SARASOTA COUNTY, Florida — Three Sarasota County sheriff’s deputies were recognized with Life Saving Awards after officials said their CPR responses helped save two women during separate February emergencies.

The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office said Sheriff Kurt A. Hoffman presented the awards at a Tuesday ceremony announced in News Release 26-034 on June 23, 2026.

Deputies Hadnot and Edwards credited with early CPR

Deputies Matthew Hadnot and Luke Edwards received Life Saving Awards for their response to a Feb. 28, 2026 call involving a 27-year-old woman in cardiac arrest, according to the sheriff’s office.

The agency said Hadnot and Edwards were the first to arrive. Edwards began chest compressions while Hadnot administered rescue breaths. After about five minutes of CPR, rescue personnel arrived and transported the woman to Doctor’s Hospital.

The sheriff’s office said nursing staff advised that the deputies’ early CPR “significantly improved her chances for survival.”

Deputy Traylor recognized for parking-lot response

Deputy Daniel Traylor received a Life Saving Award for a separate Feb. 4, 2026 response involving an unresponsive woman in a parking lot, the sheriff’s office reported.

According to the agency, Traylor found the woman lying on the pavement, blue in the face, not breathing and without a pulse. He began CPR immediately and continued until rescue units arrived, then helped Sarasota County Fire Department personnel for several more minutes before the woman was taken to the hospital.

The sheriff’s office said Traylor’s immediate and ongoing actions played a significant role in the woman’s survival.

Fugitive Apprehension Unit also honored

At the same ceremony, the sheriff’s office said its Fugitive Apprehension Unit received a Unit Citation Award for 2025 performance in sensitive and high-liability operations.

The release said the unit coordinates daily with multiple sheriff’s office divisions and outside law-enforcement partners, verifies and manages warrants, and recorded 645 arrests in 2025. Warrants technicians also processed thousands of warrants and recalls, according to the agency.

Why it matters

For Support Law Enforcement readers, the Sarasota awards highlight one of the less dramatic but most consequential parts of patrol work: deputies arriving before the scene is settled and starting the lifesaving chain immediately.

The article avoids naming patients or adding medical details beyond the sheriff’s office release. Fire/rescue and hospital personnel remain part of the care chain; the agency’s recognition centers on the deputies’ first-response CPR actions.

Sources reviewed

Editorial note: ThinBlueNews used the sheriff’s office ceremony photo with attribution and did not create a staged or AI-looking CPR/rescue image. Claims are limited to the agency’s published release.