A Michigan hospital is facing a lawsuit after a 19-year-old woman was hit from behind by a male patient after walking up to the emergency room desk, according to an article on the USA Today website.
The Feb. 10 incident at Beaumont Hospital in Dearborn, Mich., was caught on surveillance video and led to the man's arrest for assault and battery. The woman, who is Muslim, is also suing her assailant for ethnic intimidation. The video shows the man running up behind the woman and striking her in the head with his fist.
The lawsuit alleges the hospital was negligent because the newly discharged patient was roaming the hospital and should have been detained by security until police arrived.
The man had escaped from a group home showing signs of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and was admitted into the hospital for not taking his medication. He was then discharged and was roaming the hospital, asking people for cigarettes and change.