Eighteen months after being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, 13-year-old Bolivar Middle School student Jason Rogers passed away from complications related to the disease.
Bolivar police and the Polk County Prosecutor’s Office believe the boy’s death could have been prevented and that much of the blame lies with his father.
Justin Rogers, 38, was charged on Jan. 29 with felony child abuse or neglect after investigators said he did nothing to the boy.
He is currently being held in the Polk County Jail on $50,000 bail.
Police and paramedics responded to a call about an unresponsive child at Mr. Rogers’ home at approximately 4 p.m. on August 8, 2023. According to a police report on the incident, the boy went days without taking his prescribed insulin and was “lying on the floor moaning in pain.”
When paramedics arrived at the home, the child’s father was reportedly intoxicated and told investigators that the boy didn’t like taking the medication or how it made him feel. He said he spoke. The father also said he did not know how much insulin to administer, despite prior education from medical professionals about how to treat his son’s illness, according to the police report.
The child was wearing a blood sugar monitoring system and received a high blood sugar notification on the day of his death, according to the probable cause statement. The monitoring system was synced with his father’s cell phone, but he had turned off notifications and did not receive any alerts.
Police said the boy had a blood sugar level of over 500 and died at a local hospital.
Police said Justin Rogers has full legal custody of his son. BPD said its investigation determined the father had not attempted to call emergency services in the days leading up to his son’s death, but a subsequent autopsy determined the death was a direct result of diabetic ketoacidosis. It turned out that the result was
Bolivar police said they had 29 previous citations involving Justin Rogers, several of which resulted in criminal charges, and each time he was “visibly intoxicated.”
According to Jason Rogers’ obituary, he was diagnosed with diabetes in February 2022. He was an 8th grade student at Bolivar Middle School.
“Jason truly had an old soul and a heart of gold who brightened up any room he entered,” his obituary said. “He loved spending time with his family, riding his bike, and was a master of the game. Jason also enjoyed working on projects, woodworking, and other fine handyman crafts. He had a lot of great ideas, and if he could do it, he would make his imagination a reality!”
Ryan Collingwood covers a wide range of topics for newsreaders, with a focus on public safety. He can be reached by phone at 417-258-8174 or by email at rcollingwood@news-leader.com.. You can also follow Ryan on social media. X.com/rwcollingwood
