Family Files Injunction to Keep Brampton Woman on Life Support

A woman was recently pronounced dead at Brampton Civic Hospital, but her family has obtained an emergency court injunction to keep on her on life support, as they say her heart is still beating.

A woman was recently pronounced dead at Brampton Civic Hospital, but her family has obtained an emergency court injunction to keep on her on life support, as they say her heart is still beating.

A representative of Bishop Wendell Brereton of the Glorious Church Breakthrough Temple reached out to inBrampton.com to discuss the ongoing case involving 27-year-old Brampton woman Taquisha McKitty. Brereton says the Brampton hospital recently admitted McKitty for a drug overdose and “hastily” pronounced her dead “even though she has a pulse and her heart is beating on its own.”

McKitty’s father, Stanley Stewart, got an emergency court injunction to prevent the hospital from taking her off life support.  

But while McKitty may have a pulse, doctors have declared her brain dead. In a recent CityNews article, bioethicist Kerry Bowman said that a person is generally considered deceased when his or her brain ceases to function.

“In many western countries you would be considered dead if there’s absolutely no neurological function whatsoever in the brain,” he told CityNews. “Life support would be keeping them alive, which would be keeping them almost breathing and their heart beating. If the person actually meets the criteria for brain death, then they would be considered medically deceased.”

McKitty’s advocates, however, say she’s been responsive.

“However even with documentation by nurses and doctors of response to stimuli the doctor served the parents her death certificate,” Brereton said in a statement. “Imagine your child holding on to dear life and the doctors serve you a death certificate even with a Superior Court judge’s order in hand.”

In a statement being shared on social media, Brereton says he fears the hospital is looking to “harvest” McKitty’s body parts, as she is an organ donor. 

According to CityNews, McKitty’s family is hoping the hospital will rescind the death certificate, something that’s fairly unprecedented in Canada.

A decision on the case should be made tomorrow.