SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio Police Department Traffic Officer Jonathan Esquivel was given The Star of Texas Award on Friday at the State Capitol in Austin.
Esquivel was hit by a pickup truck on Feb. 19, while diverting traffic at a crash scene on Loop 410 near Callaghan Road.
The accident left Esquivel in a coma for two months. His pelvis was shattered and several bones broken. Esquivel has undergone at least 10 surgeries and several months of rehab.
"I'm just glad I'm alive," Esquivel said during an interview in June after he was finally able to return home.
The Star of Texas Award is given to emergency personnel across Texas who were hurt or killed in the line of duty. Several names of lives lost were called at Friday's ceremony and surviving loved ones came forward to accept the award.
Esquivel knows how lucky he is, and so do his fellow officers.
In May, a blood drive in Esquivel's name set a record for the number of pints donated.
After all he has endured, he says he wants to get back on patrol.
"I want to be a police officer again. I love it," he said.
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