Diehm, Brad – d. 1978

DIEHM

Posted By: Diana Wagner
Date: 7/13/2021 at 21:35:35

Life support system keeps youth alive By Tom Alex
Brad Diehm, 17, of 3525 E. Thirty-eighth St., who was accidentally shot in the head Saturday, has been kept alive by a life-support system at Mercy Hospital since early Sunday morning his father said Monday.
Frederick (Mike) Diehm said he agreed to the use of the life-support equipment "for two and a half hours, but it's already been about 36 hours and we haven't been kept informed."
Diehm said that the family also agreed that the boy's corneas and kidneys should be donated to persons who need them, "but we didn't agree to wait this long."
"The family has gone through pure hell," he said.
Police said a 13-year-old boy who had been sought in connection with the shooting turned himself in to authorities Sunday afternoon, was questioned and released. Detectives said the shooting was accidental.
Diehm said he was out of town when the incident occurred, but that his wife, Dianna, was home.
The boy was shot in the head when a .22 caliber rifle being handled by a companion, discharged, police said.
"They told us there was no possibility of surgery," Diehm said. "His heart stopped at 4:40 a.m. Sunday and they put him on a ventilator to keep him alive.
But a Mercy Hospital spokesman said before a patient can be taken off a life-support system two doctors have to certify that the patient is dead. He said Diehm has a heartbeat and there has been evidence of brain waves.
Source: Des Moines (IA) Register; Tuesday, October 31, 1978, page 3

Teen shot Saturday dies at hospital
Brad Diehm, a 17-year-old shooting victim, died Monday at Mercy Hospital after being kept alive on a life-support system since early Sunday.
Dr. R.C. Wooters, Polk County medical examiner, said Diehm's heart stopped at 4:08 p.m. while Diehm was on the support system.
A hospital spokesman said that Diehm remained on the life-support equipment because there was a heartbeat and evidence of brain waves.
Diehm, of 3525 E. Thirty-eighth St., was shot accidentally in the head Saturday night when a .22-caliber rifle being handled by a 13-year-old companion discharged, police said.
Source: Des Moines (IA) Tribune; Monday, October 30, 1978, page 1