Deputies in Durham County recount saving man’s life at courthouse

Deputies in Durham County recount saving man’s life at courthouse
A man’s life was saved this week in Durham after sheriff’s deputies rushed to help when he collapsed unexpectedly.

Exclusive surveillance video obtained by CBS 17 shows the tense situation inside the county courthouse as deputies performed CPR on the man who was going about his business before collapsing.

Deputies Humphrey Truitt and Steve Foster showed CBS 17 what happened inside the civil clerk’s office on Tuesday. They were working in the courthouse when the call came in on the radio.

“We walked in and I saw the gentleman,” Truitt said. “He was laying on his back. He was bleeding from his head and it appears that he was unconscious at the time.”

Foster, a Durham County Court Security sergeant, said, “It’s a little tricky until you know exactly what you’re dealing with. But once we realized there was no pulse, there was no breathing, the answer is simple. It’s just straight into CPR.”

Truitt and Foster revived the man before he was taken to the hospital. Since Durham County sheriff’s deputies are required to take a biannual class on performing CPR and using defibrillators, the deputies said their training paid off.

“Not every day on the job gives you an opportunity to necessarily help somebody out as much as that,” Foster said. “The fact that he gets to continue doing what he does, it’s a good feeling.”

Said Truitt, “It feels great, but I didn’t do anything another deputy that’s trained wouldn’t do.”