Parents of decapitated baby awarded $2.2 million against doctor after autopsy photos posted online

ATLANTA (WANF/Gray News) – The parents of a baby who was decapitated during birth at a Georgia hospital were awarded over $2.2 million by a grand jury in a lawsuit against the doctor they hired for an autopsy after photos of it were posted online.

The grand jury awarded Jessica Ross and Traveon Taylor Sr. $2,250,000 in damages on Wednesday.

In September 2023, the couple filed a lawsuit against Dr. Jackson Gates and Gates Rapid Diagnostic Laboratory of Atlanta.

The lawsuit claimed Gates, who was hired by the couple to do a private autopsy on Treveon Isaiah Taylor Jr. after he was decapitated during birth, uploaded a video of it to his public social media page without permission.

The lawsuit claims there was an invasion of privacy and that emotional distress and fraud were intentionally inflicted on the couple.

“The child got decapitated. This young couple just suffered one of the worst losses any human beings could ever, ever suffer,” the couple’s attorney previously said when the lawsuit was filed.

Gates told WANF last year that he did not identify the baby and only posted the images on his Instagram page for educational purposes.

“I understand the law. Not to divulge patients’ private confidentiality, any information, including the deceased. So, if you notice, I routinely post images to teach the public and inform the public of some of the barbarism going on in medicine,” Gates told WANF.

In a statement after the verdict Wednesday, attorneys said they were pleased with the outcome.

“While we are pleased that a jury punished Dr. Jackson Gates for his reprehensible behavior, nothing can ease the pain that the parents, Jessica Ross and Treveon Isaiah Taylor Sr., have experienced in losing their baby boy in such a horrific way,” the couple’s attorneys said in a statement.

The attorneys continued, “After the decapitation of their baby, Gates 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.”

The couple’s attorneys said they believe 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,” they said.

The couple also filed a lawsuit against Southern Regional Medical Center, claiming doctors incorrectly delivered the baby, causing the decapitation in July 2023.

The Clayton County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the baby’s death a homicide. The hospital claimed the baby died in utero.

The couple’s attorneys said the case against the hospital is still pending.