Woman is suing hospital, claiming it lost her daughter's body for a year
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KCRA) – Ginger Congi, of California, is mourning the loss of her daughter Jessie Peterson.
She said her daughter was bubbly, energetic and loved people.
Peterson suffered with Type I diabetes and was regularly treated at Mercy San Juan Medical Center. Congi said she was last admitted to the hospital in April of 2023.
Congi said her daughter wanted to leave the hospital and come home, but she told her to stay.
“I told her she was in the best place for the best care, she needed to stay put,” Congi said.
Congi called the hospital back a few days later to check on her daughter and she was told Peterson had been discharged.
“They said they didn’t have anybody there by that name, and I asked them to double check because I had just seen her the week before and spoken to her on the telephone,” Congi said. “The man on the phone said, ‘We don’t have anybody here by that name.’”
With no information on her daughter being at the hospital, Congi filed a missing persons report.
She spent the next year looking for Peterson, putting flyers of her all across town in hopes of finding her daughter.
In April, a detective informed the family Peterson’s body was found at the hospital and was transferred to a cold storage facility.
Marc Greenberg, the family’s attorney, is now suing the hospital for negligence.
“He was bound and required by California law to issue a death certificate within 15 hours and contact the family or next of kin. He did neither,” Greenberg said. “So, the death certificate we have, he did not complete. Instead of 15 hours, he completed it 360-some odd days after her death.”
Dignity Health issued the following statement in response to the lawsuit:
“We extend our deepest sympathies to the family during this difficult time. We are unable to comment on pending litigation.”
“I have absolutely no faith in your hospital and the care for patients. You’ve lost that from me,” Congi said.
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