Potter
Defendant Gateway Regional Medical Center filed a motion to dismiss June 27 after being sued by the mother of a minor child who alleges her son was raped there. The hospital is being sued for allegedly attempting to conceal the event by eradicating evidence.
The mother, identified as C.T., sued Gateway Regional Medical Center on May 22, alleging her minor son, identified as J.T., was admitted to Gateway on May 10. During his stay, J.T. was sexually assaulted and raped by another patient, the lawsuit alleges.
Instead of preserving evidence, Gateway employees allegedly forced J.T. to take a bath after the rape, the suit states. As a result, J.T. was unable to present evidence at trial, the complaint says.
His mother says hospital staff failed to protect her son, failed to provide security and supervision in her son's hospital room, assigned a patient with dangerous propensities to J.T.'s room and failed to monitor J.T.
According to Gateway's motion to dismiss, the plaintiff's allegation that Gateway Regional failed to put J.T. under watch after changing his medication concerns medical judgment and criticizes how the hospital handled J.T.'s psychiatric care.
Illinois law recognizes claims against a hospital for failing to provide adequate supervision to a patient require a health care professional's affidavit. The plaintiffs' failure to file an affidavit supporting their complaint requires a dismissal of their complaint.
The plaintiffs failed to allege enough facts to support the required element of a duty owed by Gateway Regional to the plaintiffs to preserve evidence, according to the defendant's motion to dismiss.
The plaintiff's claim is that Gateway Regional negligently performed its own internal investigation. The plaintiff failed to allege facts to establish Gateway Regional's internal investigation comprised healthcare services or was undertaken to render services to the plaintiffs.
In their affirmative defenses, Gateway Regional states if the plaintiff sustained injuries, those injuries were the result of the negligence of someone other than Gateway Regional.
Due to the incidents, J.T. claims he suffered mental and psychological injuries, sustained pain and suffering and incurred medical costs. C.T. seeks a judgment of more than $50,000.
Robert P. Marcus of Kujawski and Associates in O'Fallon represent the plaintiff. Stephen Potter and Jayson Clark of Behr, McCarter & Potter in St. Louis represent the defense.
The judge assigned to the case prohibited the parties' attorneys from disclosing the identity of the plaintiffs, in response to a motion filed by Marcus asking his clients be allowed to file under fictitious names.
Madison County Circuit Court case number: 12-L-717