Jury finds Duke liable
Author:MITCHELL; The News & Observer, January 25, 1997
DURHAM - On Friday, five years after her 10-year-old son died at Duke University Medical Center, Finesse Couch finally felt vindicated.
A jury awarded her $2.5 million after finding that Duke and the Private Diagnostic Clinic in Durham were negligent in treating Carnell Simmons Couch, who died of a heart attack.
The verdict fell short of the $30 million Couch had requested. But with tears in her eyes, Couch said Friday that she was grateful to the jury for sending Duke a message.
"I feel that my son's life was not in vain," Couch said, with her husband, Therman, at her side. "I want Duke to know that a child's life has great value. It's invaluable. Those 12 people believed that Duke was negligent no matter how bogus their defense was. I hope this will save other children's lives. I hope they won't have to die before Duke pays attention to them."
James Maxwell, the attorney for Duke and Private Diagnostic Clinic, said that his clients have 10 days to decide their next move but that "it's safe to assume that we will appeal."
The highly technical trial lasted for three weeks, with lawyer Willie Gary contending that doctors who treated Carnell between December 1991 and February 1992 failed to recognize dangerous blood clots in his chest that ultimately killed him.
Instead, he said, doctors treated him for pneumonia while overlooking 22 symptoms - such as chest pains, shortness of breath and a lack of oxygen - that pointed to the real problem.
To bolster his claims, Gary pointed to notes taken by a medical student who recognized the seriousness of Carnell's condition and an autopsy report that indicated Carnell had the fatal clots long before his death.
But Maxwell countered that medical personnel were not negligent because the blood clots actually appeared hours before Carnell died, which would have made it impossible for doctors to treat them sooner. Maxwell also argued that because Carnell did show signs of pneumonia, doctors followed normal procedure in caring for him.
Copyright 1997 by The News & Observer Pub. Co.
Record Number: 1997024128
Well, well, well ...
Thanks for that post!
Now THAT is interesting...
Thank you for that bit of information. Does anyone think this family may have a grudge against Duke?
I'll have to find more about that case. The low monetary award leads me to believe it was a sympathy verdict.