Hooks

FACTS AND PROCEDURE

On February 21, 2009, Stephanie Hooks (Mrs. Hooks) was experiencing shortness of breath. Her daughter called 911 to summon aid. The requested ambulance was overdue at the Hooks residence, and members of the family described Mrs. Hooks’s shortness of breath over the phone with a 911 dispatcher. The family also expressed frustration that it was taking the ambulance so long to arrive. The dispatcher repeated that the ambulance was on its way. When paramedics arrived, they immediately asked Alvin Hooks about her health. Mrs. Hooks told the paramedics that she could not breathe, and she appeared to be gasping for air. Paramedics did not administer oxygen. Although they took Mrs. Hooks’s blood pressure, they did not administer other tests including an electrocardiogram (EKG) and pulse oximeter. Paramedics dropped Mrs. Hooks as they carried her out of her house. Paramedics transported her to a hospital, where two days later Mrs. Hooks was declared brain dead. Dr. Randy Hawkins, a physician licensed in internal medicine and pulmonary and critical care testified for appellant. Dr. Hawkins had practiced for 27 years, and had treated hundreds of pulmonary embolism cases.…