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FHP Report Details Why Molino Father Arrested At Scene Of Son’s Fatal Wreck
November 6, 2013
Saturday night, a Molino father was arrested on felony charges for attacking first responders and troopers at the scene of a traffic accident that claimed the life of his son.
John David Edmonson, Jr. stands accused of felony battery on an officer, firefighter or EMT, felony aggravated assault on officer, firefighter or EMT, felony resisting an officer with violence and a misdemeanor count of failure to obey police or fire department. Edmonson, 56, was released from the Escambia County Jail on a $15,500 bond.
(For the original story on the accident, click here.)
NorthEscambia.com has obtained the Florida Highway Patrol report on the incident, which spells out in detail exactly what troopers say happened.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol report:
Two troopers were dispatched to the crash and were responding. They were advised by their dispatcher than EMS had reported an “angry mob” was forming and not allowing them to perform their duties. The troopers then sped up their response with lights and sirens, arriving to see the victim’s pickup in the woods, surrounded by first responders.
A fire chief on the scene told troopers there was a man by the truck assaulting EMS and firefighters and interfering with their duties. One trooper reported that he personally observed Edmonson pushing back at firefighters and not obeying their orders to leave the scene. The second trooper made contact with Edmonson and advised him to leave the area so emergency responders could do their job. He refused to leave.
The first trooper then went over to Edmonson and placed his left hand on his shoulder and advised him that he had to leave the scene. He pushed away, and was advised that he would be arrested if he did not leave the scene immediately.
Edmonson became angry and pushed the trooper away. The second trooper then placed the man in a choke hold and attempted to calm him down. He pushed the trooper off, and threw a punch at the second trooper, hitting him in the upper part of his chest.
Both troopers continued their attempt to subdue Edmonson, but he continued resisting. Edmonson then ended up on top of one trooper, trying to punch him. He was pulled off by another trooper by his shirt. Edmonson continued to resist, trying to go back against the trooper. One trooper then pulled out his taser and removed the cartridge due to being in close proximity to other responders.
The trooper advised Edmonson that he would be tased if he continued resisting. Edmonson pushed the trooper with the taser, and the trooper tased Edmonson one time around his stomach, causing him to fall back into bushes.
Edmonson resisted as both troopers attempted to take him into custody; the troopers were eventually able to overpower and handcuff him.
A McDavid firefighter told troopers that Edmonson had grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him away from victim as he tried to render aid.
Edmonson was not seriously injured. He did request that he be checked by a doctor for his diabetes. Escambia County EMS responded to the scene where Edmonson appeared to be having a diabetic issue. He was transported to Sacred Heart Hospital where he was “cleared” and transported to the Escambia County Jail.
The FHP report also indicates that Edmonson was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the incident.
Pictured bottom inset: A Florida Highway Patrol trooper talks with John David Edmonson, Jr. after his arrest Saturday night. Pictured below: Edmonson’s alleged struggle with two troopers prompted a large emergency response from the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Comments
76 Responses to “FHP Report Details Why Molino Father Arrested At Scene Of Son’s Fatal Wreck”
Prayers to the Family….May God grant peace and be with you all during this time.
I love u jj rip justes to big john love u too
Im sure edmondson has lawyered up by now. Pretty sure he has been told by a professional to apologize by letter or in person to first responders. We have a fair/compassionate court system. Justice is due to the Troopers, in form of an apology. They are good people with families. But they could not allow anyone to interfere with the response team. Maybe the troopers could have let him go to hospital with his son… But edmondson was evidently still a risk no matter the circumstances. It’s all sad & I pray for all involved.
What if? The 1st responders all walked away when confronted with the drunk father. Let him talk to his son for a half hour or so. Then responders say, ” sir, if it’s okay with you n if you’re done, we’d now like to try to save his life”. But it was too late, the county & every 1st responder on the scene would now be facing civil lawsuits by the father for giving in to his emotions instead of rendering aid. Mr. Edmondson owes each & everyone of these responders a personal heartfelt apology. I’m sure all responders would forgive him & charges would probably be dropped due to the circumstances. The edmondson family is not helping matters by pointing “all” fingers at Troopers.
So many assumptions,opinions and half truths.Facts: A young man was in an accident and clinging to life.Emergency personnel are working furiously to keep him alive,a father rushes to the scene hoping his son will be alive.He arrives and grasps the seriousness of the injuries and wants to comfort his son regardless of others policies and procedures. let’s leave the judgement of his actions up to the judge.He or she will evaluate all the facts. For all of us right now, let’s pray for the grief stricken family!!
