Griffin v. Jacobi Medical Center

CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedAugust 22, 2025
Docket1:21-cv-08247
StatusUnknown

This text of Griffin v. Jacobi Medical Center (Griffin v. Jacobi Medical Center) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Griffin v. Jacobi Medical Center, (S.D.N.Y. 2025).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK --------------------------------------- X : GARY GRIFFIN, : : Plaintiff, : 21cv8247 (DLC) : -v- : OPINION AND : ORDER THE CITY OF NEW YORK, et al., : : Defendants. : : --------------------------------------- X

APPEARANCES:

For plaintiff:

Kenneth J. Gorman Getz & Braverman 172 East 161st Street Bronx, NY 10451

For defendants Jacqueline Mahal, Darnell A. Cain, Charles Ofori-Ampomah, Jermine Ricketts, and Styve Pamphile:

Adi Halevi Jonathan D. Rubin Kaufman Borgeest & Ryan LLP 875 Third Avenue New York, NY 10022

For defendants the City and New York and the New York City Police Department:

KellyAnne Holohan New York City Law Department 100 Church Street New York, NY 10007

DENISE COTE, District Judge: Plaintiff Gary Griffin claims that his constitutional rights were violated when he was forced to undergo medical treatment at Jacobi Medical Center following a car accident. He has sued doctors and nurses who treated him, the City of New York, the New York City Police Department, and unnamed individual defendants. The defendants have moved for summary judgment. For the following reasons, those motions are granted.

Background The following facts are taken from the evidence submitted in connection with the motions for summary judgment. Unless otherwise noted, the facts are undisputed or taken in the light most favorable to the plaintiff. At 2:58 a.m. on December 15, 2018, Griffin was in the backseat of a taxi that was rear-ended while he was commuting in the Bronx. Evidence in the record, including Griffin’s hospital

records, reflects that Griffin injured his head, back, and knee during the accident. The only contrary evidence is Griffin’s testimony in his November 22, 2024 deposition. In his deposition, Griffin testified that he did not hit his head during the accident, and that only his back and knee were injured. He also denied losing consciousness or feeling lightheaded at the time of the accident. But that deposition testimony is contradicted by Griffin’s own prior testimony in a hearing that was held on June 17, 2019 pursuant to New York General Municipal Law § 50-h.

2 There, Griffin repeatedly testified that the accident caused him to hit the front of his head on the seat in front of him, resulting in a “head injury.” He also testified that he “blacked out when the car was hit,” and then felt “dizzy” and had a “severe headache.” Griffin was unable to walk after the accident. EMS arrived

on the scene, placed him on a stretcher, and transported him by ambulance to the Jacobi Medical Center emergency department. He arrived there at 4:03 a.m. The hospital records reflect that he was triaged between 4:35 a.m. and 4:47 a.m., at which time he rated his pain as an 8 out of 10 and stated that he had not lost consciousness during the accident. It was also noted during triage that there had been moderate damage to the vehicle and that the airbag did not deploy. He was classified as “Class 3,” meaning that he was ill but in stable condition and did not need immediate treatment. Griffin was left to wait in a hospital bed in the emergency

department before receiving further treatment. During that time, he recorded two videos on his phone, which is not allowed. The first of these is a 1 minute and 27 second video in which Griffin states that it has been an hour since he arrived at the hospital and repeatedly complains that the hospital is denying him care. In the second video, which is 2 minutes and 43

3 seconds, Griffin notes that the time is 5:10 a.m. and again complains that he is not receiving treatment. At some point while waiting, Griffin fell asleep. Griffin appears to have been seen by a nurse by 6:05 a.m. Resident emergency medicine physician Dr. Darnell A. Cain evaluated Griffin. The hospital records reflect that during Dr.

