Gynnya McMillen
Gynnya McMillen was 16 and had lived for about six months at Maryhurst, a child-welfare agency in Louisville, whose president said staff saw great hope and potential in her and that she was loved by the staff. She was taken to the Lincoln Village Regional Juvenile Detention Center in Elizabethtown, Kentucky, on January 10, 2016, after a dispute with her mother, and staff found her unresponsive there the next morning. The Kentucky medical examiner and the Mayo Clinic attributed her death to a sudden cardiac arrhythmia, and the Department of Juvenile Justice said she appeared to have died while sleeping. A state investigation found that an employee missed required 15-minute bed checks and falsified logs, and her family's federal lawsuit alleges that staff did not monitor her properly and did not try to resuscitate her. Her family has also questioned the physical restraint used on her during booking.
Cause of death, as reported: Died of illness (disputed; neglect alleged). The medical examiner and Mayo Clinic attributed her death to a sudden cardiac event and the Department of Juvenile Justice says investigations found natural causes, but her family's federal lawsuit says staff did not properly monitor her, falsified bed-check records and did not attempt resuscitation.
Reported by: Kentucky Medical Examiner's Office and Mayo Clinic (medical examiner or coroner); Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice (the agency that held her); her family's federal lawsuit (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: Her family filed a federal lawsuit alleging that staff at Lincoln Village failed to properly monitor her, falsified bed-check records and did not attempt resuscitation, and no settlement or award amount has been reported.
News reports (18)
- News report
- Questions remain after teen dies in Ky. juvenile detention
- 16-Year-Old Found Dead In Juvenile Detention Center
- Gynnya McMillen’s Death In A Kentucky Detention Center: What We Know
- New Details Emerge in Gynnya McMillen's Death
- In case oddly similar to Sandra Bland’s, 16-year-old found dead in custody
- Kentucky Detention Center Staffer Failed To Monitor Gynnya McMillen, State Says
- Juvenile detention employee placed on leave after investigation into teen's death
- Gynnya McMillen Restrained In Detention Center Altercation Before Her Death, State Says
- HEAR THE AUDIO: Kentucky jail staffers waited 11 minutes to begin CPR after teen who was restrained with martial arts move found dead
- King: The death of 16-year-old Gynnya McMillen in police custody should be a wake up call to America
- Juvenile Justice Head Ousted Following Gynnya McMillen’s Death
- 2 people let go amid investigation into teen's death
- Why Did a 16-Year-Old Black Girl Just Die in a Kentucky Cell?
- EXCLUSIVE: Gynnya McMillen's family sues Lincoln Village workers, state officials
- One Year Ago, Gynnya McMillen Died Alone In A Detention Center
- Juvenile detention center where teen inmate died to cease operations
- Kentucky to close juvenile detention center where teen died