Inmates at Gwinnett County Jail in Georgia saved the life of a prison guard who suffered a heart attack while on duty. The prisoners noticed that Deputy Warren Hobbs was acting odd and they became concerned when he appeared to fall asleep in his chair.
When Hobbs fell out of his seat and split open his head, the prisoners started screaming for help.
"Kinda was like laying back in his chair and just started (making noises)," inmate Mitchell Smalls told WAGA. "I started hollering and screaming and banging on the door to try to alert everybody to wake up."
Eventually, all 60 inmates in the cellblock were yelling and banging on their cell doors, causing the windows to shake.
The disturbance was enough to wake Hobbs up and he immediately thought that an inmate need help.
"Our deputy later stated that while he did not realize he'd been unconscious, he became aware of what sounded like pounding drums and could hear inmates shouting his name over and over. He immediately thought an inmate needed help and somehow managed to rise to his feet and press the control panel to open cell doors," the Gwinnett County Sheriff's Department wrote on Facebook.
Smalls and two other inmates, Walter Whitehead and Terry Lovelace, rushed out of their cells to check on Hobbs. They used his radio to call for help, which arrived within seconds. Hobbs was transported to the hospital and has since been released. He is now recovering in his home.
Whitehead told the news station that he was scared when he saw Hobbs in distress and knew he had to help.
"It scared me. I don't care if it's a police officer or whoever it was. I will do whatever I can to save a man. I don't want anyone to die," Whitehead said.
The Sheriff's Office praised the three inmates for looking out for Hobbs and saving his life.
"These inmates came to his aid because our deputy, like most law enforcement officers, treats people with the dignity they deserve. These inmates had no obligation whatsoever to render aid to a bleeding, vulnerable deputy, but they didn't hesitate. Many people have strong opinions about law enforcement officers and criminals, but this incident clearly illustrates the potential goodness found in both."
Photo: Gwinnett County Sheriff's Department