Coroner Rules Out Foul Play In Elderly Woman's Death At SF General
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- There was no evidence of foul play in the death of a 75-year-old woman whose body was discovered in the stairwell of a power plant located on the grounds of San Francisco General Hospital, officials announced Friday.
In a press release, San Francisco health officials said "a forensic examination and preliminary findings do not yield evidence of other person involvement" in the death of Ruby Andersen, who was a resident of an elderly board and care facility located on the hospital grounds.
"The cause and manner of death is pending additional studies and the report is expected to be completed in the coming weeks," health officials said in the release.
The circumstances surrounding Anderson's death are being investigated by the San Francisco Department of Public Health and San Francisco sheriff's department, which provides security on the grounds.
Meanwhile, the California Department of Social Services, Community Care Licensing Division, which licenses the residential care facility also launched its own investigation on Thursday.
Officials also announced they were installing security cameras at the power plant.
San Francisco Sheriff Vicki Hennessy told reporters on Thursday that Andersen had signed herself out of the behavioral health facility on May 19th and was expected to return by 4 p.m. But she never returned and deputies were called at 1 p.m. on May 20.
"We were contacted...by a team leader from the behavioral health center on the campus of San Francisco General," she said. "A resident of the residential care facility for the elderly, which is a board and care facility, left at 9 a.m. the day before and indicated she would return at 4 p.m. It's clear that people can sign themselves out and sign themselves back in."
A deputy responded, took a report and tried to call two members of Anderson's family, but did not get a return call until May 22nd. He checked with the General Hospital staff to see if Anderson had been admitted and also called the medical examiner's office.
Hennessy said the deputy also entered a missing person's report.
Deputies check every "nook and cranny" if a hospital patient is reported missing but there is no protocol for the same situation at the residential care facility of the Behavioral Health Center, which is run by the city's public health department, said Hennessy, whose agency is responsible for security at both facilities.
"We're going to be reviewing everything to see where the holes are because it looks like we need to do better," she said.
The 50-resident care facility serves people with mental conditions who are 60 and older and need non-medical support, including ensuring they take their medications and eat properly, said Kelly Hiramoto, director of the Behavioral Health Center.
On Wednesday around 1 p.m., an engineering employee discovered the woman's body inside the stairway of a power plant building at the hospital, San Francisco Department of Public Health spokeswoman Rachael Kagan said.
Authorities still can't account for Anderson for the 11 days in between when she departed the residence center and when her body was discovered.
In Oct. 2013, the body of 57-year-old Lynne Spalding was found in a hospital stairwell after she had been reported missing the previous month.
Spalding, a British woman, disappeared after being admitted to the hospital only two days earlier.
According to a report by the city's medical examiner's office, Spalding had been dead for some days before being discovered. Her death was ruled accidental, due to an electrolyte imbalance, a condition that can be caused by dehydration.
Spalding's family filed a lawsuit against the city of San Francisco, which settled the suit for $3 million.
Spalding's death triggered a set of new security protocols for hospital staff and sheriff's deputies, who provide security for the hospital.
"That was a terrible tragedy. We've made many, many changes since that time and we have no reason to believe that this case and that case are connected, but we don't know very much about this situation yet," Kagan said.
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