Ex-Detroit EMT guilty of refusing to help baby who died

A former Detroit emergency medical technician has been found guilty on willful neglect charges for failing to provide aid to an eight-month-old girl who died nearly three years ago on the city’s northwest side.

Ann Marie Thomas, in her mid-40s, was found guilty Wednesday of the misdemeanor crime by a Detroit jury before Judge Roberta Archer of 36th District Court.

Thomas, who was employed by the Detroit Fire Department, will find out her punishment during her sentencing hearing scheduled for 8:30 a.m. April 12. She faces up to one year in prison.

Authorities say Thomas failed to respond to the family’s emergency involving the infant May 30, 2015, at a home in the 19900 block of Glastonbury Street. The baby later died.

Thomas, say authorities, intentionally delayed her response to the child’s home, where the baby had stopped breathing.

Thomas and her partner were reportedly parked around the corner from the home where the child lived, about two minutes away, when the family called 911 asking for help.

A WDIV-TV (Ch. 4) report cited city records saying that Thomas refused to go to the home, saying family members could get emotional while EMT are trying to revive the child.

Thomas stopped her vehicle en route to the infant’s home and parked less than a mile away, according to the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office

Another EMT unit was sent to the home of the infant, who died the next day.

Thomas, who was fired in June 2015, was charged in April 2017.

bwilliams@detroitnews.com

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