KTLA

Lake Elsinore boy who died while exercising in the heat at school had a heart defect: report

A community is mourning after 12-year-old Yahshua Robinson collapsed and died during P.E. class at Canyon Lake Middle School in Lake Elsinore on August 29, 2023. (Robinson Family)

Yahshua Robinson, the 12-year-old boy who tragically collapsed and died while participating in his P.E. class at a Lake Elsinore school in August, had a heart defect, according to reports.

As reported by the Press Enterprise, Robinson’s coroner report said his Aug. 29 death was officially caused by a “coronary artery anomaly,” although the heat and physical exertion were “significant” contributing factors.

Robinson was running sprints with the rest of his P.E. class at Canyon Lake Middle School that day when he collapsed and became unresponsive. He was pronounced dead just before 1 p.m. after he went into cardiac arrest in an ambulance.

Lake Elsinore reached a high of 104 degrees that day, according to The Weather Channel. His death sparked outrage toward the school throughout the community.

“It just sounds like corporal punishment,” Xandrea Garay told KTLA last September. “These kids are in school. They’re not in the Army. It just sounds ridiculous to me and the more and more that we learn that he was asking for water, that he was begging for water, that he collapsed. I mean, it doesn’t make any sense.”

The Lake Elsinore Unified School District’s board said no students were denied water that day, and employees quickly called for emergency services when they noticed Robinson in distress.

The Press Enterprise reports that California Senate Bill 1248, also known as “Yahushua’s Law,” would require the California Department of Education to write guidelines for schools’ handling of physical activities at times of harsh or extreme weather.

According to the report, Robinson’s parents support the bill.