Stanley Wilson Jr. died in L.A. custody as a result of extreme pressure, household says
The household of former NFL participant Stanley Wilson Jr., who died final month whereas in Los Angeles County custody after a current arrest, mentioned the 40-year-old’s loss of life was a results of “excessive force” and “deliberate indifference.”
His dad and mom mentioned they discovered Wilson’s physique with “ligature marks” on his wrists and “fresh wounds” on his head that appeared “to have been caused by a shoe,” in keeping with a declare filed this week that seeks $45 million in damages from the county. Wilson’s father is Stanley Wilson Sr., a former NFL operating again.
An official explanation for loss of life has not been made public, however the dad and mom mentioned the county “grossly misrepresented the cause and circumstances” of their son’s loss of life, in keeping with the declare.
“The county failed to implement and maintain proper procedures to engage mentally disabled individuals, including Stanley Wilson Jr.,” the declare mentioned.
Wilson had not too long ago been deemed incompetent to face trial after an August 2022 arrest on trespassing-related costs, in keeping with the declare. For a while, Wilson has struggled with psychological well being points and drug use, mentioned John Carpenter, the household’s legal professional.
Wilson “suffered many many traumatic head injuries” and had lately been exhibiting the signs of continual traumatic encephalopathy, a mind situation that researchers have discovered to be extraordinarily prevalent amongst former NFL soccer gamers, Carpenter mentioned. Wilson had been beforehand arrested in Portland, Ore., after an try and burglarize a mansion whereas bare.
“That’s how we treat our people with mental illness, we incarcerate them or we let them live on the streets without any support,” Carpenter mentioned, calling Wilson’s a very tragic story. “He had all the promise in the world, and he ended up like this.”
In 2014, Wilson had graduated from Stanford, the place he performed soccer from 2001 to 2004. The cornerback was drafted within the third spherical by the Detroit Lions in 2005. His skilled soccer profession ended three years later after he tore his Achilles tendon.
Some information shops reported that Wilson died final month, citing regulation enforcement sources that he collapsed whereas being transferred from the county’s Twin Towers Correctional Facility in downtown Los Angeles to the Metropolitan State Hospital in Norwalk, which gives care to folks dominated incompetent to face trial.
But Carpenter mentioned the night time earlier than Wilson’s loss of life, a nurse had accomplished a medical analysis and located no points. Carpenter mentioned the household plans to file a wrongful-death lawsuit “to get to the truth of what actually happened.”
“It just doesn’t make any sense that he would be dead the next morning,” Carpenter mentioned.
L.A. County spokesperson Jesus Ruiz declined to remark on the case, citing the pending litigation.
“L.A. County offers its sincere condolences to Mr. Wilson’s family,” Ruiz mentioned in a press release. The Los Angeles County coroner’s workplace didn’t instantly reply to questions in regards to the case of the standing of Wilson’s post-mortem.
The county has 45 days to reply to the household’s declare — filed on behalf of Wilson’s father; mom, Pulane Lucas; and his property — at which level the household can file the lawsuit.
Carpenter mentioned Wilson’s dad and mom reached out to him a couple of lawsuit after discovering their son’s physique in a “condition that was different than they expected it to be.”
“It’s easy to marginalize people and write off people with mental illness,” he mentioned. “They’re treated with indifference, and we believe that played a factor in Stanley’s death.”