Parents Sue Legacy Health for $35 Million After Son’s Fatal Shooting at Portland Hospital

The grieving parents of Bobby Smallwood, a security guard who was fatally shot in July 2023 at Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center, have filed a $35 million wrongful death lawsuit against Legacy Health. The lawsuit, detailed in an article from

OregonLive

, accuses the hospital of negligence, stating that hospital supervisors failed to adequately enforce workplace violence prevention protocols by not barring the known threat, PoniaX Kane Calles, from the premises.

According to the legal team representing the Smallwood estate, the D’Amore Law Group, Legacy Health’s own policy espouses a “zero tolerance for willful acts of workplace violence” and mandates that violators are to be swiftly removed. The lawsuit intends to firmly hold the hospital system accountable for what the Smallwoods perceive as grave inaction, as reported by

KOIN

. “Every day we grieve the loss of our son and all the years ahead that should have been his to live,” the Smallwoods stated.

Legacy Health now faces scrutiny over whether they neglected to address the escalating threats posed by Calles, which preceded the fatal shooting. Calles himself was killed in an officer-involved shooting in Gresham on the same day as Smallwood’s death. The fallout of these events continues to raise questions about the efficacy of hospital security protocols and the measures taken to protect both staff and patients from potential harm.

The Smallwoods, through their legal representation, aim to ensure that no other family is forced to endure a similar tragedy. They seek justice not solely in the form of financial restitution but also in the form of systemic change within Legacy Health’s approach to workplace violence. “We will never have the joy of seeing him get married, holding his children, or hearing his laugh again. Nothing can bring Bobby back, but we will not stop fighting until Legacy is held fully responsible for what they took from our family,” the Smallwoods told

KOIN

in their pursuit of closure and retribution.

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