HELENA — Montana Highway Patrol Trooper Wade Palmer retired Monday afternoon after an eight-year career.
Trooper Palmer is taking a medical retirement after sustaining gunshot wounds to the face, head, and neck while searching for a suspect in March of 2019. His survival after such critical injuries has been called miraculous.
On March 15, 2019, Palmer was shot in the neck, face, and head, after locating the suspect involved in an earlier shooting that injured two people and killed one in Missoula. Palmer was taken to Saint Patrick Hospital in Missoula in critical condition, and eventually flown to Salt Lake City to receive Level I trauma care. He returned home to Missoula on May 22, 2019, where he continued to receive outpatient treatment. On June 26, 2020, Jonathan Bertsch pled guilty to the shootings. He will be sentenced in August.
On Monday, Palmer - accompanied by his wife and children - received a send-off from friends and coworkers at MHP headquarters in Helena.
"Today is bittersweet," said MHP chief Colonel Tom Butler. "On the one hand, we're incredibly thrilled and grateful to have Wade here and are amazed at his progress. On the other hand, no one wants to see a career cut short due to injury," he added.
The Patrol also presented Palmer with the Medal of Valor, its highest honor.
Attorney General Tim Fox said Palmer's road to recovery has been a remarkable lesson in faith and perseverance for all Montanans.
"Wade’s road to recovery has been a remarkable lesson in faith and perseverance for all Montanans," Attorney General Tim Fox said. "The safety and blessings we enjoy today are made possible by the courage and sacrifice of first responders like Wade. On behalf of the Montana Department of Justice, we wish the Palmer family the very best as they focus on continued healing during this next chapter of their lives," Fox added.
In his retirement, Trooper Palmer says he plans to continue to focus his energy on his rehabilitation and spending time with his family.
