Controversy over sudden death of Houston ISD middle school student in gym class; family hires lawyer

HOUSTON – 14-year-old Landon Payton died on August 14 after a medical emergency during physical education class at Marshall Middle School.

Since his death, there has been much speculation about whether a defibrillator was used during the medical emergency and whether the device was working properly.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Marshall Middle School student dies after emergency at school

HISD could not confirm whether an AED (automated external defibrillator) was used in the incident, but provided some numbers in response to inquiries.

HISD released these metrics in a press release and says:

“The district has 1,038 AEDs in schools; 868 of them are working. Replacement parts, in most cases batteries, have been ordered for the remaining 170 devices. 100% of the AEDs will be re-inspected before the end of August. On average, there are three working AEDs per school.”

They say when an AED is malfunctioning, it is removed from the wall while it awaits repair. A note is then placed at the location of the temporarily out-of-service device, directing trained personnel to the nearest AED.

Dozens gathered at a vigil outside Marshall Middle School on Monday to mourn Landon.

His family says they cannot comment on his death because they have hired an attorney, Chris Tritico.

Tritico says they are waiting for the coroner's report before taking the next steps.

Original Story: Marshall MS Student Dies After Medical Emergency: Houston ISD

HISD also listed the following safety facts in its press release:

a. Each campus in HISD has personnel trained in medical emergencies and life-saving techniques such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

b. The current administration does not believe that safety and medical administration should remain decentralized, and we are taking steps to change these practices. Currently, the CKD Local Regulation makes principals and workplace supervisors responsible for ensuring that AEDs are available and functional. In the future, we will amend this policy to transfer responsibility and authority to the appropriate headquarters teams.

c. In early August, the District began implementing a health and safety platform to record inspection and maintenance information. The Health and Medical team will work with the Safety and Emergency Management team to identify department staff responsible for uploading information to the platform and overseeing regular inspection and maintenance of equipment.