NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — The family of Cynthia Vann, who was allegedly beaten to death by her hospital roommate while receiving treatment at NYC Health + Hospitals/Lincoln earlier this fall, announced on Thursday that they are suing the hospital for the sum of $20 million as they investigate the circumstances of the killing.
"I haven't heard anything from the hospital about anything," Vann's mother Rosemary said at a press conference. "We can get it out of them, and get it straight. And I want people to know it because it could happen to anybody else's child or themselves."
Vann, 55, was in the hospital for liver treatment on Sept. 27 when police said she was beaten by fellow patient Racquel Haughton, 44. The beating left Vann in critical condition for two weeks before she died of her injuries.
The death was ruled a homicide, and Haughton was later arrested and charged with manslaughter. However, the Vann family—who only found out about the attack after she had emergency head surgery for the trauma—still thinks there's a lack of clarity around their loved one's murder.
"To have somebody beat on you in the middle of the night, and there's no nurses around, no doctors around, where's the staff that's supposed to be making their rounds," Vann's brother Melvin said.
When reached for comment, NYC Health + Hospitals/Lincoln said that it "is committed to the safety of its patients, staff, and visitors."
"We will not let this get swept under the rug, we're here to be the consequence of what happen's when injustice occurs," the family's attorney John Elefterakis said.