Edmonson Strong, I am so proud of my family for the support they showed to their Brother, and Uncle Big John. To all the friends of the family who came and cried with us, to the ones who donated their time and also any funds that was donated to help with exspenses, we really appericate anything and everything you did to help make this tragedy a little easier for us to bear, for all the food and the good company and memorys Thank You. To the Pastor’s that done the service for us Thank You. To everyone Thank You over and over again. Family and Friends where would we be without them?
this is to atmore dude let me tell you one thing this father which happeneds to be my uncle was only doing what any other father would do.im sorry u do feel you would do the same for your kid. its just part of being a dad.
The first thing alcohol affects is ones Judgement
Look people… A father had to do what a father had to do here.. The police had to do what they had to do.. It was a very bad time and both sides didn’t mean to hurt anyone there.. The higher court will understand so maybe the down town will too.RIP JJ !!!
@ 2cents–You may be more right than you know. If anyone is interested in the court history on John and his son take a look at the Clerk of the Court web site. Both father and son have been charged with DUI’s plus other traffic offenses and other offenses.
As a parent who also lost a son to a motor vehicle accident, there’s nothing more frustrating than not being able to save your child. I feel for this father. I don’t believe he knew what he was doing, don’t judge his actions. He was distraught that night.
Jennifer, you are unbelievable, those first responders have families too, you need to watch what you say or how you say it & be careful about who you think needs to forgive. Just saying
As a mother who has had to bury two of her own children, my heart goes out to the family. Right now they just need the support of loved ones and the community. They don’t need people saying what they should or shouldn’t have done. It’s past and can’t be changed. And trust me, they will re-live it for years in their heads saying I should’ve done this or that. It is a sad truth. I still do it to this day and my boys died years ago. They need quiet support and reassurance that they did what they could. Time will make it easier, but it never goes away.
Bless the family and their son.
It’s just a matter of time and the BAC results will be in! If he was over the legal limit I do suspect a DUI may be in order especially if the FHP can prove he drove to the scene.
To the ones who seem to think that since this story has gotten so much publicity the charges may be thrown out. I wouldn’t be so sure. But time will tell.
All any of us can do is pray the judge will have “empathy” for the situation, but that does NOT make his actions valid by no means.
Prayers for the family
Justice for first responders
It is unfortunate that this gentleman lost his son, but I have been on too many incidents where family tries to get in the way or asault me (or others) for “not doing enough”. In addition if we see a person is so seriously injured or ill that they may not survive we treat the scene as a possible crime scene and limit who comes in and out of it. Finnaly it is a huge safety risk to allow someone without the proper training or safety equipment in close to a vehicle extrictaion, both to the civilians and to the responders.
Again, I am sorry to see that he lost his son. But if you swing on a police officer or any emergency responder (for any reason) you are just making a bad descion. If you CONTINUE to do so you are going to jail. Regardless of WHY you did it.
LEO: try to calm situation and stay in control of situation. Because you’re paid to. People at situation area: Let the LEOs that you pay do their job or try to control the situation yourself. LEO: It’s whats you’re paid to do so keep control and do whatever necessary that you need to. Come on people, the officials you hire to do a job has to stay in control at all cost or we will end up like a third world country with gangs or individual groups controlling everything. Freedom is nice but it comes with a cost. If the officials walked away from this situation because of an upset father we may as well fire them all and let the public control each situation as they see fit. GOOD JOB LEOs.
This whole man’s life changed in a quick, horrible instant. If you have never lost a child, you could never know the intense insanity that hits at the reality of the situation. I pray the charges are dropped. He was not in his “normal” frame of mind.He needed to be subdued but charged for a crime? If I were the officer or emt he assulted I would have compassion and even if he left me in a hospital bed, I would forgive him knowing this poor man witnessed his only son dying in a horrific wreck. Bumps and bruises can heal but the grieving heart of a parent…..not so easy. Justice for John. I am so sorry for your loss.
This is dedicated to J
My mother had a stroke and I was not allowed to be in the ER room when they were working to save her life and I understood even though I wanted to be by my mother’s side. The EMT’S were working to save a life and was getting pushed around by an irate father.
To Everett, the young man died at the hospital a short time later.
