A police chief said Tuesday he was “disturbed and embarrassed” after police tried to jail a 60-year-old disabled woman who begged them for help as she suffered a stroke.
Lisa Edwards, 60, died Feb. 6 at Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center in Knoxville following a stroke sustained in police custody.
Footage showed Knoxville police officers struggling to get a distressed Edwards, who was charged with trespassing, to enter a jail transport van, before they ultimately load her into a police cruiser, where she became completely unresponsive on the way to jail.
The incident has caused uproar in Knoxville, where residents decried the officers’ callousness as Edwards experienced a medical emergency. Her family this week said it plans to sue the police department, and possibly the hospitals who had treated her prior to her arrest.
What did the body camera footage show?
A police video compilation from the Feb. 5 arrest shows how officers arrested her and what happened after she lost consciousness in the car.
Body and cruiser cam footage timeline:
- The firstofficer arrived just before 8 a.m., about an hour after Edwards was discharged from the hospital.
- Edwards told the officer she had a stroke and couldn’t walk, but he responds by telling her the hospital wants her gone.
- The officer tells Edwards if she won’t leave, she is going to jail and would be charged with trespassing.
- Officers and the jail transport van driver struggle for 30 minutes to get Edwards up and into the side compartment of the van. They repeatedly call her dead weight and complain that she won’t cooperate by standing or lifting her feet.
- Edwards repeatedly tells officers and staff she can’t breathe or stand, but they respond by telling her she has been medically discharged and is fine.
- After Edwards repeatedly asks for her inhaler, someone eventually finds the medicine and gives her the inhaler. Officers note that she is not using it correctly and one offers her a cigarette.
- Officers repeatedly say they think she is “playing games.”
- The police then decide to take her to jail in a regular police cruiser because it is easier than putting her in the van.
- Edwards can be seen gasping and wheezing and falling back into a slumped position in the cruiser. Within 10 minutes, she has slipped out of sight and cannot be heard any longer. The officer drives another three minutes before he stops to help a motorist. It is another minute before he returns to the vehicle and finds Edwards unconscious.
- The officer says he doesn’t know if she is faking, but says she is not answering him.
- According to the Knox County District Attorney’s Office, she was taken back to Fort Sanders hospital and later died Feb. 6.
Medical examiner says Edwards died of stroke
The district attorney’s office said Edwards died of a stroke and none of the officers who handled her arrest will face criminal charges, citing a medical examiner’s report that stated: “at no time did law enforcement interaction cause or contribute to Ms. Edwards’ death.”
According to the District Attorney Charme Allen, Edwards, who had a previous stroke and used a wheelchair, had flown to Knoxville on Feb. 4. During the flight, she experienced abdominal pain and was taken to Blount Memorial Hospital when she landed.
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After she was discharged, the DA’s office said, she sought additional treatment at Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center in Knoxville. She was discharged the following morning but refused to leave the premises, so security guards called police.
Family says it’s about ‘human decency’
“I don’t know what kind of foggy glasses those officers were wearing,” said August Boylan, who is married to Edwards’ son, Timothy Boylan, and is also a registered nurse. “It was very clear she couldn’t use her left side. Her speech got slurred as things progressed, that’s one of the first signs you see with a stroke. To me it’s very evident.”
“They really didn’t do anything to help her,” she said. “They were mocking her, swearing at her.”
While some have called for the officers to be fired or the hospital staff to be disciplined, Boylan said the family prefers to focus on making sure there are policies in place that are effective and enforced, adding, “This is about human decency. This shouldn’t happen to anybody.”
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Internal investigation underway
Knoxville Police Chief Paul Noel said he was “disturbed and embarrassed” when he watched the videos of the incident.
“My expectation is that our officers treat every person they encounter, regardless of the context or situation, with respect, dignity and basic decency,” Noel said in a statement. “We should also take pride in helping those who need it.”
Noel added all four officers, Sgt. Brandon Wardlaw, officer Adam Barnett, officer Timothy Distasio and transportation officer Danny Dugan, are on administrative leave pending an internal review.
An investigation into the incident by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation did not produce criminal charges. But that investigation did not determine whether the officers violated department policies or civil law, the district attorney said.
