Watch New bodycam Footage shows moment shocked staff saw comatose patient give birth (Full Video)
New footage from a body camera has captured the startling moment when staff members at an Arizona nursing home were visibly shocked upon discovering that a comatose patient had given birth. The woman, who had been in a long-term coma, unexpectedly delivered a baby, causing surprise and distress among the Hacienda HealthCare employees who checked her diaper and saw the baby’s head.
This 29-year-old woman, who had been in a vegetative state for years, was revealed to have been sexually assaulted by a nurse prior to the unexpected delivery in December 2018. Nathan Sutherland, aged 37, was arrested on charges of sexual assault and abuse of vulnerable adults after his DNA matched that of the newborn, who survived.
The newly obtained body camera footage, obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, also shows police present in the room with the victim. However, the video quality is poor, and the mother and her newborn cannot be clearly seen. A nurse is heard on the footage notifying a police officer about the imminent birth.
Additionally, the video depicts police attempting to determine who had access to the room, with inquiries about medical records, doctors, nurses, and visitor logs over the past nine months. Staff members indicated that it was a women-only care area, suggesting that no men should have entered the room.
Surprisingly, nobody suspected Sutherland, even to the extent that one of the parents of another patient at the facility expressed relief when he was on duty, believing their child was safe with him. A former employee struggled to reconcile her perception of Sutherland with the shocking reality of his actions and even contemplated contacting him in jail. The woman who was raped and impregnated by Sutherland has been in a comatose state since a near-drowning incident at the age of three.