Did Spohn Hospital ignore mandatory GSW reporting for Cheney's victim?

Texas law 161.041 requires treating physicians and hospitals to report all gunshot wounds to the local law enforcement authorities, "at once". Here's the statute verbatim:

HEALTH & SAFETY § 161.041. MANDATORY REPORTING OF GUNSHOT WOUNDS.
SUBCHAPTER E. REPORTS OF GUNSHOT WOUNDS.

A physician who attends or treats, or who is requested to attend or treat, a bullet or gunshot wound, or the administrator, superintendent, or other person in charge of a hospital, sanitorium, or other institution in which a bullet or gunshot wound is attended or treated or in which the attention or treatment is requested, shall report the case at once to the law enforcement authority of the municipality or county in which the physician practices or in which the institution is located.

Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989. Amended by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 38, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1999.


The treating hospital, Christus Spohn Memorial in Corpus Christi states through their Public Information department that the shooting was reported, but claims not to know when or to whom it was reported. (i.e. they don't know which municipal or county agency in Corpus Christi they called? :shrug: ) A promised return call to clarify their reporting status has not been made. Public Information at Spohn Hospital may be reached at 361-902-4170.

In short, they are dancing around the question like a frog on a skillet.

The Media needs to confirm whether or not the shooting was reported "at once" to the local authorities as required by the statute. Did hospital employees conspire to delay the report, thus facilitating Cheney's coverup scheme?

http://www.christusspohn.org/index.htm

...there are some things universal....like when somebody takes a shotgun blast and winds up in intensive care, the coppers want to have at least a cursory conversation...

... heard of the incident through the ambulance call. If they confirmed that with the ambulance crew and the local hospital in Kingsville, then the reporting requirements were met. The hospital in Corpus wouldn't be required to make an identical report.

I would suspect that the requirement exists for EACH treating hospital, not just the first one.

After all, the rationale for the reporting law is to keep local law enforcement advised immediately of the whereabouts of GSW victims (or perps wounded in the shootout) so they can investigate immediately. I doubt that a Deputy hearing something on a scanner is tantamount to mandatory reporting.

... is the Kingsville hospital. Spohn Memorial is the hospital in Corpus Christi, I believe.

It's not hard to track from patient and hospital records. Spohn Memorial is the one saying they don't know if they filed the paperwork or if someone else did, etc.

The greater issue here is the fact that sheriff's deputies were not allowed to talk to Cheney at the time of the accident and did not until Sunday morning, not that every hospital in the chain of treatment reported promptly on what was a prima facie hunting accident. The Texas law says it has to be reported, and it was.

I don't know, since he was transferred to the Spohn Hospital if they would have had to report it as well. Logic tells me, they would have gotten info from the first hosp of admission, along with the patient records, that indicated that report had already been made, so they wouldn't hav eto do it again.

Each hospital/ Dr's office where treatment is "requested" must report.