Ohio tourists aid woman stabbed in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea parking lot

LAUDERDALE-BY-THE-SEA, Fla. – The heroic acts of a good Samaritan and his daughter may have helped save a woman’s life.

David Spaulding and his daughter Megan, visiting from Ohio, were paying for parking and about to go to dinner in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea.

“We heard a scream from over here and we just thought it was some of the spring breakers just goofing off,” Spaulding said.

The screaming he heard was a woman inside a white Jeep.

“When I looked at it closer, I saw that he was attacking her,” said Spaulding. “Not only was she bleeding, but she was hemorrhaging blood from her neck.”

According to the Broward Sheriff’s Office, Damion Matthews had just stabbed the woman in the neck multiple times. A BSO arrest report states that Matthews, 47, was upset that the woman was entering into a new relationship.

“I reached in and I was trying to block the blood from flowing out,” Spaulding said. “At that point, somebody came up and saw, they took their shirt off and I was able to wrap their shirt around her neck. I wasn’t sure if she was going to make it.”

Spaulding helped the woman stay alert and slowed down her bleeding until paramedics finally arrived.

His daughter took a picture of the suspect’s license plate, helping detectives.

“I know that that night my daughter and I were very worried for her,” Spaulding said. “Our hearts go out to her and if she is watching, she should know that there all kinds of people in Cincinnati and Ohio that are praying for her.”

The woman is expected to survive.


About the Author
Christian De La Rosa headshot

Christian De La Rosa joined Local 10 News in April 2017 after spending time as a reporter and anchor in Atlanta, San Diego, Orlando and Panama City Beach.

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