SARASOTA COUNTY, Fla. — Thursday morning in a Sarasota County courthouse, jurors watched two 90-minute recorded depositions in a Venice family's lawsuit against Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital.
One of the depositions was from Catherine 'Cathi' Bedy, the social worker with the hospital who facilitated orders from the Department of Children and Families in relation to the patient, Maya Kowalski. Bedy is among hospital staff who lodged abuse accusations against the Kowalskis.
The family's interaction with Bedy and hospital staff is documented in the popular Netflix documentary "Take Care of Maya."
The family's ordeal with the hospital began in 2016, when 10-year-old Maya was admitted for severe pain, taken from her parents into state custody and sheltered at the hospital. Court documents showed hospital staff were concerned about the amounts of ketamine Maya's mom was requesting to help with the pain from her condition Complex Regional Pain Syndrome.
Ketamine treatment had been prescribed by Maya's doctor who referred the family to a treatment center in Mexico because, at the time, it was not being offered in the U.S.
In the deposition video, dated Jan. 30, 2019, Bedy answered questions about her background, career experience, responsibilities at the hospital, and how she treated Maya while she was under her supervision.
Bedy admitted that she was not an expert with Munchausen Syndrome or Complex Regional Pain Syndrome but had briefly learned about them during an advanced degree course and had only dealt with around three cases involving the conditions.
"I heard and saw on numerous occasions the mother demanding from the doctors that the child be given amounts of ketamine and I heard discussions from the doctors saying that was too dangerous," Bedy said.
Bedy said she saw a different side of Maya that informed her otherwise about her diagnosis and how she behaved.
"There were many days in the hospital that we saw Maya doing well with the therapists that were involved with her, yes," she added. "95% of the time Maya was up in her wheelchair and the times that she would report extraordinary pain was when she was prompted by her mom."
Bedy's testimony revealed her presence was constant and at times invasive including taking photos of Maya in her underwear and admitting to listening in on sensitive conversations with family members or legal representatives. Bedy said those directives came directly from the Department of Children and Families and it was her job to make sure everyone complied and adhered to its stipulations.
"Why was it necessary for you to be on the call also?" Attorney Greg Anderson could be heard asking.
"DCF would call my phone and I would take the phone in there and put it on speaker phone," Bedy said.
"But why did you have to listen in too," Anderson pressed.
"That's what DCF asked us to do," Bedy replied.
Bedy was also asked about allegations of inappropriate contact and an incident involving Maya sitting on her lap. Bedy said it was Maya who asked to do so after she got emotional over being told she was not going home for the holidays.
She was also pressed further about other encounters that were considered inappropriate by the family.
"Did you kiss Maya," Anderson asked.
"I don't think so," Bedy said.
"Were you hugging Maya?" Anderson asked.
"I think that we provide a lot of comfort to children so I am sure while she was sitting on my lap I did hug her," Bedy said
Earlier this week Maya's father testified that Bedy supervised all visitations and also restricted access not only from family members but also, at a point, the family's priest. Kowalski said while he got some limited visitation after a while, his wife Beata was kept away from their daughter for 87 days. Beata later took her own life in January 2017. Kowalski said the hospital was responsible for his wife's suicide after she could not bear the allegations of child abuse and Munchausen Syndrome By Proxy.
During the evidence selection portion of the hearing, Jack Kowalski reiterated that Maya did not like Bedy and was terrified of her.
"She stated that she used to come in and slap her on her leg to see if she was in pain. She said that she wanted to adopt her, that her mother was in a mental home, and that she could adopt her and be like her mother while at the hospital," Kowalski said.
Jurors also heard from Dr. Rebecca Johnson, a psychologist who specialized in cognitive behavioral therapy. Johnson was hired by the Kowalski family and had counseled them intermittently between between 2015 and 2017 and later on in 2020.
She said Maya's extreme pain caused her depression and feelings of hopelessness. She was also having trouble sleeping and feeling hopeless because of her extreme pain, according to Dr. Johnson. Johnson also said she saw nothing but love, care, and devotion from Maya's parents and spoke about some times when Maya appeared to be improving and had not shown any signs of relapse.
While Johnson said she passed Beata on to her colleague for individual counseling because she was handling the family's counseling, she said Beata expressed that the situation was weighing on their marriage and dynamics at home. She also said Beata spoke to her about other concerns she had over Maya being at the hospital.
"What is your understanding of why Maya's mother committed suicide?" David Hughes, one of the Attorneys for Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital, said.
"My understanding is that Beata felt that because the allegations were against her, she was what was keeping her child from coming home," Johnson said.
The is no court hearing on Friday and Jack Kowalski is expected back on the stand briefly on Monday. Maya Kowalski is also expected to take to the witness stand on Monday. The plaintiff's side plans to rest their case by the end of next week while the defense team is expected to begin presenting their own witnesses the following week.