Kaleiah Jones should have been in good hands when she collapsed in her Virginia high school hallway from a heart condition earlier this year.
After all, Virginia state law requires all school resource officers and nurses — as well as teachers and administrators — to be certified in administrating CPR. State law also requires school officials to be certified in the use of automated external defibrillators, which are mandated by state law to be in every school.
But despite the law, several teachers, administrators, a school resource officer and a nurse stood around the 16-year-old Black girl for 16 minutes, neglecting to perform CPR other than the school cop conducting chest compressions for only 17 seconds.
As a result, Jones ended up dying, according to a wrongful death lawsuit filed last week, accusing the school staff at Menchville High School in Newport News of standing by and doing nothing while the girl died.
“The defendants gross negligence and willful and wanton negligence to Kaleiah’s medical needs caused her death. Had the defendants promptly commenced CPR and/or used the AED, Kaleiah would have survived,” the lawsuit obtained by Atlanta Black Star says.
Jones’ family told local media the girl suffered from a condition called bradycardia which is described as a heart rate below 60 beats per minute when the normal rate is between 60 to 100 beats, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Her mother, Keyonna Stewart, said the school was aware of her condition, according to WAFB.
“Today and forever, my heart is broken. I wake up daily with the pain and sorrow that my sweet baby girl is not with me on this journey called life,” Stewart said.
“I will never get the opportunity to see Kaleiah fulfill every parent’s dreams of getting her license, graduating high school or walking down the aisle on her wedding day.”
The Inaction
The incident took place on Feb. 20 as Jones was walking out of a classroom, smiling and talking to a friend when she suddenly collapsed.
The lawsuit refers to video footage which shows Jones collapsing at 1:09 p.m., prompting other students to seek help from the adults working that day. The students were then sent back to their classrooms.
Three security guards arrived within 30 seconds along with a teacher named Lisa Molineaux. Assistant Principal Diamond Gee arrived at 1:10 p.m.
And Newport News School Resource Officer Isiah Washington arrived at 1:11 p.m., followed by school nurse Turcan Tillotson who arrived with a wheelchair at 1:12 p.m.
At 1:14 p.m., then-Principal Lisa Egolf arrived with Assistant Principal of Operations William Huffstetler.
But none of those school officials made any attempt to perform CPR or retrieve an automated external defibrillator despite there being three AED’s in the school.
At 1:18 p.m., nine minutes after she collasped, Washington, the school cop, commenced chest compressions but stopped after 17 seconds.
It was not until 1:26 p.m. after emergency medical technicians arrived that anybody made a serious attempt at performing CPR but by then it was too late because EMT told hospital staff that Jones was pulseless and not breathing when they arrived.
Jones was lifted on a stretcher and transported to a hospital at 1:46 p.m.
The lawsuit states that Tillotson, the school nurse, tried to cover up their inactions when she filled out the Student Health Incident Report by insinuating they had been performing CPR all along which was that was not the case.
“Defendant Nurse Tillotson entered a note into the Student Health Incident List on February 20, 2024 stating: ‘At approximately 1:20 SRO Washington (came) to the clinic and stated student passed out in the hallway (and to) bring the wheelchair to the hallway. The student was on the floor with Coach MO and security, AP was on the floor with student, 911 called when RN arrived. CPR started by SRO Washington, EMS arrived and began care. Student transported to hospital with principal and SRO.’
The note falsely suggests that CPR was promptly commenced and continued until EMS arrived. As mentioned above, CPR was not commenced until nine minutes following Kaleiah’s collapse and then was abruptly halted seconds later.”
The lawsuit states that the Newport News School Board allowed attorneys and the girl’s family to view the video but refused to provide them a copy. The family is being represented by The Krudy Law Firm in Richmond as well as high-profile attorney Benjamin Crump.
“The teachable moment starts now, just with the filing of the lawsuit, because you all are looking at Kaleiah’s face, and I hope you’re thinking about your children. But by the grace of God, it could be your child,” Crump said during a press conference.
A similar incident took place in August in Houston after a Black 14-year-old boy collapsed at school and the school nurse was recorded on police body camera footage stating that she was not trained in performing CPR or using AEDs.
