Ginger Konji is living a parents' worst nightmare.

I have absolutely no faith in your hospital.

She spent a year looking for her missing daughter, Jessie, but says a local hospital just informed her that her daughter actually died last year, and her body has been stored in a morgue this whole time. Konji, telling our Sacramento affiliate, KCRA, that in April of 2023, Jessie Peterson was admitted to Mercy San Juan Medical Center after experiencing a diabetic episode.

She She wanted to leave the hospital, and I told her she was in the best place to get the best care that she needed. She needed to stay put.

A few days later, Conjie says she called the hospital to check on her daughter, but was told Jessie had been discharged.

They said they didn't have anybody there by that name. I asked them to double check because I'd just seen her a week before and spoke to her on the telephone, spelled her name for them. The man on the phone said, We don't have anybody here by that name.

Days passed without hearing from her, so Jessie's family filed a missing person's report. But according to a lawsuit filed by the family, Jessie died from cardiopulmonary arrest on April eighth, 2023. And it was not until April 12th, 2024, that her family was informed. The suit adding, Jessie's body was so decomposed that an open casket funeral was not feasible, and Jessie's fingerprints were not even obtainable for any keepsake.

You're supposed to have some bedside manner and compassion for family members, of which they neglected in this case.

In the lawsuit, the family's lawyer calling out Dr. Nadim Moktar, the physician who treated Jessie at the hospital but signed her death certificate 361 days after she died. We've reached out to Dr. Moktar, but have not heard back. Dignity Health, the company that owns Mercy San Juan Medical Center, telling NBC News in a statement, We extend our deepest sympathies to the family during this difficult time. We are unable to comment on pending litigation.

All right, Steve Patterson joins us now from Los Angeles. Steve, this is such a disturbing story, but I understand the family is now filing a lawsuit. What more do we know?

Yeah, Valarie, the family is seeking $25 million, including punitive damages for outrageous and inexcusable negligence. And because Peterson's death was not reported for an entire year, an autopsy to determine if there was any medical malpractice is now impossible, leaving this family even further in the dark.

Valerie? All right, Steve Patterson. Thank you.

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