The teen died two days earlier in the parking lot of Seven Hills High School he was trapped in the van’s third-row bench seat and it fatally crushed him.
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Plush attended Mercy Montessori from kindergarten to sixth grade. According to Principal Patty Normille, his empathy for others, love of science and relentless positivity distinguished him as a "small guy with a big personality."
TIMELINE: 911 calls, officers’ response to Kyle Plush death
Although he lived with spinal developmental problems and other medical issues that impeded his physical mobility, he loved sports, even participating in athletics at Seven Hills School as a member of the tennis team.
Investigators believe Plush may have been retrieving a tennis racquet from his Honda Odyssey when he became trapped inside the van, where he suffocated due to chest compression, according to WCPO.
Hamilton County prosecutors are launching a full investigation to determine exactly what happened when Plush, who made two 911 calls begging for help, was not immediately responded to and reportedly ignored by the 911 operator.
In the last moments of his life, Plush told the operator: "Tell my mom I love her."
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