Bayonne resident who sued NY hospital over incorrect gender listing on birth certificate is now officially a man, his attorney said
Bayonne resident David Hassan's battle for a corrected birth certificate is closer to being over. Peter Madison, the attorney representing Hassan, said all the necessary documents had been submitted to the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and correct credentials would be mailed to his client within the week. Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City,...
Rosemarie Hassan shows her son's passport, which was issued despite the birth certificate error. Thursday, Feb. 8, 2012. Kate Kowsh/Jersey Journal
Bayonne resident David Hassan's battle for a corrected birth certificate is closer to being over.
Peter Madison, the attorney representing Hassan, said all the necessary documents had been submitted to the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and correct credentials would be mailed to his client within the week. Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, where Hassan was born, also submitted documents today that allowed the department to remedy the situation.
Hassan, a former Marine, has been fighting to obtain an error-free birth certificate since it was discovered that he was listed as a female on the document almost nine years ago.
"I am not, nor have I ever been, female," Hassan told the New York Post yesterday. Now, the state of New Jersey agrees. Madison said Hassan would finally be able to have his own car in his home state.
"He'll get his New Jersey license," Madison said. "He'll then be able to buy and register a car."
Rosemarie Hassan shows her son's passport, which was issued despite the birth certificate error. Thursday, Feb. 8, 2012In fact, Hassan went over 20 years of his life without encountering problems as a result of the faded text identifying him as female on his birth certificate, until 2003 during a return visit to his home in New Jersey.
"He was home on leave and he lost his wallet," Rosemarie Hassan said.
That was when the trouble started. When Hassan applied for a new ID, his application was denied and he was told he was told he would need a letter from Lenox Hill admitting a "hospital error." Rosemarie Hassan contacted the hospital asking for the required letter in 2007. However, according to court documents, the hospital would not admit the gender glitch "for liability reasons."
According to a statement released today by Lenox Hill, the hospital considered the issue closed at the time it released the letter:
"In 2007, Lenox Hill Hospital issued a letter stating that the information on Mr. Hassan's birth certificate was incorrect and thought that the matter had been resolved."
Madison said, though the issue would have been resolved eventually, the press attention Hassan's story garnered in the past few days helped speed up the process.
"I was a little surprised and amused to find it was in the news," Madison said. "I feel I owe an obligation to the press for making sure this happened."
