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A Black man repeatedly pleaded for medical help as Virginia police drove past a hospital and left him handcuffed in a patrol car outside a jail, where he eventually became unresponsive and died, according to a federal lawsuit filed by his mother on Thursday (October 22).
Police arrested Allan F. Tucker II for public intoxication on August 15, 2025, according to The Alexandria Brief, after receiving 911 calls about a man yelling and knocking on doors at an Alexandria apartment building.
Officers transported the 32-year-old to the Alexandria Adult Detention Center, where he died in the sally port while awaiting processing.
During transport to the Alexandria Adult Detention Center, Tucker repeatedly asked to go to the hospital.
“Please take me to Alexandria Hospital. Please take me … Take me to Alexandria Hospital please. I need to go to the hospital. I need to go to the hospital, please,” Tucker pleaded, according to the complaint.
As his condition deteriorated, he also pleaded, “Please, please don’t kill me. I didn’t do anything. I don’t sell drugs or nothing anymore,” according to the complaint.
Officers Chelsea Henry and William McGinnis took Tucker to the Alexandria Adult Detention Center, but his intake was delayed because of a sheriff’s office shift change.
He remained in the back of the patrol car for about 40 to 45 minutes before an officer found him unresponsive, according to The Alexandria Brief.
“The two officers chatted, complained about the inconvenience of the ongoing delay, checked their phones, and waited,” the complaint states. “They hardly looked at him, and did nothing to assist Mr. Tucker.”
Officers eventually discovered Tucker was unresponsive and attempted to revive him, but he could not be saved, The Alexandria Brief reported. The medical examiner attributed his death to cocaine and cocaethylene intoxication.
Tucker’s mother, Sandra Jones, filed the lawsuit on October 22, what would have been his 34th birthday. She is suing the officers and the city, alleging violations of her son’s civil rights and seeking unspecified damages.
“He wasn’t perfect. None of us are. But he was genuine. He cared for people. … He would have helped anybody that needed it,” Jones said.
An independent policing auditor found in a report released in June 2026 that the transporting officer violated department policy by failing to obtain medical care despite Tucker’s repeated requests. Prosecutors declined to file criminal charges against the officers in January 2026.
The city declined to comment on the lawsuit, citing pending litigation, according to The Alexandria Brief.
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