Hospital peeper: I was just being nosy

Published: April 9, 2008 at 5:50 PM
ACTRESS FARRAH FAWCETT ARRIVES FOR JURY DUTY

LOS ANGELES, April 9 (UPI) -- The administrative specialist who read the confidential medical files of patients at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles said she was just being "nosy."

Lawanda J. Jackson is said to have looked without permission at the records of 60 patients, including California First Lady Maria Shriver and actress Farrah Fawcett, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday.

"It was just me being nosy. ... Clearly I made a mistake; let's put it like that," Jackson, 49, told the newspaper.

"I didn't leak anything or anything like that," said Jackson, who worked at the hospital since she was 16. "It wasn't for money or anything. It was just looking."

The medical center took steps last May to terminate Jackson's employment for snooping, but she quit before they could fire her, the Times said.

The newspaper said neither UCLA nor state health officials have confirmed Jackson's identity, but the Times was able to verify it.

Numerous UCLA employees are in the process of being fired or disciplined for reading the private files of former patient Britney Spears in a separate incident this year.

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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