ACLU to Announce Legal Action Against West Virginia Police Chief Who Blocked CPR on Heart Attack Victim Assumed to Be HIV Positive
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, March 2, 2006
Contact: Andrew Schneider
(304) 345-9246
CHARLESTON, WV – The American Civil Liberties Union will make an important announcement about legal action against a West Virginia Police Chief who physically prevented a man from performing CPR on his friend who had a heart attack and later died. The Police Chief blocked the CPR because the deceased was a gay man who the Chief assumed was HIV positive and therefore a health risk.
WHO: Surviving family members of West Virginia native Claude Green who died after he was blocked from receiving CPR; Executive Director Andrew Schneider and Legal Director Terri Baur of the ACLU of West Virginia; Staff Attorney Rose Saxe of the ACLU’s AIDS Project and ACLU of West Virginia cooperating attorney Marshall S. Campbell.
WHAT: Press Conference to announce legal efforts against a southern West Virginia town and its police chief.
WHERE: ACLU of West Virginia
205 Capitol Street, Suite 201
Charleston, West VirginiaWHEN: 11:00 AM
WHY: Claude Green passed away after a West Virginia police chief stopped Green’s friend from performing CPR on him. The police chief falsely assumed that Green was HIV positive because he was gay. It was a violation of Green’s Constitutional rights to be prevented from receiving timely CPR that could have saved his life because of his sexual orientation and/or perceived HIV status. Legal action is necessary to protect the lives of others in the community.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, there have been no documented instances of HIV transmission through CPR.
Additional press materials, legal documents and a photograph of Claude Green will be available after the press conference at www.aclu.org/caseprofiles or www.aclu-wv.org.
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