SEATTLE — The City of Seattle will pay more that $1.8 million to a family of a man who had a medical emergency nearly two years ago, according to Mark Lindquist, the family’s attorney.
William Yurek, 46, was waiting for medics to arrive when he died. Lindquist said help was delayed because the Yurek’s address was mistakenly marked as a dangerous location.
Seattle police are called in to help escort firefighters and paramedics if there’s been a history of violent or threatening behavior at an address. The city keeps what it calls "caution notes" for addresses flagged as dangerous.
In November of 2021, Yurek’s 13-year-old son called 911, reporting his father appeared to be having a heart attack.
About six minutes went by, according to Attorney Mark Lindquist.
"What the son didn't know is that the medics were already there, but they weren't going in because they didn't have a police escort,” said Lindquist.
The address had been flagged as dangerous, but Lindquist said that was a mistake.
"Mr. Yurek had never been hostile to first responders. A previous tenant had been. The list had not been updated,” Lindquist said.
About 14 minutes after his initial call, the 13-year-old tried again.
"I'm just really worried,” he said.
The dispatcher responds, "Okay, you have people on the way."
"After his son made that second call the medics decided they couldn't wait any longer for an escort, and they broke protocol and went in anyway. Unfortunately, it was too late,” said Lindquist.
The family filed a lawsuit, claiming the city was negligent.
"The city was relying on police escorts when it was pretty well known those police escorts were almost always delayed,” said Lindquist, who added that the delays were tied to an understaffed police department.
“They had an inaccurate, out-of-date list, and when you keep a list people's lives depend upon it has to be correct,” said Lindquist.
The City Attorney’s office declined KING 5's interview request, and instead provided this statement:
The operating guidelines on caution notes, which were modified prior to the settlement, were changed to provide that caution notes about people, activities and materials expire after 365 days in the system, or get reviewed and renewed. Additionally, caution notes about the need for SPD assistance due to violent or threatening behavior are to be verified after every alarm dispatched to the address. Lastly, a caution note is to be removed if the occupant no longer lives at the address.