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Father of injured deputy says son is making strides

By Sharon McBrayer | The News Herald

Published: March 19, 2008

Morganton, NC - Injured Burke County Deputy Martin Lawing is concentrating on his therapy and figuring out what his limitations will be.

And through it all, his parents, John and Jane Lawing, and wife, Leslie, are by his side.

"I'll be here till he goes home," said John Lawing by phone from Atlanta on Wednesday. "When Martin goes home, we'll go home."

John Lawing said one day Martin asked him, "Don't you think you should go home for a couple of weeks?"

"I asked him, 'if it was me, would you go home for a couple of weeks? He said, 'No.'"

Lt. John Hoyle gave an update on Martin's condition to the Burke County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday night. He said Martin, 32, is expected to be moved April 7 to a day program, where he will be able to leave the hospital at night.

The day program has living quarters for patients and families, said John Lawing. It is attached to the Shepherd Center, he said.

Martin, who was shot in December during a standoff, is at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta, Ga. He remains paralyzed from the chest down, but he has made some improvements, say family and co-workers.

John Lawing said his son is working on dressing himself and using a manual wheelchair. It takes him a while to get his pants on and he can maneuver his wheelchair on level ground, John Lawing said about his only child.

Martin is still having a big issue with regulating his blood pressure.

But Martin continues to have a positive attitude, his father said.

Burke County Sheriff John McDevitt said, "His mental attitude is just unbelievable." He said Martin continues to be very upbeat.

"I will tell you this, I'm convinced he'll be back to work," McDevitt said.

Even if it's in a wheelchair, McDevitt said Martin's work will be much of what he was doing when he was shot, which was building federal drug conspiracy cases.

Hoyle said he believes prayers from folks in the community have helped Martin improve.

And the family is thankful for those prayers.

John Lawing said they've received cards and phone calls from police officers and firefighters, as well as strangers telling Martin and his family they are praying for them.

"I do appreciate everything everyone in Burke County has done," Martin's father said.

Lawing was shot in the neck during a stand off incident on Enola Road in December. Eva Joyce Nelson, 60, has been charged in connection with the shooting. She is being held at Burke-Catawba District Confinement Facility.