Parents blame Polar Bear Plunge for daughter's 2009 death, sue 19 people involved

[Swede]

The parents of a Pennsylvania woman who died shortly after attending a "Polar Bear Plunge" charity event in southern New Jersey two years ago have sued the city where it was held and the group that organized it.

Also among the 19 defendants in the federal lawsuit brought this week by Tracy Hottenstein's parents are the owners of two bars she was at on the night she died and the couple who invited her to dinner at their home that evening. Also named is the hospital where she died and the doctor who pronounced her dead, as well as the Sea Isle City Police Department and individual officers who — the suit claims — did not allow rescue workers to perform lifesaving treatment for hypothermia after they discovered Hottenstein had no pulse.

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/02/parents_blame_polar_bear_plung.html

[pnwmom]

1. The officers should face criminal charges as well if they prevented

rescue workers from treating her.

[msanthrope]

3. They were preserving a crime scene--

she hadn't done the Plunge itself, just the drinking that accompanies it, and KEPT drinking...apparently she was very drunk, stumbled, fell, and died of hypothermia/intoxication. Sad, and the local authorities were not exactly comforting to the family.

She was found dressed in the Marina, wet, and apparently, quite dead. The parents are even suing the doctor that pronounced her dead...

[petronius]

5. The article states that she died at the hospital, which implies she was

alive when she was found. If that's the case, or if there was even a chance she could be revived, then any officer who impeded the medics deserves to be raked over the coals. (Of course, the article is probably based on the suit, so those are non-trivial "if"s.)

More generally, unless a body is so obviously dead that there's no possibility whatsoever of mistake, I would have a huge problem with police officers making that determination. Crime scene or not, medical decisions in such circumstances need to be made by medical personnel only, with the sole goal being the preservation of life...

[msanthrope]

6. She didn't die at the hospital--read the complaint.

Cops came, checked for pulses, didn't find any. The doctor who 'called' her never left the hospital--and her body remained at the scene for hours, and was then transported.

The parents allege that she should have been given treatment for hypothermia, regardless of the fact that she had no pulse. They are also upset that the doctor didn't leave the hospital. So the doctor, and th hospital who employed him are being sued. I'm not suprised the AP got it confused--it's a confusing story unless you read precisely how it went down.

[petronius]

7. I don't think the parents have any real case, but I do think the point

about the police keeping EMTs away from the body is a valid concern and I'd like to see it explored.

Preserving a crime scene should never take precedence over medical treatment, and IMO it's unacceptable for police officers to be making death determinations (unless the fact of death is blatantly obvious - a missing head, for example) when medical personnel are available. It may be rare, but it's not impossible that a person who is all-but-dead might be saved, and we'll never know if this was one of those times.

If the complaint is an accurate description of the event, I think there's a need for a further examination of that particular point - perhaps a reassessment of the PD's procedures in such situations...

[msanthrope]

8. I agree that it's an issue worth exploring.

It's entirely possible the medical personnel did examine her--there were two sets called to the scene. It's also possible she was obviously dead.

The lawsuit--which encompasses 19 people--is quite a mess. They are suing the couple who had her over for dinner that night...and the guy who saw her last.

[Libertarian_Mike]

2. So, sue everyone, and maybe something will stick?

Blame everybody except the person responsible. Or, irresponsible.

[msanthrope]

4. You should read the lawsuit---

Even the people who had her over for dinner are getting sued.

http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/pressofatlanticcity.com/content/tncms/assets/editorial/5/65/386/5653869a-3636-11e0-8f55-001cc4c002e0-revisions/4d55c5a95b21b.pdf.pdf

[dems_rightnow]

10. I didn't read this

I swear it. Don't sue me for reading it.

[cali]

9. I feel for the parents- and maybe they have a case against the first responders

but sorry, the victim herself bears most of the responsibility for her actions. And yes, I read the complaint.