Radford Student Died in Jail – Death Ruled Accidental

On September 12^th, Aris Lobo-Perez, a Radford student, died in jail. Lobo-Perez attended Radford for three weeks prior to his arrest. Radford campus police processed the arrest for public intoxication on September 11^th. It was on September 12^th that the young man was found dead in a cell in New River Valley Regional Jail. Immediately an investigation arose in response to the death.

Initially, the police submitted that the death was an accident, but Lobo-Perez’s mother rejected that finding. She argued that it was neglect and that the jail guards on duty failed to provide medical aid when her son needed it. Following her rejection of the cause of death, another investigation was opened against the local police. Virginia State Police took over the investigation, which is still ongoing.

The investigation is looking at additional factors such as the victim’s prior car accident, which left him with severe mood swings, depression, and an aggravated asthma condition. Radford was made aware of his conditions. But when asked for a statement from The Washington Post, the University informed them that they would not comment on the extent of the student’s medical conditions.

Friends reported that Lobo-Perez had begun drinking heavily and more frequently while also using hard drugs in the week before the arrest. On Septemeber 11^th, near 10 p.m., the 18-year-old deceased used Snapchat to post a video of himself in a clearly intoxicated state. Later, residents who saw the teen intoxicated were surprised that the police did not take the teen for medical care rather than an arrest.

Police report that Lobo-Perez displayed typical signs of a person heavily intoxicated and under the influence of drugs. They followed the standard procedure, and the death was a result of intoxication. Officially the teen died of acute buprenorphine toxicity with acute and chronic asthma contributing to the death. Buprenorphine is commonly used as part of opioid addiction.

If your loved one passed away due to someone else’s negligence, contact our law firm today. We can help.

Source: https://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/radford-student-s-death-in-jail-is-ruled-accidental-he/article_152d433c-d8b2-551f-bcdb-4d3560ae05df.html