First responders push for tougher penalties for assaults on the job
News | Published on March 11, 2025 at 4:08pm GMT+0000 | Author: Tucker Henderson
0Samantha Siedow
Report for Minnesota
A proposal at the Minnesota Capitol to increase criminal penalties for people who assault firefighters, paramedics and other emergency medical personnel was aired in a Senate committee after a man received a nine month sentence for attacking a Hennepin County paramedic last July.
Tyereh Dontrell House received the sentence after throwing a large concrete slab at the paramedic’s head.
Shane Hallow, a Hennepin County paramedic and the president of the Hennepin County Association of Paramedics and EMTs (HCAPE) said the incident reflects an alarming increase in both the amount and severity of violence faced by first responders on the job.
Hallow said he approached bill author Sen. Judy Seeberger, DFL-Afton, after the judge in the case expressed frustration at sentencing limitations in current law. The Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee heard testimony on the bill last week and is expected to consider including it in a larger bill later in the session.
Hallow said public interest in the case made it a catalyst to change the law.
“This case, I think, was a good example of the violence that we’re facing every day, with a story behind it as well,” Hallow said.
A recent survey of HCAPE members found 78% have been physically assaulted by a patient or bystander, 74% have had objects thrown at them, and 92% report their job has become more dangerous since they started their employment.
In 2024, there were just under 300 assaults or threats of violence against Hennepin EMS providers, compared to 121 in 2023, according to Hallow.
The amended bill would introduce a tiered system, with a new gross misdemeanor category for any physical assault against first responders without requiring them to show bodily harm.
The measure would also increase the penalty for felony assault when first responders are injured. Previously, such offenses were punishable by up to two years in prison and a $4,000 fine. The new bill raises the penalty to a three-year maximum sentence and a $6,000 fine.
Hallow said the proposed change is similar to the penalties in the peace officer assault statute but excludes provisions related to bodily fluids due to the specific nature of emergency medical personnel’s work.
Two years ago, Ivo Tabakov, a Hennepin County paramedic, was assaulted by an armed patient who fought Tabakov and his partner.
Tabakov suffered a concussion and was told by his doctor that any head injury shortly after could have killed him. Following the injury, he was unable to work for more than six months.
Two years later he is still attending a traumatic brain injury psychologist.
Tabakov said the aftermath of the assault has impacted his ability to do his job, as he now carries a constant fear during calls that another attack could leave him incapacitated and unable to support his family.
The person who assaulted Tabakov was charged, but the charges were dropped, and the person received no jail time or other penalty, according to Tabakov.
“This is not just my story. This is the story of countless of paramedics and first responders who go to do their job and don’t bring weapons to the job– they bring compassion,” Tabakov said. “We try to heal, we don’t try to hurt anyone, and we are attacked, injured, and sometimes even killed.”
Tabakov said he believes the reported statistics on violence against first responders underestimate the actual number of assaults.
“Our job is to help people that need help, not have to deal with violent patients and face the possibility that we’ll get injured and not be able to do the job anymore,” Tabakov said.
Within a year of Tabakov’s assault, three other people suffered brain injuries, and several of them lost eight months to a year of work time due to their injuries, according to Hallow.
“I mean the real, to me, message is what does it take for some level of accountability to happen? Does somebody have to get killed?” Hallow said.
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