The parents of a 10-year-old boy who suffered from epilepsy and tragically passed away after choking on food during lunch at school have filed a lawsuit against the Chicago public school they hold accountable for their child’s death.

Kody Townsend attended Clissold Elementary School in Chicago, where he had an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) as well as a Seizure Action Plan to accommodate his seizure history and developmental delays. These plans mandated supervision during meals and included a protocol and procedure for handling seizures, as outlined in the parents’ lawsuit.

The parents, Lakeisha Jones-Townsend and Travis Townsend, claim in their lawsuit that Kody was unsupervised during lunch on October 18, 2024, when he experienced a seizure. The filing states that he choked on food, which resulted in asphyxiation and subsequently led to cardiac arrest.

According to the court filing, CPS staff knew that Kody had an implanted medical device that reduces the frequency of seizures and can stop seizures as they begin. The school agreed to respond to Kody’s seizures by having a designated person swipe a magnet over the device until the seizure stopped, or to have a nurse administer anti-seizure medication if necessary, according to the complaint.

Furthermore, the parents say that CPS had agreed that Kody would be supervised by a paraprofessional while eating for safety purposes.

Despite these agreements on the part of the school, Kody’s parents said, “approximately nine minutes elapsed before Kody was administered some of the seizure protocols.”

They further allege that when initial actions were not successful, school personnel “should have administered the next anti-seizure procedure while summoning emergency medical personnel, but they did not do so.”

The family alleges that the paraprofessional assigned to supervise Kody was not providing one-on-one supervision, and had no experience caring for a child with Kody’s needs. Further, they say, school staff failed to alert a nurse or use the magnet with Kody’s device as required by Kody’s IEP.

“Kody’s airway was blocked, and CPS personnel did not advise responding EMS personnel that Kody’s airway was blocked and would need to be cleared before emergency medical aid could be administered,” the filing says.

The plaintiffs argue that CPS personnel knew of the dangers that seizures presented to Kody, specifically during mealtimes, and that they acted “willfully and wantonly in reckless disregard for the known risks” by failing to supervise Kody during mealtime and failing to tell EMS personnel about Kody’s needs.

Kody was eventually taken to a hospital, but he suffered cardiac arrest and died.

The family named Chicago Public Schools (CPS), the Chicago Board of Education, and the City of Chicago as defendants in their lawsuit filed in Cook County court in Illinois. The filing raises claims for wrongful death requests unspecified damages.

Kody’s mother said in a statement Tuesday:

Kody was an awesome child who was more than just his disabilities. He was a great big brother, grandson, and nephew. He shared the best hugs and kisses a child could give, and his smile would light up the room everywhere he went. He was a delight to be around. His father and I truly pray that his entire story, including both the joyous and the tragic parts, will bring awareness and support to other families with children like Kody while in school. No parent should send their child to school in the morning and not be able to welcome them home in the afternoon. We do not want to see what happened to us happen to any other family.

“When any parent drops their child off at school in the morning, you expect to see your child’s smiling face in the afternoon,” Victor Henderson, the mother’s attorney, said. “That basic activity holds true for thousands of CPS children and parents every day virtually all year long. Yet, for some unexplained reason, Kody did not return home safely to his family on that fateful day in October 2024. On behalf of the Townsend family, we intend to find out why.

Chicago Public Schools issued a brief statement, saying: “Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is committed to the safety and well-being of our students. The district does not provide comments on ongoing litigation.”

You can read the full complaint here.