(L.A.) Houston Tipping, 32, Died in a Hospital

Case Number: 2022-05687

Los Angeles County is reporting the death of a 32-year-old Caucasian male that occurred in a hospital.

The coroner’s office has identified the man as Houston Tipping.

Manner of Death: Accident

Cause of Death A: Sequelae of Cervical Spinal Cord Injury

Cause of Death B: C4 Flexion Injury

RIP HOUSTON TIPPING (April 25, 1990 – May 29, 2022)

Formal pronouncement of death was made on Sunday at 9:40 a.m.

The decedent was an officer who died during a training exercise at the Los Angeles Police Academy.

Tipping died of the spinal cord injury supposedly after a grappling exercise. During the exercise with another student, Tipping fell to the ground onto his neck which fractured part of his vertebrae and ultimately led to his death. The officer also suffered several other injuries.

Additionally, in his report, Deputy Medical Examiner Dr. Lawrence Nguyen said he found several other medical-related injuries during the autopsy including a laceration on his left scalp from a C-clamp placement during spinal surgery and fractured ribs that appeared to be from CPR with a LUCAS device.

“A LUCAS device provides mechanical chest compressions and has been known to cause rib fractures and liver lacerations,” Nguyen wrote.

Nguyen also added that the office “carefully considered and weighed” the manner of death.

“The manner of death was carefully considered and weighed between homicide and accident,” he wrote. “While deaths ‘at the hands of another’ are typically deemed homicides, there are exceptions that are deemed accidents.”

Nguyen listed the examples of a boxing death or a broken neck from a tackle while playing football.

“These deaths occur during organized sports or organized exercises in which the participants are consensual to committing potentially harmful acts and accept inherent risks,” he wrote. “Therefore, I have deemed the manner of death in this case to be an accident.”

The medical record provided to the Coroner’s Office said that Tipping was “possibly dropped” on his head. Tipping immediately “went limp” according to an investigator with the Coroner’s Office.

According to a statement from a sergeant, Tipping and the student were conducting a “face to face bear hug” exercise. They then fell to the ground, “which was a hard mat with not a lot of padding.” Tipping reportedly fell first onto his “upper right backside.”

“It is also possible the student landed on top of the decedent,” officials wrote in the investigator’s narrative.

The sergeant said Tipping was heard breathing for a few seconds before grasping for air. Shortly after, he stopped breathing.

The sergeant also said that CPR was performed until paramedics arrived. Paramedics continued CPR when they arrived and Tipping was resuscitated after three minutes.

Crews took him to LAC/USC Medical center where he spent the next two days as doctors conducted multiple CT scans and fused his spine. Despite the life-saving measures doctors took, Tipping developed an anoxic brain injury which is when brain cells are killed from lack of oxygen. He was later declared brain dead on May 28. He was then declared dead on May 29.

Tipping’s mother disputed the events put forth by officials and said her son was beaten to death.