He 'would be alive today': Police decision in Cedric Lofton case infuriates advocates
An employee at a Wichita, Kansas, juvenile center said a police officer changed his answers on an intake form for a 17-year-old who was in custody, potentially preventing the teenager from receiving medical care that, according to his family’s lawyer, would have saved his life.
Staff members at Sedgwick County Juvenile Intake and Assessment Center held Cedric Lofton down for more than 30 minutes during a struggle with authorities after his arrest around 1 a.m. on Sept. 24, 2021. Advocates have said the teenager, who was in foster care, had been experiencing a mental health crisis at the time.
Authorities said Lofton had been “behaving oddly” when he arrived at the center. The Wichita Eagle recently reported that, as a result, an officer initially indicated on an intake form that Lofton showed signs of “acute illness” and “intoxication.”
The officer then left to consult other officers on how to categorize Lofton’s state, Jodi Tronsgard, who oversees admissions at the juvenile center, said at a March 7 Sedgwick County Community Task Force meeting. When the officer returned to Lofton, he decided not to classify him as needing medical attention, saying, according to Tronsgard, “‘We are going to go with no.’”
Tronsgard continued: “So, he was informed that if you answer ‘yes’ to these questions, you have to leave and take the youth for a medical or mental health release. And then, hearing that, he goes and then responds ‘no’ to these questions.”
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/cedric-lofton-death-kansas-teenager-advocates-say-prevented-rcna25600
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Lazy bastard. Didn't want to take him for evaluation.
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