Rosenbaum family settles District suit

WASHINGTON (Map, News) - The family of slain New York Times journalist David Rosenbaum agreed to drop its $20 million lawsuit against the District of Columbia as long as the city corrects the emergency response that led to the newsman’s death.

Rosenbaum, 63, was beaten with a heavy plastic pipe near his Northwest Washington home in January 2006, but rescue workers thought he was drunk and did not take him to the nearest hospital.

Instead, they took Rosenbaum to Howard University Hospital, where he was left unattended for 90 minutes before he was examined, according to the family’s lawsuit. Rosenbaum died two days later.

Mayor Adrian Fenty, standing with the Rosenbaum family near a tree planted in the newsman’s name, announced that as part of the agreement the city will create a task force to change the emergency procedures and the “culture of indifference” in the D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical System cited in a D.C. inspector general report.

David’s brother, Marcus Rosenbaum, said the point of the $20 million lawsuit was to ensure that this never happened to another family.

“I woke up this morning and thought, ‘We are adversaries but we are on the same side on this,’ ” Marcus Rosenbaum said.

He said the family has decided not to pursue a monetary settlement because Fenty had worked with them before he became mayor and vowed to fix the emergency response system.

Fenty said the settlement “doesn’t let the District off the hook. This is only the beginning.”

Since taking office, Fenty has replaced the head of the fire and police departments and said more changes are likely.

The task force, which will include representatives of the city government, Rosenbaum’s family and medical experts, must investigate the larger issues surrounding Rosenbaum’s death within six months and issue recommendations for improving emergency medical services.

If emergency services do not improve in one year, the family can refile the lawsuit.

The family hasn’t dropped its suit against Howard University Hospital.

Two men have earned convictions in Rosenbaum’s death: Percey Jordan, 43, who earned a 65-year sentence, and his cousin, Michael C. Hamlin, who received 26 years.

smccabe@dcexaminer.com

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