Hollywood Presbyterian is accused of elder abuse in an incident captured by a security camera in which a paraplegic man was dropped off in skid row.Civil rights attorneys today sued Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center in connection with the dumping of a paraplegic man on skid row last year.
The incident sparked nationwide outrage after The Times reported that the man crawled in the gutter in a soiled hospital gown while dragging a catheter bag. Witnesses told The Times that the van driver, Finece Mathis, ignored their pleas to stop.
The suit was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on behalf of Gabino Olvera, 41, and seeks unspecified punitive and compensatory damages against the hospital for alleged elder abuse, negligence and infliction of emotional distress.
It also asks the court for an injunction that would bar the hospital and the van company, Empire Transportation Inc., from engaging in future cases of "homeless dumping."
LA Times