MONROE - The parents of a "perfectly healthy" teenager who died in the Green County Jail almost two months ago have hired an attorney to look into the case, while law enforcement won't discuss the ongoing investigation into his death.
"We feel that civilly his rights were neglected," said Michael DeGraff of his stepson, Kyle Scot Peotter, 17. "Somebody's at fault," he added, "and we want someone to pay for it. We feel that somebody should take responsibility."
Peotter was found unresponsive and not breathing in his cell bed early on the morning of Jan. 30. After first responders couldn't revive Peotter, the coroner pronounced him dead at the jail, according to Sheriff Jeff Skatrud.
In the weeks after, Skatrud attributed Peotter's death to a possible medical condition and said it didn't appear to be a suicide or homicide. The exact cause of death wouldn't be determined until a toxicology test report came back from a state lab - a process that typically takes several weeks and even months.
Those toxicology test results are back now, according to Coroner Kris Hasse, but she said she can't release them due to an ongoing investigation into the death.
The two agencies investigating the case at the request of Skatrud, the Monroe Police Department and Iowa County Sheriff's Department, also won't reveal details.
Steven Michek, Iowa County sheriff, said one of his deputies finished an administrative investigation two to three weeks after Peotter's death. The deputy was tasked with looking into how jail staff followed or didn't follow protocols in the time period leading up to and after the death.
Michek said he doesn't have the authority to release the deputy's report because it is now in the custody of the Green County Sheriff's Department.
Skatrud this week referred questions about the death investigation to the Monroe Police Department, which he said is putting a "tremendous amount of work" into the case.
Chief of Police Fred Kelley doesn't publicly discuss ongoing investigations.
"We have leads that we're still following," he said. The investigation's conclusion "could be tomorrow, could be a year from now."
"I'm hoping we'll come to an end that can deduce what happened," he added.
Skatrud said he is eager for an answer: "That family deserves it."
DeGraff, who lives in Freeport with Peotter's mother, also wants an answer in his stepson's death. The teen was troubled and belonged in jail but he was "perfectly healthy," DeGraff said.
Peotter was born in Indiana on May 16, 1995, and lived there until his family moved to Freeport in 2007, according to an obituary published on the website of the Wolcottville, Ind., funeral home that handled his memorial. He and his family lived in Monroe for about a year recently before returning to Freeport, DeGraff said.
Last summer, Peotter had more than a dozen documented run-ins with Monroe police. He was cited for drawing graffiti in Recreation Park, being disorderly, trespassing and other infractions.
On Sept. 27, he was jailed on charges of vehicle theft and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. He remained in jail on a Department of Corrections probation hold until his death.
"We feel that civilly his rights were neglected," said Michael DeGraff of his stepson, Kyle Scot Peotter, 17. "Somebody's at fault," he added, "and we want someone to pay for it. We feel that somebody should take responsibility."
Peotter was found unresponsive and not breathing in his cell bed early on the morning of Jan. 30. After first responders couldn't revive Peotter, the coroner pronounced him dead at the jail, according to Sheriff Jeff Skatrud.
In the weeks after, Skatrud attributed Peotter's death to a possible medical condition and said it didn't appear to be a suicide or homicide. The exact cause of death wouldn't be determined until a toxicology test report came back from a state lab - a process that typically takes several weeks and even months.
Those toxicology test results are back now, according to Coroner Kris Hasse, but she said she can't release them due to an ongoing investigation into the death.
The two agencies investigating the case at the request of Skatrud, the Monroe Police Department and Iowa County Sheriff's Department, also won't reveal details.
Steven Michek, Iowa County sheriff, said one of his deputies finished an administrative investigation two to three weeks after Peotter's death. The deputy was tasked with looking into how jail staff followed or didn't follow protocols in the time period leading up to and after the death.
Michek said he doesn't have the authority to release the deputy's report because it is now in the custody of the Green County Sheriff's Department.
Skatrud this week referred questions about the death investigation to the Monroe Police Department, which he said is putting a "tremendous amount of work" into the case.
Chief of Police Fred Kelley doesn't publicly discuss ongoing investigations.
"We have leads that we're still following," he said. The investigation's conclusion "could be tomorrow, could be a year from now."
"I'm hoping we'll come to an end that can deduce what happened," he added.
Skatrud said he is eager for an answer: "That family deserves it."
DeGraff, who lives in Freeport with Peotter's mother, also wants an answer in his stepson's death. The teen was troubled and belonged in jail but he was "perfectly healthy," DeGraff said.
Peotter was born in Indiana on May 16, 1995, and lived there until his family moved to Freeport in 2007, according to an obituary published on the website of the Wolcottville, Ind., funeral home that handled his memorial. He and his family lived in Monroe for about a year recently before returning to Freeport, DeGraff said.
Last summer, Peotter had more than a dozen documented run-ins with Monroe police. He was cited for drawing graffiti in Recreation Park, being disorderly, trespassing and other infractions.
On Sept. 27, he was jailed on charges of vehicle theft and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. He remained in jail on a Department of Corrections probation hold until his death.