(Audio begins at 30 seconds, arrest at 6:45 mark)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Aug. 31, 2017 (Gephardt Daily) — The nursing community is outraged, the Salt Lake City Police Department has launched an internal investigation, and a Facebook page is inviting people to express their thoughts on the arrest of nurse Alex Wubbels for refusing to allow a police officer to take blood samples from an unconscious patient.
Hospital and police body cam video of the July 26 incident came to light Thursday.
The incident kicked off when SLCPD Detective Jeff Payne went to University of Utah Hospital with the intention of drawing blood samples from a patient on the burn unit who had been injured in a horrific crash on Highway 89/91 in Cache County.
Payne reportedly said later that he was acting at the behest of Logan City Police.
Nurse Wubbels, who was on duty when Payne sought access to the patient, informed him that policy prohibits him from taking blood from an unconscious patient unless he has a warrant, the patient is under arrest or the patient has given consent.
The video shows Wubbels on her cellphone, checking with hospital officials. She shows Payne a printed copy of the policy, and Payne continues to insist that he has the authority to take the blood samples. He then takes hold of Wubbels, tells her she’s under arrest, and forces her into handcuffs while she shrieks and says, “I haven’t done anything!”
Wubbels was put into the police car, but was released after several minutes. No charges were ever filed against her.
Payne said he was told by the watch commander that night to arrest Wubbels for interfering with the investigation. The police believed that they had “implied consent,” under Utah’s driving and DUI laws, to draw the blood samples to determine if the patient had been driving under the influence.
The crash occurred July 26 after Utah Highway Patrol troopers tried to make a traffic stop on a pickup truck that was being driven erratically. Instead of stopping, the truck continued at high speed, changing direction several times and ultimately driving head-on into a semi-truck loaded with sand.
The semi-truck caught fire, and its driver was transported first to the hospital in Logan and then was air-lifted to University of Utah Hospital.
The driver of the pickup truck died at the scene.
Logan City Police responded to the crash.
The 2 officers should be fired An why do they need blood from a victim anyway
Why is this officer still active duty….As a nurse I am obligated to protect my patient. He should have stood down and waited for a higher administrator to resolve this issue. Protect and serve must mean something else to him.
Lt. James Tracy and his thug buddy Jeff Payne should educate themselves about what happens when cops try to circumvent THE LAW – they should familiarize themselves with the sad and utterly HUMILIATING downfall of Winkler County Texas Sheriff Robert Roberts, who also attempted to abuse his office to help out a friend. Google the case of the Winkler County Nurse Whistleblower case. Very interesting reading: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winkler_County_nurse_whistleblower_case
Those Officer are wrong!!! You can’t break the law to enforce the law! Damage to this person’s (Payne) career should be implied without a doubt. Police brutality, enough is enough!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Detective Payne and his Watch Commander need to be suspended. Actually, they should be fired.
So this “unconscious” person is Protected under the Law to not have blood drawn while unconscious, not under arrest or without a warrant. The officers had none. So they arrest the nurse PROTECTING this citizen. Shame on them!
F these self righteous pigs! We don’t tell cops anything confidential about the patient’s condition. Get your warrant lazy fat asses. We already have the blood. When their kids come in, I’ll draw them and send their blood to social media!
Strong arming a nurse? Put them in jail, take their pensions. Interrupt and tell the hospital administrator to wait? Power hungry angry SOBs. And only one of you had the balls to back your buddy off!
In the beginning of the video the 2 cops already had planned to arrest her if she denied them access to blood from the patient. Perhaps in other instances the nurses allowed tgem to do it without knowing the policy. If I were the nurse here I would sue the police dept. And those 2 cops need to be fired and never be allowed back in the police force. They were itching to arrest someone and they picked a sweet nurse who was just trying to follow the policy of the hospital. These guys make me sick! They get their big bad “I’m a cop therefore there are no rules we cannot override” time for a big cup of reality tea!
That officer needs to be fired IMMEDIATELY.
I thought they had standards to be a police officer. It looks like he’s about to give birth with the gut he has.
I wish security in the hospital punched this officer until he had bone in his stool !!!!! POS!!!! Wrooong! Disgrace to all uniforms !!!!!!!!
These Cops need some serious time on the unemployment line after some time in prison. Why did he wanttbe blood. The guy breaking the law was killed in the crash.
The sickest part is that that she would of been fired, lost her nurse license too if she allowed the blood drawn. So those two officers are real low lifes. They knew the rules but wanted the blood so bad they didn’t care if they destroyed her career and reputation.
Police brutality
Unlawful arrest / illegal search and seizure
Violation of nurse’s and patient’s constitutional rights
Did not have warrant or judge’s signed order or consent
Never read her rights
Bullied her into sharing privileged information of patient protected by federal privacy laws
She has right to an attorney and to refuse to answer interrogatives
Brown confirmed during midday Friday that the department began taking action within hours
of the incident [on July 26]…
[Cop] was not placed on leave until Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill saw the
video and called for the criminal investigation.
The mayor said she learned of the July 26 incident Thursday when she saw the video.
Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski and Police Chief Mike Brown in Salt Lake City on
Friday, Sept. 1, 2017
How did it take a MONTH for the MAYOR and the DA to even HEAR about an [alleged] assault
committed by a police officer within their jurisdiction? Stinky police chief?
Last year, assaulting a health care professional became a felony in Utah.
At one point in the video, Wubbels asks the university officer, “Can you protect me?”
The officer [S. Worona] replies no…
Have university police now been “retrained” that they are to protect innocent citizens under
illegal assault, even if the illegal assault is being perpetrated by another officer?
Though police do not suspect that Gray was impaired in any way, Hooley said the department’s
policy is to request blood tests of all drivers involved in such crashes.
This was not a request; this was an [illegal] demand, backed by violent force, by an armed man
expressing consistent psychotic beliefs about the extent of his authority and importance. And
where were the burly orderlies hospitals have to handle dangerous mentally deranged people?
Because the victim in the crash, Bill Gray, was unconscious and could not consent to the
procedure and was not under arrest, and because police did not have a warrant, Wubbels
denied the blood draw. Payne said in the video he was arresting her for impeding a police
investigation.
Why didn’t the cop simply lie to Wubbels and state that the victim was under arrest? Cops lie
to people all the time to get what they want! Why “bully” instead of “lie” this time?
Not only are the officers who are employed by SLC over zealous…..they don’t even know the law much less how to apply the law ( officers thought they had implied law). It appears that everyone from the Chef of Police on down need training and the detective who manhandled the Nurse needs firing. Had that Nurse been my wife you would not need to prosecute or investigate. I sure hope you can get a handle on your out-of-control police department.