Deputy likely saves a life

Deputy Robert Mirabal announced in a December Island County Commissioners’ meeting that he would be the one to lose his job if the sheriff’s budget was cut.

It was cut.

Serendipitously, Mirabal likely saved the life of a 51-year-old woman in the Greenbank area of Whidbey Island the week before he lost his job.

Mirabal was traveling on Highway 525 at approximately 2:30 a.m. last Sunday when he happened upon the woman walking down the side of the road.

Mirabal noticed injuries on the woman’s face and convinced her to go to the hospital.

She was later airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where she was treated for a fractured vertebrae, bruising, bite marks and bleeding between her brain and the surrounding tissue.

The woman was living in a camping trailer in the woods with her boyfriend, 38-year-old Kevin Porter. She said she woke to Porter beating her.

Deputies searched the woods until they found the trailer and arrested Porter. He was held in Island County jail on $50,000 bail, and pleaded guilty Thursday.

Detective Sgt. Mike Beech said, “I’m glad that although this is a pretty horrible case, the guy decided to do the right thing by confessing. He saved the victim the emotional cost of testifying at a trial.”

Porter’s sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 8, at 1:30 p.m.

Mirabal’s last day on the job was Sunday.

“I hate to lose a good deputy,” Beech said. “Here’s a guy losing his job in a week, and he’s still conscientious enough to turn around, pull over, and check on this woman at 2:30 in the morning.”

“Who knows what would have happened to her if he hadn’t,” he added.

Staff Reporter Jeremiah O’Hagan: 629-8066 ext. 125 or ohagan@scnews. com.