Why Emily Willis’ mum is suing rehab centre after adult star suffered cardiac arrest and left ‘permanently disabled’
The true extent to Emily Willis' health problems have been revealed, after her mum, Yesenia Lara Cooper, launched a huge lawsuit against a rehabilitation centre in which the former adult star resided and received treatment for addiction.
Willis, a former star in the pornography world, suffered a sudden decline in health with it announced in February last year that she had been admitted to a medical facility.
It was later confirmed the now 26-year-old had had been in a two-month coma following on from an incident in which she suffered a cardiac arrest; this is where your heart stops beating completely.
What happened to Emily Willis?
Willis was admitted to Summit Malibu rehab clinic in January 2024 due to a ketamine addiction that she was struggling to control.
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It has been revealed by her mother that Willis was consuming 'five to six' grams of ketamine every single day.
Willis was also experiencing night terrors and bladder inflammation, with previous medical diagnoses of major depressive disorder, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Referred to Summit Malibu on 27 January, mum Yesenia - who is her daughter's guardian and conservator - has now alleged that during her time at the facility to the west of Los Angeles her condition has worsened.
Why has the lawsuit been filed?
When Willis arrived at the facility, her blood alcohol levels were zero and and her system was clean of all drugs. She was just 100lbs, which for her height was 16lbs underweight.
But, as claimed in the lawsuit against Summit Malibu and its parent company, Malibu Lighthouse Treatment Centers, LLC, Willis' conditioned worsened after arriving.
While in their care, the lawsuit claims Willis suffered from hot and cold chills, tremors, increased heart rate, headaches, feeling 'disorientated', difficulty walking, and vaginal pain.
Willis suffered from dehydration, looked 'unkempt', and was described as 'in pain and frail'. The legal complaint says she was urged to go to A&E but did not want to go. Paramedics were called to assess her but she was not transported to hospital.
26 hours after this incident, she was found unconscious with the lawsuit alleging she 'suffered irreversible brain damage and permanent physical and mental incapacity at their facility'. Paramedics only found a pulse on Willis after 30 to 40 minutes of performing CPR.
What happened after Willis went in to cardiac arrest?
Filing a claim against the rehab business, Willis' mum Yesenia believes her daughter was 'failed' in relation to the 'care, supervision and safe environment' she needed as a recovering drug addict with mental health illnesses.
She claims that the company only took in Willis as a patient 'for profits and did not consider whether she was appropriate for their facility'.
Willis now lives in a 'vegetive state', whereby she cannot speak and can only move her eyes. She has what doctors call 'locked-in syndrome'.
In a statement, Willis' family's attorney James A. Morris Jr said: "Had the staff followed standard medical protocols, Emily would have had the opportunity to regain control of her life.
"No patient should ever be subjected to such a horrendous breakdown in clinical care. Her health was ignored until it was too late, and now her life is forever changed.
"We hope this lawsuit will spur real change in how treatment centers handle critical cases. Too many patients who should be receiving life-saving interventions are being lost to negligence."
LADbible Group has contacted Summit Malibu for comment.
Topics: Adult Industry, Crime, Drugs, Health, US News, Viral, Emily Willis
Tom Earnshaw