Sunrise, Florida – The family of an elderly woman who died during a medical emergency in Sunrise has filed a federal lawsuit claiming that the way emergency workers and hospital staff handled the situation was wrong and that they violated her civil rights and discriminated against her race.
Calvin Allen Sr. filed the case in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. It is about the death of his mother, Ethel C. Allen, on July 4, 2024. She was 87 years old. The City of Sunrise, Sunrise Fire Rescue workers, the fire chief, Florida Medical Center, and an emergency department doctor are all named as defendants in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleges that Allen had congestive heart failure for a long time and relied on an implanted pacemaker-defibrillator to keep her heart rhythm regular. While she was visiting family in Sunrise, she stopped responding at a home, which led to a 911 call. Police and emergency medical services were there in minutes…