The coroner left open the possibility of revising the classification as investigators continued examining the circumstances surrounding Son Johnston’s death.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The death of an elderly Colorado Springs woman was classified as an accident by the county coroner, yet more than a year later her daughter was arrested in a criminal investigation alleging negligent homicide — two developments that reflect different parts of a still-unresolved legal case.
Son Johnston died after she was found in direct sunlight outside her home on July 15, 2025. The El Paso County Coroner’s Office later listed the manner of death as accidental but noted that the finding could be changed if additional information emerged, according to reporting based on the autopsy. Police continued investigating long after that classification, eventually securing a warrant for her daughter, Kim Johnston, 59. The existence of a criminal charge does not reverse the coroner’s finding by itself, nor does either determination establish Johnston’s guilt.
The medical record nevertheless became important to investigators. Son Johnston was taken to a hospital after emergency crews found her outside the family home in the 2900 block of Hayman Terrace. Her internal temperature was recorded at 101.8 degrees shortly before 1 p.m., and the autopsy documented injuries consistent with prolonged sun exposure. She suffered cardiac arrest during the emergency response and later died. Temperatures that day reached the upper 80s, according to weather information cited in local reporting, although some accounts characterized the conditions as roughly 90 degrees.
How Son Johnston came to remain outdoors became the focus of the police case. Her daughter told investigators that the two had argued after the older woman repeatedly wanted to go outside. Son Johnston had a broken hip and could not walk normally. Court records say that after Johnston opened the door, her mother crawled into the yard. She was wearing a cardigan, a sweater underneath and long pants. Police and early news reports identified her as 91, while later coverage based on arrest records called her 92. Authorities have not publicly reconciled the age difference.
Johnston told police she gave her mother a bottle of water and an umbrella before leaving her outside and checking on her only once or twice. She described her mother as sitting in a slanted position because of her injured hip and breathing heavily. She said the older woman did not drink the water, possibly because she was too weak, and did not use the umbrella. Emergency responders later said they did not see a water bottle, a chair or another source of shade near the woman, creating a factual dispute that investigators incorporated into the arrest case.
The daughter did not call 911 when her mother first went outside, according to the records. The call came after Son Johnston eventually cried out for help. During the call, Johnston reportedly said her mother had been behaving unusually through the night, wanted to go outside and now looked dehydrated or possibly unconscious on the sidewalk. She nevertheless indicated that she did not believe the situation was urgent. Medics who arrived were also told that the older woman had fallen several hours earlier and had been lying on rocks in the yard.
Another episode from the previous month became relevant to investigators’ assessment of Johnston’s responsibilities as a caretaker. Authorities had addressed an incident in which Son Johnston fell and allegedly remained on the floor for more than six hours. Court records say Johnston was warned not to leave her mother unattended for extended periods. Prosecutors could seek to use that history to provide context for the later allegation, while the defense would have an opportunity to challenge its relevance and any conclusions drawn from it. No court has determined that the earlier event proves criminal conduct in the death case.
The police investigation continued for more than a year after Son Johnston died. Colorado Springs police later explained that negligent-death investigations may require officers to wait for final autopsy results, gather and evaluate other evidence, establish probable cause and submit the complete case to the district attorney for a decision on prosecution. Officers obtained a warrant Aug. 25, 2026. Johnston was arrested Sept. 3 and booked into the El Paso County Criminal Justice Center, far later than the day emergency crews first encountered the scene.
Public descriptions of the charges have varied somewhat across court and police reporting. Johnston has been described as facing criminally negligent homicide and crimes against an at-risk person, while other court-based reports listed manslaughter and negligent death of an at-risk person. Recent coverage of her latest hearing referred to a negligent-homicide charge. Those allegations involve prosecutors’ theory that Johnston’s actions or failures to act crossed a criminal threshold. A charging document establishes what the government alleges; it does not prove those allegations, and Johnston remains presumed innocent.
The distinction is particularly important because the coroner’s use of the term “accident” addresses the medical classification of a death rather than deciding every question of criminal responsibility. Investigators can consider conduct surrounding an accidental death and prosecutors can pursue charges when they believe the evidence meets a criminal statute. At the same time, the defense can point to medical classification, causation questions and other evidence in contesting the prosecution. In this case, the public record does not show that a judge or jury has yet resolved how those issues fit together.
Before those questions could be tested further, the case took a different procedural turn. Johnston appeared in court Oct. 1 and, through her attorney, raised the issue of competency. Defense counsel Alex Steiner said Johnston has schizophrenia and was not then able to assist adequately in her defense. Judge Catherine Mitchell Helton granted a request for a competency examination. The evaluation concerns Johnston’s present ability to understand the proceedings and work with her lawyer, not her mental state in July 2025 and not whether the prosecution’s allegations are true.
The judge reduced Johnston’s bond from $4,000 to $2,500 after hearing that she had lived at the same Colorado Springs home for decades and worked at a Goodwill for many years. Several co-workers appeared in court. Johnston remained jailed as of the day after the hearing. Depending on the evaluation, the judge may determine competency from an expert report or hold a hearing. A finding that Johnston is not competent could delay the homicide prosecution while efforts are made to restore her competency.
That leaves two central questions open. The criminal court has not determined whether Johnston’s alleged conduct caused her mother’s death in a way that satisfies the charged offense, and the court has not yet determined whether Johnston is competent to face the case. The coroner’s accidental classification has not publicly been reported as changed. The next scheduled court hearing is Nov. 19, when the competency process is expected to determine the immediate direction of a prosecution that began with a summer death more than a year earlier.
Author note: Last updated October 20, 2026.