POLICE DETECTIVE ARRESTS, DRAGS SCREAMING NURSE OUT OF HOSPITAL FOR NOT ALLOWING BLOOD TO BE DRAWN FROM UNCONSCIOUS CRASH VICTIM WITHOUT WARRANT
BY HEATHER CLARK
SEE: http://christiannews.net/2017/09/01/police-detective-arrests-drags-screaming-nurse-out-of-hospital-for-not-allowing-blood-to-be-drawn-on-crash-victim-without-warrant/;
republished below in full unedited for informational, educational, and research purposes:
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — A police detective
in Utah is now under investigation after angrily arresting a nurse and
dragging her screaming out of the hospital when she declined to allow
him to withdraw blood from an unconscious crash victim without a
warrant, as per the police department’s agreement with the hospital.
According to reports, on July 26, Utah Highway Patrol was
involved in a chase with driver Marcos Torres, 26, in Cache County after
he was reported for driving recklessly. Torres soon crossed into
oncoming traffic and smashed into a semi head-on, which was driven by
43-year-old William Gray. The truck burst into flames.While Torres died from his injuries on the scene, Gray, who works as a reserve police officer when not driving semis, was transported to University of Utah Hospital, where he was treated for severe burns.
Salt Lake Police Detective Jeff Payne later arrived at the hospital’s burn unit to request samples of Gray’s blood to determine if he had drugs in his system, as directed by another agency. However, on-duty nurse Alex Wubbels explained to Payne that he needed to meet one of three conditions as per the police department’s agreement with the hospital: 1) obtain consent from the patient 2) obtain a warrant or 3) the patient must be under arrest.
As Gray was not under arrest since he was the victim in the incident, and as he was in a comatose state and was therefore not able to give consent, Wubbels outlined to Payne that he would need to obtain an electronic warrant. She proceeded to contact numerous supervisors to ask what to do about the situation.
Becoming unhappy with her answers, Detective Payne repeatedly threatened that he was going to arrest Wubbels and take her to jail.
“I either go away with blood in vials or body in tow,” he warned.
With another staff member at her side to provide assistance, Wubbels soon printed out the hospital policy for blood draws and read it to Payne, advising him that he needs to meet one of the three conditions.
“This is something that you guys agreed to with this hospital,” she explained calmly.
Wubbels also placed one of the supervisors on speaker phone to talk to Payne about the matter himself.
“The patient can’t consent, he’s told me repeatedly that he doesn’t have a warrant, and the patient is not under arrest,” she explained to the supervisor. “I’m just trying to do what I’m supposed to do, that’s all.”
“So, I take it [that] without those in place, I’m not going to get blood. Am I fair to surmise that?” Payne asked.
The supervisor, who advised Wubbels that she was simply relaying the information, then asked Payne why he was “blaming the messenger,” and he replied that it was because she was the one who was denying his request.
The supervisor then warned Payne sternly, “Sir, you’re making a huge mistake because you’re threatening a nurse.”
Payne snapped.
“We’re done!” he declared, grabbing for Wubbels phone. “You’re under arrest!”
She backed away from the officer, but Payne continued to move toward Wubbels and within seconds, he physically grabbed the nurse and forced her out the door.
“Somebody help me! Stop! Stop! I did nothing wrong!” she exclaimed, screaming. “You’re assaulting me! Stop!”
Other hospital employees tried to reason with Payne, who handcuffed Wubbles, but to no avail.
“She’s under arrest,” Payne said.
“For doing her job?” the employee asked.
“I’ve done my job; she’s done hers,” Payne replied.
Watch a video of the incident released by the Salt Lake Tribune here.
Wubbles was released 20 minutes later, and has not been charged with any crime. Payne’s superiors are now investigating, and while he is still on active duty, he has been suspended from the police department’s blood draw program.
According to the Salt Lake Tribune, Payne outlined in a report on the incident that he had been advised by Lt. James Tracy, the commander on duty that evening, to arrest Wubbles for interfering with a police investigation if she declined to allow him to take the blood sample. He said that he had been told that “implied consent” was sufficient.
On Thursday, Wubbles went public for the first time in a press conference, during which she called for better police training. She said that she never told the officer no, but explained what he needed to do under the agreement.
“If they needed blood, then they needed to go through to proper channels to take it,” Wubbles said. “I can’t sit on this video and not attempt to speak out both to re-educate and inform.”
The Salt Lake City Police Department is re-training its officers on the blood collection policy, according to local television station KSL-TV. Watch a police press conference here in which police apologized for the detective’s actions.
The outlet also notes that Wubbles and her attorney are concerned after hearing Payne, who also works as an ambulance driver, stating to another officer that he wondered how the arrest would affect his other job.
“I’ll bring ’em all the transients and take the good patients elsewhere,” he was captured stating on his body camera.
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Arrest of University Hospital nurse Alex Wubbels
Alex Wubbels, a nurse at University Hospital in Salt Lake City, was
arrested after explaining to police that she couldn't draw a blood
sample from an unconscious person. A Salt Lake City police detective
asked for a blood sample. After explaining to the detective that the
police needed a warrant, consent from the unconscious patient or that
the patient needed to be under arrest before the blood sample could be
drawn, she was arrested.
Utah Nurse DRAGGED out of Hospital by Police
'This isn't right"
Police Arrest Nurse in Utah For Refusing To Draw Blood from Unconscious Patient
Nurse Alex Wubbels of Salt Lake City, Utah was arrested at her place of
employment, a hospital, for refusing to draw blood from an unconscious
patient to give to the police. Apparently the police thought she was
interfering with an investigation. But the reality is that she was
following not only the rules of the hospital, but the law of the land.
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, also
known as HIPAA, has clear rules that regulate privacy of patients. Most
of the act is about digital information being distributed, but it also
covers physical information which includes things like blood samples.
The entire incident was captured on police body cam video. Most likely
from onlookers’ cell phones and also hospital surveillance cameras. In
the video, Wubbels is clearly seen showing the police officer what the
law is on a sheet of paper that she had printed out. Blood samples can
only be taken from a patient if there is a warrant, if the patient gives
consent, or if the patient is under arrest. None of those three
requirements were present. Therefore, the police request to get a blood
sample was denied. As a result, the officer seemed to become enraged
and proceeded to arrest the nurse.
Earlier in the week, there had been a high-speed police chase. The
police were after a man named Marcos Torres. As he was in his vehicle
trying to escape police at a high rate of speed, he crashes head-on into
the semi trailer of reserve police officer named William Gray. Torres
dies and Gray becomes severely injured with burns and more.
The police, most likely in an effort to mitigate damages that they may
face when Gray awakes from his coma, want to get his blood sample to
determine if he was under the influence at the time of the crash. Which
is what set the whole unfortunate chain of events up. So in their
effort to minimize their liability in Gray’s recovery, they may have
incurred many more expenses than they would have ever imagined. A
lawsuit will most likely come from the nurse, the hospital, and Gray.
This case does not represent the vast majority of officers who behave in
a proper and correct way. But what it does represent is an example of
when people do the wrong thing.
Mayor, Police Chief RESPOND
TO COP ARRESTING NURSE!
Nurse Alex, Police Unlawful Arrest,
and the Nurse's Oath
