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Family suing after Florida 13-year-old with special needs dies at care facility
The teens family is suing the special needs care facility after their son died after choking on a latex glove
MELBOURNE, Fla. - A family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against a pediatric care facility in Brevard County after their child, who has special needs, died after allegedly being left unsupervised and choked on a latex glove.
According to the lawsuit, Tarionn Hanner-Jackson, 13, was under the care of Angels on Earth, a care facility in Brevard County, Florida, where he required constant supervision and had a known history of placing objects in his mouth.
On Nov. 30, 2022, staff left the boy "unsupervised for an extended period of time…and "left a glove within reach," according to the lawsuit.
"As a result of the acts and omissions of Angels on Earth and its staff, Tarionn Jackson- Hanner choked and died on the aforementioned glove," the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit accuses Angels on Earth of negligence and seeks damages of more than $50,000.
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Press conference: Family files lawsuit in sons choking death at care facility
Kiyana Durham, the mother of 13-year-old Tarionn Hanner-Jackson is demanding answers after her son, who has special needs, died at a pediatric care facility after he reportedly choked on a latex glove. She has filed a lawsuit against the facility.
In a statement to FOX 35, a spokesperson for Angels on Earth said "while our hearts go out to the grieving family, we are unable to comment on the pending litigation."
On Thursday, the boy's mother, Kiyana Durham, spoke during a press conference alongside her attorney about the lawsuit and demanded answers and accountability in her son's death.
"We want to know why Tari was left alone, when they knew specifically not to leave him alone. I constantly, repeatedly told them that every morning when they picked him up on the bus, every time I came to the school at any point, I always made them aware. ‘Hey, don’t leave him alone,'" Durham said.
She told reporters that her son attended that facility because they claimed to be one of the leading special needs schools in Central Florida, with enough nurses to be able to handle her son.
"It was documented in the intake forms that he puts foreign objects in his mouth. How in the world can you leave something there that he can grab and put into his mouth? That's negligence," said attorney Douglas McCarron.
"We have to find out all, what led up to that and why that happened and how it happened and that's one of the main things that this is about."