In a move outside department policy, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office responds to allegation made in a lawsuit against Sheriff Joe Lopinto.
“The Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office does not generally publicly respond to matters regarding active litigation. The Sheriff's Office, however, is compelled to respond to the lawsuit filed today in the Eastern District of Louisiana titled Parsa v. Sheriff Joseph P. Lopinto, III, et al,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement released Thursday afternoon.
The statement accuses the lawsuit of false allegations against the deputies.
“While the Sheriff's Office understands that all deaths are cause for sadness and a time for grieving, this lawsuit is rife with false claims and malicious accusations against the first responding deputies.”
The lawsuit centers on an incident last January where a 16-year-old autistic boy had what was reported as an “autism-related meltdown”, and began biting and beating his own father in the Laser Tag parking lot.
Witnesses called 911 and responding deputies subdued and handcuffed the teen who later died as a result.
“Once deputies arrived, they tried to control the violent teenager's outbursts to prevent him from again attacking his parents and first responders,” the JPSO statement said. “Deputies allowed the teenager's mother constant access to remain close to her son on the scene so that she could help first responders in defusing her son's violent behavior.”
The statement adds, “While the Sheriff's Office remains deeply saddened over this unfortunate loss of life, it does not intend to allow Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Deputies to be maligned and slandered by those seeking to profit from this unfortunate situation. The Sheriff's Office will timely respond to these matters as requested by the Court.”
