"Deadly Care: Family of Beaten Woman to Sue NYC for $20 Million"
The family of a 55-year-old woman who was beaten to death by her roommate at a Bronx public hospital is planning to take the city to court, alleging gross negligence and inadequate care. Cynthia Vann's death, which left her in critical condition for over two weeks, has sparked outrage among her loved ones.
According to officials, Vann had been undergoing liver treatment at Lincoln Hospital when she was attacked by her roommate, Racquel Haughton, 44, in September. The attack resulted in severe head trauma, and Vann died shortly after. While Haughton was arrested and charged with manslaughter and assault in October, the family claims that hospital staff failed to protect Vann from the violence and were not forthcoming about the reasons behind her deteriorating condition.
"We intend to litigate this matter and will use every tool at our disposal to uncover the truth about what occurred and the failures that led to Cynthia's tragic death," said John Elefterakis, the family's attorney. "Somebody needs to answer for this."
The family is expected to announce Thursday that they are filing a notice of claim against the city and its hospital agency as the first step in mounting a lawsuit. They allege that staff withheld information about Vann's condition, failed to keep her safe, and were negligent in their duties.
"We would just tell me about her condition medically, but they didn't tell me what was the reason for the head trauma," Tanesha Vann, Cynthia's daughter, previously told Gothamist. "When I found out she was in emergency surgery, I was shocked."
The family is struggling to cope with Vann's death and the questions surrounding it. Rev. Kevin McCall, a spokesperson for Vann's loved ones, described the emotional toll of losing their matriarch: "Tanesha went from speaking to her mother every day to not speaking to her – to attempting to dial a number and knowing that her mother's not there."
As the case unfolds, New York City Health and Hospitals has yet to respond to comments on Vann's death. Haughton is being held at Rikers Island jails and is due back in court Thursday.
The $20 million lawsuit will likely focus on allegations of negligence, inadequate staffing, and a failure to provide adequate care. The case raises questions about the accountability of public hospitals and the measures in place to protect patients from harm.
With Vann's family seeking justice, many are left wondering how such a tragedy could have occurred at a hospital that was supposed to provide safe care.
The family of a 55-year-old woman who was beaten to death by her roommate at a Bronx public hospital is planning to take the city to court, alleging gross negligence and inadequate care. Cynthia Vann's death, which left her in critical condition for over two weeks, has sparked outrage among her loved ones.
According to officials, Vann had been undergoing liver treatment at Lincoln Hospital when she was attacked by her roommate, Racquel Haughton, 44, in September. The attack resulted in severe head trauma, and Vann died shortly after. While Haughton was arrested and charged with manslaughter and assault in October, the family claims that hospital staff failed to protect Vann from the violence and were not forthcoming about the reasons behind her deteriorating condition.
"We intend to litigate this matter and will use every tool at our disposal to uncover the truth about what occurred and the failures that led to Cynthia's tragic death," said John Elefterakis, the family's attorney. "Somebody needs to answer for this."
The family is expected to announce Thursday that they are filing a notice of claim against the city and its hospital agency as the first step in mounting a lawsuit. They allege that staff withheld information about Vann's condition, failed to keep her safe, and were negligent in their duties.
"We would just tell me about her condition medically, but they didn't tell me what was the reason for the head trauma," Tanesha Vann, Cynthia's daughter, previously told Gothamist. "When I found out she was in emergency surgery, I was shocked."
The family is struggling to cope with Vann's death and the questions surrounding it. Rev. Kevin McCall, a spokesperson for Vann's loved ones, described the emotional toll of losing their matriarch: "Tanesha went from speaking to her mother every day to not speaking to her – to attempting to dial a number and knowing that her mother's not there."
As the case unfolds, New York City Health and Hospitals has yet to respond to comments on Vann's death. Haughton is being held at Rikers Island jails and is due back in court Thursday.
The $20 million lawsuit will likely focus on allegations of negligence, inadequate staffing, and a failure to provide adequate care. The case raises questions about the accountability of public hospitals and the measures in place to protect patients from harm.
With Vann's family seeking justice, many are left wondering how such a tragedy could have occurred at a hospital that was supposed to provide safe care.
this is just heartbreaking... 55 yrs old woman beaten to death by her own roommate in a public hospital... it's like something straight out of a horror movie 
️. I feel so bad for the family, especially Tanesha and her other loved ones who are still trying to process everything 
. The fact that hospital staff allegedly withheld info about Cynthia's condition and failed to keep her safe is just devastating 
. $20 million lawsuit might not bring back Cynthia, but it could help ensure that this never happens again 
. NYC needs to take a hard look at its hospitals' policies and procedures to prevent such tragedies in the future 
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. And the fact that hospital staff didn't even have the decency to tell you what happened or why she was in emergency surgery? Unbelievable 
. The city is gonna get slammed with a $20 million lawsuit, and rightfully so 
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Can't believe another one of these cases where it's clear hospitals are more interested in covering their own behinds than actually taking care of patients... I mean, $20 million is a decent start, but I'm sure the Vann family will be able to get a much bigger settlement 
. It's just so frustrating when you think about all the times hospitals have been able to "find" problems with staff only after someone has gotten hurt or worse... like in this case, where they were allegedly withholding info from the family 
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and she's still strugglin to cope w/ the loss 
. The fact that hospital staff didn't keep her safe or tell her mom what was goin on is just horrific 
. Hospitals r supposed to provide a safe space for patients, not put 'em in harm's way 
shouldnt there be more checks and balances in place to prevent such tragedies from happening again? 
i wish there was more information about what happened inside the hospital, so we can learn from it and make sure something like this never happens again 
Not anyone who should be there, that's for sure.
. The $20 million lawsuit will likely shed more light on the systemic failures that led to Vann's tragic death, and serve as a catalyst for meaningful change 
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this is a total fail on the part of NY hospitals. they cant just sit back and watch someone get beat up in their own home... how hard is it to protect ppl from harm? 
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. The city needs to take responsibility for this and fix the system, not just pay a settlement 
and I started thinking about how we always hear about these amazing breakthroughs in science, but nobody ever talks about the impact on the people living there who actually have to deal with it. Like, what if they can't even visit the places where this stuff is found? What does that do to their mental health? 
anyway what was the deal with Racquel Haughton? like why did she attack her roommate in the hospital?? 
my little brother got into a fight at school once and it was so scary but luckily he's okay now 
hospitals are supposed to be places of healing not harm 
we need to make sure something like this never happens again