The LaPorte County Sheriff’s Deputy who was shot and critically wounded two weeks ago today, is out of the intensive care unit, and starting rehab in Chicago.
Deputy Jon Samuelson left Memorial Hospital in South Bend in an ambulance in a caravan of police vehicles with lights and sirens on.
First responders from numerous jurisdictions were positioned along the route.
The Portage Police and Fire Departments were among them, with a large American flag suspended from a tower ladder.
Portage Police Department
The Sheriff’s Office issued a statement saying Samuelson “was deeply moved by the overwhelming display of support and love” along the route.
Samuelson was taken to an inpatient rehabilitation facility in Chicago.
The statement said he would “immediately begin participating in several hours of therapy each day, five to six days a week,” and quoted the deputy as saying “It’s time to get after it.”
“Those words perfectly reflect the determination, grit, and fighting spirit that have carried him this far,” the statement said.
Samuelson was shot in the emergency room at the Franciscan Health hospital in Michigan City as he was attempting to arrest a Chicago man, 23-year-old Sharod Grafton, who was wanted for stealing his mother’s car at gunpoint.
Samuelson had encountered Grafton on the side of a road, with the car broken down.
He gave Grafton a ride to the hospital as his request, after radioing to a dispatcher who he was helping and giving a vehicle description.
Moments later, he learned Grafton was wanted, and he returned to the hospital and was shot three times. One bullet was lodged in his spine.
A court filing indicated there was paralyses from the chest down.
Whether permanent or not is unknown.
Charges against Grafton include attempted murder.
During an initial court appearance at the La Porte County courthouse, Grafton was told that he could be sentenced to more than 100 years in prison if convicted.
