OAKLAND, Calif. -- The mother of California girl declared brain dead after complications from a tonsillectomy is pleading for prayers and time to keep her daughter on a ventilator.
Nailah Winkfield wrote in an open letter Saturday that if given time, she believes God will help her daughter live.
A temporary restraining order barring Children's Hospital of Oakland from disconnecting 13-year-old Jahi McMath expires on Monday.
The hospital responded in a statement that while it sympathizes with Winkfield's wishes, "it would be unfair to give false hope that Jahi will come back to life."
Winkfield said her daughter bled profusely and went into cardiac arrest after undergoing a "simple procedure" to remove her tonsil.
The hospital contends the surgery was complicated, and that it was investigating what caused the "catastrophic outcome."