Denver firefighters suspended for declaring living woman dead after they found her in bed
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Denver firefighters suspended for declaring living woman dead after finding her in bed during ‘wellness’ check
- Two Denver firefighters were suspended and demoted after they declared a woman dead after a health check, but realized she was still alive
- The incident dates back to June 24, when firefighter Marshall Henry was sent on benefits to a woman who had not been heard from for five days.
- A police officer went to check on the woman and said she had a bluish-purple discoloration of her skin, fluid was leaking from her body and smelled
- Denver Fire Lieutenant Patrick Lopez told his crew not to go in because she was ‘clearly dead’ and asked them to stay out
- When a police officer went back inside to look for weapons in the woman’s house, he saw her move
Two firefighters in Denver were suspended and demoted after they declared a woman dead after a health check, but realized she was still alive.
The incident dates back to June 24, when firefighter Marshall Henry was sent on social assistance benefits to a woman who had not been heard from for five days to help the city’s police.
A police officer went to check on the woman and said she had a bluish-purple discoloration of her skin, fluid was leaking from her body and smelled like she was decomposing.
Denver Fire Lieutenant Patrick Lopez told his crew not to go in because she was “clearly dead” and asked them to stay outside.
Lopez told Henry – despite not checking the woman herself – to call the city’s health services to get a death certificate from a doctor.
Two Denver firefighters were suspended and demoted after they declared a woman dead after a health check, but realized she was still alive
The incident dates back to June 24, when firefighter Marshall Henry was sent on social assistance benefits to a woman who had not been heard from for five days to help the city’s police.
A police officer went to check on the woman and said she had a bluish-purple discoloration of her skin, fluid was leaking from her body and smelled like she was decomposing
The doctor gave them the statement based on Henry’s description of the woman’s condition as “in an advanced state of death” and answered the doctor’s questions in a way that suggested he had assessed her when he hadn’t.
When a police officer went back inside to look for weapons at the woman’s house, he saw her move and called both fire and ambulance to return and take the woman to hospital, the Denver Gazette said.
Henry admitted his mistake and both he and Lopez informed their supervisors, while a police officer denied telling the fire department not to go inside.
An investigation found it was “more likely than not” that Lopez lied to supervisors to try and blame the police officer.
Lopez has since been demoted to lieutenant and given a no pay suspension, while Henry was suspended but not demoted.
When a police officer went back inside to search for weapons at the woman’s home, he saw her move and called both fire and ambulance to return and take the woman to hospital.
Lopez has since been demoted to lieutenant and given a no pay suspension while Henry was suspended but not demoted
Both have served their suspensions and have returned to work, as they had not registered any previous violations.
The woman’s current condition is unclear.