In this confidential settlement, during the delivery of Baby Doe, a shoulder dystocia occurred. The attending physician, Dr. Roe, released the impacted shoulder and delivered Baby Doe, who suffered a right brachial plexus injury. The brachial plexus injury required nerve graft surgery. In spite of the surgery to correct the…
Chicago Birth Injury Lawyers Blog
U.S. Maternal Deaths Are on the Rise
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the United States maternal mortality ratio has increased between 1990 and 2013 by 136%. Between 2003 and 2013, there were 7,210 maternal deaths in the U.S., according to the Center for Disease Control’s (CDC) database. The rise in maternal deaths is stunning compared…
$6.07 Million Jury Verdict Entered in Failure to Treat Preeclampsia That Resulted in Mother’s Death
Karla Fountaine received prenatal care from a general practitioner, the defendant Dr. Cheryl Gill. At the time, she was 34 years old. During her pregnancy, she developed gestational diabetes. When she began bleeding and suffering from increased blood pressure and headache, she was admitted to a hospital but shortly thereafter…
$3.2 Million Settlement Reached for Brain Damaged Child for Failure to Diagnose Herpes
Vonshelle Brothers received her prenatal care, including a Pap smear, at the Brevard County Health Department. A cytopathologist allegedly interpreted the Pap smear as having cellular changes consistent with the herpes simplex virus. However, a health department nurse reported that the test was normal. Her obstetrician did not look at…
Jury Verdict Reversed When Juror Should Have Been Disqualified for Bias
In this medical malpractice case, an appeal was taken by the plaintiff after a jury verdict was entered in favor of the defendant, Mercy Hospitals East, claiming that the trial court abused its discretion. The claim was made that the court chose not to strike for cause a venireperson after…
Illinois Appellate Court Reverses Dismissal of Birth Trauma Injury Case Based on Informed Consent
In August 2015, the plaintiffs, Kristopher Crim and Teri Crim, acting on behalf of their biological son, Collin Crim, filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against the defendant physician, Dr. Gina Dietrich, claiming that she chose not to comply with the standard of care applicable to an obstetrician. The Crims claimed…
Appellate Court Reverses Trial Judge Who Improperly Excluded Expert Testimony as Cause of Brachial Plexus Injury
A Wisconsin appellate court has ruled that a trial judge improperly excluded a defendant physician’s expert testimony. The expert wanted to testify about the maternal forces of labor being a cause of the plaintiff child’s brachial plexus injury. In this case, Leah Bayer and her husband filed a lawsuit against…
Choosing Not to Timely Diagnose Fetal Abnormalities Leads to $1.4 Million Cook County Jury Verdict
Irena Dujmovic-Terman was seven weeks pregnant when she began prenatal care with the defendant obstetrician and gynecologist, Dr. Elliot Levine on Feb. 1, 2008. She was 37 years old at the time. Because of her advanced maternal age, Dr. Levine recommended genetic testing for fetal anomalies. The patient agreed at…
Jury Finds in Favor of Doctor in Shoulder Dystocia Injury Case
On June 6, 2006, the newborn baby, America Camacho, was delivered by the defendant obstetrician, Dr. Sonya Thomas, at Norwegian American Hospital in Chicago. Baby America weighed 10.5 pounds at birth. A medical negligence lawsuit was filed against Dr. Thomas and Norwegian American Hospital. The family of America maintained that…
$44.11 Million Jury Verdict Reduced in Case of Gestational Carrier Who Caused Death of Infant
Andrew and Marni Hotchkiss, a couple in their 30s, were struggling with infertility. They consulted an obstetrician and infertility physician, Dr. Siu Ng-Wagner. The couple and the doctor agreed to use a gestational carrier. As the Hotchkiss family selected potential surrogates online, the couple sent these candidates to Dr. Ng-Wagner…