For better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health…

Photo Courtesy: LASD
Detective Lyle Raymond and his wife, Mary Christine

Staff Reports

Los Angeles County – On Wed., Sept. 23, A Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Detective was scheduled to receive an extraordinary gift from his wife:  the gift of life in the form of a kidney.

According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD), in October 2013 – after a routine physical – doctors told Detective Lyle Raymond that he needed to have an emergency procedure to begin dialysis. Raymond – a 28-year Department veteran – was told that without the procedure, he would die within a week from kidney failure.

Raymond began a yearlong regiment of hemoglobin dialysis treatments lasting for four hours per session, three days a week. After a year of treatments, he received an operation that allowed him to conduct peritoneal dialysis treatments every night in his own home.

Raymond was placed on the nationwide organ donor waiting list while he received the treatments. Little did he know, his loving wife would ultimately save his life.

In the United States, approximately 600,000 people each year are in need of kidney transplants. Of those, 90,000 patients qualify to receive a transplant. For those who qualify, only 10,000 patients receive transplants. Raymond was told that the average male his age in need of a transplant has a waiting time of seven to ten years. During that time, if any other medical complications arise patients can be disqualified from the list.

After several family and friends tested as possible donors, it was determined that Raymond possessed a rare antigen that made finding a viable donor much more difficult.  All of his potential donors were eliminated as a result. With the possibility of finding a live donor dwindling, Raymond’s wife, Mary, began testing.

Shortly before his wife was identified as the donor, Raymond’s doctor told him he would be running out of time and would not live long. Within a month, it was determined that the couple was a perfect match for a transplant and the surgery was scheduled for Sept. 23.

The Sheriff’s Department has been very supportive of the Raymond family, and hosted a press conference at the Walnut Diamond Bar Sheriff’s Station on Sept. 22 to keep interested parties apprised of Raymond’s situation.  Sheriff’s Custody Investigative Services and Operation Safe Jails plan to assist the Raymond family during their recovery process by ensuring that they are transported to and from post-operative doctors’ appointments, and monitoring their sons, Luke, age 18, and Jake, age 16.  In addition, they will assist in keeping their home clean, ensure groceries are stocked, and handle any requests that they may have during their recovery.

According to LASD, Raymond was recently promoted to Sergeant, and he will be assigned to the South Los Angeles Station upon recovery.

For more information, contact Public Information Officer Nicole Nishida at (323) 810-1973 or the Sheriff’s Information Bureau at (213) 229-1700.