Four Pacific County Sheriff’s Department officers were honored for teamwork and bravery for their handling of a case in which a suicidal man cut his own throat and continued to fight arrest while still armed with a knife.
The man lived and the deputies were awarded the American Legion Post 48 Derald Robertson Safety Award.
In a nomination letter to the post, Sheriff Robin Souvenir described the deputies’ actions during the Sept. 6 incident in Seaview.
Sgt. Jon Ashley and deputies Ryley Queener, Tony Kimball and Ben Woodby answered a call about an incoherent bloody man in a portable toilet.
Blood was running from under the locked door and the man inside told deputies he had hit his head.
“Working as a team, not knowing if the man inside was armed with a weapon and not knowing the extent of his injuries, the law enforcement personnel tactically positioned themselves as Deputy Queener pried open the toilet door with a crow bar,” said Souvenir. “Deputy Queener breached the toilet door and Sergeant Ashley opened it. Upon opening the door, the responding deputies and officers were confronted by a very horrific scene. The man in question stood in the doorway of the portable toilet armed with a knife in his hand. A very substantial amount of blood was running down the front of the man. The man had slashed his own throat and was bleeding profusely.”
Queener drew his weapon and directed the man to drop the knife. The man responded with, “Shoot me,” according to Souvenir.
“The deputies observed the man’s ability to balance deteriorate rapidly and they believed that he was going to go unconscious,” wrote Souvenir. “The man suddenly dropped to his knees while still holding the knife.”
The man attempted to rise, and Kimball, a new deputy with only a few days on patrol, deployed a Taser, while Woodby provided cover, and the man dropped the knife, which was kicked away by Queener.
The badly injured man continued to resist even after he was handcuffed by Queener and Deputy Chief Casey Meling.
“The man’s throat was slashed almost from one side to the other and he was dying from blood loss and trauma,” continued Souvenir. “Deputies and officers started immediate life saving measures while waiting for medical aid. Every deputy and officer on scene participated one way or the other in trying to save this man’s life utilizing their training, medical kits and experience.”
Sgt. Arlie Boggs of the Raymond Police Department was at the scene and later stated in a memorandum to the Sheriff’s Office, “I believe without the quick and precise response by the before mentioned deputies and officers the subject would have died from self-inflicted wounds. I believe this incident and the actions of your deputies who helped save this man’s life need to be brought to your attention.”
Meling said in a memorandum to the Sheriff’s Office, “Everyone worked seamlessly and the best possible outcome occurred. Specifically I would like to mention the actions of Deputy Queener and Deputy Kimball. Deputy Kimball had only been patrolling for a couple of days and he jumped right into danger and deployed his Taser at the right moment which caused the suspect to drop the knife. He did not question anyone when he was told to do so. Deputy Queener tackled the suspect after he dropped the knife. Knowing the suspect was covered in blood he did not hesitate to do what was needed to take the suspect into custody and he put himself in harm’s way to do so.”
Souvenir wrote of the “professional restraint” shown by the officers in using non-lethal tactics.
“They are the sole reason why that man is still alive today, whether or not if he would have died from his self-inflicted injuries or by a justified officer involved shooting which in this case would be referred to as ‘suicide by cop,’” said Souvenir. “These deputies’ actions exemplify and demonstrate the high level of professionalism and integrity that we require and they are in line with our office’s mission statement of ‘Making Pacific County a safe place to work, live and play with the resources provided.’”
