Florida caretaker napped while man with Down syndrome died in hot car, according to police
A Florida man was arrested after a man with Down syndrome died in a sweltering minivan.
Deputies with the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office arrested Joshua D. Russell, 26, on an aggravated manslaughter charge Friday, after a monthslong investigation into the death of John Lapointe, 35.
According to the Pinellas County Sheriff Office, Russell drove Lapointe to a doctor's appointment early in May. After the appointment, Russell stopped at his own home and "ingested two packages of Kratom, a substance made from a tree that is sometimes used as a recreational drug," according to a press release from the sheriff's office.
After that, Russell started driving back to the group home where Lapointe lived. According to the release, Russell returned to his house, parked the van and turned it off after feeling "tired and nauseous."
Russell told detectives he took a nap in the van while Lapointe was still in the back seat, according to the news release, which added Lapointe "was non-verbal, had the cognitive ability of a 1-year-old and was unable to care for himself." Russell woke up "two to three hours later" and was "covered in sweat," according to the sheriff's office.
Detectives estimated temperatures in the van reached 125 degrees, Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said in a news conference posted to YouTube.
Gualtieri called Lapointe's death "terrible" and said the inside of the car had to be absolutely "horrific."
"Let's just call it what it is," Gualtieri said. "This poor guy baked in that car."
Gualtieri was unsure why Russell was able to survive in the hot car.
According to the sheriff's office, Russell tried to perform CPR on Lapointe. When that wasn't successful, Russell called his mother, who agreed to meet with him. When she arrived, she called 911.
Deputies found Russell nearby, and he was arrested on charges of carrying a concealed firearm.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Florida man with Down syndrome died in hot car while caretaker napped
