The lawsuit says the attack in Garage 1 was foreseeable and preventable.
HOUSTON, Texas — A Houston health care worker who survived a stabbing and robbery in a Texas Medical Center parking garage has sued the medical center, accusing it of failing to provide basic security before the May attack.
Baleigh Burmaster, a veterinary technician, says in the lawsuit that Texas Medical Center Public Parking Garage 1 lacked working surveillance cameras and on-site security when she arrived for work about 6:30 a.m. May 11. The civil filing seeks more than $10 million in damages and punitive damages.
The lawsuit says Burmaster parked in the garage before her shift and was attacked moments after getting out of her vehicle. The filing alleges the attacker stabbed her several times, forced her back into the vehicle, restrained her during the struggle and tried to take control of the car. Her attorneys said the attack lasted about 10 to 15 minutes before she escaped. Burmaster said at a news conference that she was “fighting for my life in a car.”
The petition says the attacker had entered the garage hours earlier and remained there without being detected. It alleges investigators later used Houston METRO surveillance video, not garage cameras, to identify and track the suspect. The lawsuit also cites violent crimes reported in and around the Texas Medical Center in the weeks around the attack, including at least four violent crimes in a two-week span.
Burmaster’s attorneys argue those earlier reports made the danger foreseeable. The suit says lighting, patrols, cameras and access controls were not enough to protect workers who used the garage before sunrise. It also says safety changes made after the attack, including more patrols and added signs, show stronger measures were available before Burmaster was injured.
Texas Medical Center had not filed a public response to the lawsuit as of the report. The civil case will move through the early stages of court review, including service of the lawsuit, a response from the defendant and possible hearings on evidence. The criminal case tied to the attack is separate from Burmaster’s civil claims.
Burmaster said she continues to deal with physical, emotional and mental harm from the attack. Her attorneys said the case is meant to hold the garage operator accountable for what they describe as preventable security failures. The lawsuit says Burmaster’s injuries and the alleged lack of security changed a routine workday into a violent ordeal.
The case now stands as both a personal injury lawsuit and a broader challenge to security practices at one of Houston’s busiest medical districts. The next milestone is the Texas Medical Center’s formal court response.
Author note: Last updated July 3, 2026.