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Feb 25, 2009 8:56 pm US/Central
Wounded Deputy's Wife Shares Miracles Of Recovery
FARGO, N.D. (WCCO) ―
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Emily and Chris Dewey at their wedding reception on Aug. 11, 2006.
Family Photo
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Christopher Dewey is pictured here in the hospital with his wife Emily by his side.
CBS
The wife of a wounded Minnesota sheriff's deputy says it's a miracle how far her husband has come in just one week.
A gunman shot Deputy Chris Dewey in Mahnomen County just last Wednesday.
He's doing well enough that he may move from the hospital to a rehab unit later this week.
For the first time, his wife, Emily Dewey talked about his recovery and wanted to say thanks to all the people who have given the family so much support.
"When you're told that your husband has been shot in the head -- ugh," cried Emily Dewey.
A week seems like a lifetime for the Deputy's wife. She heard the actually emergency call over her husband's radio.
"When I heard the dispatcher say it was a deputy that had been shot -- ohhhh," said the 24-year-old nursing student. "I didn't want it to be my husband … but I knew. I called my mom ... and I'm just crying, screaming."
Deputy Dewey was shot in the head and stomach while checking a report of shots fired in a neighborhood. His partner found him lying on the ground.
"That his partner was around the corner is why he's here. And I can't thank him enough," said Emily Dewey.
Deputy Dewey will need more surgery because a portion of the bone covering his brain was shattered.
"He's in so much pain -- so much pain, but he's got his humor, his spirit, his personality," said his wife.
He's making progress everyday. He can recall the day of the week -- a miracle for someone who has suffered a brain injury.
"I want my husband back. I want him back just the way he was and I'm terrified that might not be the case," said Emily Dewey.
She said is grateful to all the people who helped to save her husband.
"I can never thank all these people enough."
Emily Dewey said she has been touched by the tens of thousands of people who have logged on to her husband's CaringBridge Web site. She says she cries when she reads the comments, but calls it a "happy crying."
"That CaringBridge Web site has been so, so cathartic for me. I scroll through that and I just bawl. But it's a happy crying. And I need that. I'm sick of sad crying," she said.
Chris Dewey, 26, remained in satisfactory condition Wednesday at MeritCare Hospital in Fargo.
Two suspects were arrested after the shooting Feb. 18.
Thomas Lee Fairbanks, 32, the alleged shooter, was charged with first-degree attempted murder and 20 other felony counts in the shooting of Dewey and the following standoff with officers. Daniel Kurt Vernier, 27, was charged with 16 felonies.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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