Whatcom deputies were shot 80 days ago. Community support for them continues with this gift
Sunday marks 80 days since Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office deputies Ryan Rathbun and Jason Thompson were both shot in the face while responding to a Feb. 10 dispute between neighbors in Peaceful Valley, and both are continuing to recover.
“Both Deputy Rathbun and Thompson are making progress in their injuries from the shooting,” sheriff’s office spokesperson Deb Slater told The Bellingham Herald in an email Friday, April 29. “They are both still receiving care. Deputy Rathbun has received four eye surgeries (and counting).”
But Slater said both deputies, who have a combined 29 years of experience, are still hopeful that they will be able to return to active duty this year.
“They would also like to stress their gratitude to all of the community members who have sent their love and support,” Slater wrote.
Community support has been a theme since Peaceful Valley neighbors stepped in to assist Rathbun and Thompson after they were shot, as some neighbors reportedly returned fire while others pulled the injured deputies to safety and administered first aid until medical personnel arrived and took them to St. Joseph’s hospital in Bellingham.
That spirit of support has continued, as the sheriff’s office announced in a news release Friday that the Foothills Community Alliance from the Columbia Valley donated 60 trauma kits to the department. The kits include tourniquets, shears, gloves and bandages in a lightweight, compact package that will allow each deputy to carry medical supplies to quickly treat serious injuries they encounter in the field.
“Law enforcement is encountering a marked increase in violent assaults against officers and community members,” Sheriff Bill Elfo said in the release. “Deputies are often the first on the scene of these violent attacks. The Foothills Community Alliance’s generous donation of trauma kits will better equip deputies to quickly and effectively intervene in cases involving serious wounds and save lives.
“We are most appreciative of the support we receive from those we serve.”
The cost of the kits was approximately $5,000, Foothills Community Alliance Executive Chair Lisa McOmber told The Herald, adding that the donation was made because the group wanted to do something positive for the community and the sheriff’s office following the shooting.
“We wanted to do something that showed deputies that we support them and we want to help them,” McOmber said. “We don’t want them in harms way, obviously, but we also wanted to do something to bring the community together and reach out to those neighbors that witnessed the shooting.
“We wanted to do something to show the deputies that we appreciate their work and service, and we felt the trauma kits were something they could use.”
The non-profit Foothills Community Alliance has been looking for projects that will benefit the community in the Columbia Valley for approximately a year since receiving a $500,000 grant from the Mount Baker Foundation, McOmber said. Before the donation of the trauma kits, projects included donating money for a park, helping set up a communications hub out of Van Zandt and organizing an Easter egg hunt at Kendall Elementary.
The man suspected of shooting Rathbun and Thompson, 60-year-old Joel Berck Young, pleaded not guilty Feb. 18 to two counts of attempted first-degree murder, one count of first-degree assault, one count of second-degree assault, one count of felony harassment, and six counts of reckless endangerment in Whatcom County Superior Court.
Court records show Young, who is being held in the Skagit County Community Justice Center in lieu of $5 million bail, is currently scheduled to stand trial beginning June 13. Rathbun and Thompson also filed a civil lawsuit against Young on March 1.
