Robert Wright
Robert was 17 and was held at the Circleville Juvenile Correctional Facility in Ohio. Other youths said he had been complaining of chest pains, headaches and trouble breathing, and his mother was in contact with him by phone shortly before he died on Monday, August 31, 2020. A State Highway Patrol report that includes coroner's findings says he had heart disease and low levels of amphetamine in his system, and a deputy coroner could not rule out the drug as a contributing factor. The Ohio Department of Youth Services has described the death as unexplained, and the ACLU of Ohio and other groups said in February 2021 that no information about the cause had been released and called for a full investigation and a review of staff and security.
Cause of death, as reported: Cause not yet determined (disputed). The coroner's findings cite heart disease and low-level amphetamine with manner undetermined, while the ACLU of Ohio and other groups call for completion of the investigation and a review of staff and security.
Reported by: Ohio Department of Youth Services (the agency that held him); Montgomery County Coroner's Office (medical examiner or coroner); Ohio State Highway Patrol (outside investigators).