Family of Comatose Woman Who Gave Birth 'Disappointed' by Arizona Facility's Lack of 'Remorse'
Following the news of an internal investigation into Hacienda HealthCare in Phoenix, the parents of the woman who is in a vegetative state and gave birth while in their care despite her condition say they are disappointed in the facility’s lack of “remorse.”
“The victim’s parents are aware of the recent press release by Hacienda’s board and leadership announcing that attorney Rick Romley has been hired by Hacienda to conduct an investigation into the sexual abuse and neglect of their daughter,” the family said in a statement released by their attorney John Micheaels.
“My clients trust that Mr. Romley’s investigation will be as promised — fully transparent — and made available to them as the victims of this appalling tragedy.”
“My clients also hope Mr. Romley’s investigation will result in the changes at Hacienda necessary to prevent further abuse and neglect of its patients.”
“Lastly, my clients were disappointed to see that in its press release Hacienda’s leadership chose not to express any remorse or apology for Hacienda’s inexcusable failure to protect and safeguard their vulnerable daughter,” the statement concluded.
At a press conference Monday, former Maricopa County Attorney Rick Romley said he was hired by the company to do an independent review of the “facts and circumstances” surrounding the birth of the baby as the result of a sexual assault.
“We’ve got a number of patients, some of the most vulnerable in our society,” said Romley. “They need to be taken care of and there needs to be assurances…that this organization is going to do everything that it takes to correct the horrendous facts that led up to the impregnation of the young woman.”
Romley, who will be assisted by an independent health care professional, says his first priority will be to look at the facility’s security “to make sure this never happens again.”
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The patient, who has been identified as a 29-year-old member of the San Carlos Apache tribe, gave birth on Dec. 29 at the facility. She had been under the care of the facility since she was between ages 2-3, according to court documents obtained by PEOPLE.
According to the documents, she “lacks sufficient understanding and mental capacity to make decisions or give consents for her medical, placement or financial estate” and suffers from quadriplegia, recurrent pneumonia and a seizure disorder.
In addition, the records reveal that the patient’s last doctor’s examination took place more than eight months prior to the Dec. 29 birth, which according to Phoenix Police Sgt. Tommy Thompson “took everyone [at the facility] by surprise.”
Thompson told PEOPLE, “It’s my impression that the staff there had no clue that this lady was having a baby,” adding that she was “quite a ways along” before she had a natural birth.
Phoenix police have launched a criminal investigation into the sexual assault but have not made any arrests in the case.
The baby, who is now almost 3 weeks old, and his mother are currently recovering at a local hospital.
On Jan. 8, Micheaels, said in a statement to PEOPLE, “The family would like me to convey that the baby boy has been born into a loving family and will be well cared for.”
Romley’s review, he says, will also include interviews with the staff doctors.
“We all understand what the questions are,” he says. “We all understand how could this have not been identified earlier? What happened here? All of those things I’m going to try to ferret out.”
Asked if he thought the possible assailant would be identified, Romley responded: “I cannot give you that. I know this is kind of the ultimate detective story of whodunnit, I just hope and pray, quite frankly ’cause, quite frankly, the person’s a little sick.”
