The incident under investigation happened at around 2:30 a.m. on April 16, 2026.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The attorney for the family of a man stuck and killed by a Kanawha County ambulance earlier this month says he’s trying to dispel rumors which have swirled around the man’s death.
John Curtis Lucas
Attorney Scott Summers, who represents the family of John Curtis Lucas, posted a long message on Facebook Tuesday giving information about the ongoing investigation by Kanawha County Prosecutor Debra Rusnak and sheriff’s deputies.
Summers said there is zero evidence of a conspiracy or coverup.
Summers said he can’t say much because the probe is ongoing but hoped to reassure residents about what’s happening with the case.
Video shows Lucas, 45, running in front of the ambulance in the Elkview area in the early morning hours of April 16. The ambulance stops and then goes forward hitting Curtis. His body was dragged for two miles as the ambulance crew reported hearing screaming underneath the vehicle.
We have met with the Prosecuting Attorney, Debra Rusnak, and she has provided us with a great deal of information. It is very clear that she has been working extremely hard on this case from day one. Law enforcement has also been working diligently from the moment they arrived on scene to gather and preserve evidence. It did not take our voices to get them working, they were working before they knew who we were.
We have confirmed many things. However, due to the fact that the investigation is still ongoing, we are not at liberty to disclose much.
From the beginning, the Lucas family has merely asked that they know what happened based on actual facts. Not rumors, suppositions or favorable / unfavorable spin. The only thing they knew to be unquestionably true is that their beloved John was drug under an ambulance for nearly two miles. That horrendous event resulted in the traumatic amputation of his arm and ultimately his death.
In the days since John’s death, we have been able to answer many more questions. We would like to offer the following as to a portion of what we now know to be true.
We will not engage in speculation, or provide our analysis of what the evidence could prove – or disprove.
Conspiracy and/or Cover Up:
There is zero indication that there is any sort of conspiracy or cover up.
There is no relative of the ambulance crew that works in the Sheriff’s Department. Just someone who happens to share the last name with one of the women. He is a transplant from New Jersey.
There is no indication that the Father of one of the occupants has interfered in the investigation, or has attempted to interfere in the investigation. If he has, he has failed miserably. I can confidently say that this investigation appears to have been conducted, and is still being conducted, without regard to who may be related to the criminally culpable.
Dash Cam from the Ambulance:
Yes, there was a dash cam in the ambulance. There is both audio and video. The recordings have been preserved and are in the hands of the Kanawha County Prosecuting Attorney. The Prosecuting Attorney has permitted us to view the recordings. There is a forward facing camera that records video only. There is also a camera facing interior that records audio and video. The recordings cover a 35 minute time span from before John’s first encounter with the ambulance, through the striking of John with the ambulance, then continues for the entirety of the nearly two mile trip while John was under the ambulance. The recordings end with the arrival of the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Deputies.
Contrary to the outcry, the public is not entitled to have this recording while the investigation is ongoing. Frankly, the Prosecutor has absolutely no obligation to permit me, or the family, to see this recording at this stage.
On a personal note, please do not ask the family about the contents of the recording or any other information we have learned through the Prosecutor’s office. They are physically and emotionally exhausted. They need a chance to rest. When they are up to it, they will speak. But they will only speak about what they have been instructed by me to speak about. We can never lose sight of the fact that the criminal case is coming and we do not want to jeopardize any aspect of that process.
At this point, there is a valid procedural reason why there have been no arrests. What we want is for the Prosecutor to be confident in her path forward and what she believes she can prove within the tight confines of the law. We do not want the Prosecuting Attorney to rush her case and make an immediate arrest to satisfy the outcry for immediate justice. Although it is extremely hard to do in this terrible time of pain and anger, we must trust the process.
I will share additional specific information in the near future. Please try to refrain from additional conjecture and speculation. The family now knows exactly what happened. We may never know why it happened.
