MEMPHIS, Tenn — Another security scare at a medical facility happened on Monday, July 17, nearly one week after Dr. Benjamin Mauck was killed at the Collierville Campbell Clinic.
Dr. Tonya Lyons, CEO of New Image Family Dentistry, said her Monday started like any other day, filled with dental cleanings and exams. Then, one of her patients came in experiencing what Lyons is calling a mental crisis.
“She saw the lobby was full and she started yelling about ‘am I gonna have to wait’,” Lyons said. “So we told her we’re gonna get you taken care of, sign in. She was adamant about ‘am I gonna have to wait -I need to know and so we said the wait won’t be that long.”
It was in that moment, things turned tense.
“She said I see why the patient shot the doctor and I immediately froze like woah” Lyons said. You know my first thought was my employees and my patients. You know this could be a bad situation. And I mean literally the entire lobby jumped up and ran out.”
The incident happened the week after Dr. Benjamin Mauck was killed in his Campbell Clinic exam room and the patient referencing that specific incident, didn’t sit well with Lyons, other patients or employees.
Lyons said patients come into the office looking to get a quick prescription often.
“I’ve had patients yelling and screaming about meds but never anybody saying ‘I see why they shot the doctor,” Lyons said.
And the incident didn’t end there.
“I said well look I’m getting ready to call 911 and she said ‘well they gotta get here first’ so that was another thing,” Lyons said. “Like wait a minute, what does she have? I don’t know what’s in that purse, I don’t know what she’s got. So, our tone changed, but by then MPD had already shown up.”
MPD detained the woman and removed her from the property. If she trespasses again, now she can be arrested.
Lyons was shaken by this incident and is now forced to improve security measures on her property, like other medical facilities in the Mid-South.