JESSAMINE COUNTY, Ky. — A civil case against a former Jessamine County EMT accused of violating patient privacy has been moved to federal court.
A lawsuit filed June 1 alleges EMT Michael E. Johnson began sending unsolicited text messages to a patient after providing her medical treatment during a transport from the scene of a car crash in November 2014, the Jessamine Journal reports.
The text messages led to a domestic incident between the woman and her husband, according to the suit.
Johnson was terminated from JCEMS following an internal investigation, which also resulted in a self-report to the Kentucky Board of EMS.
The case was moved to U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky on June 24 because federal claims were asserted. Johnson’s attorney Bruce Smith said he agreed with the move, and the federal court system can sometimes dispose of this type of case more efficiently than state courts.
“This regards issues of federal law and we just thought it was more appropriate for it to be in federal court than state court,” Smith said.