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Dallas man claims paralysis was result of ambulance crew’s negligence

The plaintiff’s attorney and city officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment

Dallas News

DALLAS — A Dallas man is suing the city, saying a Dallas Fire-Rescue ambulance crew was negligent for refusing to take him to the hospital three times in a day after he called them because he could not feel his legs. Walter Beattie was transported to the hospital too late, he claims in a lawsuit filed this week in a Dallas County court, and his permanent paralysis was a direct result of the crew’s negligence.

The plaintiff’s attorney and city officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Beattie could not be reached.
In early February 2011, Beattie was discharged from Baylor Regional Medical Center in Plano after being hospitalized for nearly two months with a “critical cardiac condition,” according to court documents.

Later that month, Beattie woke up, feeling numbness in his legs. He was unable to walk and called 911 to request an ambulance transport him to the hospital, about two miles from his home. A Dallas Fire-Rescue crew arrived but refused to take Beattie to the hospital. “The crew stated that because Beattie’s ‘vital signs’ were ‘stable’ they would not transport him,” according to the lawsuit.

Full story: Dallas man sues city, claims paralysis was result of ambulance crew’s negligence