Mother of woman who died in botched surgery calls for change

Holding a photo of her late daughter, Judith Gorcey said she was determined to keep the mother of two’s memory alive.

“She was fun. She was loyal to her friends. She was a great daughter,” Gorcey said speaking in a court hallway Monday.

Gorcey’s daughter Megan Espinoza died in 2018 after getting a breast augmentation procedure at the Divino Plastic Surgery Clinic in Bonita, Calif.

The clinic’s plastic surgeon, Dr. Carlos Chacon, pleaded guilty Monday to involuntary manslaughter and aiding and abetting an unlicensed person to practice medicine for his role in Espinoza’s death. In exchange, he will be sentenced to three years in state prison and is banned from practicing medicine in California.

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“It doesn't seem like justice for our girl. But I'm very grateful to the district attorney of San Diego that they took on the case,” Gorcey said.

”I’m glad that Chacon cannot hurt anyone else. I'm glad he had to surrender his license. He gave our daughter a death sentence. He gave us (a) life sentence of pain.”

Chacon was set to stand trial next week for second-degree murder for the botched surgery where he used an untrained nurse to give anesthesia to Espinoza.

Prosecutors alleged he left the mother of two to die on the operating room table for hours after she went into cardiac arrest while he saw other potential patients and prevented his staff from calling 911.

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Doctor faced second-degree murder charge

“He put his economic interests ahead of patient safety and Megan Espinoza paid with her life for his decision to enhance his economic interests,” said deputy district attorney Gina Darvas.

Chacon was previously charged with involuntary manslaughter, but prosecutors upgraded the charge to second-degree murder last year after new evidence came forward.

Despite the criminal charges, he was allowed by the Medical Board of California to see patients. A judge later ordered restrictions that prevented him from performing surgeries but allowed him to do other cosmetic work.

“I'm critical of the California Medical Board that they didn't pull the license earlier,” said Gorcey.

She vowed Monday to lobby for legislative changes that would protect patients.

“I just wish they would be a little more critical and protect the lives of Californians and pull doctor's licenses when there have been egregious behavior on the part of the doctors,” she said.

Chacon’s attorney Marc Carlos said with the possibility of a life sentence, it made sense for his client to take the plea deal.

“Nothing can replace the life of Megan Espinoza. By entering into a plea, Dr. Chacon has accepted his role in the outcome. He wants Ms. Espinoza’s family to have closure as well as his own.”