Two emergency medical technicians accused of refusing to help a dying pregnant woman are "inhuman," her mother said Tuesday. A lawyer for the EMTs argued his clients are being vilified in a rush to judgment.
Cynthia Rennix, the mother of 25-year-old Eutisha Revee Rennix, told The Associated Press that the EMTs shouldn't have taken the jobs if they weren't willing to get involved.
"These are people who are supposed to take a minute to be concerned," she said.
But lawyer Douglas Rosenthal said the facts will show that Jason Green and Melissa Jackson acted "appropriately" at the Au Bon Pain outlet in Brooklyn on Dec. 9.
Workers told to call 911
The two were at the eatery when Eutisha Rennix, an employee, collapsed. Witnesses have said the EMTs told workers to call 911, then left when they were asked to help the 25-year-old woman.
Rennix died at a hospital shortly afterward, her baby too premature to survive.
Her mother said she never could have imagined that an emergency services worker would refuse to help someone.
"You are very inhuman; you don't need to have a job like you do," she said.
Fire Department spokesman Steve Ritea said that all FDNY members "take an oath to assist others whenever they're in need of emergency medical care. It's their sworn duty."
Rennix said she has yet to decide whether she is going to take any legal action. She is taking care of her daughter's 3-year-old son.
Rosenthal, the EMTs' lawyer, said that he has known Green for years and that "he's a good guy."
The Fire Department on Monday suspended Green, a six-year member, and Jackson, a four-year member, without pay. The department is investigating, as is the state Department of Health, which oversees the emergency medical services system. A criminal probe is also under way.