Symeon Williams’ family alleges a cover-up after the city withheld investigative records, as attorneys dispute whether video of the training incident exists

By Lucas Daprile
cleveland.com

CLEVELAND — A judge has given the City of Cleveland three weeks to turn over records after a fire cadet’s family said he died during a racist hazing incident.

On Wednesday, Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas Judge Timothy McCormick issued the order after hearing arguments in the civil case between the family of Symeon Williams and the City of Cleveland.

The order is the latest development in a case in which Williams’ family has accused the city of a “coverup” after not receiving investigative records.

Williams was a 39-year-old fire cadet who died on May 16, 2025, during a physical fitness session. The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner ruled Williams died from natural causes and a heart issue.

A lawsuit filed earlier this year by Williams’ sister Terri Simpson, however, argued he was forced to do more workouts without proper rest or hydration. The family’s lawsuit contends Williams was subject to extra physical activity and other forms of hazing because he was Black and at 39, older than most other cadets.

Before Wednesday’s hearing, Simpson’s attorney Keith Hansbrough said the city had failed to turn over records such as video of the incident, emails related to the incident, detailed information on other injuries suffered by cadets at the academy and any disciplinary records related to Williams’ death.

An attorney for Lt. Vincent Russo, who is also named as a defendant in the suit, turned over a copy of Russo’s witness statement during the court hearing. Hansbrough said the Wednesday hearing was the first time he had seen the report from Russo, who he said called for EMS on the day of Williams’ death.

Attorney James Russell, who is representing the City of Cleveland, agreed to McCormick’s three-week deadline. Russell said the records were delayed because opposing counsel submitted the request to the fire department, when it was another city agency, risk management, that actually had the records they sought. Russell said the records request also got mixed in with other requests for records unrelated to lawsuits. Once the city realized Simpson’s request was for the Williams case, they expedited the request, Russell said.

A key area of disagreement is whether the lead-up to Williams’ death was caught on camera. Russell was emphatic that no video of the incident currently exists.

Hansbrough pushed back, saying he has spoken to two firefighters who say training exercises are recorded and that video would have been part of the investigation.

Russell maintained there is no video depicting the incident. However, he said it was possible nearby video cameras may have caught the incident on tape but were then overwritten because security cameras only save footage for a set period of time.

To get to the bottom of it, McCormick asked for an IT expert from Cleveland to testify about the video cameras.

Both sides are due before McCormick again on Nov. 12.

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