Family of student in 2017 fatal fall at California school talks about loss, $18 million settlement

The Hacienda La Puente Unified School District settled for $18 million a negligence and wrongful death lawsuit brought by the parents of a special-needs student who died after he fell while in class at Sunset Elementary School in La Puente in 2017.

On Wednesday morning, the family of 8-year-old Moises Murillo and their attorneys held a press conference near the school on Tonopah Avenue. One of the lawyers explained it was held near the school for a reason.

“The community needs to know what happened. The community needs to know,” said Michael S. Carrillo, one of the family’s attorneys.

A settlement was reached on June 22, said Steven Vartazarian, a lawyer for the family who served as lead counsel. The district settled a week before the trial and did not admit fault, according to Vartazarian.

Court records show a request to dismiss the lawsuit was filed Aug. 2.

A district official didn’t return calls seeking comment Wednesday.

“For my brother not to be here is very hurtful,” Moises’ sister, Lizbeth Murillo, said. “My brother meant everything to me.”

Her mother, Roberta Gomez, may look OK but she’s not, she said.

“She’s hurting and she’s hurting every day,” Lizbeth Murillo said. “We don’t care about the money. Money is not going to bring anybody back.”

Money doesn’t bring happiness or closure, she added.

Roberta Gomez cried as she spoke in Spanish during the press conference.

Moises Murillo had Down syndrome, a seizure disorder, could not speak, could not walk and used a stroller adapted for him, Vartazarian said.

The boy came to the school on May 30, 2017 and a teacher unfamiliar with his condition pushed the stroller up to a desk and it wasn’t a fit, he said.

The next day, May 31, 2017, Vartazarian said staff removed Moises from the safety of his stroller, put him in a regular chair and tied him to it using a physical therapy belt. He said the teacher and two aides then left Moises alone without supervision.

Moises put his hands on the desk and pushed himself backwards, Vartazarian said. The chair fell back and he hit the floor.

Moises suffered extensive injuries to his neck and went into cardiac arrest, according to the lawsuit which was filed on Jan. 18, 2018.

The boy was not breathing when deputies arrived, then-Industry Station Capt. Tim Murakami told this newspaper in 2017.

“He was discolored,” Murakami said, adding that the deputies “immediately started CPR until they were relieved by paramedics.”

Moises was taken to Queen of the Valley in West Covina then transferred to Children’s Hospital of Orange County. He was on life support for four days and died June 4, 2017, the lawsuit stated

The autopsy showed a small fracture to a part of the second cervical vertebrae and the spinal cord softened, according to Orange County Coroner’s report. The coroner’s office determined Moises died from complications of cervical spinal trauma and ruled the death an accident.

Vartazarian said a special-needs child in a public school is entitled to an Individualized Education Program. The district failed to follow the IEP for Moises which calls for special equipment for him, he said.