KENDALLVILLE, Ind. -- A 12-year-old boy strangled himself during a prank that his family said he had pulled before.
Joseph Sparkman of Kendallville was pronounced dead at a Fort Wayne hospital Wednesday after being removed from life support, according to Kendallville police. He had a history of playing a prank in which he would wrap the draperies from a four-poster bedaround his neck to startle family members.
On Monday, family members found the boy unconscious in a kneeling position on the floor, police said.
Kendallville Police Department Detective Lance Waters said the boy's mother had scolded her son in the past for the prank. He lost consciousness while playing the prank, and his full body weight caused the decorative drapery to cut off his air supply, authorities said.
The Allen County Coroner's Office ruled the death accidental, caused by asphyxia due to strangulation. "He would never, ever do this on purpose," his mother, Angela Nordman, told The Evening Star of Auburn. "He was too happy, he had too much to live for.
"He was the class clown. He was so funny. He was always making everyone laugh. If I was ever down, he could always put a smile on my face."
http://www.thelouisvillechannel.com/news/3823410/detail.html
Joseph Sparkman of Kendallville was pronounced dead at a Fort Wayne hospital Wednesday after being removed from life support, according to Kendallville police. He had a history of playing a prank in which he would wrap the draperies from a four-poster bedaround his neck to startle family members.
On Monday, family members found the boy unconscious in a kneeling position on the floor, police said.
Kendallville Police Department Detective Lance Waters said the boy's mother had scolded her son in the past for the prank. He lost consciousness while playing the prank, and his full body weight caused the decorative drapery to cut off his air supply, authorities said.
The Allen County Coroner's Office ruled the death accidental, caused by asphyxia due to strangulation. "He would never, ever do this on purpose," his mother, Angela Nordman, told The Evening Star of Auburn. "He was too happy, he had too much to live for.
"He was the class clown. He was so funny. He was always making everyone laugh. If I was ever down, he could always put a smile on my face."
http://www.thelouisvillechannel.com/news/3823410/detail.html
