She comforted a dying woman after witnessing her murder. The Montco DA gave her the highest civilian honor.

Samantha Blagus and her friend needed gas after hours of delivering for DoorDash. They chose an Exxon in King of Prussia, across from the mall.

Blagus pulled in on that warm spring night in 2022 to find Rafiq Thompson arguing with Tamara Cornelius, his former girlfriend who was pregnant with his child. The 36-year-old Lansdale native remembers thinking how aggressive Thompson seemed.

She pulled out of the gas station when she discovered she’d have to pay in cash. Moments later, gunshots rang out as Thompson gunned Cornelius down at point-blank range with a stolen Glock handgun.

Other witnesses ran and ducked for cover. But Blagus instead turned around and drove back into the station. There, she stayed with the mortally wounded Cornelius, holding the 31-year-old’s hand in her final moments as she relayed information about the murder to a 911 dispatcher.

“The adrenaline took over. I just wanted to help, and that’s all I could think of,” Blagus, a former nursing assistant, said in a recent interview. “I was doing everything I could to make her stay with us. I was trying to be optimistic, and all I wanted was for her to make it.”

For that act of kindness, Blagus was awarded a commendation for exceptional service from Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele, one of four civilians to receive the honor at a ceremony honoring law enforcement on May 21.

The other civilian honorees included Cauldon Quinn, a former Marine whose eyewitness testimony about Andrew Wiley helped convict him at trial for shooting at police outside the King of Prussia Mall; Jonathan Petrow, whose dashcam footage helped police identify and arrest Jennifer Parker, who fled the scene after running over and killing a pedestrian while drunk driving in Whitemarsh Township; and Clare Henderson, whose work with Mission Kids helps prepare children to give statements about the murder or assault of their loved ones.

Steele also honored police officers who investigated other high-profile murders in the county, including the murder-for-hire plot that targeted Rachel King in Cheltenham Township and the killing of Jennifer Brown in Royersford by her business partner, Blair Watts.

Both women were single mothers. And both of their killers were sentenced to life in prison for first-degree murder.

“This was a day to look at the best of the best and some of the folks that have really made a difference,” Steele said. “These people came forward when others didn’t, and these people chose to involve themselves to help others in just very difficult circumstances.”

Steele said that description especially fit Blagus, whose testimony at Thompson’s trial helped convince a jury he was guilty of first-degree murder.

“There were people there that day that ran and fled, but instead she called 911,” Steele said. “She went to the victim and she got down with the victim and held her hand and spoke to her as Tamara was dying. And, I think that meant a lot to the family. And now [Thompson] will be in jail for the rest of his life.”

Blagus said that while she was glad she was there to help Cornelius, that night continues to haunt her.

She suffers from PTSD and seeks counseling for it. Some actions cause her to suddenly panic, especially filling up at a gas station. But she doesn’t regret her choices that night.

“I’m a caring person, and if that were me, I would want someone to help me,” Blagus said. “So it was just natural instinct just to go help her. I didn’t even think about it. I just stepped in.”

Blagus said she was humbled by and grateful for the award presented to her by Steele. The ceremony, she said, restored her faith in humanity.

And it offered another, unexpected bonus: She got to finally meet Cornelius’ younger sister, Ta’Naya Dunlap, who was eager to give Blagus a hug and thank her in person.