Tense standoff over teen's body sparks outcry in Scotland
A 17-year-old student was found dead on her bedroom floor for nearly 10 hours as paramedics and police officers argued over who should take responsibility for her body, reports the "Daily Mail". The teenager passed away on 15 April following an epileptic seizure. There was confusion over whether the 17-year-old should be treated as a child or an adult.
Lucy Grant, 17, from Johnstone, Scotland, aspired to become a beautician, but her illness tragically disrupted her plans. According to British media, she suffered her first epileptic seizure shortly after her 16th birthday in April the previous year. Over the following 12 months, Lucy endured 60 seizures. She passed away on 15 April, just nine days after her birthday, following another epileptic seizure.
The tragic incident occurred at Lucy's family home. An ambulance crew and police officers were called to the scene, but disagreements arose over who should handle the deceased teenager's remains. The situation quickly deteriorated.
My baby girl lay dead on her bedroom floor for 9.5 hours whilst the ambulance service fought with CID over who was responsible for her as they didn't agree on whether she was a child or adult and what the right protocol should be, wrote the teenager’s mother, 44-year-old Lynette Anderson, on Facebook.
Dispute over the deceased teenager's body
According to the mother’s account, distressing scenes unfolded. "They stood on the street, argued, and caused a scene in front of neighbours at the worst moment of my life. My little girl lay on the bedroom floor for nine and a half hours while emergency services disagreed on who should take her away," she recounted to the Daily Record.
"Watching her all that time and not being able to clean her and only I was allowed to lie on the floor and cuddle her but nothing more," the heartbroken mother lamented.
The conflict was eventually resolved when a senior detective arrived and called for a private ambulance, which then transported the 17-year-old’s body away.
According to the Daily Record, police visited the family the next day to apologise for the incident and inform them that they would be launching an investigation into the matter. Meanwhile, the Scottish Ambulance Service extended their "sincerest condolences to Lucy’s family", assuring them that they, along with the police, would investigate the incident thoroughly.
Lucy’s mother stated that she had spent the past year advocating for improved medical support for her daughter. She explained on social media that it had been a relentless struggle with the NHS, marked by weekly efforts to secure the appropriate care for Lucy, whose epileptic seizures had been growing more severe.
