Family of teen who died trapped in vehicle sues
The family of CINCINNATI — a 16-year-old student who died trapped in a vehicle after a failed response to his two heartrending 911 calls sued the city of Cincinnati on Monday.
The wrongful death lawsuit filed in Hamilton County charges the city, two 911 center employees, two police officers and a former city official with actions the suit alleges led to Kyle Plush’s death in 2018. Plush’s parents have said the object of the lawsuit is to find out what went wrong and make sure it doesn’t happen again.
The lawsuit states that “defendants acted recklessly and with deliberate indifference in failing to protect Kyle Plush, causing him to suffer greatly before his death.” It seeks a jury trial and compensatory damages of more than $25,000 against the defendants. Punitive damages to be determined at trial are being sought against defendants other than the city.
A statement from the Gerhardstein & Branch law firm, which is representing the family, says the lawsuit details a “deteriorating” Cincinnati 911 program in the months leading up to the teen’s death. The goal of the legal action is to uncover the 911 problems “that led to Kyle’s death,” according to the statement. Al Gerhardstein is a veteran civil rights attorney.
Messages seeking comment were left with the city Monday.
The teen’s death led to multiple investigations and to improvements in the city’s 911 system technology, staffing, training and police procedures. But the youth’s parents have expressed dissatisfaction.
Ron Plush repeatedly took part in city council meetings last year, pushing for reforms and accountability for his son’s death. Using the voice-activated feature on his cellphone, the teen had Siri dial 911, warning: “I’m going to die here.” He called again minutes later, this time describing his vehicle as a gold Honda Odyssey.
Two police officers drove around at the boy’s high school looking for him but left without getting out of their cruiser.
He eventually suffocated from having his chest compressed after he was apparently pinned by a foldaway rear seat when he reached for tennis gear while parked near his school. Kyle’s father found his body nearly six hours after his first 911 call.
Police have blamed communication breakdowns and said procedures have been changed in the aftermath.