Jon-Marques Psalms, a San Francisco Police Department recruit who died
Provided by the Psalms family
The family of a 30-year-old San Francisco Police Department recruit who died after a intense training exercise last year sued the city this week, alleging his death could have been prevented with safety protocols — and that his family was misled about the severity of his injuries.
Christina and Marcus Psalms accused the city of battery, assault, wrongful death, negligent supervision and other actions in the August 2025 death of their son, Jon-Marques Psalms.
Psalms, who joined the SFPD academy just three months before his death, died two days after collapsing during an endurance training exercise called a “red man” drill, which involves recruits wrestling in full-body padded suits to simulate hand-to-hand combat.
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The lawsuit alleges SFPD instructors “recklessly or intentionally” violated the law by relying solely on visual and the recruits’ verbal responses during the exercise instead of checking their vital signs throughout. The suit also alleges instructors failed to ensure the recruits were properly hydrated.
Spokespersons for SFPD said they were precluded from commenting on the lawsuit due to ongoing litigation, and referred all questions for the San Francisco City’s Attorney’s office. In a statement, City Attorney spokesperson Jen Kwart called Psalms’s death “ a tragedy.”
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“Our thoughts are with his loved ones,” Kwart said. “We will review the complaint and respond in court.”
SFPD previously said the red man drill was mandated by the state Commission on Peace Officers Standards and Training. In 2020, a Santa Clara County sheriff’s cadet collapsed during the drill. He spent hours on life support before he died, days before his academy graduation.
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At some point during the training exercise on Aug. 20, 2025, Psalms was found lying face down by his drill partner. As the partner tried to roll him over, Psalms collapsed and appeared to be breathing irregularly and in distress, according to the lawsuit.
Psalms was rushed to UCSF Medical Center’s ER with life-threatening conditions, according to the lawsuit.
But at the hospital, Psalms parents were allegedly told by SFPD Sgt. Ryan Jones that the recruit was being evaluated for dehydration. They were not told that he had been found unconscious or face down on the ground, according to the complaint.
The lawsuit alleges that when Psalms’s mother arrived at UCSF later that day, she was told for the first time that her son was suffering from a brain bleed and another life-threatening syndrome that causes the breakdown of muscle tissue and release of toxins into one’s bloodstream.
Psalms went into cardiac arrest, was placed on life support, and did not regain consciousness. He was placed in a medically-induced coma, during which CT scans confirmed severe brain swelling. During a surgery described as a “last-ditch effort” to save his life, Psalms’s mother was allegedly approached by one of her son’s doctors, who asked her to tell him more about his loss of consciousness at the academy.
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According to the lawsuit, Christina Psalms — knowing nothing about her son being found unconscious — looked at the other two officers in the room, who said they did not know what the doctor was referring to.
After it was determined that Psalms’s swelling and brain bleeding was more extreme than had been anticipated, he was taken off life support and pronounced dead on the evening of Aug 22, 2025.
The lawsuit alleges that even after Psalms’s death, essential evidence — including videos of the exercise leading up to his death — has been withheld from the family. Attorneys for the family also called on anyone with knowledge of the incident to preserve videos related to the exercise.
“The Code of Silence is alive and well at SFPD,” wrote Brad Gage, an attorney for the Psalms family. “Snitches get stitches and rats are targeted for retaliation.”
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