Premises Injury Lawsuit Against Marietta Hospital Alleges Sexual Assaults
A Marietta hospital is being sued by 7 women who allege that they were sexually assaulted by hospital employees.
Six of the plaintiffs were patients at WellStar Kennestone Hospital in Marietta, while the seventh woman was visiting the hospital when the assaults took place between December 2006 and June 2008. The premises injury lawsuit accuses 3 former employees Eugene Ellis, Rafael Telles, and Eric Robinson of “harming patients, attempt to harm patients, improperly placing themselves in contact with patients, and entering patient’s room in violation of hospital policies and protocols”. Telles, who has 4 complaints against him, is also facing criminal charges filed in July alleging that he groped a female patient post surgery. Ellis also faces charges after 3 women complained to police about being groped on the hospital premises. His therapist license has been suspended. The hospital, in a damage control statement, stated that all its employees undergo thorough background verification, including criminal checks before they become WellStar employees.
WellStar, in this instance, was responsible for providing a safe and secure environment for patients and visitors. Georgia law requires premises owners to make sure that visitors, guests, patrons and patients are safe on the property. This can include not just safety from falls and other accidents on the property, but also protection from rape and sexual assault. An assault can result when a property owner fails to thoroughly screen its employees before hiring them. For instance, female patients in a hospital are always going to be around male employees, and it's imperative that these men are strictly screened before they are allowed to be in a position where they can harm female patients. A facility can also fail to provide security to visitors by having improperly trained and insufficient numbers of security personnel in charge of visitor and guest security. The property should also be equipped with security equipment such as cameras and phones that can help a victim in danger to call for emergency assistance. Common areas like stairways and parking areas should be properly lit to prevent attacks and assaults on tenants and visitors.
When an owner or occupier of land fails to exercise reasonable care to make its premises safe, and a person is attacked or assaulted as a result, victims can file a lawsuit with the help of a premises liability attorney. The biggest hurdle in such assault cases can be the reluctance of victims to come forward to file a lawsuit against the persons who were responsible for their horrific ordeal. It's important to understand that Atlanta Georgia premises liability attorneys frequently handle such cases and can recover compensation of the medical expenses, lost wages and physical and emotional pain. Lawsuits also increase the likelihood that property owners will change their behavior to protect people in the future.
