A $9 million wrongful death settlement has been reached in the death of 15-year-old Cristian Angel Navarro, a teenager who tragically passed away from exertional heat stroke as the result of “suicide drills” on sweltering afternoon in Riverside County's city of Jurupa Valley.
It was 104 degrees out on the afternoon of September 28, 2020, when the season's first practice got underway for Patriot High School's varsity football team. It was a day Navarro was excited about, according to his mother, Cynthia, proud to have made the team as a freshman and to have something to do following months of pandemic sheltering.
The team was run hard through sprints and suicides, a style of progressively more tortuous sprints that involve the runner touching successive points on the ground, which earn their name from the inevitable pain and exhaustion they cause.
According to the case complaint, the field lacked accessible shade and cold drinking water, while Cristian’s coaches "ordered him" to complete the drills and failed to provide the students' sufficient hydration. After practice ended, Cristian, exhibiting signs of "disorientation, imbalance, and cognitive problems," lay down and told his coaches he was tired, necessitating assistance to stand and unable to answer basic questions, including his name or address.
Sadly, his coaches did not recognize or attempt to counteract the effects of Navarro's heat stroke or observe basic health protocols such as checking for a pulse or calling for medical assistance. Neither did they try to cool him down, provide him water, or help the young man into the shade.