Deputy Named 'Junior Firefighter' After Saving Choking Man

A Pinellas County Sheriff’s deputy’s routine patrol in the Clearwater area Monday night turned out to be anything but ordinary.

As the deputy was performing a follow-up near the 7-Eleven at 2789 State Road 580 around 8:42 p.m., a store employee approached him, gasping for air while indicating he had something trapped in his throat. Realizing the man, Rusty Green, 53, was choking, the deputy swung into action.

Deputy Matthew Davidson told Green he was going to perform the Heimlich maneuver, which he did. After the offending chicken successfully dislodged from Green’s throat, paramedics arrived on the scene to make sure the man was OK.

Once the all-clear was given that Green would be fine, firefighters who had also arrived on the scene took some time out to honor Davidson for his quick thinking and rapid action.

“Firefighters presented Deputy Davidson with some ‘Junior Firefighter’ gear for his swift action,” the sheriff’s office wrote in an email to media.

Davidson has been a Pinellas County deputy since June 2012. It’s unclear if he’s entertaining the idea of moonlighting with Clearwater Fire Rescue.

Photo courtesy of the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office