LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A man is in hospital after being shot multiple times near downtown Louisville on Wednesday, authorities said.
Louisville Metro Police's (LMPD) First and Fourth Division responded to a report of a shooting near the intersection of West Broadway and 9th Street around 10:30 a.m.
Before LMPD officers were able to get to the scene, Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) Officer Kevin Hayes-Taylor drove past the incident and sprung into action.
"I originally thought it was an accident, that’s what I originally thought, thought it was a car accident...seeing the body language, that’s when I started to slow down," he said. "I put my window down and started asking questions."
Hayes-Taylor was driving down Broadway on his way to an assignment at a JCPS school.
"Once I saw somebody that needed help I just stopped everything that I was doing," he said.
Once Hayes-Taylor saw the man with multiple gunshots wounds to his thigh, he immediately grabbed a tourniquet from his car and applied it to the victim.
"A lot of different things were clicking - get my body cam on, communicate where I was, try to look at people and what they’re doing," he said.
Hayes-Taylor said because of the location of the gunshot wounds, the victim could have bled out in minutes.
The body camera footage captured the moments Hayes-Taylor can be heard telling the victim, "this is going to hurt, but it's going to save your life."
Hayes-Taylor knows how critical those moments can be all too well. He himself was a gunshot victim back in 2013.
"This is exactly what I would have needed and this is exactly what I would have wanted - somebody to try to calm me down, talk to me, and I did the best I can by telling him I'm here to help you," he said. "I was in the right place at the right time, I had the proper training, the proper equipment."
Hayes-Taylor spent over 15 years in the National Guard, saying his military training along with his police training is what sprung him into action.
Authorities said the man is recovering at the hospital and is expected to survive.
The roadway was closed in both directions around 11 a.m. while police investigated the shooting.
LMPD's Non-Fatal Shooting Unit is handling the investigation, however there are no known suspects at this time.
Anyone with any information regarding this incident is urged to contact the department at 502-574-LMPD (5673). Reports can also be made online by clicking here.
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