Georgia Couple File Wrongful Death Lawsuit After Baby Allegedly Decapitated During Birth

Source: ljubaphoto / Getty

A young couple from Georgia has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against a hospital in the Atlanta area for allegedly decapitating their baby during delivery.

On Aug. 9, Jessica Ross, 20, and her boyfriend, Treveon Isaiah Taylor Sr. alleged that their baby was decapitated when they went to deliver the young infant in July. The pair are suing the hospital Southern Regional Medical Center, and the doctor, Tracy St. Julian, who they alleged used “excessive force” during the fatal delivery.

What’s in the lawsuit?

On Wednesday, the couple filed the lawsuit in Clayton County with the help of their attorney Roderick Edmond, a medical malpractice lawyer.

During a press conference, Edmond said Ross and Taylor Sr.’s nightmare began when the young mother went into labor at Southern Region Medical Center on July 9 at 8:40 p.m. While pushing, the baby stopped descending, due to shoulder dystocia, a condition that can occur when a baby’s shoulders get stuck inside the pelvic girdle.

Edmond claimed that Dr. St. Julian pulled on the baby’s head and neck with too much force, causing bones in the infant’s neck, face and skull to break. After hours of manipulating and tugging on the baby, Dr. St. Julian called for an emergency stat Ceaseran Section at around 11:49 P.M.– over three hours after Ross went into delivery.

When the doctor cut into the young mother, she allegedly severed the baby’s head.

“The body came out and there was no head. The head was stuck in the vagina and the head subsequently was delivered vaginally,” Edmond stated during a press conference Wednesday. “Dr. St. Julian was grossly negligent for applying ridiculously excessive force on the baby’s head and neck,” he continued. “The nurses at Southern Regional Medical Center were grossly negligent for not getting the help of the on-site, in-hospital OB in a timely manner.”

According to the attorney, doctors and medical staff are typically required to call on the help of the on-site hospital obstetrician during emergencies. Edmond said it was not done in a “timely manner.”

After the horrifying delivery, Ross and Taylor Sr. were not informed about the baby’s grisly condition. During the viewing, Edmond claimed that staff wrapped the baby tightly in a blanket and propped the infant’s “head on top of the blanket to make it appear as though the head was attached when it wasn’t.”

When they asked to see the child, the parents were denied.“Hospital staff allowed the young couple to only view their dead child,” a spokesperson for the family said, CNN noted. The grieving parents weren’t notified about the baby’s death until two days later.

Southern Regional Medical Center, which is based in Riverdale, Georgia, issued a statement about the horrific delivery saying that it was “unable to discuss the care and treatment of specific patients” due to patient privacy laws.

“Our heartfelt thoughts and prayers are with the family and all those impacted by this tragic event,” the hospital stated. “Our prayers also remain with the dedicated team of physicians, nurses and staff at Southern Regional Medical Center who cared for this patient. Our commitment is to provide compassionate, quality care to every single patient, and this loss is heartbreaking.”

Additionally, the medical center also revealed that Dr. St. Julian wasn’t an employee of the hospital. “The hospital has taken the appropriate steps in response to this unfortunate situation,” the facility added.

Jessica Ross and Taylor Sr. are seeking monetary damages.

According to the lawsuit, Jessica Ross and Taylor Sr. have accused the hospital of alleged fraud, intentional infliction of emotional distress and gross negligence. They are seeking monetary damages for the baby’s fatal delivery and compensation for the baby’s funeral and burial costs.

During Wednesday’s press conference, Edmond alleged that staffers at the hospital denied the couple an autopsy paid for by the state.

“These circumstances for sure warrant an autopsy paid for by the state or by the county. And they also tried to encourage this couple to get the baby cremated before an autopsy was done. So there was an attempt to basically destroy evidence,” he added.

SEE ALSO:

What Happened To Allisha Watts? Family Of Missing Black Woman Demands Answers

Black Woman Dies In Atlanta Jail After Being Held On Misdemeanor Warrant With No Bond

Georgia Couple File Wrongful Death Lawsuit After Baby Allegedly Decapitated During Birth  was originally published on newsone.com