TN Paramedic Disciplined for Refusing to Treat Man in Police Custody

An ambulance with its rear doors open.
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A Tennessee paramedic had his license suspended and was placed on probation for swearing at and refusing to care for a patient in police custody, FOX 17 reported.

Jeffrey Bates responded to the 2019 call for the Erin Police Department while working with Houston County EMS, according to the Tennessee Department of Health Emergency Medical Services Board.

A man accused of running from police and later tased asked to go to the hospital but was told he was faking an injury to avoid going to jail, according to the report.

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Bates and officers joked about the situation and Bates asked if the officer was recording on his body camera. The report says Bates then yelled and berated the suspect, telling him he shouldn’t have run.

Despite the man begging to be taken to the hospital, Bates made the man stand up and insisted he wasn’t hurt, according to the report dated March 2023.

The man was taken to jail but later taken to Vanderbilt Hospital where he was found to have a broken hip that needed to be repaired surgically.

The man later filed a lawsuit and Bates was released from Houston County. Bates now works for a different department.

The Tennessee Department of Health Emergency Medical Services Board suspended Bates’ license for 60 days and was placed on probation for three years. He was also ordered to attend a four-hour ethics course.

The report did not say if the man was ever charged in the 2019 incident with police.

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