The family of an Illinois man whose death prompted murder charges against two paramedics who strapped him face down on a gurney have filed a lawsuit against them and his employer, attorneys said Thursday.
Ben Crump, whose firm often handles civil rights cases and frequently represents the families of black men killed by police, represents the family of Earl Moore, 35, in the lawsuit against Peter Cadigan, Peggy Finley and LifeStar. Ambulance Service. Speaking to reporters, Crump said police video of the paramedics’ interactions with Moore showed “barbaric” behavior.
“We saw it with so many tragedies in America,” Crump said, referring to the killings of black men by police, including George Floyd. “It’s so tragic that now this pattern seems to extend to first responders, to EMTs. When you look at that video, the reason it’s so shocking is because they don’t give Earl consideration.”
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Prosecutors separately charged Cadigan and Finley with first-degree murder, accusing them of strapping Moore down on a gurney after Springfield police, who initially responded to a 911 call at Moore’s home, requested an ambulance. Under Illinois law, a first-degree murder charge can be brought when a defendant “knows that such acts create a high probability of death or serious bodily harm.”
Moore’s mother, Rose Washington, said losing her only child has been unimaginably painful.
“They tied him up like some kind of animal and killed him,” he said. “My baby suffocated because of his actions.”
Edward Unsell, Cadigan’s attorney, said he had not yet seen the lawsuit, but a civil lawsuit was anticipated. As for the murder charge, Unsell said he doesn’t think prosecutors have probable cause against Cadigan.
The family of an Illinois man killed by two paramedics is reportedly suing both the doctors and the ambulance company.
(Sangamon County Sheriff’s Department via AP)
W. Scott Hanken, Finley’s attorney, also called the criminal charge unwarranted, saying, “What happened may be negligent, but it’s not a criminal act and it’s certainly not first-degree murder.”
A woman who answered the phone at the LifeStar Ambulance Service office and did not provide her name declined to comment.
Emergency medicine experts have said the Springfield case is a rare case in which prosecutors bring criminal charges against emergency medicine providers. Another prominent example is pending in Colorado, where a grand jury in 2021 indicted two paramedics along with three police officers with manslaughter and other charges in the death of a black man, Elijah McClain.
Cadigan and Finley remain in the Sangamon County Jail on $1 million bail each. They appeared via video for a brief court appearance on Thursday, but no additional details of the case were discussed. They were scheduled to appear again on Friday morning.
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After Sangamon County prosecutors filed the charges this month, Springfield police released videos showing a woman inside Moore’s home telling police he is having alcohol withdrawal and hallucinations. The police then call an ambulance.
When Finley arrives, he goes into the bedroom, where Moore is on the floor. Soon after, she yells at him to sit down and repeatedly asks for her date of birth.
“Sit down,” she says. “You know what, I’m not playing. Sit down. Stop acting stupid. Sit down. Sit down now. I’m not playing with you tonight.”
“You will have to walk because we will not take you,” he adds.
Once outside the home, video shows Cadigan forcing Moore onto his stomach on the gurney and both paramedics adjusting the straps on his back.
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Springfield Police Chief Ken Scarlette said he asked Illinois State Police to investigate after learning Moore died after arriving at the hospital. An autopsy report listed Moore’s cause of death as homicide by compressional and positional asphyxia.
