Tourniquet Saves Life in Calloway Shooting

Calloway County, Kentucky – A man is listed in critical condition after being shot over a dispute last Tuesday evening.

According to Calloway Sheriff Sam Steger, an argument between 33-year-old Charles Milam and his acquaintances earlier in the day led to him breaking into a home. Deputies were dispatched to a call at around 8:20 p.m. to a report of a shooting at a home located on Ridge Road.

“We’re still not sure of the details of the argument, but that appears to be what led to all of this,” Steger said. “From what we’ve gathered, the guy that got shot got into some kind of argument. Then a short time after that, he went over to the house where the person he had argued with lives and forced his way in. That’s when someone inside grabbed a shotgun and fired at him, hitting him in the upper right leg. From what it looks like, everyone (involved) knows each other. In fact, after the one guy got shot, others in the house tried to help him.”

With Milam bleeding profusely from his leg wound, those trying to help him used a belt as a tourniquet to in an attempt to stop the blood loss. But the location of the wound and the ineffectiveness of belts as tourniquets prevented any positive benefit.

Finally, Deputy Troy Doss arrived at the scene and used his department issued tourniquet to stop the massive hemorrhaging.

“It looked like it worked pretty well,” Steger told the Murray Ledger and Times about the tourniquet. “So, he (Deputy Doss) used that and got it clamped down until EMS arrived.”

Milam was taken to Murray-Calloway County Hospital where he was treated briefly, until he was transferred by helicopter to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee for surgery. All reports at this time is that Milam is still listed in critical condition.

Law enforcement officials say that it has yet to be determined if any charges will be filed in the shooting.


Not only is it important to have tourniquets stocked in multiple and easy to reach locations, but it  is equally important to understand how to use these important life saving devices.

As we can see from the above example, belts are not good for use as a tourniquet. No makeshift tourniquet will work as effectively as one produced by a reputable company for that purpose. Few things in life cost so little but matter so much in an emergency.

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