22.10.2025 13:53
Sema and Abdullah Bozoklar, a couple living in Gaziantep, learned years later that their four-year-old daughter, Deniz Esin, was not born with a disability. As a result of the lawsuit filed by the family, it was revealed that the little girl became disabled due to the violence of a nurse. Father Abdullah Bozoklar reacted to the nurse being tried without detention, saying, "We are devastated."
A family in Gaziantep learned that their physically and mentally disabled daughter was actually born healthy and became disabled due to nurse violence.
Sema Bozoklar gave birth to their daughter, whom they named Deniz Esin, at Kahramanmaraş Sütçü İmam University (KSÜ) Health Application and Research Hospital in 2021. Because she was born with a low weight, Deniz Esin was placed in an incubator in the newborn unit. Allegedly, a nurse noticed that Deniz Esin was very calm and motionless. Upon checking, she saw bruises on Deniz Esin's leg.
VIOLENCE RECORDED BY CAMERAS, FAMILY NOT INFORMED The nurse, who knew that Deniz Esin was born healthy, immediately reviewed the security camera footage. After it was determined that nurse H. D. B. had inflicted violence on the baby, the hospital management was informed, and the baby was examined. The examination revealed that the baby's leg was broken. Later, Deniz Esin Bozoklar was transferred to a private hospital, and after treatment there, the baby was returned to the family. Hospital officials told the family that the baby was both physically disabled and had cerebral palsy and epilepsy.
According to allegations, the hospital management did not inform the family about the violence inflicted by the nurse on the baby. However, an administrative investigation was initiated against H. D. B., and the situation was reported to the Kahramanmaraş Provincial Administrative Board. At the end of the administrative investigation, the hospital management terminated H. D. B.'s employment at the hospital, and the Provincial Administrative Board sent the camera footage and documents regarding Deniz Esin Bozoklar's health status to Kayseri Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine to request an expert report.
INTERVENTION ON BROKEN LEG AFTER 5 DAYS The expert committee sent the report it prepared after the examination to the Kahramanmaraş Provincial Administrative Board. The report stated that nurse H. D. B. had difficulty taking blood from Deniz Esin Bozoklar, and when the baby became restless, H. D. B. began to inflict violence on the baby. It was noted that the baby's leg was broken due to the violence, and intervention on the broken leg occurred 5 days later. The report stated, "In the examination of the camera recordings, it was determined that nurse H. D. B. violently hit the baby's right temporal region twice during her shift on May 26, 2021, shook the baby violently by holding her from the middle of her right arm, and squeezed the right thigh several times in a violent manner. It was also noted that she squeezed the left thigh and suddenly and quickly turned the baby from a supine position towards herself, after which the baby became motionless. On May 31, 2021, an X-ray was taken, revealing a fracture in the thigh bone, and the necessary medical intervention was performed. A medical opinion has been formed that the fracture detected in the baby occurred due to the violent actions of nurse H. D. B."
NURSE APPEALED, COUNCIL OPENED THE WAY FOR TRIAL Following the report, the Kahramanmaraş Provincial Administrative Board decided to prosecute H. D. B. However, H. D. B. appealed the decision by filing a lawsuit with the Council of State through her lawyer. The 1st Chamber of the Council of State, which evaluated the appeal, stated that the existing evidence was of a nature that would require a public lawsuit to be filed against the suspect H. D. B., and therefore decided to uphold the decision of the Kahramanmaraş Provincial Administrative Board and to file a lawsuit against H. D. B. in the criminal court for the crime of 'Intentional Injury.'
THEY LEARNED WHEN THE LAWSUIT WAS FILED After the lawsuit was filed at the 10th Criminal Court of First Instance in Kahramanmaraş and entered into the UYAP system, Sema and Abdullah Bozoklar received a message about the court date via e-Government. When the couple opened the message, they were shocked to see that a public lawsuit had been filed against nurse H. D. B. for allegedly inflicting violence on Deniz Esin. Later, when the Bozoklar couple examined the case file, they discovered that their daughter, whom they thought was born disabled, was actually born healthy and became disabled due to the violence inflicted by the nurse.
"I DID MY JOB WITH CARE" Nurse H. D. B., who is being tried without detention for up to 3 years for the crime of 'Intentional Injury,' stated in court that she was innocent and requested her acquittal. In her defense, H. D. B. said, "I do not accept that I acted with the intent to injure Deniz Esin Bozoklar. I did my job carefully to ensure that the patient did not fall from the scale and was not harmed during blood collection. I do not accept the accusations against me."
