R E S O L U T I O N
 1-1           WHEREAS, On May 4, 2001, 11-year-old Leah Henry of Houston
 1-2     was rescued in Kerr County, bringing to a successful close an
 1-3     intensive operation that began with her kidnapping three days
 1-4     earlier; and
 1-5           WHEREAS, Authorities sprang into action on hearing of Leah's
 1-6     abduction, fearing that her disappearance was the work of a serial
 1-7     kidnapper who had already taken two other young girls captive, only
 1-8     to release them later; and
 1-9           WHEREAS, Acting on a tip by Kerrville area residents Robert
1-10     and Sharon Taylor, who spotted the abductor's car, law enforcement
1-11     personnel converged on Gary Dale Cox, catching him with the hostage
1-12     in his vehicle; Leah escaped from the car and was rescued by Kerr
1-13     County Sergeant David Billeiter, and the pursuit of the "I-10
1-14     Predator" ended when Mr. Cox took his own life; and
1-15           WHEREAS, In addition to Sergeant Billeiter, the Kerr County
1-16     Sheriff's Department staff involved in this successful
1-17     investigation included Sheriff W. R. "Rusty" Hierholzer; Chief
1-18     Deputy James Graham; Chief Investigator Ken Crosthwait; sergeants
1-19     Brown Stokes, Randall Sanders, and John Lavender; investigators
1-20     Carol Twiss, Roy Green, Bobby Johnson, and Pam Raymond; and
1-21     deputies Larry Drozd, Greg Stewart, Kevin Fowler, Sherry James,
1-22     Mark Bartell, Ruben Rodriguez, Carroll Schultz, Mark Myers, Mike
1-23     Smith, Rick Carter, Darin Trahan, and Mark Fields; and
1-24           WHEREAS, Other officers participating in the operation
 2-1     included Sergeant Charles Seale and troopers Travis Hall and Coy
 2-2     Morales of the Department of Public Safety; officers Paul Gonzales
 2-3     and Steve Anthony of the Kerrville Police Department; Sergeant
 2-4     Steve Backor and Game Warden Mark Chapa of the Parks and Wildlife
 2-5     Department; W. T. Hall of the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission;
 2-6     Constable Joel Ayala; T. Sandlin of Kerr 9-1-1, and Investigator
 2-7     Buddy Hierholzer, 216th D.A.; and
 2-8           WHEREAS, The abduction of a child instills a sense of urgency
 2-9     in all those who serve in the field of law enforcement, but this
2-10     must be tempered with adherence to procedure and the careful
2-11     pursuit of each lead; the safe return of Leah Henry is a credit to
2-12     all of the peace officers of Kerr County, and they are indeed
2-13     worthy of special legislative recognition at this time; now,
2-14     therefore, be it
2-15           RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 77th Texas
2-16     Legislature hereby honor the Kerr County law enforcement officers
2-17     whose efforts played a vital role in the rescue of Leah Henry; and,
2-18     be it further
2-19           RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
2-20     prepared for these dedicated men and women as an expression of high
2-21     regard by the Texas House of Representatives.
                                                                  Hilderbran
                                             _______________________________
                                                   Speaker of the House
               I certify that H.R. No. 1414 was adopted by the House on May
         28, 2001, by a non-record vote.
                                             _______________________________
                                                 Chief Clerk of the House