Seeing the car fully engulfed in flames, Farthing called for the fire department and life squad to set up their equipment near the site, Jones said.
But as the deputy assisted with traffic control for responding fire personnel, he was approached from behind and stabbed by a man who lives at the residence, one the sheriff’s office believes set the vehicle on fire.
Jones said the suspect told Farthing: ‘This is your unlucky day.’
A struggle ensued.
“They’re wrestling. They end up in the snow,” Jones said. “Farthing’s fighting for his life at that point. He finally gets the guy away from him, gets him at gunpoint ... The guy’s on his knees in the snow.”
Jones said the suspect plunged the knife through Farthing’s bulletproof vest, puncturing him in the back. “A bulletproof vest can stop a bullet, but it cannot stop a knife,” he said.
Jones said the 12-inch weapon, which had about an 8-to-10-inch blade, “looks like a butcher knife.”
Multiple agencies responded to the scene, and the suspect, identified as 41-year-old Phillip Brandon Lovely, was taken into custody without further incident.
A medical helicopter was called to the scene but could not respond due to weather conditions, so Madison Twp. life squad took Farthing to Atrium Medical Center, he said.
BCSO said Farthing was alert and conscious Thursday afternoon and his condition was stable.
Jones said hospital staffers, at one point earlier in the afternoon, believed that the knife had “maybe” nicked part of Farthing’s lung.
“When I talked to him, he’s in the emergency room and he’s (having difficulty) breathing, but he’s breathing and he’s talking and he’s explaining what took place,” he said, adding that Farthing is in stable condition. “The hospital’s doing everything they can.”
Jones said Lovely, who claimed to have swallowed “a bunch of pills,” is in the same hospital and being watched by Middletown police.
He said BCSO continues to gather information regarding the investigation, which is ongoing.
Jones said the injuries to Farthing, who has been with BCSO for at least 20 years, are non-life threatening at this time. He said he and BCSO are “extremely grateful” that the situation did not turn out worse.
Jones said deputies face life-or-death situations every single day, often without warning. He said the incident is a reminder of the dangers law enforcement officers encounter doing their job.
“We all feel under extreme pressure every day,” he said. “They risk their lives every day when they put their uniform on and they go out, they don’t know if they’re going home or not.”
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