No one has to read the comments about this family unless they choose to do so. That is why the comments are at the bottom. If you read something you don’t like, you have the option to not read anymore. This is still a free country and we do have the right to freedom of speech.
I am thankful for the EMT’S and Police Officers that are there to help and protect us in times of need.
I did not know JJ very well, but I would say that he had to be a great person. He was raised by my Uncle John and Aunt Diane. He had to be loving because they were. He had to be compassionate because they were. Uncle John and Aunt Diane I am so sorry for your loss of your son JJ. I know he meant the world to you both. Thank you for raising a your son JJ to be the man he was. I love you both and you will be in my prayers and those of my church family too. Go with God JJ. Now, to all responders I would say to listen to your mothers advice: If you can’t say anything nice don’t say anything at all!!
More than three hundred people at JJ’S service last night. No angry mob just family and friends. And yes of course Big John right there by his baby. RIP JJ we love you. Today is going to be so hard. Please people please no harsh words. No judgememental statements. Let us mourn him in peace.
To “Vice Security”
JUSTICE FOR JOHN!!!!!!
LEO’s can arrest and charge.
But it is up to the States Attorney to prosecute and go to court.
Hopefully the SA will not bother to prosecute at all.
A difficult situation from both side.
A caring father under the influence worried about his son as he or any other father would be.
Very welled trained rescue personnel trying to do what they do best.
One can wonder,
-Would the father complied a little easer if he wasn’t under under the influence of alcohol. I don’t think the diabetic issue played into the behavior but alcohol mixed in with diabetes isn’t a good combination.
-Did the fathers interference play into the end of his sons life. It hasn’t been disclosed if the son was already deceased at the scene.
One can hope,
-There is a sympathetic court system in this case that will show mercy under these circumstances.
-This father can get some help to curb his alcohol issue (if there is one) We all like a cool brew once in a while.
Just pray for the family and hope it all works out.
This is to the individual who chooses which comments to post and which ones not to post. You should not be allowing the inconsiderate ones to be posted in cases such as this one. You are just as cruel as these people are. And for that you should be ashamed of yourself, just as they should. But in today’s world I guess it has become acceptable to say things from behind a keyboard that you do not have the courage to say to someones face. Not only are you cruel you are cowards. I would be willing to bet that none of you would say these things to Mr. Edmonson’s face nor to his family and loved ones. That is if you have any common sense. So if you do not have any words of encouragement show some decency and keep your comments to yourself. Remember one day you may be forced to walk down this same horrible dark road and you would not want someone saying some of these things to you at a time you are trying to grieve the loss of a loved one. God bless the Edmonson family! I hope I have been politically correct enough for you to post this one. Maybe it will prevent others from posting ugly comments.
I know both JJ and Mr. John they were a very close father and son spent everyday together and we never know how we might react if that were our own child.Ican only imagine myself I would have probally reacted the same way so I wish people would let this go and let Mr. John off he deserves to grieve the loss of his son and people remember that JJ is leaving behind a wife and three little precious girls that need everyones support and most importantly they need their grandfather home with them to help with their grieving because hes as close to those three little girls as he was to JJ.
The only thing I can stress here is the fact that our police have NO HEART OR SOUL! To subdue him to treat the injured…no problem..bit to charge this clearly distraught man with felonies, and break him financially, after the loss of his child in such a tragic way has already destroyed him spiritually, is a disgusting, horrible, unfeeling, inhuman and un-American thing to do. My heart and soul hurts for his family. All I can say is be strong and pray to God…he is the only hope we have against the tyranny.
Molino is a close knit community with several generations living within a mile or so from one another. I am sure that this man interacted with his son on a daily basis and was very close to him. I can only imagine this fathers anguish upon learning of his son’s grave situation. I can understand his irrational behavior under such horrific stress.
I do understand that order must be maintained and safety protocols observed at an accident scene, where the balance can hang in how quickly an accident victim can be extricated from the vehicle and treatment begun. Our First Responders and State Troopers are 1st rate all the way in dealing with situation and procedure.
I do hope that the Courts are not too hard on Mr Edmonson as he has a son to bury.
My condolences and prayers for the Edmonson Family.
It seems the same people who are saying don’t judge are very quick to judge law enforcement. They are not bad people! Yes, the father was distraught to see this happening to his son, but it is also true that first responders DO want to save people’s lives. When it is all said and done I do pray that the judge will be compassionate to the father. I’m sure he is regretful for behaving that way, and he did lose his son, but I would also be willing to bet that the troopers are very regretful too that the situation had to come to that. They do have families and loved ones too, but it sounds like they were completely within the realms of the law.
