LUBBOCK, Texas – A lawsuit file by a former Lubbock County Medical Examiner’s Office employee against NAAG Pathology Labs PC and two of it’s employees was dismissed on Monday.
In February 2019, Tita “Senee” Graves filed suit against NAAG Pathology Labs PC, Dr. Sam Andrews and Dr. Evan Matches for $1 million or more.
Her lawsuit accused the office of Lubbock County Medical Examiner of unnecessarily taking body parts and shipping them “to NAAG’s lab in California for research purposes.”
In late May 2019, NAAG Pathology Labs PC announced it would not renew its contract with Lubbock County to provide services to the medical examiner’s office.
Their current contract will expire on September 30, 2019.
The following is a news release that was sent to EverythingLubbock.com from a PR firm representing NAAG Pathology Labs PC:
A case involving the Lubbock County Medical Examiner’s Office that received widespread media coverage because of its scandalous allegations has been thrown out of court. District Judge Ruben G. Reyes today announced that the plaintiffs in the case had “failed to establish a prime facie case by clear and specific evidence for each essential element of Plaintiff’s claims.”
The case was brought by former Lubbock County employee Tita Senee Graves who was terminated from her position at the Lubbock County Medical Examiner’s Office. Graves acknowledged taking pictures of an autopsy in progress and sending them to a pathologist who was not involved in the case. Graves was a Lubbock County employee at the time of these actions and her termination was made by her employer.
“Today’s court ruling reinforces and supports the statements we have made regarding this case and the controversy that it has generated throughout the community,” said Dr. Evan Matshes. “Neither Dr. Sam Andrews nor I are engaged in any type of research and have worked diligently to make sure that our autopsies meet the highest standards.
“As the Lubbock County Medical Examiner, Dr. Andrews is part of the criminal justice system,” said Matshes. “As part of the legal process, we have the responsibility to help make sure that those who are criminally liable are charged and prosecuted and assuring innocent people are not accused of a crime.
“The negative publicity that has been purposefully generated has resulted in other litigation as well as investigations of our firm and the Lubbock County Medical Examiner’s office. We hope today’s decision will be the first of many that will end this controversy.”