A Salt Lake City police officer forcibly arrested a Utah nurse after she refused to provide a blood sample from an unconscious patient, The Associated Press reports.
The nurse, Alex Wubbels, and her attorneys released dramatic video from the day of her arrest, July 26. The evidence prompted prosecutors to call for a criminal investigation. The officer, Detective Jeff Payne, who arrested the nurse was put on paid leave Friday.
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“This cop bullied me. He bullied me to the utmost extreme,” Wubbels said in an interview with The Associated Press. “And nobody stood in his way.”
Wubbels adhered to her training and followed hospital protocols to protect the rights of the unconscious patient who could not speak for himself.
The patient, William Gray, is a semi-truck driver who was hit by a pickup truck trying to flee from the police. When the pickup driver hit the semi, it immediately burst into flames.
Wubbels told the police officers that they cannot get the blood sample based on three criteria: they did not have a warrant for the blood, the patient did not give consent, and the patient was not under arrest.
“You can’t just take blood if you don’t have a legitimate concern for something to be tested,” Wubbels said. “It is the most personal property I think that we can have besides our skin and bones and organs.”
Police body-camera video shows Wubbels calmly explaining the situation to the detective. A 2016 U.S. Supreme Court ruling states a blood sample cannot be taken without patient consent or a warrant.
The dispute turned violent when Payne aggressively grabbed Wubbels. Payne said, “We’re done, you’re under arrest” and pulled her outside while she screamed and said, “I’ve done nothing wrong!”
Payne said that he grabbed the nurse and took her outside to avoid causing a “scene” in the hospital, according to his police report. He said his boss, a lieutenant, whose actions are also under review, told him to place Wubbels under arrest if she interferes with the investigation.
Wubbels’ lawyer, Karra Porter, revealed that Wubbels was not charged once the detective realized that the blood was already drawn during treatment.
“This has upended her worldview in a way. She just couldn’t believe this could happen,” Porter said.
Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill called the police chief to insure an investigation will take place after this concerning incident.
According to police spokeswoman Christina Judd, the department updated its blood-draw policy last week and provided its officers with more training. The new policy mirrors the hospital’s protocol.
“There’s a strong bond between fire, police and nurses because they all work together to help save lives, and this caused an unfortunate rift that we are hoping to repair immediately,” Judd said.
