Louisville police officer credited with stopping man from jumping off Lincoln Memorial Bridge

By Matthew Keck

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    LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (WLKY) — A Louisville Metro Police Department officer is being praised for using his experience as a firefighter to convince a man not to take his life.

“I’m a Louisville firefighter, I’m retired I came over to the police side brother, we got your family, friends they are calling they are worried about you,” said Officer Ali Thomas in body cam footage from the scene.

Thomas responded to the Lincoln Memorial Bridge on Oct. 9 about a man contemplating taking his own life.

The retired firefighter turned police officer saw the man was wearing a firefighter shirt and made a connection.

Eventually, the man climbed back over the side of the bridge to safety.

“It’s real emotional just talking about it right now. You can probably tell my voice, but when I was on the fire department, I was down in the water. So, like, if there was a jump, I would be part of that rescue,” Thomas said. “But now, you know, being a policeman, I’m at the top. So I get to see a different side. I get to build a bond, talk to them, and, you know, I just didn’t want anybody to jump. So that’s all I was thinking. And that for a split second, I was. And I was gonna tell him, I was like, if you go, I’m coming right behind you. I’m going to get you, buddy. So don’t do it.”

Thomas joined LMPD in 2021, shortly after retiring from the Louisville Fire Department.

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