The daughter of a woman who died earlier this month is looking into filing a lawsuit against Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital after an employee stole her mother’s wedding rings.
Cindy O’Keefe of O’Keefe Lawfirm in La Grange is representing Kristen Yukness, daughter of Dolores Yukness who died July 2, is happy criminal charges have finally been filed against the employee.
However, O’Keefe felt the judge could have enhanced the bond.
“He stole from a dead body, it is just theft,” O’Keefe said. “If she was alive it would have been robbery.”
Frederick Tapley, 36, of Romeoville was charged with two felony counts of theft, Downers Grove Police Sgt. Dave Bormann said. Tapley was in charge of wheeling the deceased woman from the hospital to the morgue, Bormann said.
O’Keefe said Good Sam was not very cooperative in helping the police talk to employees to find the rings.
“The most frustrating thing is the actions of the hospital and how (Kristen Yukness) was treated,” O’Keefe said. “They were questioning her and told her to go home and look for the rings.”
Bormann said the hospital was nothing but cooperative during the investigation.
“They opened up the hospital and couldn’t have been any more helpful,” Bormann said. “They were the reason why we found out who moved the body.”
Hospital spokesperson Jennifer Dooley said the Downers Grove hospital has extended a sincere apology to the Yukness family with regard to the incident and are fully cooperating with authorities to assist with the investigation.
“It is our goal to provide both compassionate and exceptional care for all of our patients, every time,” a press release from Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital said. “In this case, the individual involved acted alone and is no longer employed at our hospital or any affiliated site.”
O’Keefe said Kristen Yukness may be looking to sue the hospital for negligence in hiring.
Tapley said he sold the wedding rings July 3 to a pawn shop in Lansing, O’Keefe said. She said the shop had taken the stones from the rings, melted them down and sold the diamonds to a currier.
“The pawn shop got the diamonds back, and the ring is pretty much trashed,” O’Keefe said.
O’Keefe said Kristen is quite traumatized from the violation of her mother. Dolores was brought in cardiac arrest and was a cancer patient. Her fingers were swollen from the cardiac arrest, her wedding rings would not have slid off, but Tapley would have had to twist them off, O’Keefe said.
Tapley was also charged in 2001 for stealing from a dead body in West Suburban Hospital in Oak Park, according to O’Keefe.
Tapley confessed to Downers Grove police taking the rings July 28 and was released on $10,000 bail, Bormann said. A sentencing date has yet to be announced.
