Federal lawsuit against Greene 911 officials resumes after two-year pause
Family claims dispatcher refused to send ambulance to dying woman’s home
The federal lawsuit filed by the family of a Greene County woman who died one day after a 911 operator declined to send an ambulance to her home is proceeding again after criminal charges against the dispatcher were withdrawn earlier this month.
Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Hornak signed the order June 17 lifting the nearly two-year stay on the lawsuit filed by Kelly Titchenell against Greene County and several emergency officials in connection with the death of her mother, Diania Kronk.
Kronk, 54, died July 2, 2020, less than 24 hours after Titchenell called 911 asking for an ambulance to be sent to her mother’s Morris Township home when relatives noticed she was incoherent and turning yellow. Dispatcher Leon Price allegedly told Titchenell he would not send medics unless Kronk agreed to go in the ambulance and be taken to a local hospital for treatment.
Titchenell filed the lawsuit in federal court in Pittsburgh in June 2022 just before the two-year statute of limitations expired. Less than two weeks later, Price was charged with involuntary manslaughter, and the following month three of his supervisors were also charged and accused of obstructing the investigation, prompting the lawsuit to be paused.
All charges against the three emergency officials – Gregory Leathers, Robert “Jeff” Rhodes and Richard Policz – were dismissed by a judge in November. The charges filed against Price were withdrawn June 3 when new District Attorney Brianna Vanata discovered memos written by the lead investigator in August 2020 stating that he did not think there was enough evidence to file criminal charges in the case.
The completion of the criminal cases allowed for the lawsuit to proceed against Greene County, along with Price, Leathers and Policz. Price’s attorney, Mary Lou Maierhofer of Hollidaysburg, filed the motion June 17 requesting for the stay to be lifted, which Hornak promptly granted, according to online court documents.
“The basis for the stay no longer exists, i.e., the criminal charges pending against the individual Defendants all have been dismissed,” Maierhofer wrote in her motion.
Neither Maierhofer nor the attorneys for Leathers and Policz responded to phone messages seeking comment Thursday. Titchenell’s attorney, Lawrence Bolind Jr., also could not be reached for comment.
Titchenell said Thursday she was aware the lawsuit is proceeding since Bolind has been giving her regular updates about how the case is progressing.
“I just want this to be over with,” Titchenell said.
In his order, Hornak gave attorneys for both sides 10 days to meet and discuss possible resolutions for Titchenell’s lawsuit. If the matter cannot be resolved, attorneys for the defendants will then have 30 days to submit responses to the accusations in the lawsuit.