Arcadio Ariza Cortes escaped from UNC Hospitals on Oct. 1, 2001, after the hospital staff allegedly mistook him for a visitor. The 35-year-old Mexican immigrant and Carrboro resident, who was being treated for schizophrenia, was later found dead from head trauma at the ground floor of the business school parking deck.
Carrboro Board of Alderman member John Herrera, the official representative of Cortes' estate, said the memorial was held at the lot to honor a Mexican tradition in which people remember death in the place where their loved one's soul was taken away.
The memorial, which was held in Spanish, not only served as a commemoration of Cortes' death but also as a rally to demand change.
"With the presence of all of you tonight his death was not in vain," Herrera said. "(His death) will change a lot of things ... to the policies of the hospital to the treatment of immigrants."
Cortes' death led to an N.C. Department of Health and Human Services investigation last October that cited security problems within the hospital's psychiatric unit. After the investigation, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services in Atlanta notified UNC Hospitals that its Medicare funding would be terminated if the hospital failed to improve its security deficiencies.
After making changes, including requiring patients to wear identification bands and visitors to have their hands stamped, the hospital held on to Medicare privileges.
Hospital officials said they regret the incident. "UNC Hospitals is deeply sorry about the death of Arcadio Ariza Cortes," said Thomas Hughes, spokesman for UNC Hospitals. "However, the Cortes case is in active litigation, and for that reason what we can say about it is limited. ... We are hopeful that a resolution of this matter can be reached."
But the friends and family of Cortes said they are still looking for answers.
"They trusted the system, and 24 hours later, Arcadio was gone," Herrera said. "After that happens, how can we build trust in the system? A year has gone by, and still the hospital has not called the family and said, 'I'm sorry.'"
