By Amanda Spence
JENSEN BEACH, Fla. — A Martin County deputy is recovering after being hit by a car during physical therapy from another on-duty injury.
Deputy Zeke Spence was completing his last exercise on a stationary bike at Premiere Physical Therapy when a woman drove her vehicle into the glass of the building, hitting the deputy, according to WPBF 25.
“Just a normal day,” Spence recalled. “Just trying to get better, doing my rehab stuff. I made it to physical therapy. Out of the blue, I just heard the glass shattering. And the next thing I remember, I was smashed between the car and a bike.”
Spence was undergoing therapy for a knee injury he experienced during an arrest in 2019. The same knee was injured again during an arrest in 2021. He has had 10 surgeries on the same knee, which included a total knee replacement last November.
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Unfortunately for Spence, the car hit that same knee again.
“My first thought after that was like, ‘Oh, my God, I have to start this process all over again,’” Spence added. “Because I’ve been trying so hard to get back out here for so long.”
Tests on his knee have been promising so far, but his prognosis is up in the air.
However, he has had more than his knee to grapple with.
“They believe I cut an artery inside of my thumb that got shattered with glass,” Spence revealed.
The driver wasn’t charged and the incident is thought to be an accident.
“My goal is to be back out there,” Spence said. “My goal is to be promoted in the sheriff’s office and move up the ranks, so it’s just one of those things that keeps me motivated, keeps me driving forward.”