Not posting guard at hospital for man accused in teen’s death was mistake, WPD says
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- Wichita police say they made a mistake in not guarding man at hospital.
- Policy revisions now mandate review and oversight for suspects needing medical care.
- “It’s important for us to take very swift action when we identify that those gaps exist.”
Wichita police say the department made a mistake when it didn’t post a guard at the hospital for a 19-year-old man now charged with murder in the traffic death of a 14-year-old boy last week.
Gauge Brasher, who is charged with second-degree murder in the Aug. 13 death of Jackson Nzabonimpa, checked himself out of the hospital against medical advice about 30 minutes after officers released him from custody and left the building.
He was arrested more than a day later following a public plea for tips about his whereabouts.
Police have said Brasher was left alone at the hospital because he was injured and needed medical care.
That decision raised questions about how police guard injured suspects and why Brasher wasn’t continuously monitored.
In response to a question at a public meeting Tuesday, Wichita police Chief Joe Sullivan called the decision to not guard Brasher a mistake and also blamed overly vague arrest policies at the department.
“I immediately initiated an inquiry to find out what happened. Somebody made a mistake. It’s just that simple,” Sullivan said at the meeting. “Somebody made a bad judgment. But on top of that, policy was very non-specific. The policy was lacking.”
On Thursday morning during Wichita Mayor Lily Wu’s weekly briefing, police Capt. Aaron Moses announced that department policies were reviewed in the aftermath of the deadly crash and two have been updated in an effort to prevent future blunders.
He said key changes to WPD Policies 302 and 303 include:
- A “clear presumption” that a guard be placed with hospitalized suspects arrested for serious felony offenses, including homicides and sex crimes, or when a suspect “poses a threat to public safety”
- A mandatory review by field services and investigations division commanders of all decisions regarding hospital guards
- A requirement that all suspects be booked into jail if they are accused in felony driving under the influence cases “when probable cause exists and a blood draw has been completed”
“We know these policy changes do not erase the confusion and frustration caused by this incident, but it is important to share openly what happened, and more importantly, the steps we have taken to ensure it does not happen again,” Moses said.
Moses said that although the need for a hospital guard will be evaluated on a case-by-case scenario, “the guidance we wanted to give our supervisors is (that) there is a clear presumption on behalf of executive staff and the community that these guards will be placed.”
“Then if there’s mitigating factors or something specific in each case that may change that, then it’s a conversation that will occur with the controlling supervisor and a bureau commander, which is a captain or above,” he said.
Asked why these details weren’t included in policy already, Moses said sometimes events uncover shortcomings that cause the department to reevaluate and make changes.
“We know that there’s going to be times where our policies don’t meet the standards that we set for ourselves or that the community sets for us. And it’s important for us to take very swift action when we identify that those gaps exist.”
Jackson Nzabonimpa of Wichita died around 6:30 p.m. Aug. 13 while he was standing on a sidewalk near Harry and Rock Road. Police have said Brasher was likely intoxicated and speeding when he slammed into a power pole and utility box, forcing the equipment into the teenager.
After the collision, Brasher and his passenger ran away from the crash site but were apprehended nearby.
Moses said officers released Brasher from custody and left him alone at the hospital around 12:30 a.m. Aug. 14 after learning he suffered injuries that required admission to treat. Hospital staff called around 1:05 a.m. to say he was gone.
Police didn’t find and arrest Brasher until shortly after 4 p.m. Aug. 15.
Sullivan said at the Tuesday meeting that the police department has apologized to the victim’s family for the misstep.
“The way we do things — somebody made a mistake, we acknowledge the mistake, we acknowledge the harm. We spoke to the family, let them know what happened. ... We went back and spoke to them again when that individual was back in jail with a very large bond. We apologized, and we move forward. We make the necessary changes so this will not happen again.”
