New EMT convicted in fatal prank (VA)

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You may remember we discussed this at the time of the incident.

New EMT convicted in fatal prank

Though warned, he shocked a co-worker with a defibrillator

BY REX BOWMAN

TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Jan 24, 2006

RELATED: Police Beat

LEBANON -- Philip was in his fourth day on the job as a

rescue-squad worker in County when, in a playful mood, he decided to

reach

into the front seat of the ambulance and zap one of his co-workers with the

defibrillator paddles. The rookie's mistake was fatal.

Yesterday, in Circuit Court, a judge convicted , 25, of

involuntary manslaughter, warning the burly but pink-faced young man that when

he

returns to court in March, he likely will be sent to prison. He faces a

maximum sentence of 10 years.

The target of 's prank was Hilton Rhoton, a 23-year-old

mother of two small children who had worked her way through school to become an

emergency medical technician. She went into cardiac arrest seconds after

placed the paddles on her chest and shoulder. Three days later, on June 4,

she died.

After watching bailiffs lead off to jail yesterday, the mothers of

Rhoton and stood at opposite ends of a narrow courthouse hallway and

wept, one for the loss of her daughter, the other for the fate of her son. All

agreed had meant no harm, though none derived comfort from the thought.

" If they just knew Josh! " his mother, White, exclaimed between sobs.

" He just made a mistake. Everybody plays on the job, even cops. But with this

one, it caught up. He's going to pay for it for the rest of his life. "

" He was just playing around, " 's aunt, , said. " Anybody

who knows him knows this was not intentional. "

Rhoton's mother, Davenport, could not summon words to express her

grief, except to say: " Everybody loved her. "

In the courtroom minutes earlier, had stood with his hands deep in

his pants pockets and pleaded no contest to the charge against him, allowing

prosecutor Mike Bush to summarize the evidence without calling

witnesses. According to Bush, if the case had gone to trial, a witness would

have

testified that , an EMT, was in the back of a Highlands Ambulance Service

ambulance on June 1 when he first picked up the paddles of the manual

defibrillator.

Defibrillators are used to restore heartbeats, but they can also stop a

heart. , though an EMT, was not yet qualified to use the defibrillator

and

had been told it is not something to play with, Bush said.

Rhoton was in the front passenger seat of the ambulance, and driver

was heading south on U.S. 19 in Lebanon when heard Rhoton

tell not to touch her " with that, " Bush said. looked back to see

putting the paddles away.

But shortly afterward, Bush said, heard the " sound of a shock " and

heard Rhoton yell: " Oh my God, Mike, he shocked me! " Seconds later she

stiffened and then went limp. frantically tried to hold her slumping

body up

while driving and calling the private ambulance company's office.

Rhoton, who had been an EMT for one year, never regained consciousness. She

left behind two children, and Tamra, now 6 and 4.

Yesterday, the families of the two EMTs passed each other in the hallway as

they left the courtroom.

Rhoton's sister, Chanda Lawson, 30, expressed bitterness as she watched the

family cry: " They're crying because he's going to jail, but my

sister's not coming back. "

overheard the comment and blurted out: " Josh is a good kid! A

good kid! "

Contact staff writer Rex Bowman at rbowman@... or (540)

344-3612.

Louis N. Molino, Sr., CET

FF/NREMT-B/FSI/EMSI

LNMolino@...

(Office)

(Office Fax)

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