THE NATURE OF THE CRIME MAY CHANGE After this defense, the judge reminded H. D. B. that she was being tried for 'Intentional Injury' and granted her the right to make an additional defense against the possibility of applying the article of the Turkish Penal Code regarding 'Aggravated Injury due to Consequences.' The nurse stated that she did not request a time for additional defense and reiterated her previous defense. The judge then decided to send the file to the Istanbul Forensic Medicine Institution and postponed the trial.
"WE HAD ACCEPTED THIS SITUATION" Abdullah Bozoklar stated that they learned that the birth occurred normally and that their daughter was placed in an incubator due to developmental issues, and that they later found out that their daughter's leg was broken two months later. He noted that the hospital transferred Deniz Esin to a private hospital in an intubated state without providing any explanation to them, saying, "There, the child was diagnosed with epilepsy and cerebral palsy. They said the reason was that there was some damage to the child's brain, but they did not know what caused it."
After we took our child out of the incubator, we accepted that there was such a situation and continued with our lives. In June 2024, we saw that a court case regarding our child had come through e-Government, and a public lawsuit had been filed against the nurse. This is how we learned about it. In other words, this child was assaulted, and we found out about it 3 years later. A nurse assaulted our daughter there. This is confirmed with the camera footage at Erciyes University Medical Faculty. She breaks her leg, hits her on the head, and twists the girl in a wrong way. In this way, she engages in brutal actions," he said.
"THE NURSE AND THE HOSPITAL COLLABORATED TO BRING MY DAUGHTER TO THIS STATE" Bozoklar, who stated that the hospital's negligence contributed to his daughter's disability, said, "The nurse made these mistakes. Subsequently, this child lived with a broken leg for 5 days, and there was no intervention. A process that started with a nurse breaking a leg and continued with the hospital's lack of intervention for 5 days, they have brought my daughter to this state by collaborating hand in hand. This nurse is now walking around freely. She was removed from her position, and that is all that is done. Removing her from duty will not bring our child back. We know that children with cerebral palsy have a lifespan of about 13-15 years. We hope and trust that our state will not let this matter go. Our confidence in justice is complete. We will not let this matter go, and we will always stand by our daughter," he said.
"SHE IS FREE, MY CHILD IS LIVING A LIFE OF IMPRISONMENT AT HOME" Sema Bozoklar stated that after receiving the message from e-Government and reviewing the file, they found that there was no intervention for 5 days after her daughter's leg was broken, saying, "So many nurses looked after her, doctors were involved. Did no one see? My child was neglected. I want what is necessary to be done. I want those who did this to my daughter to receive the necessary punishment. My daughter is currently in kindergarten, she is 4 and a half years old. While she should be going to school, I am taking my daughter to physical therapy centers and hospitals, and I am feeding her at home myself. While other people take their children to parks, I have to take care of my child at home. I want the woman to be arrested. She is walking around freely while my child is living a life of imprisonment at home," she said.
"THE FORTHCOMING REPORT WILL CLARIFY OUR RIGHTNESS" The family's lawyer, Sait Bolat, stated that the legal process regarding the nurse's violence that caused Deniz Esin Bozoklar's disability is ongoing. Bolat said, "Interestingly, the family believes that their child was born this way, meaning disabled, until the court notification arrives. With the court notification, they actually learn that their child, who was born completely healthy, has been left in this state due to the defendant's actions. After the camera recordings were identified, the university rectorship initiated an administrative investigation internally and immediately terminated the defendant's employment. The Provincial Board is informed. The Provincial Administrative Board, as a result of its investigation, determines that the defendant's actions are contrary to medical ethical rules and contain brutality. Our baby has become disabled for life both physically and mentally due to the brutality she experienced. Our case has been referred to the Forensic Medicine Institution. The report coming from the Forensic Medicine Institution will clarify our rightness in this case," he said.
"THE FOOTAGE IS HEART-WRENCHING TO WATCH" Bolat, who also watched the camera footage showing the violence the baby experienced, stated, "The images in the camera recordings reveal the brutality. Believe me, most people cannot bear to watch the camera footage. The sad part is that the nurse who inflicted this brutality on our newborn baby is also a mother. Unfortunately, she has subjected our baby to brutality in a way that is devoid of the compassion expected from a mother," he said.