Union leaders shocked: Report showed 170 broken AEDs on HISD campuses weeks before student's death

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- After a student died nearly a week ago, Houston ISD is answering questions about how many of its life-saving devices aren't working.

HISD has been quiet about questions regarding a life-saving device at Marshall Middle School. On Friday, Superintendent Mike Miles read a statement about the student's death but didn't address concerns raised by the teachers' union about a life-saving device that may not have been working.

RELATED: HISD silent on alleged AED failure when middle school student suffered fatal medical emergency

ABC13 reporter Nick Natario peppered Miles with questions about it, but he kept walking. On Monday, HISD released information about its defibrillators but wouldn't talk about the devices at Marshall Middle School.

"Because it is likely that there will be litigation, the district is not going to answer specific questions about the events at Marshall Middle School," HISD spokesperson Alex Elizondo said.

Last Wednesday, the district said Marshall Middle School student Landon Payton suffered a medical emergency during gym class. Staff, including a nurse, took action.

Payton was rushed to the hospital, but he died. The teachers' union said the nurse tried to use an AED, but it wouldn't work.

The device is used to help restore a person's heartbeat. The district said there are 1,038 of them at schools. A report released on Aug. 1 showed 170 weren't working.

ABC13 asked HISD officials if they removed the devices that weren't working from the school walls. "I cannot speak to if they remain on the wall," Elizondo explained.

HISD later clarified that the policy is to remove the non-working device and put a note saying where the nearest device is located. Houston Federation of Teachers chief of staff Corina Ortiz said that wasn't the case at Marshall Middle School.

"The assumption was that it was working, and that's why she ran down to get it," Ortiz said.

ABC13 asked the district about it, but it won't say. The district released geographical areas where the AEDs are located, but not by school.

According to HISD, many of the issues are batteries. The district says new ones have been ordered, but hasn't said when they'll be fixed.

The district has changed who's in charge of the devices. It used to be the principals, but now, it'll be central staff.

The district said every school has at least one working AED, with an average of three working devices per campus.

However, union leaders were shocked to see a report revealing nearly 20% of AEDs were broken and remained unfixed before the school year began.

"That's inappropriate, it's inadequate, and it's negligent," Ortiz said. Union leaders say every machine should be working to help staff if another medical emergency takes place.

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