Terrifying surveillance footage shows emergency room patient brutally attacking trauma nurse as she launches $5m lawsuit against hospital: ‘She’s been traumatized’
Shocking surveillance video captured the moment a patient flew into a violent rage at a hospital in Florida.
Rubin Wenyou, 44, can be seen in the footage chasing medical workers through an emergency room before punching a veteran nurse repeatedly, sending her crashing to the floor.
Registered nurse Yanira Eguileor says she was pummeled during the May 30 attack inside Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami.
‘He started punching me in the back of my head,’ Eguileor told WSVN. ‘He punched me a total of three times.’
Another angle from the surveillance footage shows the nurse lying on the floor as staff members converge to restrain the patient.
Eguileor said the attack unfolded so quickly that doctors and other staff were forced to intervene.
‘He threw me to the ground and I hit my head,’ she told WSVN.
‘Doctors and registration people and other co-workers were taking him off of me. I didn’t see security anywhere.’
Surveillance footage shows registered nurse Yanira Eguileor confronting patient Rubin Wenyou, 44, during the violent May 30 incident inside Miami’s Jackson Memorial Hospital’s ER
Wenyou could be seen grappling with Eguileor as the rampage unfolded through the Miami emergency department
Eguileor said Wenyou punched her three times in the back of the head before throwing her to the floor
The terrifying encounter happened inside Jackson Memorial’s recently opened emergency department, which Eguileor’s attorney said cost more than $300 million.
Attorney Michael Pizzi described the surveillance footage as disturbing evidence of what his client endured during what should have been an ordinary shift.
‘It is graphic. It’s frightening,’ Pizzi said on Wednesday.
‘It’s a graphic and horrific video of a career Jackson nurse being brutally, brutally and repeatedly beaten and assaulted and knocked almost unconscious in a vicious assault where she received no security and no protection.’
Eguileor said the attack left her requiring the very medical treatment she normally provides to others.
‘They took me to have CTs of my brain, my neck, my spine,’ she said.
Pizzi said the nurse suffered bruising across her body as well as injuries involving her head, neck, spine and back.
‘She’s been traumatized by this event,’ he said.
Another surveillance angle captures the chaos inside the ER as Wenyou appears to lash out at Eguileor
Eguileor later showed the bruising she says she suffered during the attack, which left her requiring medical treatment at her own workplace
The veteran nurse photographed bruising around her arm and elbow following the terrifying encounter inside Jackson Memorial Hospital
Eguileor says she suffered injuries to her head, neck, spine and back after being punched and knocked to the floor
Despite the ordeal, Eguileor said she still loves working at the hospital but believes far more should have been done to protect employees.
She is now planning a $5 million lawsuit against Jackson Memorial and the county, alleging negligent supervision and inadequate security.
‘Jackson Memorial Hospital did not provide any security whatsoever,’ Pizzi alleged.
Jackson Health disputes the suggestion that the emergency department was left without protection.
The health system said it would not discuss the specific allegations because of the investigation and looming litigation, but insisted security personnel were assigned to the hospital when the incident occurred.
‘We have four dedicated Jackson public safety specialists assigned to the Jackson Memorial emergency room 24 hours a day, seven days a week – including the date of this incident,’ Jackson Health said in a statement.
‘In addition, we have two off-duty Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputies on campus at all times.’
The hospital said its response began almost immediately after the violence erupted.
Rubin Wenyou, 44, initially faced a felony battery charge following the hospital incident, but prosecutors later dropped the case
Doctors and other hospital workers are seen rushing through the emergency department as the violence unfolds
Hospital staff confront Wenyou during the incident, while Eguileor claims she did not see security officers arrive until after she had been attacked
‘Within seconds, the first Jackson Public Safety Officer arrived at the scene, with additional public safety officers responding soon after,’ the statement continued.
‘The employees involved were immediately offered support and care following the incident.’
Pizzi has also filed a whistleblower lawsuit intended to protect Eguileor against alleged retaliation and said he had to sue both the hospital and the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office to obtain the surveillance footage.
The Sheriff’s Office said it does not comment on pending litigation.
Wenyou had been involuntarily detained for a mental-health evaluation before the attack. He was subsequently charged with felony battery over the hospital incident.
But Eguileor said she was stunned to later learn that prosecutors had dropped the charge claiming she had never even been contacted to give her account.
Eguileor said she later discovered that the case had been dropped.
‘Police told victims the state attorney is going to contact you,’ she said. ‘That was June 3rd. No one ever contacted me and then I found out today.’
Pizzi fiercely criticized prosecutors over the handling of the case.
‘You blew it,’ he said. ‘Your job was to meet with the victim and talk to her. You have no concern whatsoever about charging a criminal who goes to a hospital and punches and kicks and beats up nurses.’
The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office says prosecutors did attempt to reach the people who had been attacked but received no response from the victims, leaving them unable to proceed with the case at that time.
The office said the case could be reviewed for possible refiling if appropriate contact information is supplied.
