Harford County Officers Recognized For Attempting To Save Dying Man's Life

BEL AIR, MD — Drew Johnson, an advisor for the Bel Air Police Department’s Explorer Post, and Harford County Sheriff’s Office Deputy First Class Matthew Elliott were recognized by the Bel Air town commissioners Monday for their “dedicated and heroic efforts” as they worked to save a person in cardiac arrest.

The incident was reported shortly after 3 p.m. Jan. 23 when several bystanders – including Johnson – found a 60-year-old man lying unconscious in the parking lot of the Arby’s restaurant across from the Festival at Bel Air shopping center. Johnson, who had been a youth member of the Explorer Post, determined that the man was in cardiac arrest, called 911 and began working to save his life using CPR.

Elliott arrived as Johnson was performing chest compressions on the man. The deputy took his agency-issued automated external defibrillator out of his patrol car and applied the device’s pads to the man’s chest to deliver life-sustaining electrical shocks to the individual in an attempt to re-establish an effective heartbeat.

Elliott detected “a small breath” coming from the man’s mouth after administering the first shock, according to Bel Air Mayor Kevin Bianca. Emergency medical service personnel took the man to a local hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

“This life-saving effort was performed in the best traditions of the Bel Air Police Department, Bel Air Explorers and the Harford County Sheriff’s Office,” Bianca said. “Their calm, quick and decisive actions are an inspiration for others who are faced with similar circumstances.”