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Mother: New Jersey Hospital Wrongly Pronounced Son Dead

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- A New Jersey mother has moved her son to a new hospital after she said he showed signs of life after being pronounced dead by doctors.

Saturday was a nightmare for Laureen LaVecchia, who rushed to St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center after hearing that her son Michael had been seriously injured in a car accident on Route 80 in Wayne.

"They came in and told me that he had massive brain damage," she told 1010 WINS' Rebecca Granet.

Mother: New Jersey Hospital Wrongly Pronounced Son Dead

LaVecchia said after several tests, doctors said Michael was brain dead, and later he was pronounced dead.

But that night, LaVecchia stayed with her son and said she saw him move.

"The very first thing he did was he raised his arm. He did that a couple of times," she said. "He began to raise his left leg a few times."

LaVecchia said after pushing for it, the hospital reversed the death pronouncement.

Michael was moved to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, where he's listed in critical condition.

On Thursday, St. Joseph's Healthcare System released this statement:

"The St. Joseph's Healthcare System family continues to pray for the LaVecchia family and recognizes the enormous pain they are going through. As a Catholic healthcare system, we have an obligation to provide excellence in health care according to the highest ethical and professional standards. The staff at our Children's Hospital is vastly experienced in providing clinical care in this area and remains committed to providing any assistance to the LaVecchia family in seeking answers to any unanswered questions. Our desire is to be supportive of the family as they continue to deal with this tragedy."

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