Delaware County EMT charged with indecent assault of woman being transported for chest pains
BROOKHAVEN, Pa. (CBS) -- A Delaware County EMT has been charged with indecently assaulting a patient. The alleged incident happened as the woman was being rushed to the emergency room.
The incident is shocking, and Brookhaven police say it's an embarrassment for the fire service, an organization deeply respected in this part of Delaware County.
It was dinner time Thursday when a woman came to an urgent care on Route 352. She was dizzy and had chest pains.
Staff at the facility called 911 and an ambulance from the Brookhaven Fire Company arrived.
While the woman with the chest pains was being transported, police say 24-year-old Kevin Pressley of Philadelphia was taking her vitals as well as photos of her bare chest.
The woman claimed to police Pressley had lifted her shirt and undergarments and began snapping pictures with his cellphone.
It's alleged she woke up and Pressley was taken by surprise.
The woman ended up at Crozer Chester where she told police what had just happened.
Charges include indecent assault of an unconscious person as well as invasion of privacy.
Michael Vice is Chief of Brookhaven Police.
"During the transport, it is alleged an EMT caring for the victim in the back of the victim exposed the victim's breasts and took photographs of her as she was in a semi-conscious state," Vice said.
Talking for the fire chief who remained unreachable and out of sight Monday, Vice said the alleged betrayal hits hard.
"These acts betrayed the trust of not only the community we serve, but each and every member of this fire department and our police department," Vice said.
During interviews, police say Pressley opened another can of worms when asked to consent to a search of his phone while claiming he deleted those photos of the patient in care. He's quoted as he "did not want to give consent because 'the last time he [expletive] with the ATF was when he purchased a firearm illegally. … Pressley stated he purchases firearms for cheap then sells them 'to his boss…usually purchases the firearms from the victims of gun violence…"
Police say that alleged implication has opened an entirely separate investigation.
"I'm concerned and we all know with the gun violence in this country, let alone in our back yard in Philadelphia," Vice said, "it's concerning."
Reached this morning for comment, an attorney for Pressley declined to comment.
Pressley remains in jail on a $100,000 cash bond.
Efforts to reach the fire chief are ongoing. We have not heard back.