By Suzie Ziegler
ST. LOUIS — The outlook was grim when St. Louis Police Officer Colin Ledbetter was shot last week while trying to apprehend a suspect. Right after the shooting, Police Chief John Hayden said Ledbetter was in “very critical” condition. Now, there’s cause for hope.
On Monday, Ledbetter’s family told the St. Louis Dispatch that their son’s condition continues to improve.
“We’ve talked to a few experts about the survival percentages, and he’s doing amazingly well,” said Steve Ledbetter. The elder Ledbetter says his son is now off a ventilator but remains sedated. However, the officer was able to recognize his mother and girlfriend.
Ledbetter and a second officer were shot on Jan. 26 while pursuing a car connected to a homicide, according to the St. Louis Dispatch. Officer Nathan Spiess was shot in the leg and released from the hospital on Sunday, according to KSDK.
Steve Ledbetter thanked the hospital staff, EMTs and responding police officers for getting his son to the hospital quickly.
“That saved him,” Ledbetter said. “I spoke to another St. Louis officer who rode in the ambulance with Colin and put pressure on him to slow the bleeding. He said: ‘Colin would have done the same thing for me.’”
Although his son still has a long way to go, Steve Ledbetter says “all signs are positive.”