Page 10 - Florida Sentinel 8-2-19

Local
Investigation Continues In Death Of High School Athlete
JEFF EAKINS
Hillsborough County School HEZEKIAH WALTERS
District Superintendent 3/1/2005 --- 6/11/2019
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
In June, a 14-year-old stu- dent died after participating in conditioning training at a local high school. On Monday, Jeff Eakins, Hillsborough County School District Superintendent discussed information devel- oped in the investigation.
Superintendent Eakins said the investigation so far has shown that the school did not have the proper paperwork on file for Hezeikiah Walters. The in- vestigation has also found in- complete paperwork for other student athletes at Middleton High School.
“Because we have been notified that a lawsuit is ex- pected, we are limited in what we can say and I’m not going to be able to answer any ques- tions. However, we wanted to let our parents, students, fac- ulty, staff, and the entire com- munity know what we’ve discovered after Hezekiah’s tragic death. And we want to share what we’re doing to keep something like this from hap- pening again.
“We found incomplete record-keeping for Hezekiah’s student athlete clearance forms by an admin- istrator and a coach,” Superin- tendent Eakins said.
He also said the Assistant Principal has been demoted and has been transferred to another school. The head coach was not on campus on the day of the incident. But he had been there on previous conditioning days. The head coach was also transferred and is no longer in a coaching ca- pacity.
Superintendent Eakins further stated, “From our investigation into what happened at Middleton on June 11th, we know the ath- letes were given water breaks
beyond what’s recommended by the Florida High School Athletic Association. Accord- ing to the coaches, they had water breaks every 10 minutes. The athletes were monitored and even directed to walk, in- stead of run, during the drills, due to the heat,” he said.
June 11th, was the 5th day of conditioning for the stu- dents at Middleton High School. Hezekiah was an in- coming freshman and planned to audition for the school’s football team.
According to the Tampa Police Department, at approx- imately 4 p.m., the teenager, identified as Hezekiah B. Walters, was at the school when he collapsed. He was transported to St. Joseph’s Hospital by Tampa Fire Res- cue. He was pronounced de- ceased at the hospital.
A spokesman for the po- lice department said the inves- tigation revealed that the team was approximately 30 to 40 minutes into the conditioning drills when the teenager col- lapsed. The drills include weightlifting, wind sprints, and water breaks.
Walters had completed his middle school education at Franklin Boys Academy. He was an active member of Men of Vision, Inc., and partici- pated in such activities as feed- ing the homeless and other community-oriented projects. He had been a member of the organization for four years.
The son of Ms. Phyllis Walters and Pastor Felix Walters, Hezekiah was also looking forward to going to college and becoming an en- trepreneur. He planned to continue the family tradition of attending Florida A & M University. He is also survived by an older sister.
The family has hired Attor- ney Steven Yerrid to repre- sent them.
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