Stephen Scantlebury of Wellington nearly killed nurse Leela aka Leelamma Lal in the Florida Palms West Hospital
Nurse advocates are now calling for more robust safety protocols for healthcare workers in the wake of a vicious attack on a nurse named Leelamma Lal at a Palm Beach County hospital last week.
A petition to strengthen protections for healthcare workers and impose tougher sanctions for those who abuse or intimidate has amassed over 10,000 signatures in just three days.
Who is Stephen Scantlebury of Wellington who attacked Indian origin nurse Leela aka Leelamma Lal in Florida Palms West Hospital, bio, age, wife, photo and criminal record
While he awaits trial, a man who is suspected of viciously assaulting Leelamma Lal at the HCA Florida Palms West Hospital last Tuesday will stay behind bars.
‼️UPDATE: This is what this VIOLENT RACIST WHITE MAN, Stephen Scantlebury, did to this INDIAN NURSE, Leela Lal, who was just trying to HELP him.
🏥 Loxahatchee hospital
📍West Palm Beach | Florida https://t.co/ppd5hPEbsi pic.twitter.com/lrFJymEsMq— i Expose Racists & Pedos (@SeeRacists) March 3, 2025
Deputies claim that Stephen Scantlebury attacked Indian origin nurse Leelamma aka Leela Lal so severely that “almost every bone” in her face was fractured, leading to his allegation of attempted murder with a hate crime enhancement.
Nurse Lal was caring for the suspect while he was in the hospital under Florida’s Baker Act. When Scantlebury was arrested, the cop who testified on Thursday claimed to have heard him say, “Indians are bad, and I just beat the bleep (expletive) out of an Indian doctor.” Scantlebury was also observed on top of her.
Canadian citizen Stephen Eric Scantlebury, aged 33 of Wellington was seen as he tried to force his way into a passing car after escaping from Palms West Hospital, Florida where police say he brutally attacked a nurse.
Indian-Origin Nurse Left Disfigured After Brutal Attack by Patient in US Hospital
67-year-old Leelamma Lal was left with severe facial fractures. Stephen Scantlebury (33) has been arrested and is facing charges of attempted second-degree murder and hate crimes – he allegedly… pic.twitter.com/prpg7OLWJb
— RT_India (@RT_India_news) March 3, 2025
Scantlebury was seen in the middle of Southern Boulevard, blood on his hands, attempting to jump into multiple vehicles.
“He came up to my door, and he opened the door, and he had blood all over his hand, he said, ‘They’re trying to kill me.’ And I closed the door. He hopped on the hood of the truck, and then he went around to the other side of the truck, and then he went around to the tractor-trailer, and he hopped on the door of the tractor-trailer,” said witness Wendell Sanders.
Scantlebury, who had been acting paranoid for days, checked himself into Palms West Hospital last week, complaining of chest pains and once admitted, he was placed under a Baker Act hold for mental evaluation and then sent upstairs to a regular patient room.
That’s when he viciously attacked 67-year-old nurse Leela Lal on the third floor, beating her nearly to death and Lal remains on a ventilator with severe injuries.
This is not Scantlebury’s first violent offense as in 2018, he was convicted of assault in Charlottetown, Canada, after punching his child’s grandfather in the face and trying to slam a car trunk on his head and served 30 days in jail. With Scantlebury being in his early 30s, his lawyers argued he is well within the age range that some psychiatric conditions develop.
Stephan Scantlebury made racist remark
"Indians are bad" and "I just beat the sh*t out of that Indian doctor" and then hen attacked a 67-year-old Indian-origin nurse, Leelamma Lal at a Palm Beach County hospital in the USA's Florida.The racist attacker had escaped the… pic.twitter.com/5aNjRUv5A5
— Āryā_Anvikṣā 🪷 (@Arya_Anviksha_) March 3, 2025
Megan, Scantlebury’s wife, said her husband had been acting suspiciously in the days before the incident.
“He thought there were people trying to harm him, he thought our house was bugged,” Megan Scantlebury said. “He thought I was involved, he thought the neighbours were involved.”
One of the petition organizers, Dr. Cheryl Thomas-Harcum, is working to pass legislation that would provide workers like Lal additional safeguards.
“I looked at Leela. I looked at her as helpless. I looked at her as a woman that had devoted her life to this profession, and at the tail end of her career, she had to sustain something so vicious,” she said.
Everyone wearing scrubs is impacted by the problem, according to the Indian Nurses Association of South Florida.
The advisory board head, Dr. Manju Samuel, stated, “The issue here is the risk to our healthcare workers, because there are no specific laws to protect the staff, there is a deficiency, and that must be addressed by lawmakers.”
The judge rejected Scantlebury’s lawyers’ plea to have him moved from jail to a mental health hospital, stating that it was too soon. While he awaits his trial, he will stay behind bars.