Tech overexposes child to radiation during CT, family sues

Technologist accused of leaving child in CT for too long. Image Source: CBS News

Parents of a two-year-old boy are suing Mad River Community Hospital in Arcata, Calif., after a radiologic technologist allegedly overexposed their son to radiation during a CT scan.

CBS News reported that Carrie and Padre Roth filed a lawsuit late last month after Raven Knickerbocker, a state-licensed radiology technician, allegedly administered a 65-minute CT scan to their son, Jacoby.

According to court documents, a CT was ordered for the child as a precautionary measure to determine whether he had internal injuries after experiencing a fall. Within two hours of the scan, burns developed on his face.

Don L. Stockett, the family’s attorney, told CBS News that a sample of Jacoby's blood was sent to a DNA expert to be analyzed and was found to have severely damaged chromosomes.

In late October, a spokesman for the California Department of Public Health revealed that Knickerbocker's certification was suspended on Sept. 30—more than eight months after Jacoby's CT scan.