Alexander Morris, part of the current line-up of the classic soul and R&B singing group The Four Tops, is suing a hospital after employees allegedly denied him necessary care because they did not believe he was in the group.
Morris, 53, is suing Ascension Macomb Oakland Hospital in Warren, Michigan for racial discrimination. People.
He claims hospital staff stopped listening to his requests and decided he was “delusional” after he mentioned the source of his fame.
He adds that hospital officials allegedly restrained him in April 2023 and forced him to undergo a psychiatric evaluation.
Morris, the current lead singer of the Four Tops, filed his complaint Monday seeking damages of at least $75,000 and asking for a jury trial.
Alexander Morris (pictured), part of the current lineup of classic soul and R&B singing group The Four Tops, is suing a hospital after employees allegedly denied him necessary care because they didn’t believe he was in the group ; seen in October 2022 in Berlin
Morris, 53, is suing Ascension Macomb Oakland Hospital (pictured) in Warren, Michigan for racial discrimination, according to People. He was taken to hospital with chest pain and shortness of breath
Morris joined the Four Tops in 2019. The Four Tops are one of the most important and influential groups that helped define the sound of the Motown record label, and the group was a contemporary of other major acts signed to Motown, including the Temptations. including the Supremes and Martha and the Vandellas.
Morris is suing the hospital, along with a nurse and security guard involved in the alleged incident.
However, the guard reportedly died in September, according to an obituary noted by People.
The hospital, a nurse and a security guard are listed as suspects, although the security guard appears to have died in September, according to an obituary
The singer claims that hospital staff restrained him for an hour and a half while he underwent a psychiatric evaluation because the staff “wrongly assumed he was mentally ill when he revealed his celebrity identity.”
“The health, safety and well-being of our patients, employees and community members remains our top priority,” a spokesperson for Ascension hospitals said in a statement. “We remain committed to honoring human dignity and acting with integrity and compassion for all individuals and the community. We do not tolerate any form of racial discrimination. We will not comment on pending litigation.”
In his complaint, Morris notes that he has a history of heart disease, and says he was rushed to the emergency room at Ascension Macomb Oakland Hospital after he began experiencing chest pain and shortness of breath while on tour with the Four Tops. .
It appears things got off to a bad start after Morris reportedly said he was in the Four Tops upon arrival at the hospital.
Morris claims he was initially given oxygen, but when he said he was worried about fans and stalkers because he was in the Four Tops, the staff removed the oxygen and put him in a straitjacket; seen with the Four Tops in Indianapolis, Indiana, in 2022
Morris says she had to undergo a psychological evaluation, and it wasn’t until his wife came and showed the staff a video of him at the Grammys that they believed him and resumed treatment.
He told staff members that he had “current safety concerns due to stalkers and fans,” after which employees reportedly stopped providing him with care and instead subjected him to unnecessary and inappropriate psychiatric measures.
He said staff members did not believe he was with the group, so they stopped administering oxygen and instead had him undergo psychiatric evaluation.
Morris claims that staff members ignored his requests to be given oxygen again and instead put him in a straitjacket to prevent him from moving.
He allegedly asked to take off the jacket so he could leave and find another hospital that could treat him, but staff members reportedly denied his request.
He also claims to have experienced a racist incident involving the security guard.
Morris says he stood up and asked to show his ID to prove he was who he said he was, but the guard — who was white — allegedly ordered him to “put his Black on the ground.”
It was only when Morris’ wife arrived at the hospital that the nightmarish ordeal came to an end. He explained that “the doctors thought he was delusional,” and she then confirmed his identity with hospital officials.
However, Morris claims they still didn’t believe he was who he said he was until his wife showed them a video of him performing at the Grammy Awards.
According to him, the psychiatric examination was immediately canceled and he was released from the straitjacket before being given oxygen again.
Morris says he was determined to have had a heart attack, which could later require a transplant. He says he also had pneumonia and had three attacks on the same day; the original Four Tops pictured
Morris’ lawsuit seeks $75,000 in damages and a jury trial. He claims the hospital only offered him a $25 gift card as an apology; the original Four Tops in 1973 in New York
He was subsequently properly diagnosed and doctors determined that he had suffered a heart attack and was currently suffering from pneumonia.
Morris claims he suffered three attacks on the same day, and he says it was subsequently determined that his heart attack might require him to have a heart transplant in the future, which would significantly change his life.
Morris claims he was offered a $25 gift card to a major area retailer “as an apology,” although it is unclear whether hospital staff also issued a significant verbal apology along with the gift card. Morris says he declined the gift card.
‘When our client presented at the hospital, he was racially profiled. The hospital staff and security guard assumed that Mr. Morris was psychotic rather than successful because he was a black man,” Morris’ attorneys Maurice Davis and Jasmine Rand alleged in a statement to People. “Even though he was mentally ill, he was still in the midst of an obvious medical emergency that required rapid medical intervention. The hospital had no excuse for denying him emergency medical treatment.”