A Santa Maria family is considering filing a lawsuit based on their belief that Michael Jackson's presence at Marian Medical Center earlier this month may have contributed to the death of a family member.

Attorney James McKiernan of San Luis Obispo said he is waiting to receive and review medical records from the hospital before the family decides how to proceed.

Manuela Gomez Ruiz, 73, was in what her family describes as the trauma unit of Marian's emergency room when Jackson arrived, according to McKiernan. Ruiz had suffered a heart attack and was on a ventilator and in stable but critical condition, according to the family, McKiernan said.

Jackson, who is facing child-molestation charges, arrived at Marian Feb. 15 complaining of flu-like symptoms. Jury selection for the trial was temporarily halted while Jackson stayed at the hospital.

Ruiz died the same day.

The family claims that when Jackson arrived in the emergency room, Ruiz was moved to make room for him. She apparently was taken off the ventilator and switched to a manual ventilator while being transported first to a temporary room, then to the critical care unit.

Ruiz died some hours later, McKiernan said.

The family believes Ruiz should have remained in the trauma unit, and that she was displaced by Jackson, who they claim had an entourage of 20 to 30 people with him in the hospital.

"Any reasonable person in the situation with a loved one would be upset about what would appear to be a violation of hospital rules," McKiernan said.

The hospital issued a statement expressing sympathy for the family's loss. However, it stated "patient privacy laws and strict hospital policy protecting the privacy of our patients preclude us from commenting on the specifics of an individual patient's case.

"Our hospital has established procedures in place to help ensure that our high-quality care standards are maintained at all times and circumstances," the statement said.

Family members declined to comment for this story, but apparently did talk to ABC News. The family apparently told the network that Ruiz's heart was functioning at 30 percent and other organs were failing. Family members said Ruiz suffered two more heart attacks before she died.

Ruiz's medical records were not obtained by the Times; hospital officials said the records could not be released without the family's permission.

ABC reported that Maria Elena Ortiz, daughter of the deceased woman, said she was in the room when Jackson came in. Ortiz said she was there when her mother was moved and objected, the network reported.

"Why does she have to be moved if he's coming in for a stomach flu?" Ortiz said to ABC. "I said, 'My mother just had a heart attack and I think it's more critical than a stomach flu.' They didn't say anything."

The network said family members feel the chaos caused by Jackson's arrival distracted staff and robbed them of time with the family matriarch. Ruiz was placed in a smaller room where only two visitors could attend at a time.

Marcos Meraz, a grandson of Ruiz, said Friday that the family believes hospital treatment should be given by medical necessity-- despite the person's economic status or celebrity.

"I wouldn't want anybody else to go through what we're going through," he said. "Hospitals should be equal."

He believes other patients' families may have been upset at a lack of treatment and hopes they too will come forward, too.

Jackson's publicist, Raymone Bain, issued a statement calling the ABC report biased.

"Michael Jackson sends his condolences to the family of the deceased. However, it is outrageous that Michael Jackson's name would be invoked into a situation of which he had no authority or control. He was a patient himself. It appears that ABC is deliberate in its attempt to circumvent Michael Jackson from receiving a fair trial," the statement read.

Ruiz is survived by seven children, 23 grandchildren, 26 great-grandchildren and two sisters.

* Staff writer Erin Carlyle can be reached at 739-2218 or by e-mail at ecarlyle@pulitzer.net.

Feb. 26, 2005

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