Draft of Lofton task force letter calls for FBI civil rights violation investigation
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Death of Wichita teen at Sedgwick County facility
Cedric Lofton’s foster father called authorities in September 2021 seeking help because the 17-year-old was hallucinating and needed to go to a mental health facility. Instead, police took him to the Sedgwick County Juvenile Intake and Assessment Center, where he had to be resuscitated after he was held facedown for more than 30 minutes during an altercation. He died two days later.
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A task force reviewing the death of Cedric Lofton may ask the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate whether police or corrections workers violated the Black teenager’s civil rights during his arrest and detention.
The community task force on Monday reviewed the first draft of a letter, addressed to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, that asks for an FBI civil rights violation investigation.
“While the Sedgwick County District Attorney Office, Sedgwick County Sheriff Department and Kansas Bureau of Investigation has investigated the circumstances surrounding the arrest and death of Cedric Lofton, it was a criminal investigation that focused on use of force by the officers and/or employees involved to see if criminal charges should be filed in the case,” reads the draft, which was penned by juvenile defense attorney Steve House.
District Attorney Marc Bennett announced last month that no criminal charges would be filed against the county employees who restrained Lofton, citing Kansas’ “stand your ground” self-defense law.
Lofton was arrested by Wichita police, who responded to a 911 call from his foster father that the teen was paranoid and believed people were trying to kill him. Lofton resisted being taken into protective custody and was transported to Sedgwick County’s Juvenile Intake and Assessment Center, where he was restrained by Sedgwick County corrections officers for almost 45 minutes.
Sheriff Jeff Easter said earlier this month that his office has already turned over all information regarding the Lofton case to the FBI. An FBI spokesperson confirmed that to The Eagle but would not comment on the scope of the bureau’s review.
Tracey Mason, the owner of CHD Boxing Gym, who was appointed to the task force last week, expressed concern that the DOJ letter draft wasn’t explicit enough.
“We’re here because a young man was murdered,” Mason said.
“He was killed. So understand the civil rights part about this and the civil rights violation in the DOJ letter.”
Mason said the task force letter, which has been endorsed by the Sedgwick County Commission, should directly ask the FBI to look into Bennett’s application of the “stand your ground” law.
“What I’m hearing then is that we’re not here to address the actual ‘stand your ground’ point,” Mason said.
Sedgwick County Counselor Mike Pepoon has said federal investigators would not be interpreting state law.
“The FBI and the DOJ could look into civil rights criminal violations, hate crimes, that sort of thing, like they’ve done in other cases,” Pepoon said at an impromptu special meeting of the county commission earlier this month after the task force indicated it would send a letter to the DOJ.
“They will not be looking at whether or not anybody violated any of the statues that Marc Bennett was looking at. It would have to be a separate federal law that they’re looking at.”
Task force co-facilitator LaShonda Garnes said the task force must remain focused, especially since it’s expected to deliver recommended policy changes by May.
“If you’re asking the question of whether or not one of the recommendations could be to change the ‘stand your ground’ law, that is impacting the system and that could be a recommendation,” Garnes said.
But the task force, which was assembled jointly by the Sedgwick County Commission and the Wichita City Council, is not authorized to relitigate the DA’s finding, Garnes said.
“It’s important for us to understand that the task force was tasked with looking at the system and identifying the failures of the structure and making recommendations on how to improve and make systemic change,” she said. “It was not designed or pulled together to deal with the DA’s decision because that is a totally different jurisdiction for what this task force has been given the authority and/or been called together on purpose to do.
“That is why we have not had direct conversations about the DA’s decision, whether or not there should be something done differently with the individuals that were a part of the death of Cedric Lofton,” Garnes said.
The task force, which can take no binding action on behalf of local government bodies, does not have access to personnel records, subpoena power or the authority to interview the juvenile corrections employees who restrained Lofton, Sedgwick County Manager Tom Stolz has said.
Garnes said the best way to honor Lofton’s memory is to put forward policy recommendations that substantively change the systems that failed him.
“If we are trying to uplift that this young man has died, I do not want to waste our time and not get to the root of the matter,” said Rhonda Lewis, chair of the Wichita State psychology department.
An Eagle analysis of documents, police body cam video and JIAC footage found that authorities made a series of questionable decisions in the hours before Lofton stopped breathing on Sept. 24.
This story was originally published February 15, 2022 at 3:06 PM.
