PALM BAY, Fla. – This past weekend, News 6 reported on seven different domestic violence shootings across Central Florida, including the search for an accused abuser in Kissimmee, and a man who'd reportedly stabbed his estranged girlfriend at a Cocoa bus stop.
In several of those situations, the victim needed help fast but getting help to the victim immediately was difficult.
When DeMarco Newman reportedly shot his wife several times and holed up in his Palm Bay home on Aug. 3, the SWAT team was called.
"Had a gun, she fled from him, she's saying she's been shot," a dispatcher said over the radio. "He's saying he's going to have a shootout with cops."
[WEB EXTRA: Several domestic violence incidents reported in Central Florida]
The SWAT team used an MRAP (Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected) vehicle to knock down the door and storm Newman's home as he taunted law enforcement, according to police. When they shot and killed Newman, they discovered his wife lying on the floor, bleeding.
"She was actually behind him," Palm Bay firefighter paramedic Brian Miller said. "She was a little disoriented, lethargic, but still talking to us."
He said she had been shot at least five times in different locations.
From Palm Bay Fire Rescue Station 4, Miller explained he was there that August night because, besides his duties as a firefighter, he is also a trained SWAT medic and a sworn Palm Bay police officer. His law enforcement powers begin, however, only when he is in his SWAT uniform and with the SWAT team.
"The idea is to provide immediate care in hostile situations," Miller said. "We were able to provide her medical care right there in the front yard, get her out of the house, there was no down time waiting for an ambulance."
It's likely that Miller saved the woman's life.
"You know, that's what we're going for," Miller said. "And that's the whole idea of the team, especially gunshot wounds, seconds matter, because you can bleed out so fast."
The wife was rushed to the hospital in critical condition. Today she is paralyzed from the bullets but alive because of the medical attention she was given.
Miller said a gunshot victim can bleed to death in less than three minutes if an artery is hit.
Typically, firefighters are nearby when the SWAT team is called in, but they are kept at a safe distance, as is the general public, until the scene is clear, Miller explained. Firefighters are not armed and are not trained to protect themselves or others.
"They're not going to come up to that scene until the officers communicate that it's fully secure," Miller said. "And know the suspect's down and that there's nobody else there."
Miller, in his capacity as a SWAT medic, is armed and wears full SWAT gear.
"More and more situations like this are happening with active shooters, like domestic disturbances, and (we're) realizing the need for advanced medical care to be there quicker," Miller said.
Battalion Chief Gaius Hall helped push the Palm Bay Police Department to add firefighter paramedics to the SWAT team. He said requiring a firefighter paramedic crew to stand by, sometimes for hours, wastes time and money.
"We wanted to have a better way to do things," Gaius said. "So we save money and make it safer for everyone."
Palm Bay said it's the only city in Brevard County with the SWAT medic/firefighter paramedic partnership. Gaius said the program is doing so well getting results on crime and saving lives that other cities have contacted Palm Bay about implementing the partnership.