Author: American Military University
By PoliceOne Staff
BROOKE COUNTY, W.Va. — A West Virginia deputy’s Facebook post describing her fight with a suspect has gone viral.
Brooke County Sheriff’s Deputy Kristen Richmond recalled her July 27 encounter with a suspect she described as being “gooned up on an unknown drug.” Richmond wrotein her post that she hopes her story serves as an eye opener for law enforcement and the people protected by police.
According to the sheriff’s office, the incident started after deputies responded to a report of a man throwing things out of a third-floor dorm window at Bethany College, KHQ reported. The man, identified as 21-year-old Brandon Lamar Jackson, appeared to be on drugs and hallucinating, deputies said.
When Jackson was told he would be arrested, the suspect reportedly started fighting with Richmond. In her post, Richmond said she found herself “in a full-out fight with a 5’11, 195 lb collegiate male athlete” who appeared to be under the influence of drugs.
“During said altercation, my glasses were shattered and knocked off my face, none of my radio transmissions got out, and a ton of equipment was stripped from my vest and duty belt,” she wrote. “I managed to stay in the fight and maintain some control despite exchanging punches and knees with the subject.”
A K-9 was deployed and bit Jackson several times, but it didn’t stop him from attacking Richmond. Backup LEOs arrived and were able to take Jackson into custody. One deputy was reportedly bitten on the hand by Jackson.
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This will probably be one of the rawest posts I’ll write. It’s not for glory or any of that shit. I debated posting…
Posted by Kristen Richmond on Friday, July 27, 2018
Richmond thanked her colleagues for coming to her aid and credited her training for helping stay level-headed during an altercation she said could have ended differently.
“The following saying comes to mind: ‘Sometimes I had a bad day’ means that I almost didn’t make it home,” Richmond wrote.
The deputy’s Facebook post, which also shows pictures of her injuries, has been shared more than 160,000 times as of Tuesday. She said she made the post to remind LEOs to train hard and bond with their partners, as well as to let the public know what LEOs go through on a daily basis.
“No, we don’t get into fights like these everyday but they do happen … along with situations that are far worse. Please take a few moments to consider everything that we go through before jumping to conclusions based off slanted media and facts,” Richmond wrote. “At the end of the day, we are exactly like all of you ‘normal’ people. We just want to go home after work.”
Richmond was taken to a hospital for a broken nose along with other injuries from the fight. She remains in the hospital and awaits clearance to return to work, according to WTOV.
Jackson was also hospitalized due to his injuries and behavior. He will face several charges upon his release, including two counts of assault on an officer.