A prolonged legal battle has culminated in a court's decision to dismiss a complaint alleging fraudulent alteration of medical records. The case, filed by Adam L. Neal against the Regents of the University of California, was heard in the Court of Appeal of the State of California, Third Appellate District on July 9, 2024.
Adam L. Neal initiated this lawsuit in July 2021, following a contentious history with the Regents that began in November 2016 when he was placed on an involuntary psychiatric hold at UC Davis Medical Center. Neal’s initial visit to the emergency room for chest pains led to his transfer to Sacramento County Mental Health Treatment Center under Welfare and Institutions Code section 5150. Neal contends that his medical records were fraudulently altered or withheld by the Regents to cover up misconduct related to this psychiatric hold.
Neal's second amended complaint centers around Penal Code section 471.5, which criminalizes altering or modifying medical records with fraudulent intent. He also invoked Business and Professions Code section 2262 and Welfare and Institutions Code section 5150. According to Neal, critical documents such as his psychiatric assessment and patient advisement were missing from the set of medical records provided by UC Davis Patient Relations Department upon his request. He argued that these omissions constituted an act of extrinsic fraud intended to interfere with his legal actions against the Regents.
Despite Neal’s allegations, the trial court sustained a demurrer filed by the Regents without leave to amend on February 14, 2023. The court concluded that Neal failed to state a cause of action under Penal Code section 471.5 or Business and Professions Code section 2262 because he did not allege any changes made to his medical records but rather complained about incomplete record production. "Plaintiff has not stated a cause of action for violation of either of these statutes since he does not allege that Defendant changed his medical records," stated the court order.
Neal sought an order compelling the Regents to produce a complete set of unfiltered and unaltered audit trails for his medical records in native format but faced another setback when his motion was deemed moot following the demurrer ruling.
The judgment was finalized on May 18, 2023, leading Neal to appeal both the dismissal order and the decision deeming his discovery motion moot. However, upon review, it was determined that there were no errors in sustaining the demurrer or in handling the discovery motion as moot due to judicial economy considerations.
Representing himself in propria persona, Adam L. Neal’s legal arguments were ultimately found insufficient by Judges Renner, Mauro (Acting P.J.), and Krause who concurred with sustaining the demurrer without leave for further amendments under Case ID C099096.