Friday, June 29, 2007

Family Awarded $54M In Death

By Scott Sandlin
Copyright ) 2007 Albuquerque Journal; Journal Staff Writer
    A jury on Thursday awarded the family of a woman who died at an Albuquerque nursing home $54 million in damages the largest personal injury verdict ever in New Mexico, according to one of the attorneys.
    The total includes $4 million compensatory and $50 million punitive damages against ManorCare Camino Vista for the death of Barbara Barber.
    Attorney Carl Bettinger called the jurors "heroes" and said he was honored to have represented Barber's daughter, Lori Keith, in taking on "one of the largest corporations in the country ... so she could show the public what happened to her mother and in so doing save the lives of others."
    ManorCare attorney Tim Fields declined to comment. ManorCare corporate officials in Ohio could not be reached for comment.
    The corporation sold its three New Mexico facilities in 2005.
    Bettinger said he had asked jurors to award punitive damages totaling 2.5 percent of the corporation's total 2006 assets of $2.3 billion. The punitive damages awarded by the jury are just over 2 percent.
    The jury verdict was read by Bernalillo County District Judge Linda Vanzi to a courtroom packed with relatives and legal staffers. When she finished, a stunned silence fell over the courtroom, punctuated by small sobs from family members.
    Keith said in an interview that she had asked for an autopsy immediately after her 78-year-old mother's death in 2004 because it was so unexpected, despite her mother's medical problems.
    "I just had a feeling something went terribly wrong," she said.
    Keith said that she arrived at the facility within three hours of being informed by phone of her mother's death and that staffers had hastily crammed her mother's belongings into four cardboard boxes. Money was also missing, she said.
    "It was ransacked, really," she said of her mother's room.
    Lawyers learned a few months before trial that a nursing aide found Barber lying in soiled, bloody sheets, which were immediately removed by staffers. By the time relatives arrived, Barber was lying on clean sheets with her arms crossed over her chest, leading the family to claim in the lawsuit that ManorCare had destroyed evidence.
    A doctor who performed Barber's autopsy testified that, if a patient dies in suspicious circumstances, the person's immediate surroundings are normally taken to the Office of the Medical Investigator along with the body. He said that, based on his exam, Barber had died of a gastrointestinal hemorrhage.
    Bettinger and Michael Gross, co-counsel in the case, introduced evidence to show that the internal bleeding had been going on for several days with no response, even though staff members had been aware of it.
    The family's lawyers said Barber's charting was so inadequate that it showed that Barber had been given an insulin injection 2 1/2 hours after her death.
    ManorCare's expert testified that Barber had died of a heart attack, and company officials said the cleanup was simply a matter of hygiene and dignity.
    Bettinger presented evidence of other instances of neglect at ManorCare facilities in New Mexico, including patients repeatedly found in fecal- and urine-soiled bedding, improper restraints and improperly trained staff.
    He said top company officials testified about being kept apprised of financial data but not about abuse and neglect citations.
    Adult Protective Services, a state agency, conducted an investigation and cited ManorCare for neglect in connection with Barber's death. The New Mexico Department of Health also issued multiple citations, unsuccessfully appealed by ManorCare, attorneys said.
    The jury found that ManorCare's negligence was a cause of Barber's death and injuries. The jury apportioned 80 percent of the negligence to ManorCare and 20 percent to two certified nurse practitioners who contracted with the company but were not its employees.
    ManorCare attorney R.E. Thompson said the company will file post-trial motions, which typically seek to overturn the jury verdict or to reduce or eliminate punitive damages.