An 86-year-old woman who had dementia died after being shoved to the floor by another patient in a Brooklyn emergency room.
Cassandra Lundy told police she pushed Janie Marshall because she “got into the defendant’s space” and broke the six feet guideline of personal space recommended to help stem the spread of the coronavirus.
Marshall was allegedly disoriented and grabbed onto Lundy’s IV pole to regain her balance, the New York Times reported. Lundy shoved her, knocking her to the floor. Marshall hit her head and died three hours later.
Lundy, 32, was charged with manslaughter and assault last week after a medical examiner determined the cause of death was homicide.
“We are terribly saddened by this death. We are committed to ensuring a safe, health-focused environment in these very demanding times so our heroic health care workers can continue to deliver the quality, compassionate care New Yorkers need more than ever,” Woodhull Medical and Mental Health Center in Brooklyn said in a statement.
New York leads every country in coronavirus cases, with a total of 159,937 confirmed cases and 7,067 deaths, but Gov. Andrew Cuomo said there had been only 200 net new hospitalizations in 24 hours, the lowest number since the crisis broke out.
The novel coronavirus, which is believed to have originated in Wuhan, China, has infected more than 1.5 million people worldwide and killed more than 94,000, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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