Teen saves life on basketball court, advocates for CPR training in schools
By Kilee Thomas
Click here for updates on this story
WASHINGTON (KOCO) — Magnus Miller, an Oklahoma teen who saved a fellow basketball player’s life during a high school tournament, is now advocating for CPR training and AED availability in schools, taking his mission to Washington, D.C.
“There’s no way you were going to die on that court. I wasn’t going to let you,” Miller said during a reunion with Randy Vitales, the player he saved.
In January, during a high school basketball tournament between Dover and Life Christian Academy, 16-year-old Randy Vitales collapsed, going into full cardiac arrest.
Miller, an opposing player, rushed over to help, using his lifeguard training in CPR and AED to direct school staff until EMS arrived.
This week, Miller, now a freshman at the University of Oklahoma, along with two other Oklahomans, advocated at Capitol Hill to further fund the HEARTS Act, which provides funding for schools to train students and staff in CPR, purchase AEDs, and develop cardiac emergency response plans.
“It was a crazy experience. I got invited by The American Heart’s Association to go and help advocate as one of the Oklahoma advocates for $50 million in funding for the HEARTS Act,” Miller said.
Miller also had the opportunity to speak with state Rep. Kevin Hern during his visit.
“I feel like you can prevent this kind of stuff from happening. Obviously, I was fortunate enough to have this stuff and be there and have those materials like an AED, but a lot of people don’t have those resources, so this is something I wanted to step up and do,” Miller said.
Miller and Vitales recently met some Oklahoma City Thunder players at an open practice because of their remarkable story.
Two other Oklahomans, Deshawn Caldwell of Tulsa and Cheri Shepard, whose husband, Derrick Shepard, a former OU football player and NFL player, died of cardiac arrest in 1999, also advocated on Capitol Hill.
This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate partner and does not contain original CNN reporting.
Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.