Racine officials honored for saving the life of an inmate



RACINE (WITI) -- A group of Racine County Jail workers were recognized Wednesday, December 18th for their life-saving efforts during an incident earlier this month. Their quick action and teamwork has been called "heroic."

Around 9 a.m. December 3rd, a 37-year-old male inmate collapsed to the floor and stopped breathing. Corrections officers took immediate action, administering the shock from a defibrillator -- which did not work.

"So we did it again and at that point, I believe, they started CPR, but then the machine told them that, you could tell he was starting to breathe," said Nicole Peterson.

The inmate was then transported to a hospital where Sheriff Christopher Schmaling says he was treated for serious medical issues.

"It doesn't matter who this person was in our society, because at the end of the day, it's a human life that they saved," said Schmaling.

Deputy Nick Koldeway, registered nurse Leslie Patton and corrections officers Peterson, Robert Hernandez and Aaron Nelson were honored with life-saving awards and challenge coins.

"It's always part of a team. There was no one person above the other and I was just glad to have all them with me," said Hernandez.

Sheriff Schmaling says the inmate is still hospitalized but expected to make a full recovery. He will return to jail after being medically cleared.