During a press conference, Adolphus’ brother said hospital staff told him a false story of his sister’s passing at a store two blocks away.
Waukegan hospital requests coroner to be cut from death investigation
Wednesday, January 29, 2025 11:20PM
Chelsea Adolphus, 28, died after being locked on a roof of Vista Medical Center East for seven hours.
WAUKEGAN, Ill. (WLS) — The family of Chelsea Adolphus filed a wrongful death lawsuit against a Waukegan hospital, attorney Ben Crump said.
Chelsea Adolphus, 28, was identified as the woman who died at Vista Medical Center East last week.
Preliminary autopsy results show she died of hypothermia after she was locked out of the hospital, according to Lake County, Illinois Coroner Jennifer Banek.
Crump said the lawsuit was filed against the hospital on the basis of premise liability, negligence and medical malpractice.
Paul Adolphus Jr., Chelsea’s brother, said hospital staff told him a false story about his sister’s passing at a Family Dollar two blocks away.
He found out that she had frozen to death on the roof of the hospital via social media posts.
Relatives said she had gone to the hospital for a relatively minor medical issue and was due to be discharged soon.
It’s not clear how she got on the roof of Vista Medical Center. Investigators said the door to the roof locked from the outside.
RELATED | Woman found on Waukegan hospital roof dies, coroner says cause was hypothermia
Vista Medical Center East CEO Kevin Spiegel also held a press conference Wednesday regarding the death investigation of Adolphus.
On Monday, Banek held a press conference voicing concerns on the hospital’s ability to care for patients. Banek is a former employee of the hospital.
“It is important to work in a detail collaborative and expedient manner. Not only out of the respect for the family, but also the sake of our community trust,” Spiegel said.
The CEO was accompanied by dozens of hospital staff showing their support.
Spiegel shared concerns that Banek’s actions are “retaliatory” and accused her comments of being inaccurate.
The CEO said the hospital filed a request to the court for an emergency injunction to have Banek removed from the investigation.
“Vista Health System expect a thorough, fair and unbiased investigation to be conducted in order to bring clarity and closure to this heartbreaking situation,” Spiegel said.
READ ALSO | Woman dies after being found on roof of Waukegan hospital, officials say; family pleads for answers
Copyright © 2025 WLS-TV. All Rights Reserved.
Related Topics
Death Investigation
Top Stories
During a press conference, Adolphus’ brother said hospital staff told him a false story of his sister’s passing at a store two blocks away.
Discover more from World Byte News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
