Royal Oak Officer Pulls Suicidal Man From I-696 Wall

ROYAL OAK, MI — A Royal Oak Police officer stopped a distraught man from possibly taking his own life Sunday afternoon. The man made several threats to jump from a wall into westbound I-696 traffic before a Royal Oak officer was able to grab him by the shoulders and chest, and pull him to safety, Royal Oak Police Lt. Keith Spencer said.

“It was a great job by everybody involved,” he said. “Our officer recognized an opportunity when he saw it.”

The incident happened shortly after 3 p.m. A 23-year-old Detroit man perched himself on the wall facing freeway traffic on westbound 10 Mile Road near the entrance of I-696, Spencer said.

Officers from the Michigan State Police, Pleasant Ridge and Huntington Woods also responded. It was a Pleasant Ridge officer that kept the man distracted long enough for the Royal Oak officer to grab him.

“We are trained to interact with individuals in this frame of mind,” Spencer said. “There was a lot of good thinking on their feet by everyone on the scene.”

He declined to comment on why the Detroit man was threatening to jump. The man, who was not injured, was taken to Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak for treatment and evaluation.

Police officers blocked off the area near Woodward Avenue. Spencer was unsure of how long the Detroit man was sitting on the wall, but did say that the incident was over within 10 minutes of two Royal Oak officers arriving.

“Despite all the officers on the scene being from different departments, they all worked together and demonstrated decisive teamwork. We are extremely pleased no one was hurt and this man can now get the help he needs,” Chief Corrigan O’Donohue.

File photo