The family of a Dacula High School student who died from a blood clot contends that school officials did not get the teen help fast enough.
"I know they could've done better," a tearful Donna Smith said Thursday evening. "My child should've been helped. He shouldn't have been dismissed."
A Gwinnett County Public Schools spokeswoman, however, said staff took appropriate action in responding to the emergency.
Christopher Smith, 18, died Tuesday after being transported to the hospital by ambulance. Smith, a senior, suffered a medical emergency at the beginning of third-period classes, prompting school officials to call 911, Principal Donald Nutt said. Gwinnett County Medical Examiner Ted Bailey said Christopher had a blood clot in his leg that traveled to his lung, also called a pulmonary embolism.
"Reports from students and other eyewitnesses indicate that in addition to the delay in contacting emergency personnel, there was a failure to apply appropriate CPR and on-site life-saving intervention," the family said in a statement, released by the Christ is the King Church in Dacula.
Smith's family gathered on the church's front steps Thursday evening to speak to reporters before a memorial service. An emotional Donna Smith said her son did not have any health problems.
"My baby had a physical in May," Smith, a nurse, said. "He was perfectly fine."
Donna Smith said her son seemed fine Tuesday morning, too. And she was shocked to get a call from school officials saying Christopher was headed to the hospital.
But now, Smith and Christopher's father, Curtis Parham, say too much time elapsed before a school leader called 911. Donna Smith said her son's classmates have told the family that teachers dismissed Christopher's complaints of breathing troubles. She also said students were not allowed to use their cellphones to call 911.
"We just want to get to the truth," Donna Smith said.
A school district spokeswoman, however, said staff acted appropriately in responding to the emergency.
"Our schools take these types of incidents very seriously," district spokeswoman Sloan Roach said in a statement. "When a situation occurs in which a student requires medical attention, school staff members move responsibly and efficiently to get the help needed. That is our expectation and that is what happened in this situation."
Christopher Smith played drums in the high school band and planned to study music at Jacksonville State University, his parents said. About 200 people, mostly teenagers, attended the memorial service, which began with music and singing. Students continued to file into the church as the service began, taking candles to be lit during the memorial.
The service later moved outdoors, where friends and family members released colorful, helium-filled balloons into the air after shouting, "We love you Chris."
The funeral for Christopher will be Saturday at 3 p.m. at First Baptist Church in Tifton, where he grew up. The Tift County High School band is expected to perform at the funeral.
Neighbors of the Smith family told the AJC they are hoping to rent a charter bus to transport students to Tifton for the funeral. But so far, donations will not cover the fee for the bus.
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