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EMTs Accused of Ignoring Dying Woman Get Suspended, Investigated
By
Ben Muessig
Published Dec 22, 2009
Modified Dec 22, 2009
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By
Ben Muessig
Published Dec 22, 2009
Modified Dec 22, 2009
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The two paramedics accused of refusing to help a pregnant woman who was having a fatal seizure have been suspended without pay. Jason Green, 32, and Melissa Jackson, 23, were suspended for allegedly telling employees in a Downtown Brooklyn café to "call 911" instead of aiding 25-year-old Eutisha Revee Rennix, who was six months pregnant when she collapsed on Dec. 9.
The two EMTs — who are romantically involved according to the Daily News — work in the Emergency Medical Service dispatch center in the Metrotech Center building above the Au Bon Pain eatery where Rennix fell ill. Though they are employed as dispatchers, WCBS reports that they both had been trained as EMTs. The Brooklyn's District Attorney's Office is now trying to determine if the paramedics had a legal duty to assist Rennix, and they have obtained surveillance video from the scene. Yesterday, Mayor Bloomberg blasted the EMTs for continuing the purchase their breakfast while Rennix fought for her life.
Employees at the coffee shop said that Green and Jackson — who have worked at the agency for six years and four years respectively — claimed they weren't allowed to provide aid, allegedly stating that "if they reacted, they could get in trouble. They said they weren't allowed to touch her unless a call was made to 911 first."
According to union official Jeff Samerson, Jackson called 911 from inside the store — though sources tell the tabloid that the paramedic reported that Rennix was having difficulty breathing without ever examining her (when an ambulance arrived 11 minutes later, the EMTs didn't think they were responding to a critical situation and left some lifesaving tools in their vehicle). "[Jackson] didn't have an ambulance. She didn't have equipment. She does not work in the field as an active EMT in an ambulance," Samerson told NY1. "She is a dispatcher. She works as an emergency medical dispatcher. [Green] is also a dispatcher. These are people that are not in the field, that have not had patient contact in years. And they did the best they could."
Tagged
ambulance
au bon pain
emergency medical services
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Eutisha Revee Rennix
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Ben Muessig
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