Jury awards millions to ‘Star Trek’ star’s family in death lawsuit

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. —

Nichelle Nichols, widely recognized for her role as Lt. Uhura on “Star Trek,” became a trailblazer as the first Black woman to play a lead role on television.

Nichols considered leaving “Star Trek” to pursue theater, but Martin Luther King Jr. personally urged her to stay. “Please, this is the first time a person like us has been in a role of power and influence, and I need you to stay,” said Lisa Curtis, an attorney for the Nichols family.

Nichelle Nichols’ family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Gila Medical Center in Silver City, New Mexico, where Nichols was treated in 2022. A jury awarded $13 million to the family.

“Nichelle Nichols had a new heart condition, and the great people that were taking care of her sent her to the emergency room to be diagnosed. They did a terrible job of that,” Curtis said.

The lawsuit alleges that Gila Medical Center “hired, credentialed, and inappropriately supervised unqualified medical providers and allowed them to treat Ms. Nichols.”

Nichols was later transferred to an assisted living facility, where she died hours later.

“So, she needed to see somebody that could diagnose her and treat her. They didn’t transfer her to Las Cruces. It’s just a trip down I-25. It should have been an easy call, but the problem is a hospital [with] very poor policies for that,” Curtis said.

Attempts to reach the medical center and its attorney for comment were unsuccessful. However, in court filings, the hospital stated Nichols died due to natural causes.