A northeast Iowa police chief is determined to return to work, but still faces a long road to recovery after a bank robbery and chase that left him with gunshot wounds. It happened on October 30 during a manhunt for two men who robbed the Maynard Savings Bank.
Dennis Cain, the Chief of Police in Sumner, encountered the suspects and was shot in the neck, shoulder and thumb. “I knew right away, as soon as I felt it going in me,” Cain said. “I was on the edge of the south side ditch, slammed on the brakes, opened the door and crawled out.”
Iowa State Trooper Mark Domino was also shot in the arm, but he was treated and released from the hospital that day. Cain is lucky to be alive. He credits Ben Driscoll, a Department of Transportation employee, with helping save his life.
“He applied the pressure on me and stayed with me,” Cain said. “If he wouldn’t have done that, I wouldn’t have had a chance.” Cain said the biggest things helping him through this tough time are the notes he’s getting in the mail from law enforcement officers across the country and the support from the community.
Still, he knows it’ll take months before he can return to the job he loves. “I’m just going to go out there and do my job the best I can…that’s all we’re trying to do,” Cain said. Investigators believe eight or nine bullets struck Cain’s vehicle and two hit the chief – with one bullet severing Cain’s carotid artery.
Cain said, in addition to returning to work, he’s looking forward to his day in court with the two alleged bank robbers. William Clayton and Jeremiah Mumford have both pleaded not guilty to various charges in the case. Mumford is accused of being the gunman who shot Cain and Trooper Domino.
By Jill Kasperie, KCRG-TV, Cedar Rapids