Prince’s Lakes Officer Richard Hanlin (front right) poses for a photo with friends at a benefit for him on Saturday at Trusted Realty in Trafalgar. Hanlin is recovering from a leg amputation from an infection.
He’s missing half of his leg, but he doesn’t want that to stop him from going back to his life.
Richard Hanlin, a Trafalgar resident and Prince’s Lakes police officer, has faced a tough battle in the last three months. An infection in his foot from last year led to a below-the-knee amputation of his leg in May.
Hanlin has been a diabetic for the last decade. Diabetics are more susceptible to infections, and commonly have foot complications.
He realized he had a bad infection in his left foot back in July last year. That put him in the hospital for two weeks, and he underwent surgery to clear the infection.
Months later though, the infection didn’t clear and it got worse. While he was on duty at the end of April, he started feeling sick. He told Prince’s Lakes Town Marshal Greg Southers he needed to go to the hospital.
He returned to Franciscan Hospital in Indianapolis, and he was admitted for almost a month. An MRI showed the bones in his foot and ankle were infected.
“They said there’s no saving my foot,” Hanlin said. “The infection could go up into my leg and in my bloodstream, and then it would be fatal.”
On May 9, he went into a first surgery where his foot was amputated. When the infection cleared, he underwent a second surgery to take five to six inches off of his leg.
Hanlin’s been home from the hospital for almost a month now, and he’s anxious to get back to work. He has been in physical and occupational therapy He’s getting fitted soon for a leg prosthetic in Greenwood soon, and he hopes to be walking on it in four to six weeks.
He’s doing well now, but it wasn’t easy for him at first. He wracked his brain wondering if this would be the end of his career as a police officer.
“At first, it was pretty rough,” Hanlin said. “I didn’t know what to expect. I had no other choice but to make this decision and have my foot and part of my leg removed.”
It’s hard being down for the second time in a year and pausing his life, Hanlin said. His parents have stayed with him to help out. He didn’t ever think he would go through this, he said. As a diabetic, he always monitored his sugar levels and he was eating better.
“I’ve done everything they say you’re supposed to do, and I still get stuck with this,” Hanlin said.
Hanlin has been a police officer for 30 years, starting at Prince’s Lakes in 1993. He returned a few years ago after working for other towns.
Doctors, nurses and prosthetic experts told Hanlin he should be able to get back to working as a police officer. There are many police officers throughout the country who have prosthetics and continue to do their jobs.
“That helped me quite a bit. It lifted my spirits up,” Hanlin said.
In Prince’s Lakes, Hanlin is one of three full-time officers, including Southers, who is the town marshal. The department is managing without Hanlin, Southers said. He and the other deputy marshal have been splitting 12-hour shifts, which is tiring, he said. They have part-timers and reserves also stepping up to help.
“It’s exhausting, especially 12-hour shifts. I usually don’t work those and I’m getting very, very good at working them in the last few months. So yeah, it’s going alright,” Southers said.
Southers also said he also recognized that this is part of the job at a small police department with an officer down. They still have to do the work for the town.
Southers checks in on Hanlin regularly, calling him and asking if he needs anything. They’ve been friends since 1992, around the time when Hanlin first became an officer at Prince’s Lakes.
He’s optimistic Hanlin can come back fully recovered, Southers said. On the other side, he also has reassured Hanlin that it is not the end of his life if he can’t be a police officer again. He said he told Hanlin he could pursue other dreams if this one doesn’t work out, like his dream of opening a restaurant.
“I’m not hiring anybody new right now. I haven’t taken his police car. I haven’t done anything, I’m letting him go his speed to try to recover,” Southers said. “Like I said, I’m optimistic.”
Both the communities of Prince’s Lakes and Trafalgar have out-poured support for Hanlin. He’s also been called and visited by fellow police officers, who wished him a fast recovery.
Jeff Eisenmenger, a Trafalgar Town Council member and local realtor, reached out to Hanlin earlier this month with the desire to hold a benefit for him. Hanlin said he thought it would be great.
The benefit was held Saturday at Eisenmenger’s realty office, Trusted Realty in Trafalgar. The event served fried fish and tenderloin, alongside live music and bounce houses. It was a huge success in Hanlin’s eyes, and quite a bit of money was raised, he said.
“I think it’s great. It’s a surprise. And it was just something unexpected, you know, I’m just thankful for and glad that people are doing this,” Hanlin said.
Hanlin also received a donation from the Johnson County Fraternal Order of Police. Insurance has covered most of his medical expenses, but he appreciates the help, he said.
Hanlin is on family and medical leave right now, which gives him 12 weeks until the Prince’s Lakes Town Council could decide to replace him, or give him more time to recover. He intends to be back at work within that 12-week window, depending on how therapy goes with the prosthetic.
“It’s been a long road, but I’m finally seeing light at the end of the tunnel,” Hanlin said.
