Police officers disguised as pedestrians assist elderly woman with dementia to return home
By MarissaRocks
The Charles County Sheriff's Office received an unusual 911 call requesting a search party for a missing elderly woman with dementia. Roberta, an 81-year-old resident of Charles County, Maryland, often takes walks to her driveway and back as part of her routine. However, due to her dementia, she is at risk of wandering off and getting lost.
When Roberta's daughter discovered that her mother had been missing for an extended period, she became fearful. The situation prompted an urgent response from local law enforcement.
When she did not see her in the driveway, Roberta’s daughter alerted the authorities by calling 911. She informed the officers of her mother’s condition. The authorities assured her that her mother will be found.
The Charles County Sheriff’s Office sent out a search party to look for Roberta who was later found walking along a wooded path near her home 40 minutes later.
Instead of startling the elderly and embarrassing her with the situation that she’s gotten lost, the officers took the compassionate route and pretended that they were walking as well to accompany the sweet lady and to lead her back home safely.
Officer Morrison was captured walking hand in hand with Roberta back to her home. The photo was posted on the official Facebook account of Charles County Sheriff’s Office and it quickly went viral.
The photo was captioned:
“We often talk about the rewards of police work. On Friday, we captured a moment. Officers responded to a 911 call from a woman who reported her 81-year-old mother missing. It seems her mother left her house to take her daily walk up and down the driveway, but when she didn’t return, things got a bit scary because the woman’s mother has dementia.
Officers P. DeBoe, C. Caywood, B. Morrison, Sgt. C. Black, and Cpl. C. Clevenger and his K9 partner responded to the scene and began a search of the heavily wooded area. After 40 minutes, the woman was found.”
At first, she seemed confused at the sudden appearance of police officers on the tree-lined trail, and she asked if the officers were out taking a walk too. They quietly replied ‘Yes,’ after all, it was a beautiful day.
And then she seemed relieved and told them she had lost her way. ‘No problem,’ said Officer Morrison who then gently took her hand and, along with the other officers walked her back to her house.
Along the way, the officers made small talk with the woman, to make her feel at ease. When asked what is the key to a long, healthy life was, the woman replied, ‘Eat good and stay active.’
Officers encounter different situations every day. Some good, some not so good. In this case, a frightening situation for the family ended happily. For that, they were thankful. For us, it’s the rewarding part of policing.”
Photo | Facebook
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