‘I was born with gasoline deep within my body’: Maya Kowalski describes her chronic pain condition while taking the stand in medical malpractice and kidnapping trial

A teenage girl with a chronic pain condition testified Monday morning in a $220 million lawsuit against the hospital that she and her family claim medically kidnapped and abused her – to the point that her nearly three-months-long absence drove her mother to suicide.

In January 2017, Beata Kowalski, 43, killed herself after Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, Florida, initiated a legal process that eventually led to the mother being kept her away from her daughter, then-10-year-old Maya Kowalski, for over 87 days.

Maya, who is now 17, took the stand in a Venice courtroom and began her testimony by describing a happier life full of independence and determination. She told the jury that she was the impetus for all of her extracurricular activities like piano, ballet, and gymnastics. Maya was adamant about becoming a gymnast, she said, when a group of girls told her that she was too small to compete. Her attorney asked if that was how she generally reacted when someone told her she couldn’t do something. She answered in the affirmative.

“Oh yeah, I’m gonna prove you wrong,” Maya said.

You May Also Like

Opening Statements Begin in Murder Trial of Slain Trail Mom Rachel Morin

Opening statements were delivered Friday in the trial for the 2023 murder…

The fame factor: How much can notoriety help or harm a defendant in court?

Left: Rakim Mayers, aka A$AP Rocky, in the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal…

Russell Brand grins as he is seen in public in the US for the first time after being charged with rape and sexual assault in Britain

Actor and comedian Russell Brand has been spotted in public for the first…

Teacher Who Allegedly Sexually Assaulted Special Needs Student Kept ‘Memoir’ About Him on Phone

A married Illinois special education teacher, who  faces allegations of raping a…