Perfectly stated “dave”!!!
If you fail to comprehend that anyone INTEREFEREING with life saving attempts has a quite diluted sense of reality. According to some commenters logic, they should have let big john interfere and pull the firefighters off of his son so he now has ZERO chance. That makes sense. How about letting him ride in the ambulance to and block the EMTs. Why not just let him push the doctors away at the hospital??
Much of the logic here I see is pathetic. Thank GOD you all arent in a position of where you’d have to make a judgement call. You’d FAIL.
The officers are being nice and not charging him with a more serious crime because they feel bad because he may have stopped the professionals from ACTUALLY SAVE HIS SONS LIFE.
Couldn’t have said it better myself Miranda Bailey!! God be with this family during this very difficult time! I love you John,Diane,Rory and JJ’s 3 sweet little girls! We are here for you if you need anything!
Daniel to your comment I will say. Yes his eyes are shut, and yes you are missing something. The grief going through his mind. The thoughts of seeing his sons twisted dying body. It is obvious that some people have no compassion or heart for one another and apparent that you are one of those people. For the people that feel we have no heart come on down to the funeral home and watch this angry mob greive. Watch this father who dosen’t love his son.
Obviously the family is reading these comments so folks please be kind. Unless you were actually there, none of us really know what went on. One thing is for sure, Heaven gained another angel way too soon. I did not know JJ nor do I know Mr Edmonson. From here on, why don’t we offer up our thoughts, prayers and condolences to this family on their tragic loss. If and when Mr. Edmonson has to appear in court on the charges against him, then and only then voice your opinions about how you feel. Right now, this family is preparing to put their son, husband, father to rest. Let’s pray for this family and be there for them in spirit if nothing else.
To the Edmonson’s: Lean on God and He will see you through as only He can. Take each day, one day at a time and over time your pain will ease. It will not totally go away as many of us know but over time it will become easier to bear. You will be in my thoughts and prayers today and in the days ahead. God Bless!
Someone called their dispatcher to report someone was “in the way”.
In order to get LEO support there sooner, the words used were changed from “some guy getting in the way” to “angry mob”.
Which words do u think LEO’s are going to react to and to what degree are they going to react?
This situation is indeed very tragic for the family. I am sure any charges against the father will be dismissed. However, any reasonable person should understand that interfering with emergency personnel trying to save a life is wrong no matter what the circumstances. I have children and if such a tragedy would happen to me, I would find it easier to live with myself knowing that I selflessly gave my child access to all available medical help in his last minutes of life.
I wonder if the first responders realized that it was the guy’s father. They may have thought he was just some guy trying to interfere.
I have made comments in the past pertaining to an accident to the loss of a child as a result from the accident. This man was interferring with the First Responders efforts to remove the injured from the auto. This man was overwhelmed and distraught I understand, but to be under the influence he was not thinking rationally. As the result of his actions it became necessary to tase him so that his son could be removed from the truck. I don’t agree with his actions but actions unforunately do sometimes come with consequences. I can honestly say I know his pain from experience. I will say this in his defense the FHP officers that work these fatalities sometimes I think they could use more training in dealing with the families of these accident victims. They didn’t show a lot of compassion when I arrived at the hospital when they were taking the statement of the individual driving the auto that I lost my daughter as a result of the horrific tragedy. It’s hard to relate if you haven’t been there or even have children or not. Sorry for his loss and what he must face as the result of the outcome of a tragedy as such. Sorry for everyone involved, First Responders, his Father and Family and this couldn’t have been an easy decision for the FHP Officers as well. Pray for all………..
My heart goes out to this family. I have never been thru anything like this but I am sure I would of tried to get to my child I would of shoved anyone out of the way Trooper or not, let’s see if the shoe was on the other foot and the Trooper arrived and it was their child lets see if any of the other Troopers could hold him back without him fighting them, I think NOT.
I have seen this type of behaviour before, I am a retired FF/Paramedic from Chicago. The Chicago Police Dept. has handled many overwhelmed parents at the scene without tasing or arresting them. I have seen CPD wrestle a parent to the ground,handcuff and get them calmed down and then release them. Only after several outbursts did CPD “arrest” them. I have had people attempt to interfere with a scene I was working and yes sometimes I had to ask myself if they didn’t would a fatal had a chance? Why didn’t they call a trauma intervention specialist at the scene to help could have avoided this whole ugly mess. I just hope the judge understands this man pain. I pray for this family to heal. May God watch over you and take your pain from you.
