Two Denver firefighters were suspended without pay after they declared a woman dead when she was actually alive, officials said. One of the firefighters, Lt. Patrick Lopez, was also demoted over the June 24 incident, the city's Department of Public Safety said in an order of disciplinary action. The order says that an officer went into the home, came out and said the woman had bluish-purple discoloration on the skin, fluid leaking from her body and smelled like she was decomposing. Lopez, according to the order, said the officer told firefighters they did not need to go inside the home because the woman was "obviously dead." An investigation determined that Lopez likely lied about the officer telling firefighters not to go into the home.

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