IRMO, S.C. — An Irmo police officer was injured on duty, but that didn't deter him from wanting to do his job.
Sgt. John Hendricks has been with the Irmo Police Department for 14 years. He currently leads the Community Services Division.
Back in May, he was faced with a bump in the road. While working an off-duty job, Hendricks and another officer responded as backup to a man barricaded in his home.
“During the course of dealing with this particular individual, I got myself into a bad situation," Sgt. Hendricks explains. A lot of times, there are so many moving parts ... I ended up having a level 3 tear of my ACL, which is a complete tear and it does require surgery to repair that type of injury.”
Sgt. Hendricks went through a lot of physical therapy to prepare him for surgery that he had earlier this week. “It’s painful and I expected that it would be. I knew there would be a long road to recovery but I’ve got good people taking care of me and a good support base from the Chief of Police and everyone else at the Irmo Police Department, as well.”
Chief Courtney Dennis of the Irmo Police Department says officers like Sgt. Hendricks are invaluable. "To sustain an injury like that and have a strong desire to come back to work ... takes remarkable people to feel that way and want to continue to do that, so Sgt. Hendricks is just one of those guys.”
After all he’s been through, Sgt. Hendricks is anxious to get back in the field.
Sgt. Hendricks says, “I’ve spent my entire law enforcement career with them. I’ve gotten to know the people there, I’ve gotten to know the people within the community and I can’t imagine going anywhere else or doing anything else for the rest of my career.”