First off, I was there when this happened! And I can’t definitely ll u that there was no ‘angry mob’!! There was a lot of concerned and upset people there. We all backed up when we were told! Yes Big john tried to get to JJs truck, because that was his son. If someone was holding me back from getting to my child, it’s an instinct to fight back and reach my child. The police should have restrained him til they got JJ out.. and let him go to the hospital with HIS SON! But now he never got to tell his son Good bye because these police officers locked him up. Have a little heart people! Atleast the firefighters had a little heart and dropped the charges. I’m sorry but if that was the last time I was gonna see my child I’d do anything to get to him / her!
I would also like to add to my comment,
I do hope that when Mr Edmonson goes to court the felony charges are dropped against him under the extreme circumstances.
This being so publicized hopefully will stop it from ever happening again.
John,
Well said. I do not doubt that as a mother I wouldn’t try to get to my child, but I would not go so far as to become violent with the ones who are trying to save them either.It probably was the alcohol that fueled that. My heart breaks for this man, but he done wrong and I don’t understand how anyone could see it any other way. As far as suing for this, that will never happen. He broke the LAW, no matter the circumstances. Again, my heart breaks for this mans loss but the facts remain. Cops, EMT’s, Fire Firefighters aren’t “out to get people”, as some of you want to believe, what would be the point? They have nothing to gain. I agree there are some less than favorable cops out there, but that has nothing to do with this situation. They were doing their job and they done it well as far as the facts stated in this article. There job is to “keep order” and they did. Would it have been better to allow Mr Edmonson to continue interfering, shoving and pushing people (who are using/carrying sometimes sharp & heavy equipment-JAWS OF LIFE, for one)? What if one of the people he was shoving around had fallen down on top of one of those objects,and died? IT COULD HAVE HAPPENED! What if it was one of your relatives? Really think about that.
Point is-order had to be restored before this situation got even more out of hand. There was already one person hurt and there didn’t need to be another one. I think law enforcement had no choice, they tried everything else prior to tasing him. Seems to me they were out of options at that point.
And for the person who was saying “he is sitting in jail”-the article plainly states he was released on bail.
Prayers to the Edmonson family.
I usually never comment on these things, but I have a child myself and this whole situation has made my heart heavy. No one will ever know the pain of losing a child until it happens. Plain and simple: he lost it when he saw the scene, alcohol or not. Alcohol probably just made the shock worse and he tried to make a b-line for his kid. You people are idiots if you really think you wouldn’t try to get to your kid and push through the people in the way to get to him/her even if the Queen of England was in the way. And if you wouldn’t, you need to rethink your parenting. Yes, emergency responders have a job to do and I 100% understand that. All I’m saying is that you should really consider all of the angles of this story and think about it before you start typing.
One last time, one last time. Maybe just maybe he could be by his bedside at the hospital if he would have just let them do their job
First of all My sencere condolences to the family And prayers to everyone. I to was in this siyuration on April 10,2013 @ 900 pm with our son and his youngest daughter on Hwy 95-A It was a horrific accident. We were there in minutes of the accident Just around the courner of our house. I think the same with JJ. Yes the first thing I wanted to do was get to my son But I knew full well it would have impeded progress to render aid. Yes there was a lot of fsamily there also We kept our calm And Prayed for God to keep him alive and for the firefighters and EMT’s to do their job. The officers help keep us informed and allowed us to stay close The only one very distraught was my Daughter She was soo upset they asked me to tell her to calm down or they would have to remove her . The officers did what they needed to do to calm the scene. Please understand I know full well how John felt at the time I did not know if my son would die Yes I wanted to hold him But I knew it would take asway from him recieving treatment. He is alive and doing better. The Lord knows His Job even if we do not That is why we Pray for his guidence and stenghth. My heart goes out to the whole family and friends of JJ. May he rest in Peace
So what I’m gathering is that a lot of you think that the first responders should have been more compasionate and stopped LIFE SAVING efforts to let an intoxicated aggitated man right up in the middle of things and take over. I’m sure if they had slowed down, moved out of the way and the gentleman died then a lot of the same peole would be saying ” they didn’t do anything, they were just standing around”. You have to understand that first this was a pre-fatal crime scene at this point and not to mention it was basically an operating room with life saving emergency medical proceedures underway ( airways opened, IV’s into veins, etc). Intoxicated aggitated untrained individuals, no matter who they are, can only harm the patient at this point. If this were moved to the emergency room or operating room would you want this individual interfering with the doctor. No, you wouldn’t even question. These first repsonders are highly trained and are basically and extension of the doctor in the ER. The state troopers on the scene, not officers from “our bad police dept” were there to preserve a crime scene, investigate a pre-fatal accident, and to protect the victim and the first responders who weere performing their jobs trying to save a life. Sometimes peoples feelings get hurt in this process, but for everthing to work some rules have to be followed.
