ST. LANDRY PARISH — Three months ago, Detective Deondre Thomas with the St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office was seriously injured in a hit-and-run during an undercover narcotics operation. On Friday, August 29, Thomas marks a milestone—not only of his recovery, but his official return to the job he loves.
“It’s been quite the journey,” Thomas said. “I’m thankful every day. I thank God that I’m still here.”
On May 29, during a narcotics sting, Thomas found himself in harm’s way.
“Once we moved in, I pulled my patrol car in front of the suspect’s vehicle at a slight angle,” Thomas explained. “As soon as I opened my door, the vehicle sped off and came straight at me.”
The impact left Thomas with a serious hip injury and required major surgery. Days in the hospital and months in physical therapy followed, leaving him uncertain about his future in law enforcement.
“I had moments where I wondered, ‘Will I ever get back to law enforcement? Is this the end? Can I walk again?’” Thomas recalled.
With support from his family, faith, and fellow officers, Thomas was determined to heal. Recently, his doctors gave him the green light to set aside his crutches—a step that’s led to him walking again and slowly returning to police duties.
It was just surprising to see him get depressed over the whole thing and he is very levelheaded and he was just determined to get back on the job and that is a blessing from God," said St. Landry Parish detective Kendall Griffin.
“I just took a leap of faith, and now I’m walking again,” Thomas said.
While he is back at work handling smaller tasks, Thomas is focused on completing therapy and resuming full active duties by December.
“With therapy, I’m hoping to be back fully by December—to protect and serve and keep narcotics off the streets,” he said.
Now Thomas’ road to recovery is still ongoing. If you would like to help, you can click the link here.
There will also be a bingo benefit for Thomas sometime in October.
