Overland Park policeman who died from COVID was not vaccinated. Most OP officers are
Freddie Castro, the 23-year-old Overland Park officer who died Tuesday afternoon after a long battle with COVID-19, was unvaccinated, a police department spokesman said.
It was unknown why Castro was unvaccinated, Officer John Lacy said. More than 70% of the police department’s officers and staff have been fully vaccinated, Lacy said.
The 70% vaccination rate is higher than the rate of Johnson County. Roughly 59% of Johnson County residents have been vaccinated, according to the county health department.
Nationwide, at least 52% of the population has been fully vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A little more than 43% of Kansas City residents have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.
The police department does not require staff members or officers to get vaccinated. No testing is required for those who do not get the shot, Lacy said.
Castro began experiencing cold and pneumonia-like symptoms in mid-July, according to a Facebook message posted Friday by the Overland Park Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge 21.
According to the police lodge, Castro’s condition worsened after he was admitted to the hospital for COVID complications and pneumonia. Castro was moved to ICU and placed on a ventilator, but he continued to get worse, suffering multiple heart attacks and strokes. He remained on a ventilator until his death, said Overland Park Police Chief Frank Donchez. Castro was in the hospital for 37 days.
The Kansas City metro area is recording an average of nine deaths a day from COVID-19, which is the highest in six months. A total of 2,558 people in the metro have died from COVID-19 as of Tuesday.
Castro had always wanted to be a police officer, his uncle, John Fierro, said Tuesday. He joined the police department at 19-years-old and worked in the motorist assist unit. After turning 21, he submitted his application to be a police officer. He had hoped to be a sheriff one day.
“He always has a smile on his face, because he loved what he was doing,” the Donchez said, speaking to reporters Tuesday night. “He loved being a police officer.”
The Star’s Bill Lukitsch contributed to this report.
