The estate of a Boca Raton man has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit, claiming Palm Beach County Sheriff’s deputies stayed outside a home during a reported suicide emergency even after the man’s mother gave them explicit consent and access codes to go in. The complaint, filed on May 18, 2026, names Sheriff Ric L. Bradshaw in his official capacity and seeks money damages and other relief on behalf of the estate. According to the suit, the man died on May 21, 2024.
As reported by Boca Post, the complaint, filed in the Circuit Court of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit as Case No. 502026CA005611XXXAMB, says deputies first tried and failed to contact the man by loudspeaker. The suit says that even after the mother gave consent to enter and provided access codes, and despite multiple open entry points, deputies stayed staged outside and chose not to go in. According to the filing, a neighbor gave a deputy the mother’s phone number, and when the mother arrived about an hour later, PBSO deputies and SWAT were still positioned outside. The complaint alleges deputies told her it was “against Florida Statutes” for them to enter, a statement the lawsuit says later proved to be incorrect.
About the man who died
According to a GoFundMe organized on behalf of Tiffany Holmes, the decedent was David Holmes Knight. The fundraiser lists his date of death as May 21, 2024, and notes he had been pursuing a degree at Florida Atlantic University. The page also says family and friends created a memorial scholarship and raised money both for arrangements and to support the scholarship fund.
Legal context
Florida law generally allows officers to enter a home without a warrant when exigent circumstances, such as an immediate threat to life or safety, make quick action necessary. Statutes and case law set the standards for when that kind of entry is lawful. Chapter 901 of the Florida Statutes describes when warrantless arrests and entries are permitted, and courts often focus on whether officers had an objectively reasonable basis to believe that immediate intervention was required. Florida Statutes, Chapter 901.
What the lawsuit seeks
The complaint brings a single count of wrongful death and asks for monetary damages, a declaratory judgment, injunctive relief, attorney’s fees and costs, and a jury trial, according to Boca Post. It identifies Tiffany Holmes as the personal representative of the estate and lists Marie A. Mattox, P.A., of Tallahassee as counsel for the plaintiff. The article also reports that the filing claims a detective told Holmes two calls came in at the same time and the wrong team was dispatched, mistakes the complaint says were known to supervisors…