KNOX COUNTY, Tenn. — A deputy has been released from the hospital after her partner on duty accidentally shot her in the leg while trying to stop a dog that was attacking her, the Knox County Sheriff's Office said.
According to KCSO, deputies Lydia Driver and Jordan Hurst responded to a call on the 8200 block of Brickyard Road in Powell around 11 p.m. on Tuesday, July 5. KCSO said a large pit bull came around the trailer and attacked Driver. Hurst then accidentally shot her in the left leg while trying to stop the dog, according to KCSO.
Driver underwent emergency surgery at the University of Tennessee Medical Center, where she was recovering in the intensive care unit.
KCSO said Hurst was placed on administrative leave with pay, which it said is standard procedure. The sheriff's office said animal control took the dog to Young-Williams Animal Center.
According to the sheriff's office, Driver has worked with KCSO since November 2015. She previously served in the records/LEIDS unit and corrections and was a graduate of the last academy class in May 2022.
Hurst is a veteran officer who in April 2020 shot and killed a man with a knife who had stabbed three women to death at a Pilot station in Strawberry Plains.
“Law enforcement is a dangerous profession; it is unpredictable. Officers deal with people and situations the average person will never experience in their lifetime," Sheriff Tom Spangler said. "This incident is unfortunate, but we will get through it together. We are blessed to serve a community who loves and appreciates our men and women; for that, I’m grateful.”
Spangler thanked the Knoxville Police Department for its assistance and the staff of UTMC, saying he is asking for the community to pray for a full recovery for Driver and for her entire shift.
On July 11, KCSO said that Driver was released from UT Medical Center on Saturday. She will begin a rehabilitation process.
On July 21, KCSO released information about the incident, including bodycam footage from deputies at the house. The video is below.
The video below has graphic content and may be inappropriate for some viewers. It shows the moments when a deputy was bitten by the dog and another deputy shot at it, accidentally striking his fellow deputy. WBIR edited the footage for language and graphic content. Viewer discretion is advised.
They also released the transcript of an interview with Hurst following the incident. In the interview, he said that if he hadn't tried to shoot the dog, it would have continued attacking his partner.
"It was gonna kill her," he said in the interview.
The video shows him taking two shots, and he confirms it in the interview. He said he was firing at the dog and after shooting, the dog left the deputies. In the interview, he also said that Driver did not show that she wanted him to take different actions.
He also tried to treat her by applying a tourniquet after she was shot. However, another deputy took over and finished treating her before taking her back to the cruiser.
"I was starting to panic," he said during the interview, describing the moments after Driver was shot.
He was exonerated, according to KCSO records, and his actions were considered "lawful and proper."