a shoot-out on a Houston freeway on November 11, 2023. The incident began when a 19-year-old man crashed a stolen vehicle and began firing at police officers who were in pursuit.

HPD Officer Jonathan Gibson, aged 29, was shot in the leg after he had approached the stolen car and ordered the driver to exit the vehicle. While Officer Gibson struggled to find cover, limping away from the firefight, Lally decided to risk his own safety for the wounded officer. Amid the chaos and bullets, Lally acted without a moment's hesitation.

As described on the City of Houston website, gunfire still roaring in the background, Lally shouted to Gibson, beckoning him to safety. Then, while walking backward, he grasped Gibson's vest with another officer and tugged the injured officer approximately 40 feet to cover behind his delivery truck.