PUBLIC SAFETY

IMPD Sgt. likely saved life of would-be burglar

Sgt. David Kinsey applied a tourniquet to a would-be burglar's injured leg after he got caught on a fence.

Kaitlin L Lange
IndyStar

An Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Sergeant may have saved the life of a would-be burglar who injured his leg climbing a fence Sunday morning.

Police chase

Police officers responded to an alarm at the L.E. Myers Company at 6220 S. Belmont Ave. around 2:30 a.m. Sunday. When they arrived on the scene, Christopher Whitis, 30, took off running across the parking lot. He got caught on a barbed-wire fence before he fled into the woods, police said.

With the help of a K-9, police found Whitis, who was losing blood due to an injury on his right leg. Sgt. David Kinsey said the suspect's shorts were soaked with blood and it was running down his leg.

Kinsey applied a tourniquet, in what the IMPD Facebook page called “life-saving measures,” until Emergency Medical Services arrived on the scene.

"...The blood was just profusely coming out," Kinsey said. "It was obvious he had lost a lot (of blood), and not knowing how much he had already lost prior to us actually catching up to him, I feel like I probably did save his life.”

The suspect was arrested and taken to the Eskenazi Marion County Detention Center where he received medical care.

Kinsey said he hopes the incident shows people that police officers are just trying to protect and serve.

"It shows people that we don’t just take bad guys to jail," he said. "Even if you are a bad guy, if you are injured, we will do everything that we can to make sure you make it home. "

Follow IndyStar reporter Kaitlin Lange on Twitter: @kaitlin_lange.