The 2023 case drew widespread shock and disgust.
FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — A jury has awarded $2.25 million to the parents of a baby who was tragically decapitated during birth in 2023, a harrowing case that sparked widespread derision. This ruling came after a doctor shared videos of the baby’s autopsy on social media, leading to public outcry.
Following these events, Jessica Ross and Treveon Isaiah Taylor Sr. took legal action against Dr. Jackson Gates and Gates Rapid Diagnostic Laboratory of Atlanta, filing a lawsuit in late 2023. Their attorneys condemned the Instagram posts as “grisly and graphic,” and emphasized the parents’ distress over the incident.
A statement regarding the verdict explained how the parents were “horrified and outraged” upon learning that Dr. Gates had shared graphic videos of their deceased child on Instagram without their permission. The videos were initially taken down after a cease-and-desist letter was issued. However, the lawyers noted that Dr. Gates later reposted them despite knowing the immense emotional pain it caused the grieving parents.
The Edmond Firm announced the $2.25 million judgment Friday, saying it was delivered after a three-day jury trial that concluded on Wednesday. The judgment includes $2 million for compensatory damages and $250,000 for punitive damages (the maximum allowed).
“While we are pleased that a jury punished Dr. Jackson Gates for his reprehensible behavior, nothing can ease the pain that the parents, Jessica Ross and Treveon Isaiah Taylor, Sr., have experienced in losing their baby boy in such a horrific way,” attorneys for the couple said in a statement. “After the decapitation of their baby, Gates poured salt into the couple’s already deep wounds when he betrayed them. This young couple trusted him with the remains of their precious baby. Gates, in turn, repaid this trust by posting horrific images of their child for the world to see.”
Ross and Taylor have also sued Southern Regional Medical Center, the hospital where their baby was decapitated during delivery in July 2023, as well as the physician who delivered the baby. That case is still being litigated, The Edmond Firm said Friday.
According to lawsuit over the delivery itself, there were complications during the labor and attorneys claim the doctor applied “ridiculously excessive force” on the baby’s head and neck to try to deliver it.
Attorney Roderick Edmond, who is also a physician, said in 2023 that around three hours passed before the doctor took the mother Ross, then 20 years old, for a C-section.
“The feet came out, the body came out and there was no head,” Edmond said.
Their lawsuit alleges the hospital kept the manner of the baby’s death a secret from the family for several days. The hospital has responded to the allegations and lawsuit by saying it couldn’t discuss a patient’s care because of privacy laws, but offered throughs and prayers to the family.
“I just want justice for my baby boy. I’m hurt. I’m hurt bad. [The doctor] hurt me. She took my baby,” said Ross said in early 2024. “She didn’t show no emotions. I just want justice for my baby.”
Taylor said at that time, “We want justice for our son; they lied to us.”
