(FOX 56) — More than a year after an elderly man with dementia’s forcible arrest at Walmart, his attorney said they’ll finally see change.
Police bodycam video shows 66-year-old John Hardwick pleading for help after a grocery store trip with his wife ended with him handcuffed and taken to jail. His family has continued in the pursuit of justice after laying Hardwick to rest in February.
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“They shattered him with an awful last few months of his life, due to their conduct and their conduct alone. After this incident in Walmart, John left the house maybe 2 to 3 times for the remainder of his life. What these police officers did is deplorable,” Attorney Ephraim Helton said.
On Wednesday, March 4, Helton told FOX 56 that they’ve settled in the civil case. He said he’s not able to discuss the amount of damages awarded, but is proud to announce there will be changes in the police department to ensure what happened to Hardwick will never happen again.
“I am so pleased with this, as is Cindy Hardwick, because she, Cindy Hardwick, wants to make a difference. She wanted to make sure that no one in her husband’s place, John, would ever suffer this again,” Helton told FOX 56. “So the city has agreed to recommend to the City Commission, subject to their approval, a model police policy concerning interaction with people of diminished capacities, especially those suffering from dementia.”
Further, the “appropriate officers” will be enrolled in crisis intervention training, and the city will issue an apology.
“John Hardwick has made a difference in Danville and the future of this community. Cindy Hardwick has made a difference,” he said. I think there’s some peace that she’s made a difference and what has happened to John has made a difference for that next dementia patient.”