Fulton deputy removes shirt, weapons to help woman on courthouse rooftop

ATLANTA - This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

ATLANTA – Fulton County Deputy Nicolas Reynolds was on his way home June 30 when he heard the call for help on his radio. A woman in distress was on top of the roof of the Fulton County Courthouse in Downtown Atlanta. Drone video shows the woman sitting on the ledge — legs dangling over the side of the building — just one delicate move from a nine-story fall to the ground.

As police and firefighters closed the streets and locked down the courthouse, Fulton County deputies were dispatched to the roof — along with a drone pilot who monitored the situation from above. Deputy Reynolds calmly stepped out onto the hot roof to help.

"My concern was not about my safety. I knew where I was, and I knew I had other deputies around me, and we just had to do what we had to do to get her off the roof safely" said Reynolds.

The woman, in her 30s, was irritated, completely naked, and yelling in Portuguese from the hot rooftop. Once it was clear the woman did not speak enough English to communicate with those who are trying to help, they escalated the situation. The chief investigator from the solicitor's office tapped Francesca Baez to help. The Dominican Republic native speaks Spanish — which colleagues hoped would be close enough for her to make a meaningful connection. She did.

"She told me she didn’t speak a lot of Spanish, but we were able to communicate a little bit since some words sound the same in Portuguese in Spanish and I tried to calm her down," said Baez, who is working on her masters in criminal justice at Georgia State University. She works as an advocate in the solicitor general’s office and said she was committed to doing what she could to help.

"When she saw that I had a sandwich, she asked me to throw it at her, but not get too close, just to throw it at her, and I kept talking to her, and trying to calm her down," said Baez.

When the woman demanded Deputy Reynolds remove his shirt, his safety vest and his weapons, he complied. She then handed him his sandwich and told him to eat it.

"She said I had 60 seconds to eat it, and I was just trying to build her confidence, so I ate it quickly. Because she was naked, I could see that she did not have a weapon, so as she reached for my vest that I had already taken off, that’s when I knew I could reach for her and the other deputies came in behind me to pull her from the ledge. I was relieved when it was over, but really it just comes down to staying calm and have a good training, said the deputy who’s been a negotiator for 2 1/2 years with the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office. 

"In my eyes, Deputy Reynolds is a hero. They all are. The heroes and she rules who were out there that day work together to make sure she got what she needed under very perilous circumstances. There were a lot of unknowns out there, and they did exactly what they had to do to save her," said Sheriff Labat.

The sheriff said it’s still not clear how the woman was able to get all the way to the rooftop, but said investigators have discovered there were some unlocked doors that should have been secured.

"The woman was not on the docket that day for any hearings, so it’s not clear why she chose to go to the courthouse that day," said Solicitor General Keith Gammage.

"The woman was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital for mental health care and my staff has remained in touch with her to ensure she continues to get the help she needs, so that this doesn’t happen again," said Gammage.

Baez said she was relieved to see how everything ended with a woman safely escorted away by the sheriff’s deputies.

"This is what happens when we show compassion, and we’re just patient with people who are under stress. I’m just grateful these Fulton deputies were there to help her. The world has needs more people like this" said Baez.