Alabama Man Targets Medical Helicopter, Injuring Nurse In Process

Shooting at medical staff is considered dirty work in any situation. A man has been arrested after shooting at a medical helicopter, injuring one nurse.

During landing in an open pasture in Autauga County at around 4.20 AM, the medical helicopter came under fire. For some unknown reason, a local man had decided that he would fire shots at the emergency vehicle. A number of shots were on target, and a nurse was injured in the process.

• Police were called to the scene, and 48-year-old Peter Ellison was arrested. He was taken in by Autauga County deputies and booked into Autauga County Metro Jail. He was charged with shooting at an occupied vehicle. He was placed under a $30,000 cash bond.

Misplaced Rage

The reasoning for the shooting hasn’t been revealed, but there’s really no excuse here. Emergency paramedics, doctors, nurses, and all those connected are there solely to save lives. So, shooting at a medical helicopter is simply stupid.

Even the Geneva Convention protects the lives of medical staff during wartime. Shooting or willfully injuring people dedicated to the preservation of life is not just stupid, it’s evil.

• Speaking out about the shooting, Sheriff Harrell said, “It is also incomprehensible that anyone would try to shoot at or use a device that could affect our heroes in flight who are there to save a life. We will work with our federal partners to ensure that this individual is prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

Right Place: Thankfully, for the nurse who was hit by a ricochet bullet while under fire in the medical helicopter, they were surrounded by the right people. They were treated for the wound at the scene. The original person who needed to be airlifted was, instead, taken to the hospital in an ambulance.

The reasons Ellison decided to allegedly open fire on a medical helicopter are still unclear. He still hasn’t had his time in court, but I feel that it’s going to be a pretty hard one to explain. It was early in the morning, and hardly the most threatening of aircraft.