Netflix’s Maya Kowalski slams John Hopkins All Children’s Hospital over bizarre attempt to secure retrial in $261M case by claiming juror compared defense witness to NAZI organization SS

A Florida hospital is pushing for a retrial after Maya Kowalski won a lawsuit against the facility, alleging that a biased juror in the case compared Dr. Sally Smith to a Nazi organization.

Last month, Maya Kowalski received more than $200 million as she won a lawsuit against Johns Hopkins Children’s Hospital, which was found liable for her mother’s death.

A jury ruled in favor of the teenager, whose story is the subject of the Netflix documentary Take Care of Maya, finding that the hospital wrongly imprisoned her. Maya, 17, was just 10 years old when she was kicked out of hospital after doctors accused her parents of faking symptoms of her rare condition, complex regional pain syndrome.

The jury found that the emotional distress caused to her mother Beate Kowalski, who was banned from seeing her daughter for three months, led to her suicide in 2017.

A month later, the Florida hospital said that Juror No. 1 – Paul Lengyel – had an extreme dislike for one of the defense witnesses, a hospital employee named Sally Smith – a statement that Maya called “absolutely disgusting.”

Three exhibits were attached to the motion for a new trial. Exhibit A is a piece of “Juror No. 1’s” notebook in which, whenever Sally Smith is mentioned, the letter S at the beginning of each name is spelled differently than any other letter S on the page.

“Juror No. 1 printed the letter “S” throughout the note, generally with a curve on the spine, EXCEPT that he printed the letter “S” at sharp angles when typing the name of Dr. Sally Smith,” the second supplemental motion states. .

“Both the second and third time that Juror No. 1 types the name Dr. Sally Smith, the letter ‘S’ is shaped identically to the Nazi Schutzstaffel symbol.”

Smith investigated the Kowalski family for possible abuse of their daughter Maya due to her mysterious health problems and troubling medical history.

The 10-year-old was diagnosed with CRPS and received $10,000 worth of “ketamine infusions” every three to four weeks to help manage the disabling pain Maya faced.

Smith suspected that Maya was a victim of Munchausen syndrome by proxy and was convinced that she had been abused by her parents. family.

Maya remained in the hospital, barely going outside, for months, spending Halloween, Christmas, New Year’s and her 11th birthday inside the hospital.

The motion suggests that the juror is comparing Sally Smith’s attitude and behavior to that of the Nazis in the Schutzstaffel organization.

“SS lightning bolts are a symbol often used by neo-Nazis and white supremacists,” the proposal states.

“Lightning bolts were part of the uniform of Nazi SS soldiers. Often SS lightning bolts are used to demonstrate support for hateful beliefs and ideologies.”

“Printing the first letter of Dr. Smith’s first and last name in this manner clearly demonstrates Juror No. 1’s bias and prejudice against Dr. Smith (and therefore the defendant), equating Dr. Smith with the notorious Nazi organization,” the document further states.

“Juror No. 1’s reference to Dr. Sally Smith using Nazi symbols demonstrates clear bias, prejudice and prejudice against her and therefore the defendant.”

Maya and her lawyer Gregory Anderson are appalled by the hospital’s attempts to force a retrial.

“The worst charges I can imagine are leveled at this poor man who just gave nine weeks of his life to helping the community and his civic work,” Anderson said. “To accuse him of the most terrible things imaginable, I find it disgusting.”

“I think it’s just disgusting,” Maya added. “I don’t even know how such a harsh accusation could be made. But I have confidence in my Test team and I think we will be successful.”

The hospital previously alleged that Juror No. 1 shared information about the case with his wife in an attempt to win a new trial, saying the wife then posted confidential information on online communities supporting the plaintiff.

Lawyers representing the hospital in the case brought by the Kowalski family argue that jury foreman Paul Lengyel’s wife, Yolanda, attended at least one day of the trial in Venice, meaning she could have heard the lawyer’s discussions with the judge taking place outside. jury presence.

Court documents say Yolanda Lengyel posted messages about the trial live on YouTube and in a Facebook chat group, largely supporting the Kowalski family.

She is also accused of meeting with a social media influencer known as Jules, who the motion says is associated with the Kowalski family.

The evidence includes a video that Jules posted on her TikTok page, which states that she gave Maya Kowalski a rosary before Maya’s live testimony on October 9th.

Yolanda Lengyel also allegedly discussed on social media questions her husband intended to ask witnesses, as well as a juror note sent during jury deliberations, the motion said.

“The evidence shows a shocking level of involvement and clear bias in favor of plaintiffs on the part of Juror #1’s wife, Ms. Lengyel, as well as social media posts sharing ‘insider’ information that Ms. Lengyel could only have obtained from husband,” the petition says.

The hospital’s attorneys also said Juror No. 1 also “may have had animosity” toward the Florida Department of Children and Families.