The Columbus City Council approved spending $1.125 million in taxpayer money to settle a wrongful-death lawsuit against the city at Monday night’s council meeting.
It is one of the largest settlements in city history.
The suit, which spawned a nearly four-year court battle, came after two Columbus Division of Fire paramedics delayed proper treatment of a 76-year-old woman in cardiac arrest.
Sonia Bray was getting an MRI in January 2011 when she began showing signs of cardiac arrest, including trouble breathing and chest pain, according to accounts from medical personnel at the MRI facility on Bethel Road.
James Amick and James Hingst, the Columbus paramedics who were dispatched to the scene, did not meet Bray’s complaints with any sense of urgency, officials said. The two men stalled for almost a half-hour, at one point discussing the pot roast that awaited them back at the fire station and suggesting that Bray’s son, a Columbus police sergeant, transport her to the hospital in his personal vehicle.
The paramedics did not assess Bray during their first 15 minutes with her, said Michael Halloran, an assistant city attorney, and did not begin treating her until 26 minutes had passed.
Amick and Hingst eventually took Bray to the hospital, but she lost consciousness on the way. Bray died two days later.
Medical professionals at the MRI facility, Bray’s attorneys and Fire Chief Kevin O’Connor had expressed concern with the paramedics’ handling of the situation. The Fire Division has since implemented training programs for paramedics so no situation catches them off-guard, said George Speaks, director of public safety.
“The city recognizes this is a tragic case,” Speaks said, “but it is not at all representative of the excellent care delivered to our patients on a daily basis.”
Amick and Hingst received counseling and retraining. Speaks called that response “inadequate,” and Councilwoman Priscilla Tyson agreed the punishment should have been more severe.
Amick is now under investigation for allowing his paramedic certification to expire three times in the past decade, though it was not expired at the time of Bray’s death.
Although the settlement amount was initially estimated at $1.2 million, the city approved a final amount of $1.125 million Monday night.
The city council approved several other measures at Monday’s meeting, including one that pushed a $950 million bond package onto the Nov. 8 ballot.
Nearly half of the money included in the bond package would go toward water and sanitation improvements. The remainder would be distributed among the Columbus Recreation and Parks, Public Safety and Public Service departments.
The bond is not expected to cause a tax increase, said City Auditor Hugh Dorrian.
The council also approved paying attorneys’ fees in the lawsuit that Ohio State University student Joseph Hines won against Columbus Police Officer Thomas DeWitt.
A jury found that DeWitt had used excessive force when arresting Hinesfor an open-container charge in August 2012. A jury awarded Hines $30,000 in September 2015. The attorneys’ fees approved Monday were just shy of $100,000.
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