A judge in U.S. District Court has dismissed a suit filed by Park City parent Robert Ainsworth, who alleged that the Park City Police Department and the Park City School District withheld information that could have saved his son from a fatal opioid overdose nearly four-and-a-half years ago.
Ainsworth filed a federal lawsuit in July of 2019, saying that the defendants were responsible for civil rights violations and a “state-created danger” that led to the death of his 13-year-old son, Ryan, and injury for his 15-year-old brother, identified as “JA.”
He said that during events leading up to early September 2016, the defendants became aware that Ryan and “JA” were part of a small group of Park City students that came in contact with an opioid that had been ordered from China over the dark web. Ainsworth said the defendants didn’t warn him about the extreme dangers of the opioid U-47700, known as “Pink” or “Pinky.”
The lawsuit said that after Ryan’s friend, 13-year-old Grant Seaver, died of an overdose, school officials met with Robert Ainsworth, expressed concern about Ryan’s safety, and recommended Ryan be taken for an emergency room evaluation. But they did not inform the father about the extent of his son’s contacts with Grant.
However, federal judge Howard Nielson, in a 20-page decision issued in late January, said the alleged facts didn’t establish a constitutional violation and individual defendants named in the suit, including Park City Police Lt. Darwin Little, Principal Emily Sutherland and school counselor Nicholi Jensen, had a “qualified immunity.” Although there are some exceptions to that immunity in case law, the judge said they did not apply under the circumstances in this case.
He said the individual defendants did not provide Ryan Ainsworth with the opioid or cause him to abuse it, and the use of the drug didn’t occur on school grounds or during school hours. Rather, said the ruling, Ryan died as a result of his own actions.
Ainsworth’s suit also charged that although the Park City Police Department, sent out a Community Drug Alert, he didn’t get a notice specifically for him.
Judge Nielson’s opinion said it was a “closer question” about whether the actions of Park City police were covered by immunity. The Ainsworth lawsuit said police instructed school officials not to disclose information about Grant Seaver’s death because there was an ongoing investigation.
Further, when Grant’s parents said they were going to call Robert Ainsworth and tell him that Ryan was probably in possession of the opioid, Lt. Little advised them not to. The lieutenant said that it was law enforcement’s responsibility to do that, rather than having an emotional parent calling and possibly making accusations against another parent.
Little testified he thought at the time that other officers would contact Ainsworth.
However, the judge ruled that the actions of the police did not violate due process, since they were not intended to injure and were not conduct that would “shock the conscience.”
The judge wrote that the facts of the case were indeed tragic, he felt deep sympathy, and he said perhaps the son’s death “could have been avoided if the Defendants had acted differently.”
This week, a joint statement was issued from legal counsel for the Park City Police Department, the Park City School District, and the Utah Attorney General’s Office, which represented the school district in court.
It said, “The Ainsworth family has endured a heartbreaking loss in the death of their son, who died after ingesting a new and dangerous drug in 2016. The involved families have our ongoing condolences. Legally, however, blaming this tragedy on Constitutional violations or actions by the Park City School District or Police Department is inappropriate.”
The statement said everyone involved at the time was working to learn about an unfamiliar and newly emerging drug. They noted it was not even listed under the “Federal Controlled Substances Act” until two months after the deaths of Ryan Ainsworth and Grant Seaver.
