Daniels couldn't think of the last time he'd been so pumped on adrenaline. Yet here he was, losing consciousness when he most needed it. Daniels fired a third round—then collapsed.
Daniels' shots did their job, keeping the suspect at bay until Officer David Ukle was able to rush past Daniels and set up position at the doorway. Using the door frame as a barricade, Ukle then engaged the suspect as Officer Chip Gillette grabbed Daniels and dragged him from the scene.
At the same time, Rudy Johnson was able to get up under his own control and removed himself from the path of the incoming fire as still more officers swept in to assist in helping the wounded Daniels out of the house.
Inside, Officers Brett Ladd, Cpl. Robin Krouse, and Rudy Johnson set up outside the bedroom. The trio of officers fired a volley through the wall that separated them from the suspect. They were targeting the corner of the bedroom where the suspect crouched, but the outside catch team had to duck as the barrage pierced through the rear of the house.
Their guns now empty, the officers began to reload. That was when the suspect—preacher's son-cum-crack addict Harold Curtis Edmonds—took advantage of the lull to leap for the window. But before Edmonds could clear the opening, Ukle fired. His round sank into the back of Edmonds' leg and the addict collapsed, half in and half out of the window where he was taken into custody.
Fight for Life
Out on the porch, Daniels lay bleeding from an unseen wound.
Fellow officers cut away his clothes, finding a bullet wound in Daniels' upper thigh. Having seen similar injuries of the femoral artery during his time as a military medic, Gillette at once recognized its severity. He went to work, removing Daniels' inner belt, as well as another officer's and his own. Using the three belts, he cinched their Velcro enclosures around the affected area: the first above Daniels' left knee; a second in the crotch below the injury; and the third across the rear buttocks.
"I'm not going to die, man," Daniels vowed. "You got to get me to the hospital. I'm not dying."
Fortunately, a Med Star Ambulance was situated a block away on a dead body call when the first shots rang out. It was now on scene.
Johnson had also taken a round, the bullet traveling from his left thigh to his right between his skin and his abdominal muscle. He joined Daniels in the ambulance.
Hit Him, Hard
Just before their transport, one of the EMTs asked for someone to ride in the ambulance with Daniels—someone who wasn't afraid to put his hands on him.
Fred Myers' hand shot up.
The EMT who'd assisted a number of wounded officers, had specific instructions for Myers.