San Francisco Police Officer Kevin Downs has made what has been described a “miraculous” recovery after being shot in the head last October.
Not only is the 25-year-old officer almost fully recovered today, Downs is at peace with what happened last fall.
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Downs was one of several officers responding to a 911 call at Lakeshore Plaza. A man who appeared to be mentally disturbed was causing trouble at a store. He was later identified as Nicholas McWherter.
He says McWherter took off running. A short chase ensued. Downs exited his patrol car and the suspect was about 10 feet away.
“It was so dark and it happened so quick,” recalled Downs. “I didn’t see him pull his arm up and as he ran by me he fired three shots.”
One of them struck Downs in the head. When asked what his immediate reaction was Downs replied, “It was, ‘Why did he just do that? That’s not fair.’ I was just going to tackle him.”
Police cornered McWerter near Stern Grove where he was shot and mortally wounded. Downs was rushed to San Francisco General Hospital where he spent six days in intensive care. He was lucky to be alive.
Downs’ doctor said the bullet narrowly missed a major artery in his brain by one centimeter, the diameter of a fingertip. “He said if it hit there, it would have only been a couple of minutes,” he said.
The head wound affected his motor skills but his goal is to return to the job that he loved.
