Catherine and Sarah Lécuyer still do not know what their mother and grandmother died of. Josiane Emaille, 81, died at Girac hospital near Angoulême on January 19, 2021. But the results of the autopsy are still not known.
Catherine Lécuyer’s voice is tired, we feel her exhausted. For 15 months, she and her daughter Sarah have been fighting to find out what died of Josiane Emaille, their mother and grandmother. The 81-year-old, independent and whole-headed lady was admitted to Girac hospital near Angoulême in Charente in early January 2021. On January 12, Catherine spoke to her on the phone. The old lady told him of her desire to go home. The next morning, the hospital called the family to report the patient’s death. She was reportedly found dead in her bed the same morning.
But when Catherine and Sarah go to the hospital to collect the personal belongings of the deceased, they can consult the nursing care file, which speaks of a death at 3:30 a.m. Something to raise questions. Especially since the old lady had passed a scanner a few days before her death which had shown several fractures. Catherine Lécuyer is categorical: “my mother didn’t have these fractures before entering the hospital”. In addition, the description of the deceased mentions a height of 1.60m, but she was only 1.47m.
Catherine Lécuyer then decides to request an autopsy and files a complaint with civil action for forgery and use of forgery and manslaughter. In March, the Angoulême prosecutor’s office ordered a forensic medical report. The body is transported to the forensic institute of Poitiers, then returned to the family, but with the prohibition to carry out an incineration. It was however the wishes of Josiane Emaille. The old lady is therefore temporarily buried in a cemetery in the Dordogne, under the sand.
And since that time, the results of the two legal medical examinations carried out have still not been sent to the family, nor to their lawyer, Maître William Devaine of the Angoulême bar: “we have no explanation of the cause of death 15 months later”.
My clients feel more and more incomprehension, worry and anger.
Maître William Devaine, lawyer
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“It’s incredible” confirms Catherine Lécuyer, “our mourning is hampered, I can’t stand it anymore, neither can my daughter. We don’t understand” she sighs tiredly.
I don’t blame justice, I know there are problems, but this is beyond comprehension.
In an attempt to speed things up, Master Devaine seized an investigating judge to take up the case and obtain the results of the autopsy.
Catherine and Sarah Lécuyer, they are waiting to be able to cremate the deceased and to know if the hospital has responsibilities in this death.
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