SPARTANBURG, S.C. — Keith Soules didn't see the car until it hit him.
Soules, 29, was headed home on his motorcycle from his patrol shift at the Spartanburg Public Safety Department on Feb. 13 before the accident that changed his life.
It was about 11 p.m. He had the green light at the intersection of Highway 221 and Floyd Street.
The oncoming car didn't have its headlights on, Soules said.
"I didn't see anything until he made contact — no brakes or anything," Soules said.
The impact caused Soules' bike to roll, ejecting him and sending him flying. He said when he stopped sliding and rolling, he was in the middle of the road. In the dark, in the middle of the road, he was afraid of being hit by another car, so he crawled to the sidewalk.
With the injuries he's seen as both a police officer and while serving in Iraq with the Marine Corps, he knew his injury was serious.
"I looked down at my leg, and I thought then it wasn't going to be able to be saved," Soules said.
Bones jutted out from both sides of Soules' lower left leg. The bottom portion of the leg was attached only by skin and tissue.
Both his training as a Marine and law enforcement officer kicked in, and Soules called the county's 911 dispatch center — not 911, but the non-emergency number programmed into his cell phone. He remained calm.
"I was the one who called it in," Soules said. "I said I've been in a wreck and have a compound fracture. I was still thinking clear; I was just in a lot more pain than usual."
He then called his wife and told her to go to Spartanburg Regional Medical Center. Then he called Adrian Patton, a sergeant who served on the tactical team with him.
"I said, 'I don't think I'm going to make the next training,' " Soules said of that phone call.
Trying to take his mind off his leg, he joked with EMS workers on the way to the hospital. By the time he got to SRMC, he had no pulse in his left foot, and it was cold.
Surgeons had high hopes of saving the leg, Soules said. After a week at SRMC, he was transferred to Greenville Memorial Hospital.
He underwent another surgery so doctors could go in and take a look at the damage. Soules said the bones crumbled, too badly damaged from the crash. There was no way to insert screws or rods to strengthen the bones so the leg could heal.
When he woke up from surgery, Soules remembers his wife, Jackie, being upset.
"She said, 'I'll love you no matter what,' " he said. "I knew then what was going to happen without anything having to be said."
Back to Work
Soules became a police officer three years ago after serving in the Marines. The Spartanburg native said he wanted to go into law enforcement for a lot of different reasons, he said, but liked that it would mean an active lifestyle.
"I was looking for a job that would keep me awake and interested, and I wanted to get out and help people," Soules said.
He worked as a patrol officer and served on the tactical team.
On Feb. 27, he was released from Greenville Memorial, having undergone surgery to remove his lower left leg.
On March 7, he went to the orthopedist and had the stitches removed. The doctor gave him a letter releasing him for work.
He went to the public safety department and handed over his letter to the colonel.
"She said, 'When do you want to come back to work?' " Soules said. "I said, 'Tomorrow would be fine.' "
The next day, Soules returned to work at the public safety department, in the records division.
That first day was painful and tiring, he said. When he got home, he was so drained he went to bed immediately.
Since then, it's gotten better. He uses crutches to get around, although sometimes it's easier to just hop on his right leg.
"It's a workout getting from one side of the room to the other," he said.
Soules will be fitted for a prosthetic leg soon. He has a plan to return to patrol work and eventually to the tactical team.
"I knew prosthetics are pretty common," Soules said. "I knew it wasn't a life-ending thing. They're (public safety department) going to have a hard time getting rid of me."
It's that kind of attitude that impresses his fellow officers, including Capt. Art Littlejohn, who leads the tactical team.
"I don't know if I could still have the attitude he has," Littlejohn said. "He says, 'Don't fill my slot because I'm coming back.' He can't wait to get off those crutches."
Soules was part of the entry team that encountered gunfire during a drug search warrant in January. One officer was shot. Soules was recognized, along with other tactical team officers, with a Medal of Honor during the public safety department's awards banquet on Thursday. He also received a lifesaving award at the banquet.
Thankful for Support
Soules said his family has been supportive since his accident. His 3-year-old daughter, Alyssa, often hops on one leg to show her support for her dad. He also has a daughter, Amber, 17, and a son, Nick, 14.
Soules said the support from the community has been amazing. The H-D Klub, a motorcycle group his father, Clayton, is part of, held a barbecue sale last Saturday to raise money for Soules' medical expenses.
There will be a fundraiser for him at The Beacon Drive-In, including prize raffles.
Soules is thankful for all the support, especially from his fellow officers at the department.
"Words can't describe how good they've been," Soules said. "This whole department from top to bottom has been so supportive."
Soules was wearing a helmet at the time of his motorcycle crash. He had been riding cycles since 2002, and in 2007, he got a Harley-Davidson Softail Deluxe for Christmas from his wife.
He was riding it when the crash happened.
He'll be able to do many things with a prosthetic leg, but right now, he doesn't think he'll be getting back on a bike.
"Do I want to? Yes," Soules said. "Am I going to? No. It kills me to hear them going down the road, but right now, it's not worth the risk.
There's just too much of my kids' lives that I want to see — and that was a close one."
