Family Sues Rural Metro for $5 Million Over Mistaken DOA

The parents of a teenager who died in a vehicle accident last year in Tennessee, have filed suit against Rural Metro of Tennessee claiming that responders failed to render aid to him in the mistaken belief he was dead.

Andy Merrell, 14, was pinned inside a vehicle on February 24, 2016, where according to autopsy reports he died of suffocation. The complaint alleges that responders from Rural Metro left him for dead for an extended period of time despite incident reports stating he had a detectable pulse when they arrived. Merrell’s traumatic injuries were non-life threatening and according to his parents prompt extrication would have saved his life.

The suit was filed by Rick Merrell and Amy Merrell, in Knox County Circuit Court and seeks $5 million in damages. The complaint alleges negligence as well as recklessness, and seeks punitive damages.

According to the complaint:

• While traveling east on Emory Road in Corryton, Tennessee, the vehicle was in a single-vehicle accident near the Washington Pike intersection. After the accident, the vehicle came to rest in a ditch facing a culvert.
• At 6:59 p.m., Knox County 911 operators received the first report of the accident. At 7:02 p.m., Rural/Metro Units E233 and 717 were dispatched to the scene of the accident. At 7:10 p.m., Unit E233 arrived at the scene of the accident, and at 7:26 p.m. Unit 717 arrived according to Rural/Metro produced records.
• Upon arrival, first responders found Plaintiff Andrew Merrell pinned in the front passenger seat of the vehicle. The first responders noted that Plaintiff Andrew Merrell was alive and had a detectable pulse.
• First responders improperly categorized Plaintiff Andrew Merrell as presumptively deceased and chose not to extricate him from the vehicle. None of the first responders on the scene had the necessary specialized equipment to perform a vehicle. extrication, and they failed to utilize other responders in the immediate vicinity that could have provided said equipment.
• Defendant’s conduct toward the Plaintiffs was committed in an intentional or reckless manner.
• Defendant was negligent in both its response time to the scene of the accident and failure to render aid to Plaintiff Andrew Merrell.
• Defendant’s negligent, reckless, and wrongful acts and omissions were a direct and legal cause of Plaintiff Andrew Merrell’ s death and the severe emotional distress and physical and mental injuries suffered by Plaintiffs Richard Merrell and Amy Merrell.
• Defendant’s conduct was outrageous and intolerable because it offended generally accepted standards of decency and morality.
• Defendant’s conduct was so outrageous that punitive damages are warranted to deter Defendant and others similarly situated from engaging in such conduct in the future.

Here is a copy of the complaint: Merrell v Rural Metro