Local celebrity Greg Rice has dismissed his lawsuit against Good Samaritan Medical Center and anesthesiologist Wayne Weidenbaum.
The dismissal comes on the heels of the hospital seeking sanctions against Rice and his attorneys. During a deposition, Rice contradicted his allegation that hospital staff falsely informed him that his twin brother suffered a heart attack while being prepped for leg surgery in 2005, according to hospital attorney Bruce Ramsey.
Rice, 55, had sued the hospital and doctor for “outrageous conduct” following John Rice’s death. Greg Rice alleged that contrary to what he was told, an autopsy showed the cause of death to be suffocation during a pre-surgical procedure to insert a tube down John Rice’s throat.
“Rather than face the motion for sanctions they dismissed the lawsuit,” Ramsey said. “At deposition, he indicated key allegations he alleged at his press conference and in the lawsuit were in fact not true.”
In a prepared statement, Ramsey said Rice’s allegations were “untrue and unfair to the hospital” and that Good Sam was always “clear and consistent” about what happened.
Rice’s lawyer could not be reached for comment despite an attempt by phone.
The Rice brothers were featured in zany TV commercials for a local pest control company.