MakeEmListen (Lets hope John gets the justice he deserves)
You my friend speak in circles. You blame the officers for Edmonson actions. I blame the alchol. If first responders had backed off and let Mr.Edmonson and others do as they pleased all you on here would be SCREAMING for heads to roll. I do believe if Mr. Edmonson had not been drinking and acting up the officers would have let hin approach his son. The justice for Mr Edmonson could be several years in jail for attacking the FHP if found guilty that (MakeEmListen) is what you are asking when you state justice for MR Edmonson. Alcohol and Mr. Edmonsons actions prevented him from being with his son thats a FACT.
After reading this, all I can say is… REALLY?! LIKE, REALLY?! How on Earth could you be so inhumane in a situation such as this. The man seen with his own two eyes his ONLY son’s life more than threatened. Any half decent parent that actually cares for their child would not sit there and let cops and troopers, and all the other ones who think that they are above anyone else.. push them back and keep them away from their child when they are in such danger. This is seriously BEYOND ridiculous.All odlf them must be worried because they really had to add such exaggeration to their story. You call loved ones and friends and family that were shooken by the obvious sight of their family member dying, and his father getting treated this way, an “angry mob”? America’s justice system USED to be about keeping people safe and protected. Now it is just completely bogus, it is a JOKE. YES, our justice system is a huge joke, the kind you forget to laugh at. People become officers for the wrong reasons nowadays. And whoever has the nerve to comment and call Big John a “jerk” and give him any kind of label as a bad father, Do you know this man? Do you have even the slightest clue of what he has been through? Do you know what made him the way he is? Did you knowthe same about his son? No. Didnt think so. So a little f.y.i, don’t judge people when you dont have the first clue of who they really are, and why they take the actions they do. Make sure you are perfect before you go talking about others. Big John OBVIOUSLY loved his son, and wanted to be there by his side when the whole world for him was ending. That is love. You heartless people really need help, so I am going to pray for you. Because you are the ones who need God the most in your lives. But every dog has it’s day, and Karma is real. That’s all I will say.
Oh Not so much Justice for John now.
Why is everyone on here saying igf big john was right or wrong the fact is that his son was hurt and he was trying to get to his son. Everyone reactsto situations differantly and me as a mother I would have done the same thing. Everyone needs to stop the comments it is not what they need to hear or read they need to here prayers and love and deal with this other stuff later when the time comes. I think that if you can send only love and support then u shouldn’t post on here at this time. Big john I’m sorry for your lose. My prayers are with your family and friends in this time of need.R.I.p. jj Fly High.
some ooff you people take the icening right off the cake.Talk about not judging thy neighoubor. Well what goes around comes back around. Thank you to the people who have compassion. The rest of you are nothing but people breathing the air that someone better could be breathing.
I have experienced a similar situation, my situation with my son also involving a car. I did not want to interfere, but authorities asked me to move away, too. I did so, but did not want to. Every person reacts in a different way. This father just acted in a different way. I’m sure, under everyday situations he would not be so combative. Please take his issues under consideration when going to court.
This is so sad! This poor man, This is a case of temporary insanity if I have ever seen one. I pray that a judge will see that.
We’ll i guess it goes to show that some people will believe ANYTHING the LEO has to say…..if you weren’t there YOU DON’T KNOW…..if you haven’t been in this situation YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU WOULD DO….it will all come out….until then let this family mourn the loss of a father, husband and son in PEACE and keep your hateful, disrespectful comments to yourself…..and quit pretending your are holyer than thou with your what is and i would haves!!!!!!!
until one is put has to go thru what this man did// there is no reason to judge any good father would of tried to get to their son// (i lost a brother 2 years ago and if i would of been there when everything occured im sure i would of done anything to get to him) one cant imagine until they go thru such a thing// escambia finest never seem to amaze me// i hope they sue and every officer involved goes down// because if that was their son they would want to see or hold their son for one last time// sicken that he is sitting in jail while the family is going thru such a tragedy/// my heart grieves foryou mr john and family// im very sorry for all you are going thru and that escabmia finest has no heart and they are only worried with making themselves look good/// hope you all sleep well at night knowing that man was just trying to see his son// ugh yall make me sick!
