FAIRVIEW HEIGHTS — Two detention facility employees were recognized for lifesaving actions after they discovered a detainee experiencing a medical emergency on March 17, 2025.
Community Policing Assistants Marissa Lager and Brayden Harder were conducting intake procedures at the Fairview Heights detention center when they noticed a detainee lying on the floor of a cell rather than on the bed, where the individual had been just six minutes earlier.
Harder is also a volunteer with the Glen Carbon Fire Protection District.
After attempts to get a response failed, they immediately alerted a sergeant.
Upon entering the cell, the sergeant found the detainee actively seizing.
Emergency medical services were called, and the detainee was transported to a hospital.
Medical personnel later confirmed a brain bleed caused the seizure.
The Fairview Heights Police Department acknowledged Lager and Harder’s quick thinking and decisive action, stating their attentiveness and willingness to trust their instincts likely saved the detainee’s life.
