SOUR LAKE, Texas — It's been one year since a routine police call nearly turned deadly for Sour Lake officer Bill McKeon.
It was a steamy Memorial Day night when officer McKeon got the call about a suspicious person at the J&R Market convenience store in Sour Lake.
What happened that night is still a blur for McKeon, but investigators say he was attacked almost immediately after getting out of his patrol car. The suspect brutally beat McKeon and left him for dead.
The vicious attack left McKeon with a broken jaw, busted sinus cavity and damage to his eye socket and vertebrae.
McKeon remained in critical condition for weeks, undergoing several surgeries for the traumatic head injuries.
For the first time since his brutal attack, officer McKeon is talking about the night that forever changed his life.
"God has been working a miracle in my life," McKeon told 12News in an exclusive interview. "He has brought me to doctors who are very educated, very smart. And they are the reason I am in as good of shape as I am today."
Family and doctors say McKeon's recovery is nothing short of a miracle. Following his assault, he spent nine months in the hospital.
"I nearly died a couple times," McKeon said. "I don't recommend anybody to go through that."
MCKEON'S 'JOURNEY'
For those nine months, McKeon was moved to various facilities, undergoing two facial reconstruction surgeries and countless monitoring.
At one point, an already lean McKeon weighed a measly 94 pounds.
"I had forgotten things, like how to swallow. It was just tough. I couldn't do anything," McKeon said. "It took a while to learn how to do things again."
Through tenacity and strength, along with encouragement and support from his family, his brothers in blue and his medical team, McKeon pushed forward.
"They are the reason I'm in as good as shape as I am in now," McKeon said."I feel pretty good. I feel very good. I feel like Bill used to feel."
But McKeon's journey wouldn't have been possible without his dog -- who happens to be named Journey.
"Nine months is a long time to be without your dog," McKeon said laughing. "It's a long time to be without your wife, being without your family. It's a long time being out of work, too. I've really enjoyed this work (with the Sour Lake Police Department)."
McKeon's road to recovery continues -- even a year after his brutal attack. He continues going to therapy and has some more medical tests coming up this summer.
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COMMUNITY SUPPORT
The Sour Lake community, to McKeon's credit, helped him during his fight for life.
The community organized ragball tournaments and various fundraisers to help with expenses.
"This community was absolutely unreal, amazingly unreal. They were fantastic. I used to think, 'I'm just a cop. Nobody knows, nobody cares.' They did. I made a difference in people's lives and it matters, it made a difference"
Fellow police departments across Southeast Texas also held benefits soliciting donations to help McKeon's family.
"I can't say enough about the support from Sour Lake and the surrounding areas. It wasn't just (Sour Lake). People all over the world were praying for me. I never thought I would ever get that kind of notice. But people really cared."
Before becoming a Sour Lake police officer, McKeon also served with the Port Arthur Police Department in 1981 and the Orange Co. Sheriff's Office from 2011-2014.
AWAITING JUSTICE
Bradley Pruitt, 45, was arrested for the severely beating McKeon. Pruitt is from Bowling Green, Kentucky, and was wanted for outstanding warrants in Kentucky and New Mexico.
Hardin County investigators charged Puritt with aggravated assault on a public servant, aggravated assault, evading arrest with a vehicle, unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon and taking a weapons from an officer.
Pruitt remains in jail on a $4 million bond. His next hearing is scheduled for July 16.