I understanding they were trying to save his son but what would they do if it was their kid??????
Ann: He doesn’t look like he is crying or upset. Looks like he has his eyes shut and a slight smirk on his face. Am I missing something?
Bottom line let EMS and the rest do their job. It would be interesting to know what the B.A.L. was on the father. As I recall diabetes and alcohol do not mix very well.
For those who want to claim diabetic medical issue, not going to work. A diabetic is supposed to stay away from alcohol, because it causes the sugar to get all out of whack. If he took care of his diabetes and didn’t drink, the diabetic attack likely would not have happened. I’ve also never seen a diabetic attack cause someone to go crazy, only pass out and unresponsive to everything. He was given every chance to just move back and let the paramedics do their job. They wouldn’t ask him to leave if they knew it was his son, just to move back so they can help him. As far as an angry mob, that’s what was called in by someone, probably someone who was on the outside looking in and hearing and seeing chaos. There was one person being the problem, and he had to be taken care of. The troopers would rather just have him move back and console him than take him to jail, especially since they already had a ton of work to do with it being a fatal crash, but he made the choice to act a fool.
I don’t care what “made him do it”…what father would take steps to prevent first responders from caring for his dying son? I don’t care if it was a mob or one person, this jerk needs to be taught a lesson (and one of those lessons would be how to be a FATHER).
Why do you keep putting pics of big john crying upset in the back of the cop car up don’t u have a little respect just saying u would not want your pic up if the shoe was on the other foot would you wants done is done leave him alone let him and all the family grieve the loss of their loved one R.I.P. JJ we love n miss you dearly
Some people have a strong propensity to fight with authority figures whether they are drunk, sober, high, or in diabetic shock. Each of us is still responsible for what we do. If a person is so incoherent as to not know what they are doing, it’s not likely that person could engage in effective fist-to-cuffs with the police.
As sad as this is it doesn’t change the fact that he interfered with people trying to save his son. That cost them valuable time. Sometimes one minute is the difference between life and death.
How did he get to the scene of the accident to begin with? I can understand being upset about his son, just sounds like more to it. Prayers for Mr. Edmonson and the family.
Angry Mob? So the group of family members at the scene who appeared angry before the police arrived, coninued to remain “angry” while police and their family member faught? No sir, not dumb enough for that one officer. An angry mob would have proceeded into action. What’s the threat of an “Angry mob” who prosumes to be angry, and that’s it. Our police department need adjustments. This isn’t the first controversial incident on their part. My thoughts are with the Edmonson family. Lets hope John gets the justice he deserves
Being scared for your child is one thing…but fighting and hitting first responders who are doing nothing but trying to save your child is another. You cannot hit EMS and Firefighters…They are there trying to save lives. Why would you stop them from that. Sounds to me like once again alcohol and the abuse of it could be the key to this. Maybe this person will really look at if he has a problem.
I agree with Billy D and Molino Girl………..besides he was worried of his son’s condition. Any loving parent would react! My first instinct would be I want to see my child!
From being drunk and interfering with first responders he could have contributed to his sons death.
One person is considered a angry mob?
The troopers didn’t speed up or turn on their light until they were told that a mob was forming?
Just wondering…..
First Responders are trained to save lives. Law enforcement officers are there to protect us. Alcohol makes a person do things they wouldn’t do if not drinking.
Placed him in a choke hold to calm him down????????? Nothing like getting choked to calm you down..
This whole situation is just so sad.
Well then, sounds like to me if I have some medical problem I can blame it on that for acting the way I did. But officer I didnt mean to, it was my medical condition because I have no concious.
I would agree that the trauma of his son being in the accident could cause him to act irrationally but I think it was more of an alcohol high level……not a blood sugar low one. Condolences to the Edmonson family on the loss.
Seeing that he had sugar issues makes this whole situation different…. when a diabetic has some thing like this happen their sugar either sores high or drops very low… either can cause them to act irrationally…. this should be taken into consideration as well as the traumatic circumstances he had discovered.