Sunday, August 29, 2010

Deadly force on a blind guy?

The engine responds to the local nursing facility for a 25B. Someone is having an unknown psychiatric "emergency". The patient is only 40 years old removing him from the usual age range for this facility. But on occasion some poor soul is forced to rehab in the crappiest nursing home in town. Most of you know what I am talking about: The stains on the wall are older than I am. The staff members are drunk, high, incompetent, or a combination of all 3. I would not leave a sworn enemy in this facility. The patient is in fact 40 years old a man in a wheelchair who has a leaking colostomy bag and Hep C. The spilled contents of the colostomy bag is the only thing this man is wearing. He is a parapalegic and is blind. The patient is combative and verbally abusive. The local police force is on scene as with any other 25B call except Officer Barney Fife is not equipped with a taser. Why would he need it anyway, right? Because naked blind handicapped patient has announced if anyone touches him the fight is on! So a good long while is spent attempting to explain the situation and the fact that once he had threatned suicide his decision making resposibilities are revoked. So the engine and Ofc. Fife stall the pending struggle long enough for more PD officers to arrive. 2 more cops, number of tasers? Still 0. Super. We are now confident there are enough people (9) to control a blind guy who can't run. And contact is attempted. Small struggle ensues and the patient reaches over to a small bag that has gone unnoticed until now. He produces (quickly mind you) a large butterfly knife with the blade exposed. And even faster the officer draws his weapon. Great. I am going to be witness to Ofc Fife shooting a blind guy in a wheelchair. (mental images of me on the winess stand are running through my brain and I am sure my mouth is hanging open) The remaining incompetent staff members scream and run down the hall yelling someone's name. The other 2 officers draw their weapons and they all take their tactical shooting positions on the naked blind guy with a butterfly knife. Officers 2 and 3 realize whathey are doing and holster their weapons, but ofc. Fife takes a few more minutes. The whole time the patient is screaming all about he will kill all of us and blindly swinging his knife around. One of the officers grab his wrists and the fight is on until ambulance medic jams 5mg Versed into patients arm. The patient is restrained and prepared for transport to a hospital with psychiatric services. The Versed barely works and the struggle is sustained all the way to the hospital. Poor guy, when all this is over he still has to return to the worst nursing home in town.

1 comment:

  1. The entire time I was thinking "Just sedate the guy already." Fun call to break the routine up.

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