Family Sues Hospital After Woman’s Body Found a Year Later

Sacramento, CA – The family of Jesse Marie Peterson is suing Mercy San Juan Medical Center for negligence after discovering her body in storage nearly a year after her death. Peterson’s family alleges the hospital failed to notify them of her passing and mishandled her remains.

Peterson, who had diabetes since she was 10, went to the hospital on April 6, 2023, because of her condition. On April 8, she called her mom, Ginger Kani, asking to be picked up. Sadly, Peterson died two hours later from heart problems caused by her diabetes.

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When Kani called the hospital on April 11, they told her Peterson had left on her own. Worried, Kani and her other daughters reported Peterson missing. Almost a year later, on April 12, 2024, they found out from the police that Peterson had died the year before.

The hospital had kept Peterson’s body in a cold storage place. They only made her death certificate on April 5, 2024, almost a year late. The law says they should have done this within 15 hours.

The Peterson family’s attorney, Mark Greenberg, stated that the medical center was legally obligated to issue a death certificate and contact the next of kin within 15 hours but failed to do either. Mercy San Juan Medical Center and its parent company, Dignity Health, have not responded to requests for comment but have acknowledged the pending litigation in statements to local news outlets.

Outraged and heartbroken, Kani expressed her anguish, stating, “You can’t steal all my money out the bank and then say sorry if you took a little bit by mistake and then say sorry. I guess we could talk about it, but you don’t wait 361 days, store my daughter’s body in an offsite cold facility, and then say we extend our deepest sympathies to the family during this difficult time.”

The lawsuit, filed on August 7 in Sacramento County, seeks over $5 million in damages and requests a jury trial.

While the hospital assures that they cannot comment on pending litigation, the Peterson family continues to grapple with the devastating emotional toll of not knowing what had happened to Jesse for nearly a year. The story underscores the profound impact of the alleged negligence on the bereaved family and questions the practices of the medical center involved.

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We’ll keep you updated on this story as it develops.”