{"id":2225,"date":"2026-06-11T18:35:24","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T18:35:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2225"},"modified":"2026-06-11T18:35:24","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T18:35:24","slug":"trapped-in-an-apartment-laundry-room-an-nc-man-died-waiting-for-help-lawsuit-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2225","title":{"rendered":"Trapped in an apartment laundry room, an NC man died waiting for help, lawsuit says"},"content":{"rendered":"

AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.<\/p>\n

Read our AI Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n

Debra Tanner Davies says her son came to her Durham apartment in 2024 to help her while she recovered from surgery.<\/p>\n

Read more No sprinklers, no car washes: Durham to enact water restrictions starting Monday<\/a><\/p>\n

But on Nov. 25 of that year, three days before Thanksgiving, she said that visit ended abruptly with her 39-year-old son Jason Lamonte Pulliam dying on the floor of the Ashton Place Apartments\u2019 laundry room after residents were trapped behind what a lawsuit calls a \u201cheavy, metal, windowless door.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis action arises from the tragic and preventable death of Jason Lamonte Pulliam,\u201d Davies says in a lawsuit now filed in Durham County Superior Court.<\/p>\n

The lawsuit names DHIC Inc., Ashton Place Housing, LLC, Ashton Place Managing Member, LLC, and Community Management Corp. as defendants. The four companies are the property owners and managers of Ashton Place, a low-income apartment building advertised for people 55 and older next to Durham\u2019s American Tobacco Campus.<\/p>\n

Davies, 67, moved in after retiring from the Durham County Clerk of Court\u2019s office, the lawsuit says. She moved to the building in hopes of enjoying her retirement in a new community with neighbors similar in age. Instead, for the past two years, Davies has been seeking justice for her son and forming a tenants union<\/a> to address the building\u2019s safety and security issues.<\/p>\n

The lawsuit, filed June 3, claims the laundry room lacked \u201csafe and operable means of egress,\u201d and that \u201clifesaving medical intervention was materially delayed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Davies, represented by Lee Rodio of Raleigh based Howard Stallings Law Firm, is seeking damages for wrongful death, negligence, gross negligence and other claims.<\/p>\n

In an email, a spokesperson for DHIC said the group was aware of the lawsuit and \u201cdeeply sorry for the loss suffered by the family of Mr. Pulliam,\u201d but said it could not provide further comment \u201cout of respect for the legal process.\u201d<\/p>\n

The lawsuit details the moments before and after Davies found her son, after she returned home by train from a trip to Greensboro.<\/p>\n

Davies and Pulliam had texted earlier that evening about him picking her up from the train station, the complaint says.<\/p>\n

At 8:47 p.m., she texted him that she had arrived at the Greensboro station for the ride to Durham, and he replied: \u201cOK,\u201d the complaint says.<\/p>\n

Moments later, Davies received a call from her neighbor, Cheyenne Foster, who told her she had heard \u201cwhat sounded like a dog bark loudly, followed by what sounded like a commotion coming from the hallway,\u201d the complaint says.<\/p>\n

Foster had called to suggest that Davies use a side entrance to the building \u201cso as to avoid the source of the apparent commotion.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more New bill would make cheaper gas available year-round. How could it affect NC?<\/a><\/p>\n

However, either by fate or mother\u2019s tuition, Davies asked Foster to check on Pulliam, who had congestive heart failure. Foster reported the commotion seemed to be coming from the laundry room, \u201cbut they were not able to see in because the room was secured by a heavy, metal, windowless door,\u201d the complaint says.<\/p>\n

Inside, Foster found Pulliam \u201cunresponsive on the floor.\u201d<\/p>\n

An unidentified woman who had been doing laundry told investigators that Pulliam had entered the room \u201cappearing distressed and in need of assistance,\u201d and that, as his condition worsened, she realized she needed to get immediate emergency help.<\/p>\n

The door \u201chad become inoperable from the inside, preventing their escape,\u201d the filing alleges.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe then attempted to escape through a window, only to discover that it opened approximately four inches,\u201d the complaint says, adding that neither Pulliam nor the woman had a cellphone.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnable to escape, unable to call for help, and unable to attract the attention of others in the building, she watched helplessly as Jason\u2019s condition continued to worsen,\u201d the lawsuit says.<\/p>\n

About 9:42 p.m., Foster and another resident entered the laundry room and called 911. The two residents who came in also became trapped.<\/p>\n

The first emergency responder to arrive was Durham Police Cpl. Zack Starritt. Body camera footage from him confirmed everyone in the laundry room was \u201cinvoluntarily trapped and unable to exit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Starritt reached Pulliam around 9:49 p.m. and began CPR, the lawsuit says. After attempts to save his life, and after Davies and her daughter arrived, Pulliam was pronounced dead at 10:43 p.m.<\/p>\n

His official cause of death was cardiomyopathy, a disease of the heart muscle.<\/p>\n

In April, Davies and members of Ashton Place Seniors in Action, the tenant advocacy group, met with The News & Observer in her living room to detail their demands and experiences living in the apartment building.<\/p>\n

The North Carolina Tenants Union helped form the group, made up of residents in Ashton Place, who say management has repeatedly ignored complaints of garbage piling up, security gaps and a lack of communication.<\/p>\n

Before a meeting with DHIC officials and the Ashton Place Seniors in Action members in May, the management group acknowledged them as a union, according to Davies. However, the recognition was rescinded because DHIC is not obligated by federal law to do so.<\/p>\n

The laundry room door now has a narrow, rectangular glass window cut into it. Davies said she still struggles to pass by the room but continues living in Ashton Place to remember her son and honor him by fighting for what she believes is right.<\/p>\n

Read more Raleigh steps up water restriction enforcement as lake level falls<\/a><\/p>\n

This story was originally published June 11, 2026 at 5:40 AM.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Debra Davies, a resident of Durham\u2019s Ashton Place downtown, is suing the building\u2019s management two years after her son got stuck in the laundry room and died.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2224,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2225","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-read-todays-edition"],"yoast_head":"\nTrapped in an apartment laundry room, an NC man died waiting for help, lawsuit says - Durham Moving Hub<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2225\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Trapped in an apartment laundry room, an NC man died waiting for help, lawsuit says - 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