Former adult actress Emily Willis’s family takes legal action against the rehab center for alleged brain damage.
She alleges extreme negligence and cruelty during her treatment for ketamine. The addiction, which resulted in chronic brain damage and left Emily Willis in a vegetative condition, has led the family of the former adult film star to sue a rehabilitation center.
Admitted to Summit Malibu, a luxury treatment center, Willis—real name Litzy Lara Banuelos—was addressing her ketamine addiction on January 27, 2024. The 26-year-old had been using 5 to 6 grams of ketamine daily, which had seriously compromised her mental and physical condition before she started the institution. The legal records her family filed show Summit Malibu, along with its parent firm, Malibu Lighthouse Treatment Centers, neglected proper care. This rapidly deteriorated her health and resulted in irreversible brain damage.
Family legal claims state that the rehab center admitted Willis due to bladder irritation, anxiety, night terrors, and PTSD, among other health issues. Although Yesenia Lara Cooper, her mother and legal guardian, says the institution did not consult a dietitian, despite her being underweight at barely 100 pounds, this could have contributed to her worsening Willis’ health deteriorated while she was at Summit Malibu.
worsened. The lawsuit claims that Willis experienced a urinary tract infection, severe dehydration, and severe agony. The family argues that she was routinely denied medical assistance despite these concerning symptoms; doctors would not react to her suffering. Moreover, the lawsuit claims that staff members of the hospital abandoned their duties, resulting in dangerous surroundings that sparked the medical crisis. The rehab center’s own intake rules say Willis qualified as a “dependent adult,” but the complaint claims her ultimate collapse was caused by staff neglect of appropriate care.
Willis woke up unconscious on February 4, 2024; a nurse called 911 right away. and started CPR. Arriving soon after, paramedics worked 30 to 40 minutes doing CPR to get a pulse restored. But the extended period without oxygen resulted in permanent brain damage. The family’s legal team claims she would have had the chance to recover if the staff had followed medical guidelines and quickly addressed her illness.
Tragic events did not stop there. Willis went into a persistent vegetative state after suffering a heart attack just 26 hours following her fall, aggravating her condition even more. The complaint contends that her continuous health problems were much worse because of this heart attack brought on by neglect. Thus, doctors diagnosed Willis with locked-in syndrome, a rare neurological condition that has left her completely paralyzed except for limited eye motion. She can’t communicate now and needs long-term care at a Utah facility.
The legal case against Summit The legal case against Summit Malibu has brought medical malpractice in rehab centers to the forefront. Her family reports the severe and life-altering effects. Their daughter’s experience now resulted from the center’s neglect to follow accepted medical procedures, provide safe surroundings, and offer appropriate treatment.
Devastated by the result of her treatment, Willis’s family keeps advocating for justice. Apart from the emotional agony they have gone through, they are also looking for reimbursement for the expenses related to long-term care, pain, and suffering. The family supporting Willis’s medical care has so far raised more than $104,000 (£83,000) on a GoFundMe page.
Though she still cannot communicate, the latest public update on her status came from a May 2024 post indicating Willis was displaying signs of responsiveness, including eye-tracking. She had apparently recovered some consciousness, according to earlier updates; her stepfather Michael claimed she had been smiling and reacting emotionally in contexts. Since then, however, she has not provided any further updates, leaving fans uncertain about her current situation.
The family believes that their action will draw attention to the claim of malpractice at Summit Malibu and stop other people from suffering the same neglect and cruelty as the legal dispute underlines. The sad fall in Emily Willis‘s health reminds us of the need to make sure rehabilitation facilities provide enough care and monitoring, particularly for vulnerable people battling addiction and other major medical issues.