Ambulette Company Sued Over Death of Prominent Surgeon
By Daniel Hawn
Published on November 29, 2005
The family of a New York breast cancer surgeon who was run over and killed by an ambulette is suing the driver and the ambulette company for wrongful death.
Dr. Jeanne A. Petrek was one of the nation's leading breast cancer surgeons. She was a pioneering researcher and served as director of the surgical program at the Evelyn H. Lauder Breast Center at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan.
On April 11, as she crossed the street near her Manhattan office, Petrek was struck by an ambulette as it turned the corner. Petrek was taken to a hospital where she passed away several hours later.
Petrek's widower, Jeffrey M. Duban, recently filed a wrongful death suit in state Supreme Court in Brooklyn against the driver of the vehicle and the ambulette company, American Medical Response. The civil lawsuit alleges negligence in Petrek's death on the part of the defendants.
Although the lawsuit does not specify the amount of damages it seeks, Duban's attorney said that based on Petrek's future earning potential as a leading breast cancer specialist, the amount will likely exceed $20 million.
The ambulette driver, Sonia Delgado-Baretto, was served with a summons for not giving way to a pedestrian, however she has not been charged with any criminal counts. Neither Delgado-Baretto nor the New Haven, Connecticut regional headquarters of American Medical Response could be contacted for discussion of the case.
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