Emily Willis health update: Family sue rehab centre after former porn star left 'permanently disabled'
The family of former adult actress Emily Willis has filed a lawsuit against a rehab centre, alleging negligence and mistreatment that led to permanent brain damage and left her in a vegetative state.
Willis, whose real name is Litzy Lara Banuelos, was admitted to Summit Malibu, a private treatment facility, on January 27, 2024, seeking treatment for ketamine addiction. According to court documents, the 26-year-old had been consuming 5 to 6 grams of ketamine daily before entering rehab.
Her family claims that Summit Malibu and its parent company, Malibu Lighthouse Treatment Centers, failed to provide proper medical care, resulting in severe health complications that ultimately caused irreversible brain damage.
Willis was suffering from multiple health issues, including bladder inflammation, night terrors, anxiety, and PTSD, when she was admitted to the facility. Her mother and legal conservator, Yesenia Lara Cooper, who is also the plaintiff in the lawsuit, alleged that the centre failed to consult a dietitian despite Willis being underweight at just 100 pounds.
During her stay, Willis' health worsened significantly. The lawsuit alleges that she developed a urinary tract infection, became severely dehydrated, and endured extreme pain. Her family claims that despite these alarming symptoms, she was repeatedly denied medical attention from physicians.
The suit further alleges that the facility failed to provide safe conditions and proper care, as Willis qualified as a “dependent adult” under the centre’s own intake policies.
Willis remained at the facility for just over a week before she was found unconscious on February 4, 2024. According to the lawsuit, staff left her unattended for excessively long periods, ultimately leading to her collapse. A nurse discovered her unresponsive and immediately called 911 and began CPR.
When paramedics arrived, they performed CPR for 30 to 40 minutes until they managed to regain a heartbeat. However, the prolonged lack of oxygen caused irreversible brain damage, leaving Willis in a coma.
The lawsuit claims that if staff had followed standard medical protocols, Willis would have had the chance to recover. "Had the staff followed standard medical protocols, Emily would have had the opportunity to regain control of her life," the lawsuit states. "No patient should ever be subjected to such a horrendous breakdown in clinical care. Her health was ignored until it was too late, and now her life is forever changed."
Just 26 hours after collapsing, Willis suffered a heart attack, worsening her condition and leaving her in a permanent vegetative state. The lawsuit further alleges that negligence by the facility caused Willis to suffer from “irreversible brain damage, permanent physical and mental incapacity, pain, and emotional distress.”
As a result of the medical neglect, Willis has been diagnosed with locked-in syndrome, a rare neurological disorder that has left her completely paralysed, except for limited movement of her eyes. She is unable to communicate and is currently receiving long-term care at a facility in Utah.
The last public update about Willis’s condition came from a May 2024 post on her GoFundMe page, which revealed she was showing "signs of responsiveness like eye tracking but is still unable to communicate." Earlier updates from her stepfather, Michael, in March 2024, indicated that Willis had awakened from her vegetative state and was displaying positive signs such as smiling and reacting emotionally during conversations.
However, since then, her family has not provided further details, leaving fans uncertain about her current state. The fundraising page has so far raised over $104,000 (£83,000).