Southern Indiana Sheriff's Department adds AEDs to patrol cars | WDRB News

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — In the event of a medical emergency, police officers are usually the first on the scene.

That's why sheriff's deputies in Floyd County, Indiana will begin carrying automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in their patrol cars.

Often this device can mean the difference between life and death, and for Robert Taylor, that was certainly the case.

Taylor is a high school security monitor and heart attack survivor.

“I never thought in a million years that I would be the one using this machine,” Taylor said. “I responded to what we call code three, which is an altercation.”

Last month, Taylor had a heart attack and collapsed after responding to an emergency at high school.

“I died on May 13 and they brought me back to life,” Taylor said.

Surveillance video of Taylor shows him on the ground as staff used an AED to administer a cardiac shock.

“From what I gathered from the nurses who worked on me, that first initial shock saved my life,” Taylor said.

Floyd County Sheriff Steve Bush hopes his deputies can use those seconds to save lives with AEDs.

“Well, seconds count…when you want to save lives,” Sheriff Bush said.

“Because police normally arrive first on scene, especially in Floyd County, the atmosphere will be more rural. So it may take a few minutes before an ambulance arrives or a rescue device fire does not fire, so the fact that the officers are equipped with this equipment allows it to be fully functional to be able to attempt to save a life.

The Floyd County Health Department donated AEDs to the Sheriff's Department on Monday morning, and Sheriff Bush said the goal is to have one in every patrol car by the end of the year.

“It will probably take us several weeks to train the officers on this, and then we'll get them in the car immediately as soon as possible,” Sheriff Bush said.

“The only reason I know this happened is because I sat and watched it,” Taylor said, referring to the surveillance video.

Taylor doesn't remember having a heart attack, but he knows how and why he survived it.

“I wouldn’t be here without this machine,” Taylor said.

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