On June 18, 2025, a Georgia jury awarded a couple whose baby was decapitated during childbirth $2.45 million against the pathologist they had hired to perform an autopsy on the baby’s body, who had posted on Instagram several graphic videos of the baby’s body. The couple had hired pathologist Dr. Jackson Gates to perform the autopsy but did not authorize or consent to the pathologist publicly posting the videos. The pathologist was reported to have removed the original video after the couple’s lawyer advised him to do so, but then reposted videos.
The pathologist failed to respond to the couple’s lawsuit that was filed in September 2023 and alleged intentional infliction of emotional distress, invasion of privacy, and fraud. The plaintiffs obtained a default judgment against the pathologist.
After the verdict, the plaintiffs’ lawyer issued a statement expressing that the defendant pathologist “poured salt into the couple’s already deep wounds when he betrayed them. This young couple trusted him with the remains of their precious baby. Gates, in turn, repaid this trust by posting horrific images of their child for the world to see. We believe that the jury sent a powerful message that doctors must always consider the feelings of their patients and, in this case, their clients. Always move with empathy. Our goal was to ensure that Gates was held accountable for his unconscionable lack of empathy and invasion of our clients’ privacy.”
The defendant pathologist’s lawyer stated after the verdict: “Dr. Gates testified that he is deeply sorry for any harm that he unintentionally caused the plaintiffs. Had he known for one second that they would see that and that they would know it was their child, he would never have done it” and further stated that Gates generally made posts about autopsies to educate other pathologists and advocate for independent evaluations when people felt a hospital had engaged in wrongdoing.
The jury awarded $2.2 million in compensatory damages and $250,000 in punitive damages. Gates has indicated his intention to file an appeal.
Background
Jessica Ross had been in labor for several hours with her first child on July 10, 2023, when the baby became stuck behind her pelvis. The separate medical malpractice birth injury lawsuit filed against the obstetrician and others reportedly alleges that the obstetrician used excessive force applied to the baby’s neck and head that caused the decapitation, and that the obstetrician failed to call for additional help or perform an emergency cesarean section in a timely manner. The couple did not see baby Treveon Isaiah Taylor Jr. after he was delivered at Southern Regional Medical Center in Riverdale, Georgia.
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