Stupid Is As Stupid Does

As we pulled into the parking lot we were able to see several police officers surrounding our patient. Before we could even stop the rig we watched as one of the larger police officers grabbed a sweatshirt or jacket and tossed it far over his shoulder while yelling at the 30 year old male. As we approached the patient we noticed that he was being detained by PD but had yet to be handcuffed. That quickly changed as he started verbally engaging us. It was obvious that the guy was under the influence of, at the very least, alcohol. As we tried to examine the patient to determine if he needed to go to the hospital we did our best to distinguish ourselves from the cops. This usually makes it so that the patient will be cooperative with us even though they are fighting with the cops. As we tried to get vitals one of the officers said something to anger the patient. The patient was quickly placed in an arm hold and, in a not so round about way, told that he better behave or he would need to go to the hospital.

During our assessment we determined that the patient was indeed altered and that his heart rate was trucking along just a little too fast (about 140). Once AMR was on scene we filled them in on the situation. The AMR medic told the patient that he better be nice because if he wasn't she would simply knock him out, and not violently. The patient agreed and stood, without the cops permission, to get on the gurney. He was swiftly tackled back to the ground and ordered to stay there until told otherwise. After the gurney was brought out the large PD officer picked up the patient and attempted to slam him down on the gurney. Unfortunately, none of the EMS personnel were aware of the cops intentions. the gurney was not being held and it slid out from the force of the impact. The gurney stopped when it collided with the knee of another firefighter and the patient came to a stop when he smacked into the pavement. Eventually the patient was restrained to the gurney and he laughed maniacally as he was loaded into the ambulance.

It always amazes me when a guy that weighs 150 pounds refuses to be intimidated by a 230 pounds, muscular, angry cop with several other cops there to back him up. Sometimes you just got to love stupid people.