Imani Bell was a 16-year-old student athlete at a Georgia school called Elite Scholars Academy. In 2019, her two coaches forced the team to do conditioning drills outdoors in extreme heat -- a lawsuit alleges the heat index was between 101-106 that day for the area. Tragically, Imani was pushed so hard during this practice that she collapsed and later died of heat-related cardiac arrest and kidney failure. The coaches have been charged with her murder. But what kind of school and athletic culture allowed this to happen in the first place?
Sign the petition to demand a full state investigation into whether this is the only athletic department ignoring health guidelines, and what systemic failings led up to this horrible tragedy!
Larosa Maria Walker-Asekere and Dwight Broom Palmer were the coach and assistant coach responsible for the kids when Imani died and have been charged with second-degree murder, second-degree child cruelty, and involuntary manslaughter and reckless conduct. On the day of her death, Imani was showing signs of heat exhaustion and the two forced her to continue to do conditioning drills anyway. These are supposed to be coaches charged with caring for children, and they let one die right in front of them.
No conditioning drill or sports game is worth the health -- and even life -- of a child. It's concerning something so drastic could happen and presents concerns that other kids are suffering negative health ramifications from training regimens as well. That's why it's so critical the state do a thorough investigation and find out whether this is an isolated incident. Imani never should have died and her community has surely been grieving deeply since her passing.
Sign the petition to make sure no other kids meet the same fate!
