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stayed vigilant over the next four days hoping for a miracle. On the
fourth day when the ophthalmologist came in, he flashed a light
into Sharon s eyes, first the right and then the left. He looked up at
me and said, I think she is responding to the light. She tried to
lift her head off the pillow and open her mouth. I was excited, and
my heart was beating fast. Finally, I thought something positive
was happening. Then Sharon started to grimace. You could tell
this was an extremely painful experience for her. My emotions were
conflicted. A part of me was anxious to have her return to us, but
another part of me didn t want her to return if she was going to be
in this much pain. I was torn between wanting her to return and
shuddering to think of her returning to a life of pain and suffering.
The four days came and went, and I saw no more responses from
Sharon.
Our next trip to Phoenix was during the first part of October.
Ron and I appeared in Phoenix court to request formal guardianship
for Sharon who was now twenty-seven years old. We explained to
the judge Sharon s situation and that we would like guardianship
and the right to all Sharon s records while at the jail in Phoenix.
The judge was very sympathetic to our situation and signed the
order. He hoped we would find what we needed to clarify the
situation. We left the courtroom and immediately called the private
investigator, Don, we had hired and told him that the judge had
signed the order giving us access to all records. He found this quite
unusual and not the usual protocol for the courts. He was thankful
since he had not been able to find out much of anything since the
jail kept their records sealed. Don phoned us the next day and said,
after a lengthy discussion with the Sheriff s Department personnel
and only because the judge had written the order, they had no
choice but to relinquish all records. We met the investigator at the
Sheriff s office the next day with the court order and were given
As The Eagle Cries___________________________ 49
all the records including an actual film of the accident. There were
twenty-four-hour video cameras in the area of the accident. Ron
and I watched in horror the tape of Sharon s accident. There was no
sound on the tape. Sharon was in the jail-holding area, a room about
six feet by eight feet sitting on a bench. The attendant opened the
door and Sharon walked out. We were told she was going to see a
judge. Sharon started to fall forward and then backward hitting her
head on the cement. Blood was flowing from the back of her head.
Her body started to jerk violently. Attendants gathered around her,
and you couldn t tell on the film what was happening because so
many people were crowded around her. Minutes went by before an
attendant went for the phone and called the paramedics. I started
to cry hysterically at what I was seeing. I was an emotional wreck.
Don viewed the tape the next day and went over the records.
He felt we had a strong case against the County Jail and told us the
attorney was willing to take the case.
On October 4, the internist told us Sharon had contracted VRE,
Vancomycin Resistant Entercoccus, a bacterial infection for which
there was no antibiotic presently available. Within twenty-four
hours she was put into an isolation area in the Critical Care Unit.
Every person allowed in the area had to be in a sterile gown, mask,
and gloves. It reminded me of something out of a science-fiction
movie. Sharon s internist immediately contacted a pharmaceutical
company and learned they had just released an antibiotic that could
treat this infection. Sharon would be the first person to be given
this medication in Arizona. After ten days, the medication worked,
and the infection was under control. Sharon was then transferred
back to the sixth floor.
The neurosurgeon met with us on October 16. He told us
Sharon was not responding as they had expected, and after doing
50 ___________________________Carol A. Freeman
another CAT scan, increased intracranial pressure was found. The
shunt that had been placed at the time of her initial surgery was
infected. The neurosurgeon suggested redoing the shunt to expose
it, and then they would be able to give antibiotics directly into the
brain. The surgery was scheduled for October 19. Again, we waited
and prayed that she would survive yet another surgery. Ron and
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