Emergency officials spent 40 minutes trying to get a dog away from the woman before declaring her dead
Four Ohio emergency personnel have been placed on paid leave after they allegedly declared an overdose patient dead, despite her being still very much alive.
Toledo and Springfield Township emergency crews responded to the incident Jan. 2 after a woman’s boyfriend called 911 at about 7:30 a.m. saying that she was unresponsive.
After emergency personnel arrived at about 7:44 a.m., WTOL reported that they spent the next 40 minutes trying to get a dog away from the woman so that they could treat her. In body camera footage obtained by the station, a police officer can be heard saying, “He’s a good-sized one. You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Emergency crews are finally able to reach the woman, identified as 31-year-old Arielle Diaz, at about 8:24 a.m., and after conferring with each other they pronounced her dead at 8:28 a.m., the station reported.
“The paramedics observed that the patient was cold and stiff,” a letter from Springfield Township Administrator Michael Hampton states, per the station. “They found no pulse, which led them to believe she was dead.”