EMS Mistakenly Declare Women Dead

Jenny Albano

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On Sunday, December 16, a drunk driver hit another vehicle in San Antonio and injured all three passengers. Medical personnel originally thought one of the passengers, Erica Smith, had been killed by the accident.

Jenny Ybarra was driving drunk the wrong way down the road when she collided with Smith's vehicle. Ybarra has been charged with three counts of intoxication assault, and the charges could be upgraded if Smith dies.

When emergency personnel and police responded to the scene of the crash, a yellow sheet was draped over Smith, a normal practice by EMS at the scene of a fatality. But when the Bexar County Medical Examiner's Office responded to claim the body, investigators found Smith to still be alive.

EMS had to return to the scene of the accident and have Smith transported to a local hospital. Two hours had passed since the time of the accident before Smith was taken to a hospital, where doctors labeled her in critical condition. The medical personnel who falsely labeled Smith as dead are under review.

For more information on this subject, please refer to our section on Medical Malpractice and Negligent Care.