In a shocking turn of events, a grandmother was mistakenly pronounced dead and placed in a freezer at White Memorial Medical Center in LA, California. Maria de Jesus Arroyo, aged 80, had suffered a cardiac arrest on July 26, 2010, leading to her collapse at her Boyle Heights residence. Despite doctors declaring her deceased, she was found to be alive when mortuary staff retrieved her from the hospital morgue days later. Tragically, she succumbed to the extreme cold she endured while mistakenly stored in the morgue freezer.
The family of Maria de Jesus Arroyo has filed a lawsuit against the hospital, alleging that their loved one was placed in the morgue freezer while still living, ultimately leading to her death from the freezing temperatures.
The grave error was only uncovered when morticians were preparing her body for the funeral and found her in a distressing state inside the half-unzipped body bag, indicating signs of a struggle to escape the freezing conditions.
A pathologist hired by the family, Dr. William Manion, determined that Maria de Jesus Arroyo had been alive when placed in the freezer. He concluded that she had sustained injuries while attempting to free herself from the body bag after regaining consciousness in the cold environment.
Court records revealed that the pathologist’s findings suggested Maria had been mistakenly “frozen alive,” regained consciousness, and struggled unsuccessfully to escape the frozen confinement, resulting in injuries to her face and body.
Following these tragic events, the family initially filed a negligence claim in January 2011, and later, after receiving Dr. Manion’s report in 2012, they pursued a wrongful death and medical malpractice lawsuit. Although a lower court initially dismissed the case citing statute-of-limitations grounds, the California Second District Court of Appeal reinstated the lawsuit, recognizing the family’s lack of awareness regarding Maria’s true condition when placed in the morgue.
The hospital, White Memorial Medical Center, has consistently denied any wrongdoing, stating that they followed all proper procedures. They remain confident in their actions and believe they will prevail in court once all facts are reviewed.
Attorney Scott Schutzman, representing the Arroyo family, described the case as a nightmare scenario, emphasizing the unimaginable struggle Maria endured, questioning how she managed to escape the zippered bag.
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