A federal judge in Tennessee has awarded the son of a U.S. Army soldier a $15.1 million bench verdict in a medical malpractice suit in which he suffered permanent brain damage during birth that led to cerebral palsy, the family’s South Carolina-based attorneys report.
Capparella
Gerald Jowers and Kenneth Suggs of Janet, Janet & Suggs in Columbia and Donald Capparella of Dodson Parker Behm & Capparella in Nashville, report that the son of Kelly Wilson and Delvin Tavarez, known in court documents as A.J.J.T., sued the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act based on injuries he suffered during childbirth in 2005 at Blanchfield Army Community Hospital at Fort Campbell.
The suit alleged that Wilson had not been properly consulted by an obstetrician or advised of the risks of giving birth to A.J.J.T. vaginally because of a previous birth. When Wilson went into labor and arrived at the hospital, she was not seen by an obstetrician until late in the labor process when she started having complications with her son’s heart rate, Jowers said.
As a result of a lack of oxygen to his brain before birth, A.J.J.T. suffered a brain injury that led to cerebral palsy and seizure disorder that prevents him from controlling his limbs and speaking. Now 15 years old, A.J.J.T. also has a learning disability and will require care for the rest of his life, according to the Jan. 28 order written by U.S. District Judge Aleta Trauger. Federal law required that the case be tried before a judge, Jowers said.
Suggs
Based on the testimony of expert witnesses, Trauger determined that A.J.J.T.’s injury was a result of the improper consultation and care Wilson received at the hospital.
“What’s so sad is it never should have happened,” Jowers said. “His mother should have never been in that position, at all, for several reasons. And that’s what the judge did a really impressive job communicating in her order.”
Jowers said the plaintiff sought two categories of damages: for A.J.J.T.’s future medical care, and for the noneconomic damages that are difficult to have a dollar value assigned.
Trauger determined A.J.J.T. should receive $6.47 million in damages for future medical care, $2.19 million in future lost earnings, and $500,000 in past pain and suffering. In addition, she also ruled he should receive $1 million in future pain and suffering, $1 million for past loss of enjoyment of life and $4 million for future loss of enjoyment of life and permanent impairment.
Jowers
“I think our servicemen and women are entitled to the best medical care, and when they don’t get that, my firm is pleased to represent them,” Jowers said. “What happened in this case should have never happened, if the hospital, if the doctors had simply followed the standard of care. But they didn’t and this child was hurt severely because of it. I think the result we were able to achieve reflects justice in this situation as best as our courts have the ability to give.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Roden, who represented the government in the case, declined comment but said his team is exploring the possibility of an appeal.
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VERDICT REPORT – MEDICAL MALPRACTICE
Amount: $15,153,488
Injuries alleged: Brain injury resulting in cerebral palsy, seizure disorder and neurologic defects
Case name: A.J.J.T. et al. v. United States of America
Court: U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee
Case No.: 3:15-cv-01073
Judge: Aleta Trauger
Date of verdict: Jan. 28
Special damages: $8,653,488
Most helpful experts: Dr. Robert Cooper of Tacoma, Washington (physiatrist) and Dr. Michael Hawkins of Nashville, Tennessee (obstetrician-gynecologist)
Attorneys for plaintiff: Gerald Jowers and Kenneth Suggs of Janet, Janet & Suggs in Columbia and Donald Capparella of Dodson Parker Behm & Capparella in Nashville
Attorneys for defendant: Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Roden and Kara Sweet of the Middle District of Tennessee