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Redding officers went to the home of Peter Valenti on April 11, 2016, after he sent multiple text messages to friends seeking police help, the News-Times said.
Valenti's parents live in Stormville.
An account of the police response from Patch.com includes shocking details.
Valenti, 32, had been depressed since the death of his wife a month earlier from an asthma attack, leaving him as the sole parent to their 15-month-old son, the News-Times said.
Officers eventually found Valenti hanging by a noose in the shed, but the lawsuit says that officers didn’t check his vital signs for about 15 minutes, the News-Times said.
When examining Valenti, paramedics detected a heartbeat, but he died later at Danbury Hospital, the News-Times said.
Patch.com detailed the actions of the Redding officers that day, reviewing body-camera video recorded by officers, police records, and a complaint filed by the first emergency medical technician on the scene.
The officer who found Valenti first thought it was a "dummy hanging by a noose," Patch.com said.
Police Chief Doug Fuchs initially stopped an EMT from examining Valenti because it was a crime scene, Patch.com said. It took 34 minutes from the arrival of the first officer until Valenti was checked, Patch.com said.
Click here for the story at the News-Times.
Click here for the story at Patch.com, which includes body-cam videos.
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