By Bill Carey
EMS1
HENNEPIN COUNTY, Minn. — A Hennepin County man has been sentenced to nine months in jail and extensive probation after assaulting an EMS ambulance crew in July.
Tyereh Dontrell House was convicted following an attack on paramedics that was captured on video, showing him striking one crew member with a large piece of concrete while another paramedic defended themselves using a rolling cot, KTSP reported
Sam Erickson, vice president of the Hennepin County Association of Paramedics and EMTs, expressed satisfaction with the maximum sentence but noted the union’s intent to advocate for tougher penalties in similar cases, pushing lawmakers for legislative change to better protect EMS workers.
“These assaults, like the one we’re referencing, could’ve resulted in great bodily harm, or somebody could be hurt or badly injured, those need a second look by the legislature and potentially some more stringent sentencing,” Erickson said.
Hennepin Healthcare reports that there have been 243 threats and assaults against EMS workers in the first nine months of 2024, doubling the total of 121 incidents in all of 2023.
Hennepin Healthcare EMS Chief Martin Scheerer stated that attacks and threats now occur daily.
