WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas prosecutor said Tuesday that he cannot file criminal charges over the death of a Black 17-year-old who became unresponsive while being restrained following an altercation with staff at a Wichita juvenile center in September.
Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennet said the state’s “stand your ground” law prevents him from bringing any charges in the death of Cedric Lofton, who died at a hospital two days after the altercation at the Sedgwick County Juvenile Intake and Assessment Center. He said that if he did bring charges, “a judge would be duty bound to dismiss the case.”
The case sparked outrage among community activists, who called for a special prosecutor, the release of video and the names of the individuals involved in the death.
A December autopsy ruled the death a homicide and contradicted an earlier, preliminary finding that the teenager hadn’t suffered life-threatening injuries. The autopsy ruled the death a homicide, saying that the teen’s heart and breathing stopped after he was handcuffed while lying on his stomach.
Bennett said Tuesday that he struggled with whether a charge of involuntary manslaughter was justified, but that he would have to prove that staff didn’t believe they were acting in self-defense.
Lofton had briefly been in the custody of the juvenile center when his altercation with staff members occurred Sept. 24. He was taken to a hospital.
Lofton’s family and an attorney have had a private showing of the videos involving the law enforcement encounter with the teen, but they do not have copies of the video and are urging its public release.
The autopsy cited reports from authorities that Lofton ran away from a foster home on Sept. 21, then was “erratic and aggressive” toward his foster parents when he returned early Sept. 24. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation has said that Wichita police, responding to a call of a disturbance, encountered Lofton outside a house and tried to get him to seek mental health treatment.
The 5-foot-10, 135-pound Lofton resisted police, assaulting one or more of the officers, according the autopsy report, and he was taken to the juvenile center and put in a cell at 2:45 a.m. The autopsy report said that staff at the center let him out of his cell at 4:20 a.m. — to use the restroom, according to the KBI. Lofton was “uncooperative and agitated” and punched a staff member in the head, according to the autopsy report, leading to the struggle with multiple staff members.
The autopsy report said Lofton’s ankles were shackled, he was “moved to the floor” and rolled onto his stomach, and he continued to struggle before being handcuffed. The report said Lofton then “calmed down, making occasional snoring sounds.” A minute after staff members were unable to find a pulse, they began chest compressions and called emergency personnel, just before 5:15 a.m., the report said.
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Hanna reported from Topeka, Kan.
Roxana Hegeman And John Hanna, The Associated Press
