Judge allows suit alleging that hospital ignored parents and performed fetal autopsy without consent

By RANDALL CHASE
Associated Press

DOVER, Del. (AP) — A Delaware judge has refused to dismiss a lawsuit alleging that a hospital system performed an autopsy on a 16-week-old fetus despite the parents refusing to give their consent. The judge denied a motion this week by Christiana Care to dismiss a claim of intentional infliction of emotional distress filed by Maryland residents Meredith and Brandon Boas. Attorneys for the hospital system argued that performing a fetal autopsy without consent and against the express wishes of the parents is not “beyond all possible bounds of decency.” The lawsuit says Meredith Boas was admitted to the hospital in May 2021 after experiencing fluid leakage. The lawsuit say she chose to induce labor and told hospital officials she wanted her baby to remain “whole and intact.”