Family sues Amarillo Independent School District for alleged negligence after 2022 student death

AMARILLO, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) – An area family has filed a lawsuit against Amarillo Independent School District for the death of 14-year-old Jaxon Mendoza, who died in August 2022 following a seizure at Amarillo High School where school officials allegedly refused to give Mendoza seizure medication.

The lawsuit was originally filed against the Amarillo Independent School District in the 108th District Court in Potter County for alleged negligence. However, the lawsuit has now been refiled federally in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas Amarillo Division.

The re-filing is similar to the one performed in another ongoing lawsuit against Amarillo ISD by the same legal team, focused on the January 2023 death of 11-year-old Emerson Cole.

According to the lawsuit, Mendoza was diagnosed with epilepsy and asthma around October 2019 and began taking several medications to treat his ongoing seizures, along with establishing a 504 Action Plan that included a Seizure Action Plan on file with Amarillo ISD that detailed the procedures that school employees should take in the event of an epileptic episode. The lawsuit states that according to the Action Plan, in the event Mendoza experienced a seizure longer than five minutes, school personnel were meant to administer his emergency medication, call emergency services, and notify Mendoza’s parents.

The lawsuit details the timeline of events that led to Mendoza’s death on Aug. 25, 2022, beginning with the initial seizure on campus on Aug. 24.

On Aug. 24, 2022, around 12 p.m., Mendoza began running on the track at Amarillo High School as part of a warmup routine with his basketball team. The lawsuit states that no circumstances indicated that it would be unsafe for Mendoza to run, such as heat or wind. The lawsuit states that during the warmup on the track, Mendoza reportedly fell onto the ground and began seizing. Amarillo High School staff then called Apryl Mendoza to notify her that Mendoza was seizing and emergency medical services were en route. Apryl then proceeded to call Gabriel Mendoza to inform him of the situation.

Apryl and Gabriel were noted as the “Co-Independent Executors of the Estate of Jaxson Mendoza,” and the plaintiffs in this lawsuit.

The lawsuit states that when Gabriel arrived on the scene, Mendoza’s basketball coach allegedly informed him that Mendoza had been seizing for about 17 minutes and Mendoza was still seizing, frothing at the mouth, and had grey coloring. Typically, according to the lawsuit, Mendoza’s seizures would only last around two to two and a half minutes.

The lawsuit stated that Amarillo ISD had allegedly refused to administer Mendoza’s emergency seizure medication, which was noted in Mendoza’s emergency seizure action plan. Emergency medical personnel began performing CPR on Mendoza at the scene before transporting him to a local hospital, where he later died on Aug. 25, 2022.

The lawsuit says that Amarillo ISD allegedly refused to implement policies, procedures, and practices required to keep Mendoza safe and are seeking damages and compensation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Apryl and Gabriel are seeking emotional damages, wrongful death damages, and survival damages under the Americans With Disabilities Act, and asking that Amarillo ISD cover attorney fees. The lawsuit requests a jury to examine the cause of actions.

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