A viral video claims a Sheridan man suffered a massive stroke and underwent multiple brain surgeries after police arrested him for public intoxication on a freezing night in February 2021 — hours before jailers discovered they could not wake him.
Capt. Tom Ringley of the Sheridan Police Department told Cowboy State Daily that officers followed proper procedures during the encounter.
“Officers are peace officers, not doctors, therefore, we are not qualified to diagnose anything,” Ringley said. “We, in accordance with our policies and procedures, when someone complained of the medical problem, we called emergency medical services. We cleared him.”
“So once he was cleared, we took him to jail,” Ringley said. “No further information.”
Cowboy State Daily was unable to independently verify the claims made in the video. The Sheridan Police Department confirmed an incident involving the man, Rick Davis, took place that night around the 1200 block of Val Vista Street, but declined to address specific details about what happened after he was taken into custody.
Attempts to reach Davis and the video’s creator were unsuccessful.
When asked if anything in the video was misleading, Ringley declined to comment.
Social Media
Online comments began appearing on the department’s Facebook page after a Jan. 6 post about an unrelated mass casualty training exercise at Sheridan College.
A video posted Jan. 13 by the online channel LackLuster brought wider attention to the incident.
The unnamed owner of the LackLuster channel, which has nearly 1.5 million followers, says he is a combat veteran who set up the page to keep all public officials accountable.
"Freedom survives only when government fears the people," the channel's descriptor reads. The YouTube page boasts more than 1 billion video views.
On the Sheridan police page, angry comments started piling up.
"Sheridan is the place to go if you have a death wish. They are more than happy to assist you with that," commenter Timothy Mackay said.
"I typically support our blue, I do, I appreciate your hard work to keep us safe. But what SPD did to my friend Rick is despicable," wrote Megan Kendrick Gresham.
"Lets face facts Sheridan, our local mafia, I mean, police, do a sub standard job most of the time," Jake Kethman wrote.
First Amendment
When asked about the social media response, Ringley said people are exercising their Constitutional rights.
“I don’t know,” he said. “They’re free to exercise a First Amendment right, and it appears that’s what they’re doing.”
Ringley said he does not spend time monitoring social media commentary.
“I’m sure our community would prefer that their police captain spend time managing the police department,” he said. “It’s not our prerogative as police officers to try and figure out what people on social media are saying.”
“The gentleman was cleared medically by medical professionals,” Ringley said. “Police officers are not medical professionals.”
February 2021
According to the LackLuster video, on the evening of Feb. 4, 2021, Davis was approximately 200 feet from his home when a concerned citizen called 911 after observing him fall. The temperature was 20 degrees and streets were covered in ice.
Officers responded to the scene and asked Davis where he lived.
“Right there,” Davis responded, according to the video.
Officers noted Davis was struggling to stand and asked about his condition.
“Are you diabetic?” an officer asked.
“Yes,” Davis replied.
“You are a diabetic. Are you Type 1 or Type 2?”
“Type 2,” Davis said.
One officer radioed dispatch: “I think it’s alcohol related, but he says it’s a diabetic.”
Officers administered two breathalyzer tests. The first showed a reading of 0.062, and the second registered 0.016 — both below the legal limit to drive.
Officers noted Davis had a visible injury and expressed concern about additional falls.
“So, I noticed you got kind of a cut on your forehead there,” an officer said, according to the video. “You know how you got that?”
“I fell,” Davis responded.
“You’re going to fall and hit your head again, man. We don’t want that,” an officer told him.
Officers said they wanted medical personnel to evaluate Davis.
“We’re going to have EMS check you out,” an officer said. “One, we want to make sure they check that cut out, but two, if you’re a diabetic, we want to make sure there’s no issues with that. So they’ll check your blood sugar and stuff.”
When emergency medical services arrived, officers briefed paramedics on the situation.
“This is Rick,” an officer said. “He’s super incoherent. Falling down. Pants were down. Has a laceration. He said he thinks he’s a diabetic. So, we figured you guys could check him out.”
“We will check him out,” the paramedic responded.
EMS checked Davis’s blood sugar, which registered at 146.
“Rick, whatever your problems are tonight, it’s not your diabetes, your blood sugar is 146. That’s perfect,” a paramedic told him, according to the video.
After EMS cleared Davis, officers determined he could not safely walk home.
“Well, you’re pretty drunk,” a paramedic said, according to the video.
“You’re a hazard on the road,” an officer added. “Your pants are off on the road.”
Officers moved to take Davis into custody.
“All right, Rick. You’re under arrest for drunk pedestrian on a roadway,” an officer said. “I know you’re almost home, but we’re kind of past that point.”
As officers placed Davis in the patrol car, they noted his condition.
“We’ll get you warmed up. You’re super wet and it’s cold,” an officer said.
Meanwhile, another officer had followed Davis’ tracks in the snow and located a vehicle Davis said he had slept in earlier that night. The officer contacted the vehicle’s owner.
“Is there any reason anyone should have been sleeping in it last night?” the officer asked.
“No,” she replied.
“So it looks like it is unlocked. Someone was sleeping in it,” the officer said.
The officer reassured the concerned homeowner about the neighborhood.
“I think he was just trying to find a warm spot to sleep. I don’t think he was trying to do anything malicious in your vehicle,” the officer said. “It is a safe neighborhood. This is extremely uncommon.”
Davis was charged with intoxicated pedestrian on a roadway, criminal entry, and theft from a motor vehicle.
Medical Emergency
According to the video, Davis was placed in a jail holding cell. Officers later could not wake him for his first court appearance. He was then transported to the hospital, where doctors determined he had been suffering from a hemorrhagic stroke, the video states.
Davis was airlifted to St. Vincent’s Hospital in Billings, Montana, where he underwent multiple brain surgeries and was placed in a medically induced coma for more than five weeks, according to the video. The criminal charges were later dismissed.
The video states Davis was unable to find legal representation to pursue a lawsuit and ultimately filed for bankruptcy after the hospital sought nearly $700,000 in medical expenses.
Ringley declined to confirm or discuss details about Davis’s medical condition or what occurred after he was taken to jail.
No Complaint
Ringley said Davis has not filed any formal complaint with the department.
“We have never received a complaint from Mr. Davis between the time of the incident in 2021 and now,” Ringley said.
As for the accuracy of the video footage featured by LackLuster, Ringley said, “Videos are documentation of what happened.”
David Madison can be reached at david@cowboystatedaily.com.
