County blames hospital in Chass death

The Jeremiah Chass case took another explosive turn Friday with Sonoma County filing a lawsuit blaming Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital for the Sebastopol teen's death.

The county, which is being sued by the family after Chass was shot and killed by two sheriff's deputies, now contends the responsibility for his death lies with the hospital.

A federal court judge Friday granted the county's request to add the hospital to the civil case pending in San Francisco.

The new suit claims a hospital employee was negligent when she advised the teen's mother not to bring him to Memorial for psychiatric treatment, despite the advice allegedly given to the employee by a psychologist that the 17-year-old needed prompt care.

The following morning, Chass was killed by deputies after his family phoned authorities for help.

"Had Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital provided proper care/advice, Jeremiah Chass' untimely death would have been prevented," Santa Rosa attorney Steven Mitchell, who is representing the county, wrote in the motion seeking to introduce the new lawsuit.

U.S. District Judge Maxine Chesney granted the request, setting up a remarkable showdown between two major institutions that have worked closely in the past to try to address the county's pressing mental health needs.

Chass' killing triggered an ongoing community debate about the appropriate use of force when dealing with people in mental distress. Three similar shooting deaths have occurred since his death, one in Rohnert Park and two in Santa Rosa.

The teen's family filed a federal lawsuit against the county earlier this year claiming wrongful death and civil rights violations, and alleging that deputies used excessive force.

The county, however, claims in its suit that the hospital is responsible for the teen being killed and asks that any damages awarded in the case be paid by the hospital.

A Memorial spokeswoman said she could not comment Friday on documents the staff there had not seen or reviewed.

Mitchell, the county's attorney, could not be reached for comment Friday. Sonoma County Sheriff Bill Cogbill, who is a defendant in the family's lawsuit, said he could not comment because of the pending litigation.

The county appears to be seeking a delicate balance by arguing that Chass' death was foreseeable and preventable, while also stating in its complaint that the deputies "justifiably used deadly force" against the teen.

The county argues that force never would have been necessary had the hospital agreed to treat Chass after his mother phoned emergency psychiatric services there the night of March 11, 2007, seeking help.

The 17-page complaint offers more detail about events that night than what has been publicly released to date.

The document states that Yvette Chass spoke with the intake coordinator for the hospital's acute psychiatric unit -- which has since been closed -- at about 10:35 that night, and that she informed the hospital that her son had told her that they both would be dead by 1 a.m.

The coordinator, identified in court documents as Jillian Wilbur, agreed to speak with Santa Rosa psychologist Andy Prokopis at the family's request.

Both Prokopis and Wilbur provided sworn depositions in the case in recent months.

Prokopis told attorneys that he had spoken to Chass by phone earlier on the night in question. He said he told Wilbur the teen had made incoherent and delusional statements about his "Formula for the Universe," that he was hearing voices and that he seemed anxious and overly concerned about his internal state.

The psychologist said he advised Wilbur that Chass was in a psychotic state and expressing suicidal tendencies, and that he needed emergency care, according to the complaint.

Wilbur, however, suggested to the family that they wait until the next morning to bring the teen in, telling them he would not be seen if he were to be taken to the emergency room that night, the complaint alleges.

Attorneys argue the hospital was bound by state law to evaluate Chass and that in not doing so, "predictably his condition worsened."

The following morning, a Monday, two sheriff's deputies were sent to the Chass home on High School Road after the family called 911 seeking help.

Authorities contend that when Deputy John Misita arrived, he found Jeremiah Chass holding his 6-year-old brother hostage inside the family minivan while the teen wielded a Leatherman-style tool with an open 2½-inch blade. Jeremiah's stepfather, Mark Chass, was attempting to restrain him, police reports said.

After a 6½-minute struggle, and two minutes after Deputy Jim Ryan arrived, Chass was shot seven times. Ten minutes later, he was pronounced dead.

Sonoma County District Attorney Stephan Passalacqua cleared the deputies of any criminal wrongdoing in the case. A grand jury agreed with that decision, stating in its 2007-08 final report that "all officer-involved protocols were followed and that no wrongdoing was found."

But an attorney representing Chass' family said Friday the county's new complaint continues the "fiction" that Misita arrived to a violent scene.

"The situation exploded into violence when that deputy jumped on Jeremiah, suddenly pepper sprayed him in the face and attempted to choke him to unconsciousness," Patrick Emery said. "At that point, Mr. Chass lost his hold on Jeremiah, and the frightened, blinded boy, already suffering delusions, fought back."

Emery said the family does not hold employees at Memorial responsible for the teen's death.

He also took exception to statements made in the county lawsuit that the family was not opposed to the hospital being added as a defendant because doing so potentially adds another source of money.

"It would have served no purpose to oppose this because the granting of these motions is routine, which is evidenced by the fact it was granted within two hours of it being submitted," Emery said.

You can reach Staff Writer Derek J. Moore at 521-5336

or derek.moore@

pressdemocrat.com.