Fake Power of Attorney resulting in death.

[Eileen94]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California.

Issue: My mother died three weeks ago after my sister made misrepresentations to the hospital that she had Power of Attorney. My mother was being treated for heart problems, and my sister ordered them to withhold life-saving treatment. My sister lives in another state, and did this secretly, waiting until our mother was dead to even tell me she'd been hospitalized.

I sent the police to the hospital where my mother's body was (I am 12 hours away) and they verified that the hospital had NO record or evidence of Power of Attorney. My sister never had it. So my mother's life was cut short, unnecessarily, just on the word of my addict sister who didn't want to have to face a parent having an extended illness. I even had to get a court order for the hospital to release my mother's remains. My mother's premature death with completely preventable. What remedies do I have against the hospital and my sister?

 

[CdwJava]

You can advise the police and consult an attorney. Without knowing the facts, no one can say whether your sister's claims would have changed the outcome or not. Whether a crime was committed or not depends on what was said and what was done. Likewise, whether the hospital or your sister did anything wrong depends on what was said and what was done.

So, speak with the police and they may look into any potential criminal activity, and also speak with an attorney to find out what civil remedies may be available to you.

 

[Proserpina]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California.

Issue: My mother died three weeks ago after my sister made misrepresentations to the hospital that she had Power of Attorney. My mother was being treated for heart problems, and my sister ordered them to withhold life-saving treatment. My sister lives in another state, and did this secretly, waiting until our mother was dead to even tell me she'd been hospitalized.

I sent the police to the hospital where my mother's body was (I am 12 hours away) and they verified that the hospital had NO record or evidence of Power of Attorney. My sister never had it. So my mother's life was cut short, unnecessarily, just on the word of my addict sister who didn't want to have to face a parent having an extended illness. I even had to get a court order for the hospital to release my mother's remains. My mother's premature death with completely preventable. What remedies do I have against the hospital and my sister?

Why do you think your mother's death was preventable?

 

[tranquility]

Sister committed a crime and also a tort against mother and, probably against you as well. However, I find it unlikely a hospital would remove care from a person on the say so of an out of state power of attorney without proof unless it was what the doctors thought best anyway. That means that the damages one could sue for are slight.

As to the crime, any one of a number of things could be charged depending on the specific facts. I don't think you want to go there. Not only would it be problematical to prosecute, but also, it might be hard to get some governmental agency interested without more.

Your sister hurt you. Of that, I have no doubt. I don't know why she did what she did, but, I also don't think she killed your mother.

 

[CdwJava]

I'm not sure there is any proof, yet, of whether the sister DID anything. Having had to deal with my own father's lengthy illness and eventual passing, I know that there is often some miscommunication that occurs when speaking to someone in hospital admin or the nursing staff as to what someone else said or did. They might have received some order and for whatever reason believed it was because the sister had allegedly exercised some power of attorney when, in fact, no such claim had been made.

I would doubt that the hospital would act on any claim for a DNR or even a power of attorney absent some written proof.

 

[tranquility]

Having gone through the same thing with my wife, I agree. I only took the OP's words as literally true in that:

sister made misrepresentations to the hospital that she had Power of Attorney

my sister ordered them to withhold life-saving treatment

did this secretly

, waiting until our mother was dead to even tell me she'd been hospitalized

addict sister who didn't want to have to face a parent having an extended illness

I completely agree there are a lot of facts to discover what crime(s) occurred and what actually happened.