This scar on constable Hayden's left leg was created after the surgical procedure to put metal plates in his knee so that he could walk again after he was shot in August 2005.

Paul H. Williams, Gleaner Writer

"I always want to become a police officer ... for some they use it as a stepping stone ... for me it's a career," said Constable Michael Hayden.

So in January 2005, when he graduated from the police training school at the age of 22, he was elated.

He was placed at the Motorised Patrol Division in east Kingston, where he started to live his dream.

But, about 11:30 a.m. one day in August 2005, he was on duty chatting with a resident of Jones Town in western Kingston when his dream was literally shattered, according to him.

"I heard an explosion, and in a split second I felt a burning sensation in my (left) knee, then I came to the realisation that I was shot."

He was now concerned about being in the line offurther fire, so he went down on to the ground and took cover under a parked car. The man with whom he was speaking ran off, but when he realised Hayden was shot, he rushed back to his assistance.

Four of his colleagues and some other citizens joined them. "I was shocked, but I (was) never really afraid. I was calm in the sense that I even tell the rest of the officers to use something to tie my leg," He recollected. A woman tore her blouse and obliged.

Taken to KPH

A 'robot' taxi was stopped and the driver off-loaded his passengers. Constable Hayden was placed into the taxi and taken to the Kingston Public Hospital (KPH). He was accompanied by the man with whom he was chatting and another police officer. By this time, he was bleeding profusely, blood soaking his pants and filling his shoes.

At KPH, it took him five minutes to see doctors. "I was lying there. I was sweating. I was fainting. I was worried. All type of stuff was going through my head. It was really bizarre. I remember scratching off some tape that they have on the wall just to ease the pain. I was biting on my belt in order not to bite my tongue."

When the doctors saw him, he was wheeled away for emergency surgery. The bullet of an M-16 rifle had entered the left side of his knee and exited through the right, but not before tearing the ligaments on either side and totally destroying the cartilages.

After five days at KPH, he was transferred to St. Joseph's Hospital where he underwent two more surgeries. The torn ligaments were repaired and the damaged cartilages were removed and replaced with metal plates, which were cemented to his bones.

He remained at St. Joseph's for treatment and therapy for another six weeks. In September last year, he returned for a third surgery at St. Joseph's, spending another three weeks there after the surgery.

All this time, apart from the worries about his knee and possible immobility, there was another bother, that of the nonchalant manner in which he was treated by the person who allegedly shot him. It wasn't a gunman.

When Constable Hayden was on the ground writhing in pain, he heard one of his colleagues say to the lone female in the group, "Yuh a idiot ... Yuh nuh si yuh shot the police!" That policeman grabbed a gun from the woman constable and removed the magazine. It was there and then he realised that he was shot by his own colleague, who simply put her hand over her mouth, but said nothing to him.

According to Hayden, the woman constable subsequently claimed in her statement, that she saw suspicious movements in the area where the shooting took place and was preparing for action when her gun accidentally went off, hitting Hayden.

The woman constable did not go to KPH to see him, but she went to see him once at St. Joseph's.

Hayden said he once called her to ask why she hadn't called, but she told him he could have called her instead. He hasn't spoken with her since then, almost a year now.

Great concern

The state of Constable Hayden's knee is of great concern to him. He's worried, in fact. According to him, the doctors said the metal plates are not forever, and would have to be replaced eventually, or the lower leg amputated. He has been on and off sick leave. The knee pains him and gets swollen at times, especially after a long walk, and Hayden cannot run again.

Even getting around by public transportation is problematic since he cannot bend his knee at certain angles in a bus or a car. In addition, getting around in chartered taxis is very expensive, but he has to do so from time to time. Even sitting down at a desk for long hours is painful. Thus, he might have to resign soon.

He would like to get some form of compensation from the Government, who paid the hospital fees and bought his medication. He said he was told that if he wanted to sue the Government he would have to first resign. With a broken knee, the future for him as a police officer looks quite bleak. He had many career and family plans, but for now, they are just that, plans. He can'teven go back to carpentry for which he was trained.

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