New York City Health and Hospitals Faces Lawsuit For Unauthorized Organ Harvesting

New York City Health and Hospitals Accused of Harvesting the Organs of Woman Killed in NYC Train Accident Without the Consent of Her Family — Gersowitz Libo & Korek Files Lawsuit

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK (January 22, 2025) – A Long Island man has filed a lawsuit against New York City Health and Hospitals for harvesting the organs of his deceased mother without consent.

The incident began on May 7, 2022. A 69-year-old woman was tragically hit by an L train by 14th St. in Flatiron. She was taken to New York City Health and Hospitals and declared brain dead.

She didn’t have any ID or belongings on her at the time of the accident. Her family filed a missing person’s report with the Nassau County Police Department on May 8.

The victim’s family went looking for her, but they weren’t able to get information on her whereabouts. They were later contacted by a police detective from the Nassau Police Department.

The officer said that the mother was dead at Bellevue Hospital and that all of her organs have been harvested. Her organs were donated to various research and education purposes.

The victim’s son has since filed a lawsuit against New York City Health and Hospitals. According to the lawsuit, the hospital system was “negligent, reckless and careless” by not identifying her.

Gersowitz Libo & Korek, P.C. represents her son in the lawsuit. Avi Laby is an attorney at the firm handling the case. He told Eyewitness News, “The family deserves justice. They deserve to know what happened, why did it happen.”

Liability for Illegal Organ Harvesting

Organ donations are critical for healthcare in the United States. Unfortunately, much of the organ harvesting that takes place is illegal. According to one study in the National Institutes of Health, “Physicians and other health care professionals seem well placed to play a role in the monitoring and, perhaps, in the curtailment of the trafficking in human beings for the purpose of organ removal. They serve as important sources of information for patients and may have access to information that can be used to gain a greater understanding of organ trafficking networks.” There are several steps that hospitals should take to prevent illegal organ harvesting.

• Hospitals should verify the identities of both donors and recipients through government-issued documentation.
• Hospitals should conduct a thorough medical evaluation of donors and recipients.
• Hospitals should comply with state and federal guidelines for organ transplants.
• Hospital staff should be trained to recognize red flags that may occur in unauthorized organ donations.

When a hospital fails to take reasonable steps to verify the identity of a deceased person and donates the organs, this could form the basis of a civil claim. Families have a legal right to their deceased family member’s body. This is commonly referred to as a right of sepulcher. It is illegal for hospitals to tamper with a deceased person’s body without the expressed consent of their next of kin. Pursuant to Public Health Law – PBH § 4307, “It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly acquire, receive, or otherwise transfer for valuable consideration any part for use in human transplantation.” Victims of illegal organ transplants can seek damages for emotional distress. There are several elements that must be demonstrated in any right of sepulcher claim.

• The plaintiff bringing the claim is the next of kin of the decedent.
• The plaintiff had a legal right to possession of the remains.
• The defendant interfered with the plaintiff’s right to immediate possession of the remains.
• The interference in the case was unauthorized.
• The plaintiff was aware that the interference took place.
• The interference caused the plaintiff to suffer emotional distress.

Hospitals are supposed to take reasonable measures to identify unclaimed bodies. When an accident takes place and the decedent doesn’t have any paperwork, there are still steps that a hospital could take to help identify the person. Among other things, they can work with various law enforcement agencies to search for records of missing persons. They can also help identify any deceased person through dental records. When a hospital acts negligently and performs unauthorized organ harvesting, they could be held liable for the incident.

Investigating Illegal Organ Harvesting in New York City

We at Gersowitz Libo & Korek, P.C. are committed to securing our client a just outcome in this litigation against New York City Health and Hospitals. What happened is an unconscionable violation of trust that should have never taken place. Families have an exclusive right to the remains of their loved one. This cannot be subverted by the will of bureaucrats in a hospital system.

Has a hospital illegally harvested the remains of your loved one? You may have legal recourse. Our team of sepulcher rights attorneys is here to help in any way that we can. We care deeply that people are aware of their rights and that hospitals are following the desires of families. Whether you just have legal questions or are thinking about hiring an attorney, we are here for you. You can reach out to us anytime at (516) 908-9792.