BRIDGEPORT, CT (WCBS 880)— The death of 23-year-old Lauren Smith-Fields, the woman found dead while on a date with a man she met online, has been ruled an accident, the Connecticut chief medical examiner’s office said Tuesday.
The Bridgeport, Connecticut woman was found dead on Dec. 12 in her apartment after the man she was with, who she met on the dating app Bumble, called authorities after he woke up to find her unresponsive.
The medical examiner’s office said on Monday Smith-Fields’ death was due to “acute intoxication due to the combined effects of fentanyl, promethazine, hydroxyzine and alcohol.”
On Tuesday, the Bridgeport police that its narcotics and vice division, with help from the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, is currently investigating to see if any crimes were committed and if anyone should be charged.
“We are now refocusing our attention and efforts to the factors that (led) to her untimely death,” acting Police Chief Rebeca Garcia said in a statement.
Smith-Fields’ family previously accused the Bridgeport Police of not doing enough to investigate her death because she was Black. The family said they were not notified about Smith-Fields’ death until they showed up to her apartment more than a day after she was pronounced dead after not hearing from her. The family found a note from the landlord on Smith-Fields’ door and were then told the news. The family said a detective eventually told them to stop calling.
Darnell Crosland, the lawyer representing Smith-Fields’ family, notified the city of intent to file a lawsuit accusing the police of not properly investigating the incident, citing evidence left in the apartment for two weeks, which includes a blood-stained bed sheet.
“The police department has been racially insensitive to this family and has treated this family with no respect and has violated their civil rights,” Crosland said in the intent to sue notice.
No charges have been filed against the man Smith-Fields was with at the time of her death.
In an incident report, the date said their night was filled with drinking, playing games and watching a movie. He adds at one point, Smith-Fields got sick and she later fell asleep. He woke up at 3 a.m. to find her snoring and three hours later he woke up again to find her not breathing with blood coming from her nose.
Related
Related
