 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Employee Leasing Services in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Family Independence Agency v. AMB11/6/2001
FOR PUBLICATION
Apparently relying on an "order" entered by a family court referee, medical personnel at Children's Hospital of Michigan withdrew life sustaining medical treatment that AMB, an infant, was receiving. She died soon thereafter. William Ladd, the attorney appointed to represent her in the protective proceeding that originally brought her situation before the family court, appeals on her behalf. We reverse.
I. Introduction
This case is, at its core, a human tragedy. AMB, whom we call baby Allison, is the central figure. She was born severely ill, with a poor prognosis for long-term survival, and required extensive medical care. This care included immediate ventilator support and intravenous drug therapy in the neonatal intensive care unit at Children's Hospital of Michigan, in Detroit. Baby Allison died at Children's Hospital just ten days later.
Baby Allison's short life, while heartbreaking in itself, does not hint at the truly appalling circumstances relating to her conception and death. At age seventeen, baby Allison's mother, KB, became pregnant. Baby Allison's putative father, JB, was also KB's father. When this situation came to light, local authorities pressed criminal charges against JB and instituted a protective proceeding against JB and his wife to terminate their parental rights to KB and KB's younger brother. To complicate this situation further, the record includes explicit, though unproven, allegations that KB is mentally retarded or has some form of developmental delay. The resolutions of the criminal case against JB and the separate child protective proceeding against JB and his wife are not evident from the available record. However, it is possible to infer that JB raped his mentally disabled daughter, KB, leading to baby Allison's incestuous conception.
If the facts surrounding baby Allison's conception are tragic, the circumstances leading to her death are doubly so. Through unredeemably flawed family court proceedings, the Family Independence Agency (FIA) acquired what appeared to be an order that authorized Children's Hospital staff "to take the child off life support equipment and medication provided that 'Comfort Care' is provided." Despite an explicit warning that the order did not take effect for seven days, the very next day Children's Hospital staff contacted a chaplain who baptized baby Allison while her mother and her three aunts were present. According to the chaplain's notes, at approximately 7:30 p.m. " fter the baptism the aunts decided to have the child removed from life support. Both I [the chaplain] and Michelle the charge nurse took pictures. I again prayed for the baby and the family. The infant was pronounced dead at 9:25 p.m." Thus, Children's Hospital staff removed baby Allison from life support without any legal authority, even under the terms of an order that we ultimately conclude had no legal basis whatsoever. Nonetheless, baby Allison's life ended, the final act of this tragedy of almost mythical proportions.
The series of individual legal errors and missteps that led to baby Allison's death are our only focus in this appeal. The hasty family court proceedings were so unseemly precisely because those involved in this decision knew that a life hung in the balance. The unforeseen consequence of this rush to make a decision is that the record consists mostly of allegations, unsworn statements, and hearsay. More often than not, this has forced us to assume that the record is both adequate and accurate simply to reach the legal issues. We emphasize, however, that there is no way to determine the truth about this case with any assurance. Further, these proceedings occurred less than on
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 Michigan Employee Leasing Services
Employee Leasing Services
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Employee Leasing Services in your area.
|
|