Bath officer gets commendation for helping to save a man’s life

Bath officer John Dietlin, right, was awarded a commendation Tuesday for helping save the life of a man who attempted suicide. At left is Bath Police Chief Michael Field. (Photo courtesy of Bath Police Department)

BATH — On Tuesday, Bath Police Officer John Dietlin received the life saving commendation, one of the department’s highest awards, for saving a man’s life.

On the evening of Aug. 30, Dietlin rushed to a Washington Street home, responding to a report of a man who was suicidal. Dispatchers had been on the phone with the man but lost contact with him.

Inside, he found the 36-year-old man hanging from the bathroom door, unresponsive.

Dietlin cut the man down and performed CPR until Bath Rescue personnel arrived and took him to Maine Medical Center in Portland.

The man lived and called Dietlin two weeks later to tell him he was on the mend.

It was a humbling experience, Dietlin said.

“You don’t know what’s going to happen and how you’re going to respond to a critical incident until it comes to fruition,” the 24-year-old officer said.

The experience only reinforced Dietlin’s decision to become a police officer. Much of the time, law enforcement can’t measure the impact of the work they do.

“If you arrest someone for OUI, you don’t know how many people you prevented that person from hurting, whether themselves or family or a pedestrian,” he said.

This call allowed him to see the direct impact of his work.

“Most of the calls we’re on are on people’s worst days,” Dietlin said, “but that doesn’t mean we can’t help them.”

“He’s a good example of what any of our officers would do any day, any time,” said Deputy Police Chief Andrew Booth. “Our job is to preserve life and he went above and beyond in terms of getting there quickly, cutting him down and performing CPR.”

If someone is considering suicide or suffering a mental health crisis, Dietlin urged them to call the police, who can provide resources.

Suicide is the ninth leading cause of death in Maine, and Maine’s suicide death rates increased 27% between 1999 and 2016, according to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among Maine youth and adults ages 10-35.

If you or someone you know is battling depression or has had suicidal thoughts: