The call he was shot was the call no spouse of law enforcement officer wants to hear, she said at a press conference today. “The next few days were extremely trying and very emotional.”
Now, the officer is home, she said, and is resting, “As comfortably as he can. John has been through a traumatic ordeal but is expected to recover. We see a long road ahead but certainly a light at the end of the tunnel.”
The officer is ready to return to work, she said. “If it were up to my husband he would have already returned to work. He is very focused on his recovery and wishes to return to the job he so dearly loves as soon as he can.”
Family and friends have been with them since the shooting, she said and his return home has been some of the best rehabilitation for him. “Now that he is home with our son his spirits have truly been lifted.”
Mrs. Taylor thanked law enforcement from across the state and beyond for participating in a manhunt that led them to finding Michael Eugene Edgerton, who killed himself in the woods near Halifax Academy and is believed to have shot the officer, and his fiancee, Renee Michele Phillips, who is in custody and arrested as an accessory after the fact of attempted murder.
The officers, she said, “Worked tirelessly throughout that night and into the next day, never giving up to bring this ordeal to a close before any other innocent (people) could be harmed.”
She thanked all who helped her husband as he lay wounded on the side of the road, with gunshot wounds to his neck, abdomen — which was caught by his vest — and wrist. “Our most sincere gratitude goes out to those who administered aid instrumental in saving my husband’s life and who provided ongoing care, including those citizens who stopped by the side of the road, EMS responders and doctors, nurses and other hospital staff at both Halifax Regional and Pitt Memorial Hospital.”
Then there was an outpouring from the community, the city, churches, schools, businesses, organizations and companies. “The thoughts, prayers and well wishes from all over have meant the world to us and we believe have helped to bring my husband to the place he is today.
“We hope to be able to thank as many of you as we can over the coming weeks. Overall, (John) is doing as well as to be expected. He looks forward to the day he can return to serve and protect the people of Roanoke Rapids.
We sincerely thank you for your continued thoughts and prayers. They have made all the difference in the world.”
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