Cain’s evaluation, Griffin told him he had lost consciousness during the accident -- the opposite of what Griffin had said during triage. Dr. Cain observed a small central forehead hematoma and midline spinal tenderness to palpation. Despite previously complaining about a lack of medical treatment, Griffin now refused to participate in Dr. Cain’s evaluation and refused to change into a hospital gown. Griffin has testified that Dr. Cain indicated that he could be discharged without further treatment. Dr. Cain also noted that Griffin was “combative” and “threatening,” and had been “cursing.” Other hospital staff

made similar observations. At 6:05 a.m., Charles Ofori-Ampomah, a nurse, noted that Griffin was “agitated,” had “punched a wall in the ED,” and had stated that he was going to sue the hospital. Ofori-Ampomah also noted that hospital police had been informed that Griffin was recording videos in the emergency room, and he had instructed Griffin to stop doing that.

4 Likewise, in a note started at 7:42 a.m. and completed at 9:51 a.m., Jermine Ricketts, a nurse, stated that Griffin was “agitated and combative” and “uncooperative.” The supervising attending emergency medicine physician, Dr. Jacqueline Mahal, had the ultimate responsibility of deciding whether to approve Griffin’s discharge from the emergency

department. Upon being advised of Griffin’s status, Dr. Mahal assessed that there was a possibility that Griffin was seriously injured. In particular, she assessed that he could be experiencing an intracranial hemorrhage from head trauma, which is a life-threatening brain injury that can cause changes in mental status. The information that Dr. Mahal considered in making that assessment includes the fact that Griffin had been in a car accident, his statement that he had lost consciousness at the time of the accident (after having previously denied that he had lost consciousness), his forehead hematoma, his spinal tenderness to palpation, and changes in behavior that could be

indicative of a change in mental status -- including his agitation, the fact that his description of the accident had changed, and his recent refusal to engage in care. Dr. Mahal determined that the proper course was to conduct a CT scan of Griffin’s head, a CT scan of his spine, and an x-ray of his

5 chest. These radiological tests were necessary to rule out a serious or even fatal injury. Griffin was moved to a room where Dr. Mahal attempted to further evaluate him. But, as with Dr. Cain, Griffin refused to be evaluated and stated that he wished to refuse any further treatment. Generally, when a patient wishes to refuse treatment

in an emergency medicine setting, the custom and practice among emergency medicine physicians is to conduct a face-to-face conversation with the patient to evaluate whether he fully understands the risks of refusing care, including any risk of death. A patient is deemed to have the capacity to refuse care only if he shows that he understands those risks. Dr. Mahal attempted to conduct that customary conversation with Griffin about the risks of refusing treatment, including the possibility that he had a fatal brain injury. Griffin did not engage in that conversation. He did not respond to Dr. Mahal’s questions and, in her opinion, did not demonstrate an

understanding of the risks of refusing care. Dr. Mahal thus concluded that Griffin did not have the mental capacity to appreciate the risks of refusing care, and that he needed to be restrained in order to receive the necessary care. He was sedated with an injection of Versed and Haldol.

6 Griffin used his phone to record part of this interaction in a video, which is 3 minutes and 34 seconds. The video shows Dr. Cain and Dr. Mahal telling Griffin that he must answer questions from Dr. Mahal in order to refuse medical treatment, and Dr. Mahal attempting to engage with him. Griffin is agitated. He repeatedly interjects that he is refusing

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Bolmer v. Oliveira
594 F.3d 134 (Second Circuit, 2010)
Rojas v. Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester
660 F.3d 98 (Second Circuit, 2011)
Kulak v. City of New York
88 F.3d 63 (Second Circuit, 1996)
Southerland v. City of New York
680 F.3d 127 (Second Circuit, 2012)
Tenenbaum v. Williams
193 F.3d 581 (Second Circuit, 1999)
Anthony v. City of New York
339 F.3d 129 (Second Circuit, 2003)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
Griffin v. Jacobi Medical Center, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/griffin-v-jacobi-medical-center-nysd-2025.