Family of slain woman suing city, ambulance company over delayed response
The family of a Taunton woman who was stabbed and killed three years ago is now suing the city and an ambulance company.
The lawsuit claims that Patricia Slavin would have survived the stabbing if not for a delayed medical response.
Kathleen Slavin and her 80-year-old mother were repeatedly stabbed inside their home at 270 Myricks St. by Arthur DaRosa, the man who would go on a deadly rampage at the nearby Silver City Galleria Mall immediately afterward.
DaRosa wrecked his car on Myricks Street and ran to the Slavins' home. They opened the door to help DaRosa and were brutally attacked.
Kathleen was able to call 911 despite being stabbed six times and said she repeatedly provided her address to dispatchers.
The lawsuit claims that city first responders took 20 minutes to arrive at the stabbing scene, while American Medical Response of Massachusetts, Inc., also known as AMR, took 30 minutes to arrive.
"They failed to verify the address they were at and they failed to verify, both first responders and the dispatcher, that they weren't at the scene at the scene of the stabbings," said the family's attorney, Kenneth Kolpan.
When first responders did arrive, Kathleen Slavin said no one came inside to help.
"Then, it's like, 'What's taking them so long? Tell them (to) come in,'" she said.
The family says if treatment had started sooner, Patricia -- a mother of six, grandmother of six and great-grandmother of eight -- would likely be alive today.
Jason D. Buffington, the Taunton City solicitor, emailed the following statement to NewsCenter 5 regarding the lawsuit:
“What happened to the Slavin family at the hands of a madman was truly a tragedy. The City feels for their horrific loss, and the hearts of every Tauntonian goes out to the Slavins.
“As far as their lawsuit goes, the City’s brave public safety personnel did not cause or contribute to Ms. Slavin’s death. It was caused by one person and one person alone -- Arthur DaRosa.
“Furthermore, the City is clearly immune under Massachusetts law from lawsuits of this type, a position that has been shared on numerous occasions with the Slavin’s (sic) attorney. Despite knowing this, the attorney filed suit anyhow. The City will be seeking a prompt dismissal of the case under the legal doctrine of sovereign immunity.”
Despite the city's response, the Slavin family will be seeking a jury trial. AMR said it cannot comment on the ongoing litigation.