She says learning about the assault and seeing video evidence left lasting trauma.
DAYTONA BEACH, FL — A Daytona Beach woman who says she was sexually assaulted while unconscious during an ambulance ride is calling for statewide safety rules, including cameras inside ambulances and a requirement that two responders ride in the patient area during transports involving vulnerable patients.
Her push comes after a former Flagler County Fire Rescue paramedic was convicted in the case and sentenced to 10 years in prison, a punishment she says did not match the harm. The woman, who asked to remain anonymous, said the case changed her health, her relationships and her sense of safety, and she wants Florida to adopt uniform protections rather than leaving each county to set its own practices.
The woman told local reporters that for about two years she did not know anything had happened to her during the trip. She said that changed when investigators came to her home and asked her to watch a video and identify herself. She recalled detectives telling her they did not know how to explain it, but they needed her to watch the recording. The victim said the moment she realized what the video showed turned her life upside down. She said she felt humiliated during the criminal case because video was played in court repeatedly, and she described having to watch intimate images in a room full of strangers. “It was humiliating,” she said in an interview.
Authorities have said the assault was captured on video, and investigators described recordings that appeared to show the paramedic setting up and adjusting a camera before attacking the patient. The man at the center of the case, former Flagler County paramedic James Melady, was convicted of sexual battery and sentenced to 10 years in prison. The victim said she believed the jury should have convicted him of a charge tied to the victim’s condition at the time, and she cited a blood alcohol level she said was 0.56. “I don’t feel like justice was done,” she said, describing how she believed she was unresponsive during the transport. She also said she reached a settlement related to the case, but emphasized that money did not undo what she says the assault cost her.
The woman said the fallout did not end when the verdict was read. She said she was pregnant during part of the process and believes stress played a role in her miscarriage. She described miscarrying on a day she went to meet with prosecutors, saying it happened in an elevator. The case also left her feeling exposed, she said, because she did not consent to being recorded and did not know for years that video existed. “You are at your most vulnerable position when you’re unconscious,” she said, explaining why she believes stronger rules are needed for any patient who cannot advocate for themselves.
Some changes have already been made locally, and the woman says those changes should not depend on where a person happens to need help. After the case, Flagler County Fire Rescue installed cameras inside ambulances and changed staffing practices so that two staff members ride in the back of an ambulance instead of one during certain calls. In an interview, the victim described those steps as the kind of baseline she wants required across Florida. She said she also wants deeper screening for responders, describing what she called a more in-depth mental health evaluation for paramedics. “Flagler County has now imposed a new law requiring two people in every ambulance, a camera, and a very in-depth psychiatric evaluation, and I want that to become statewide,” she said.
Records and public reporting about the case have also described other allegations involving the former paramedic. Authorities have said he faced accusations tied to theft or fraud involving patients, including claims that debit or credit cards and personal information were taken and later used for purchases. Those matters were described as pending in court, and the victim said the broader picture reinforced her belief that safeguards cannot rely only on trust. She also said she hopes any new requirements would make it harder for a single responder to isolate a patient and would create documentation when a patient is unconscious and cannot describe what happened during a transport.
The legal process is not over. The woman said she is still living with the effects of the case while additional proceedings continue in another county. Court schedules cited in local reporting indicate Melady faces separate charges in Volusia County, including an allegation of video voyeurism, and that case is set for a March 2026 trial date. The victim said she wants lawmakers and state regulators to act faster than the courts move, because ambulance rules can be changed through policy and statewide standards while criminal cases work their way through hearings, motions and trials. She said she is speaking publicly now because she believes silence leaves the next victim alone.
For now, she is asking state leaders to treat ambulance transports like other settings where cameras, staffing rules and documentation are used to protect people who are unable to protect themselves. She said she wants a statewide requirement that limits situations where a single responder is alone with an unconscious patient, and she wants cameras to be standard equipment, not an optional upgrade. She also said she hopes new protocols would reduce the need for victims to relive assaults in open courtrooms by providing clearer procedures and accountability earlier in investigations.
As of Friday, the woman said she is continuing to press for broader protections while separate court cases connected to Melady remain active, including a Volusia County case that local reporting says is scheduled for trial in March. She said she will keep advocating until the safeguards she wants are consistent across Florida.
Author note: Last updated February 13, 2026.