Malpractice claim of bipolar ER patient is dismissed

Lance Corey sued Carson City Hospital after he was involuntarily confined in a holding room and responded by activating the fire suppression system.  The Hospital pressed charges for malicious destruction of property and he was ultimately held guilty but mentally ill.  He claimed that the entire incident was the fault of negligent medical care by the Hospital. 

The Hospital argued that under the "wrongful conduct rule," Corey's actions in setting off the fire suppression system should make him ineligible to pursue any negligence claim arising out of his own illegal action. The Court held that this rule only applies to activity undertaken with criminal intent.  Since Corey lacked criminal intent, the wrongful conduct rule did not come into play.  Nevertheless, his lawsuit lacked evidence that error by the Defendant caused his damages, so the case was dismissed on its merits.