DETROIT — A 20-year-old suburban Detroit woman who was declared dead only to be found alive at a funeral home in August has died at Children’s Hospital in Detroit.
Attorney Geoffrey Fieger said in a statement that Timesha Beauchamp “was allowed to die peacefully” Sunday.
“She died as a result of massive brain damage that was suffered when Southfield paramedics wrongly declared her dead, and failed to provide her much needed oxygen,” the statement continued.
On Oct. 8, Fieger announced a $50 million lawsuit against the city of Southfield and four paramedics.
Beauchamp’s family called 911 on Aug. 23 because she appeared to be struggling to breathe. A doctor who didn’t attend the scene pronounced Beauchamp deceased after one of the first responders reported by telephone that she had been unresponsive for 30 minutes and showed no signs of life.
The state says funeral home staff saw Beauchamp’s chest moving when they went to her Southfield home.
The chief of the Southfield Fire Dept., Johnny Menifee, said during an August news conference that he vowed to investigate the case, telling reporters that Beauchamp may have experienced the extremely rare “Lazarus syndrome,” which refers to people who come back to life after resuscitation attempts fail.
“Our whole family is devastated,” Beauchamp’s family said in a statement. “This is the second time our beloved Timesha has been pronounced dead – but this time she isn’t coming back.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.