Margot Tortolani

Utah Nurse's Arrest Prompts Police Apology

Summary: On July 26 a car crash took place leaving one victim dead and the other in a coma in the burn unit at the University of Utah Hospital. Although the victim in a coma was not a suspect in the investigation of the incident, the police did ask for his blood to be drawn. Alex Wubbels, the charge nurse in the burn unit, refused to let said officers draw his blood. Wubbels even printed out the hospital policy on drawing blood and gave it to the officers. According to the policy, they did not have the means to draw the victim's blood. They needed either the patient's consent, a judge's order, or for the patient to be under arrest to collect his blood. The nurse claims she was just following the policy and was doing what she was "supposed to do".  Wubbel's attorney said the University and the Salt Lake City police had both given their consent to the policy over a year earlier and "the officers here appeared to be unaware of" such. 

Wubbels was forced out of the hospital and into a police car screaming, "I've done nothing wrong! Why is this happening?". Wubbels was later released without a charge after waiting in the police car for several minutes. The Salt Lake City police chief was appalled by what he saw of the incident. (The rift was caught on tape by hospital cameras.) A criminal investigation has been opened by the department, and the offending officers have been placed on full administrative leave. Chief Brown said the department has apologized and the policy in place has been replaced with a new one that the officers are now using. The chief's statement didn't mention the policy in effect at the time of Alex Wubbel's arrest, nor did it state why a new policy for the police was needed. 

Wubbels has received personal calls from both the mayor and police chief to apologize for the incident. She felt the apologies were sincere and has decided not to press charges.

Analysis: This article was written by CNN's Melissa Gray and was updated on September 3rd, 2017. CNN's Carolyn Cremen in Atlanta and dan Simon in Salt Lake City contributed to this report as well. This article was written to inform the public, and police, of the policies set in place and the rights of everyday citizens and police officers. This article is important because it shows the risks of not knowing protocol in situations like these. It makes one aware of their rights and jurisdiction. Situations similar to these have happened more than in just this instance. Often authorities, and even normal citizens, can overstep their boundaries. It is important to know the policies which we are to obey and our rights to ensure justice is served.

Link: http://www.cnn.com/2017/09/01/health/utah-nurse-arrest-police-video/index.html