LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A teenage boy died in Louisville while trying to escape the extreme heat in Kentuckiana this week.
Louisville Metro Police found 17-year-old Christian Ruhekenya dead inside his family's car parked in their garage on Wednesday, Aug. 23.
Christian's parents said the teen had spent the past few nights sleeping inside their car in an attempt to beat the heat, despite several complaints to their landlord about their broken air conditioner.
His younger brother translated what happened for his parents, who don't speak English. He said everyone assumed Christian was still asleep when their parents left for work early Thursday morning.
As time went by, he said he kept checking on his older brother, but his eyes remained closed.
The young boy started to worry once Christian was still in the garage after 10 a.m. because he typically wakes up for work around 6 a.m. That's when LMPD was called and officers later pronounced him dead.
"I am so sorry that this has happened to the family. I'm praying for other families in our community because our community has so many immigrant Families and they don't know where to go when something isn't working right, and they so much more easily taken advantage of," District 21 Councilwoman Betsy Ruhe said.
Ruhe and the family point say the landlord's negligence led to Christian’s death. His brother says she didn't replace the air conditioner until Thursday, but by then it was too late.
WHAS11 reached out to the property owners, Best Rentals, on Friday but haven't received a response.
However, Ruthe says it appears the company didn't live up to their name. According to the Kentucky Landlord Tenant Act, owners are responsible for maintaining appliances inside properties including air conditioning.
"The landlord is in violation because there is an air conditioner there, the landlord failed to maintain it. They are in violation of property maintenance codes," Ruhe said.
Moving forward, she says the Ruhekenya family can take legal action, but even then, it won't bring back what mattered most.
If you’re having an issue with maintenance issues, you can report it with the Metro's Code Enforcement Board or contact Louisville’s Legal Aid Society.
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